Directors' Bios
Joanna Andriopoulos, Executive Director, has been teaching dance for 30 years. Joanna is proud to be a co-director with her daughter, Elena, and believes a nurturing, family environment in the studio helps students reach their potential. She is a graduate of New York University, with a Master of Arts in Dance Education from the Steinhardt School of Education, and a graduate of Montclair State University, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance. Joanna has been an adjunct professor at DeSales University, teaching Ballet, Montclair State University, teaching Modern, and at Raritan Valley Community College, teaching Ballet, Modern, Jazz and Choreography. She has choreographed numerous original story ballets, including "The Wizard of Oz," "The Little Mermaid," "12 Dancing Princesses," and "Alice in Wonderland," as well as many original productions of "The Nutcracker." She has also set both "Swan Lake" (excerpts) and "Paquita Grand Pas Classique" on her students. She has choreographed for the Gallatin Arts Festival in New York City, for Madison High School's musical theatre production of "The Wizard of Oz", and ballet, modern, tap, jazz and acro works at various studios during her teaching career.
Joanna is an ABT® Certified and Affiliate Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 5 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.
Elena Andriopoulos, Artistic Director, has studied dance since the age of 2 and pre-professional ballet training since the age of 10. As Artistic Director, Elena combines her training in classical and contemporary dance to create captivating and creative choreography for each student. Elena believes that dance training creates a strong person, as a dancer and an individual, teaching them that hard work and perseverance is the way to achieve their goals. She began assisting classes at age 10, and has been involved in dance education since then! Elena holds an MA in Dance Education with a concentration in ABT Ballet Pedagogy from New York University and a BA in Dance from DeSales University. Elena was primarily trained with the ABT NTC in her studio years, along with Modern, Jazz, Tap, and Acro. She has attended the Hartt Ballet Summer intensive twice in Hartford, Connecticut, working with Angel Corella, Amanda McKerrow and John Gardner, and numerous workshops and short summer intensives in the Tri-state area, including the moe-tion dance summer intensive, Centenary College's dance intensive, Somerset County Vo-Tech dance intensive, and classes in New York City at ABT, Gibney, Dance New Amsterdam and at Princeton Dance and Theatre in NJ. Elena's performance credits include: "Flock" by Jessie Young, "Magnificat" by Caroline Fermin, "breaking THE cycle" by Daria Evans, "Eneya" by Maddie Rasbold, "REMembering a dREaM" by Emma Maurer, and "MOVE!" by Maureen Glennon. She has danced almost every role in "The Nutcracker" during her studio training years, and performed in "Paquita," "Swan Lake," and other classical and story ballets.
Elena is an ABT® Certified and Affiliate Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 7 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum. She is also a Fellow with the ABT® NTC, an honor few teachers receive each year. She is also certified in Bolshoi Ballet Academy Method of Teaching Character Dance Level 1.
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Instructors' Bios
Nathan Forster teaches modern. He is an NJ based Dance artist and teacher. With an AFA in dance from Raritan Valley Community College, BA in Theatre from Drew University, and voracious appetite for information, Nathan brings a diverse skill set informed by their theatrical and dance training to cultivate the next generation of dancers. Originally from Berkeley, CA, Nathan has previously danced for choreographers Marissa Aucoin, Stephanie Beauchamp, Loretta Fois, Emmeline Gonzalez-Beban, Lisa Grimes, and Nina Haft. Nathan is also the founding artistic director of ReFrame Dance Theatre, a company devoted to creating accessible dance in surprising places, and has been commissioned by the Rahway Arts+Business Partnership to create outdoor performances for their annual Culture Crawl. Most recently, ReFrame Dance Theatre successfully produced and performed their first evening of performances, Remember Me, in the Rahway Arts District Park. Nathan also just completed an artist residency at Mignolo Arts. Additionally, Nathan performs with Mignolo Dance, and is regularly invited to collaborate and teach in their class series and intensives. He also continually collaborates with West Coast-based choreographer Michael J. Lee on a variety of live and film projects. Nathan’s choreography has been described as surreal, transformative, and “everything you need in a good gumbo at a fancy restaurant.” Nathan’s teaching is heavily influenced by his years of experience developing Pre-K movement curriculum and facilitating dance experiences for seniors; somatic practices including yoga and Feldenkrais; Laban Movement Analysis; and dance training in Cunningham, Hawkins, Limon, Release, and Simonson techniques. In Nathan’s class, dance is a vehicle to develop expressiveness, artistry, and critical thinking. It is his firm belief that the fundamental value of dance class is not to perfect a dance, but to discover all the ways a dance can be perfect.
