Beth Brier Artistic Director Beth received her training at the Pennsylvania Ballet School as a scholarship student under the direction of Barbara Weisberger. She was soloist with Dance Theatre of Penna. and Jazz Dance Theatre of Penna. She has produced events with such notables as Debra Brown, Emmy Award Winning Choreographer of Cirque du Soleil. After Teaching in 8 states and traveling as Master Teacher for many years, Beth created BB's Dance & Circus Arts of Tampa Bay with the vision of providing children with professional level training and performing opportunities in a fun and stimulating environment.  In 2008 Beth was awarded a grant from the Pinellas County Arts Council to further her education and research in building the Circus Arts program for her school. Her students have been seen in local high profile performances for Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Make A Wish Foundation, Saks Fifth Ave., Push Lounge, Tampa Bay Times Forum, Jannus Landing, and various corporate events and weekly Saturday night performances at Casa Tina's Mexican Restaurant in downtown Dunedin. Marsha Wilson Classical Ballet Workshops Marsha began dancing with Academy of Ballet Arts in St. Petersburg, Fl. under the guidance of Suzanne Pomerantzeff and Lester Jacobsen. She attended the University of Utah as a dance major before joining the Milwaukee Ballet. Upon returning to Florida, she danced with the Southern Ballet Theatre in Orlando for several years. Currently, she choreographs works for performances and international ballet competitions and teaches for several dance studios in the local area. Beth LaBaren-Root Ballet, Modern & Childrens' Ballet Beth LaBaren-Root holds a BA in Dance and a Masters of Public Administration / Non-Profit Leadership from Western Michigan University.She has been active in the dance field for more than 25 years as an educator, choreographer and arts administrator.  She recieved her training in Chicago at Giordano Dance Center, Hubbard Street, Joel Hall Studio and Ruth Page Ballet.  She has studied intensively with a number of leading dance masters including Brenda Buffalino, Gus Giordano, Matt Mattox, and Billy Seigenfield, among others.  Beth has done work for numerous community dance centers, arts programs, school districts and colleges including Western Michigan University, Saint Marys College of Notre Dame, Kalamazoo College and  Southwestern Michigan College, where she held the position of Director of Dance from 2001-May 2012.  She recently relocated to Florida and now teaches dance at Hillsborough Community College and is a guest choreographer this season for the University of Tampa. And we are totally excited to have her!	Iliana S. Babadjanova Classical Ballet Iliana S. Babadjanova graduated cum Laude (Honor Student/ Dean’s List) in 1988 from the National Ballet Academy in Sofia, Bulgaria. Two years before graduation she was already selected and danced in the corps de ballet of the Sofia National Opera. Upon graduation she became a full time employee of the National Theater, where she worked eight years. In 1990 Iliana was awarded the prestigious first prize in the National Bi-Annual Ballet Festival in Tolbuhin, Bulgaria. In 1991 she was invited to teach ballet in Italy for one year. She returned back to the National Opera as soloist in major classics such as Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Nutkracker, Giselle and Don Quixotte. She worked under the direction of Kolpakova and Gregorovitch, while touring extensively through Europe and Asia. She also accepted a position as an assistant teacher at the National Ballet Academy. In 1994 Iliana began working at a Private Art School as Head of the Dance Department, until she moved to the USA in 1997. Miranda Heitz Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern & Childrens' Dance Miranda has been teaching Preschool through Adult in Ballet, Pointe, Tap, Jazz, Lyrical, Modern, Contemporary, Musical Theater and Hip Hop for the past 16 years. She was a dance major at Ball State University. She received her training from many schools including the Fort Wayne Ballet and The Ft. Wayne Dance Collective in Indiana before moving to Florida. She also obtained her Royal Academy of Dance certificate and was awarded "Highly Commended" on her ballet exams. She has trained under many major instructors around the world including jazz dancer Frank Hatchett, ballerina and author of "The Pointe Book" Janice Barringer, modern choreographer Bill Evans, tap master Sam Fiorello and many Hip Hop dancers from America's Best Dance Crew. Miranda's students have gone on to perform on TV, theater, cruise ships, or have become college dance majors or teachers themselves.  