Alumni

Graduated 2018

Taylor began her ballet training at Gulfshore Ballet at age 9. During her years at the school, she has performed in Paquita, Sleeping Beauty, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Don Quixote and multiple performances of The Nutcracker, dancing roles ranging from Angel to Lead Spanish. Taylor also danced at The Florida Youth Gala and The International Young Dancers Festival.

Taylor was accepted into and attended the following summer intensives: Saratoga Summer Dance Intensive, Artemotion, Ballet West summer intensive, Vail Valley Dance Intensive and The Rockette summer intensive.

She graduated from De La Salle Academy in 2018, where she was Student Body Vice President her Junior year.

Taylor was awarded a Ballet scholarship at Mercyhurst University where she was a Dance Major. In addition she was awarded merit scholarships for her academics.

Taylor would like to thank Iliana, Franklin and all at Gulfshore Ballet for the wonderful training and opportunities she has enjoyed. She will miss her ballet family and all the special friendships she formed over the years. Gulfshore Ballet will always be her second home and she continues to take classes at GSB when she can.

Gulfshore Ballet’s Pre-Professional Division Graduate 2017

Adele Devito developed a love for dance at the age of two and studied classical ballet at Gulfshore Ballet since 2006. Adele has performed in numerous Gulfshore Ballet productions over the course of 10 years. She contributes her personal strengths and successes to her classical training and indicates the discipline and focus she has learned as a dancer is responsible for many of her artistic and academic achievements. Adele’s passion for dance afforded her the honor of volunteering at the Harlem Heights Center where she taught beginning ballet classes and tutored children.

Adele graduated Summa Cum Laude from Canterbury School High School in 2017. Honor designations include: High Honor Role, National Honor Society,  Rho Kappa Honor Society, National English Honor Society, Senior Class President, Distinguished Artist, Canterbury Scholar-Athlete Society,  Citizenship Award, Yearbook Senior Staff Editor, 5 Varsity Letters Girls Lacrosse and Senior Team Captain, Leadership Club Member conducting Research and Environmental Studies and Community Service in the Dominican Republic and Belize, Book Award University of Rochester, Book Award University of Notre Dame, Bright Futures Florida Academic Scholar and earned over $500K in Academic Award Scholarships.

Adele attended the University of Miami majoring in Business and says that:

“Dancing is a part of me and it always will be, and for that I will be grateful to those who helped bring something this impactful into my life.”

Graduated 2017

Shelbi was a student at Gulfshore Ballet for 8 years and studied under Franklin Gamero, Iliana Lopez and Karen Brown. She was a ballet trainee at the Joffrey Ballet School in New York City studying with Francesca Corkle, Akop and Giane Akopian, Andrei and Era Jouravlev, Maximilian Baud, Larisa Calero, Joyce King, JoiLynn Hopkins and Marina Bogdonova.

Through the years Shelbi has performed in The Nutcracker, La Bayadere, Romeo and Juliet, Don Quixote, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Tribute, Paquita, Pas de Quarte, Tabla by Franklin Gamero and Iliana Lopez and originals by Joyce King and Larisa Calero.

Graduated 2016

Kelli Guenther was born in Fort Myers, Florida. She started dancing at the age of 2 and has been dancing for 16 years. She has done all types of dance including dance competitions, but ballet won her heart and she danced at Gulfshore Ballet for 6 years. During that time, Kelly was in all of the performances and most of the Gulfshore Ballet outreach community programs.

Kelli graduated from the class of 2014 at Fort Myers High School, attended the University of Central Florida with plans to study nursing with the aspirations of becoming a neonatal nurse. She continued dancing in college and is appreciative of everything that Gulfshore Ballet has taught her.

Graduated 2016

Dominika Hulley-Buczny, also known as Mimi, was born in Warsaw, Poland. Mimi began dancing at three years old and  joined Gulfshore Ballet when she was 4 years old. Through the years, Mimi has performed in almost every Nutcracker and Spring performance with Gulfshore Ballet and attended summer ballet programs such as The Rock School in Pennsylvania and SSDI in New York.

She had also engaged in the opportunity to dance with Miami City Ballet, New York City Ballet and Moscow Ballet. For Mimi’s very last Nutcracker in December of 2013, she danced the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy. In addition to attending Fort Myers High School and being a part of the rigorous IB program for four consecutive years, Mimi taught ballet to students of all ages outside of the studio.

After graduating in the top 2% of her class, Mimi was accepted to Pennsylvania State University to study Forensic Science with plans to be part of the FBI headquarters in Quantico, Virginia and to become a Forensic Analyst.

Graduated 2015

Deidre Rogan (Warren, OH) began her dance training in Fort Myers, FL at Gulfshore Ballet under the direction of Melinda Roy and Roberto Munoz. She also trained in summer intensives at Miami City Ballet, The School at Jacob’s Pillow and Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet. Ms. Rogan has worked with choreographers Milton Myers, Matthew Rushing, Hope Boykin, Ronald K. Brown, Sonia Dawkins and Cheryl Copeland and performed in Alvin Ailey’s Memoria during Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s 2012 New York City Center season.

She is a three time recipient of a BIG ARTS awards scholarship and a National Young Arts award scholarship. In May 2015, Ms. Rogan graduated with honors from the Ailey/Fordham BFA Program in Dance and she danced with Ailey II.

Graduated 2015

Julia, a resident of Fort Myers, completed her final year of classical ballet training at Gulfshore Ballet in May of 2013. Julia began dancing at the young age of 3 and came to Gulfshore Ballet in 2001, at the age of 5. Julia recalls that her first performance was in The Nutcracker performing the Dance of the Angels. In 2012 Julia performed as The Sugar Plum Fairy, which is considered by many to be the most sought-after role in The Nutcracker Ballet.

Julia has always appreciated the discipline and athletic benefits of ballet which she says has taught her perseverance. Julia defines the image of all the grace and beauty of a ballerina and lights up the stage with every performance. Her experiences include performing in numerous ballets, summer ballet intensives, and workshops.

Julia was a competitive dance student at Fort Myers High School, enrolled in the IB Program and graduated in 2013 with an impressive GPA of 5.05. Julia was accepted to the University of Florida where she studied Political Science and Psychology.