Nina White teaches adult ballet. Nina has been teaching dance for over 35 years, with a focus on ballet and Limón-based modern. She trained at Joffrey Ballet School, José Limón Dance Foundation, Alvin Ailey American Dance Center, and received her BFA in Dance from New York University Tisch School of the Arts. While attending NYU, she became a founding member of Second Avenue Dance Company. She has also performed with Pearl Lang Dance Ensemble, Labyrinth Dance Theatre, Parparim Dance Ensemble, and more. We are thrilled to bring her extensive experience and enthusiasm to our adult students at West Jersey Youth Ballet!
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Nancy Dafgek teaches adult jazz. Nancy began her journey into dance with the NJ Dance Theatre Guild, a ballet company formed by local New Jersey dance studios under the guidance of a Juilliard-trained teacher. This led her to New York City, where she studied theatre arts extensively and performed in musical theatre star packages, including No No Nanette, Anything Goes, Mame, and George M. She made her Broadway debut in the original musical Heathen (a Hawaiian rock musical) and continued to perform in national tours and Broadway shows such as A Chorus Line, Mack & Mabel (a musical about the silent film era), and Coco (the story of Coco Chanel). Her industrial show credits include The Milliken Breakfast Show and performances for Buick, Armstrong and Playtex. Nancy's acting credits encompass films such as The Godfather Part II and The Taking of Pelham One Two Three; TV appearances on The Edge of Night and commercials for Avon, Hertz and McDonalds. She also worked as a vocalist with Quitman Fludd’s Broadway group, performing at Les Mouches in NYC. After leaving the professional theatre, Nancy continued to perform in dance concerts with Metropolitan Dance Theatre and The Studio Workshop. Her teaching experience in “theatre dance” includes positions at Nelson’s Dance Center, Moretti Art of Dance, Rhythm World, Maureen’s Dance Works, Woodbridge School of Dance, and The Connection. She trained in acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, the Strasberg Institute, and studied “the method” with David LeGrant and Warren Robertson. Her dance training included studies with Luigi, Phil Black, Zena Rommett (body placement), Leonard Fowler, and the NJ/NY Schools of Ballet. Her voice teachers were Howard Schulsinger and Elizabeth Howard.
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Guest Artists & Master Teachers
We've also been honored to have the following guest artists and master teachers join us in the studio:
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Andrew Black, guest teacher, tap & theater choreographer
Michaela Cabales, guest teacher, attending Montclair State University & Peridance Pre-Professional Training Program
Sayako Harada, ABT® Certified Teacher, faculty teacher at Princeton Dance & Theater
Mikhail Ilyin, ABT® Certified Teacher, faculty teacher at ABT JKO School, SLK Ballet, Alvin Ailey
Talin Kenar, ABT® Certified Teacher, director of Princeton Dance & Theater
Andrea Kron, guest teacher, Certificate of Dance from The Ailey School NYC
Jens Lee, guest teacher and performer
Holly Navarro, PT, DPT, CMNT, CMTPT, Elevation Physical Therapy
Georgia Teperikidou, ABT® Certified Teacher
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Additional Staff
Kristen Klein is our Marketing Manager and Front of House Manager. Kristen graduated from New York University with a degree in journalism and mass communication, with a focus on digital media. She’s worked on content creation, marketing initiatives, and social media for national magazine brands, including Good Housekeeping, Ladies' Home Journal, CosmoGIRL!, and Bridal Guide. After leaving the New York City area and settling in Warren County, she transitioned her skills to helping local businesses. ​​She is also certified in Acrobatic Arts Module One and is available for private lessons.
Kate Roehm is our in-house costumer. She has over 20 years of sewing and costuming experience, mostly in historical recreation and fantasy genres. Many of the costumes seen in our spring ballets, as well as newer additions to "The Nutcracker," are Kate's creations! She is also available to design competition costumes for our conservatory students, and she is always ready with a needle and thread backstage in case of any wardrobe emergencies.​ Prior to homeschooling her children and becoming Head of the Board for her co-op; she studied English Lit and Creative Writing at Albertus Magnus College, and was a site director for an after school enrichment program in Hunterdon County.
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Emily Taggart is our Photographer, Competition Assistant, and Family Engagement Coordinator. Emily graduated from Ramapo College with a BA in Art. She transitioned her love for photographing her family and pets into becoming our in-house photographer, with an eye for catching those special moments in a dance, thanks to her years of experience as a “dance mom.” Her favorite dances to watch are ballet and contemporary pieces. Emily especially loves watching our students learn new skills and is always there to cheer them on from the office.
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