She is a teacher first and foremost and believes in giving her students a great environment to learn in, her classes being fun, educational and inspiring. She is a great role-model for kids of all ages. Jamie Damiani Irish Dance Jamie Damiani is an award winning Irish dance champion and has trained with the internationally renowned Drake School of Irish Dance under the direction of Mr. Karl Drake, TCRG. She was a troupe member and soloist in the nationally known show 'Dancing on Common Ground' which toured throughout North America, was the lead dancer in the popular show 'Spirits of Fire' that performed to sold-out audiences, and performed as a lead dancer in numerous local shows and events including performances at Disney World's Epcot Center in Orlando, Fl. Jamie and her husband / dance partner, Federico, began teaching Irish dance at BB's Dance Factory when the school first opened in 2000. After taking a bit of time off from teaching, she is back with the BB's Dance and Circus Arts family ready to share her love and knowledge of Irish dance with you!   Federico Damiani Irish Dance Federico started his dancing career at 17 with the Butler School of Irish Dance in Tampa, FL. He was considered a bit on the older side, but with persistance and hard work he got to the highest possible level in competition by the time he was 21. He later joined the Drake School of Irish Dance, where he went on to win three regional titles qualifying him for the Irish Dance World Championships and went on to win countless national competitions. He developed Spirits of Fire, a local production that performed at private parties, city events and also at the prestigious Royalty Theater. By 22, he was performing the Irish dance lead role in the international production Dancing on Common Ground where he performed for audiences all over the nation. After he left the show, he came back to Florida to continue his training as well as to instruct students, and help them rise up the levels of Irish Dancing in a fun and consistent manner. He has given workshops and lessons all over the United States instructing people of all ages, dance backgrounds and levels. In 2006, he decided to take a break from performing and teaching to focus on raising a family and persuing other artistic intrests. Now he is returning to teach locally, focusing on helping others become the best dancers they can be, having lots of fun along the way!
Taylor Lubecki Circus Arts Taylor has trained through her younger years in diving & gymnastics. She is also trained in Classical Ballet, Modern & Jazz. Bringing all of that to our Circus Arts program makes her an impressive performer and instructor. She has trained Contortion under Catie Brier and Mongolian coach Serchmaa Byamba at the San Francisco Circus Center, along with various aerial coaches nationally in Hammock, Lyra and Tissue. Taylor was specifically invited to perform in LA for 2 years for Author Services International Awards Ceremony and has performed locally for Tampa Bay Times Forum, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Saks Fifth Ave., One Voice Foundation, Casa Tina's Mexican Restaurant, Push Lounge & various corporate events.  Kurt Krynski Circus Arts Kurt is trained in classical ballet, modern, contact improv and aerial work. He trained classical ballet under Alberto Alonzo in Gainesville, Fl and has worked in NYC with the Jose Limon Dance Company and Fly By Night aerial/dance company. He has delighted audiences at Busch Gardens for years and you might even have a picture of him at the gate with your kids if you've visited there! He runs our Stiltwalking training along with preparing our professional aerialists for performances. Kurt is the strongest little man we have ever run across and takes great pride in training our students to professional, polished levels. Tieli Rasmussen Advanced Aerial Tieli comes to us from Brazil. We are fortunate enough to have found her after touring with Ringling Brothers. She brings a wealth of teaching knowledge, performance experience and attention to safety issues to our aerial program. She is utterly amazing to watch perform.	Jessica Watson Circus Arts Jessica hails from Sarasota, where she grew up in the circus. Her grandmother did circus, her mother did circus and now we have Jessica! She trained with the P.A.L. Sailor Circus for 10 years, eventually becoming Ringmaster and mastering every circus skill she could manage. She has worked with Universal Studios in various show capacities. She also spent several summers at circus camps training lots of children and creating shows for lots of children. Jessica is trained in spotting and accident prevention.
Catie holding her handstand while being interviewed by Charlie Belcher of Good Day Tampa Bay Catie Brier Acrobatics & Contortion After a full schedule of dance training for years, Catie decided to run off and join the circus. Since then she has trained with Mongolian Contortionist, Sergima and Master Lu Yi of China at the San Francisco Circus Center. Catie now performs at many events throughout the US, including performances at Alcatraz, the Queen Mary cruise ship, Teatro Zinzanni and Super Bowl 2008. Catie manages to fit into her intense training and performing regime returning to the Tampa Bay Area for workshops and performances with Dance & Circus Arts. You can see her perform in our upcoming "Fairies, Inc." production www.fairiesinc.org. Or see more of Catie at   www.catiebriercontortion.com to see her demo and photos.