Summer Intensives
Summer Intensives are for intermediate to advanced dancers ages 12+
June 13-17. $450.
This year, we are ecstatic to announce that we will have two excellent guest instructors, Cara Gary and Eddy Ocampo. See their bios below!
Summer Intensive Guest Instructor Biographies:
Guest Instructor: Eddy Ocampo
Eddy Ocampo, internationally renowned contemporary choreographer and dance teacher, has created ballets in Europe, Mexico, Canada, Russia and throughout the U.S. He has been commissioned for theater, opera and museum installations, among them premieres at the Landestheater Linz in Austria, the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, South Coast Repertory in Southern CA and the St. Petersburg Institut for Contemporary Art in Russia. Eddy has set choreography on such dance companies as Giordano Dance Chicago, Luna Negra Dance Theatre, Thodos Dance Chicago, Eisenhower Dance Ensemble, Houston Metropolitan Dance Company, Odyssey Dance Theatre (Salt Lake City), Kannon Dance (St Petersburg, Russia), and many regional ballet companies in the U.S. He has also taught numerous artistic residencies for some of the most prestigious universities and colleges in the in Europe, Mexico, Canada, Turkey and Russia.
Mr. Ocampo served as school director of the Giordano Dance Center, the director of the Giordano Dance Center Scholarship Program as well as serviced as the rehearsal director of Giordano 2 from 2000-2004. From 2000 - 2013 Eddy served as founding artisitc director for Forum Dance Theatre, a nonprofrit preparatory training program for the young and aspiring dancer in Libertyville IL. Eddy has most recently served was School Director and Acting Artistic Director for the Salt Creek Ballet, a pre-professionol training program and company in Hinsdale, Illinois. He has received many national and international awards for his choreography, among them, Mr. Ocampo is the recipient of the Dance Chicago Outstanding Choreography Awards in 2003 & 2004, the Cliff Dwellers Arts Foundation Choreography Award in 2005 & 2007, the National Choreography Recognition Award for Regional Dance America in 2012 & 2104 and has been honored as the 2005 Filipino American of the Year for his contribution to the arts community. Mr. Ocampo resides in Chicago and is Co-Artistic Director of LEVELdance, a Chicago based, site specific and design based contemporary dance company and the owner of Skin Care For Gents, a skincare clinic in Chicago, IL.
Junior Summer Intensives
Our Junior Summer Intensives offer an immersive dance learning experience for dancers aged 8-11.
June 20-24. $175.
Guest Instructor: Cara Gary
Cara Marie Gary joined The Joffrey Ballet in 2012 and has danced many classical and contemporary roles, including Anna Karenina (Kitty), The Nutcracker (Marie and Sugar Plum Fairy), La Bayadère (Shade and Gamzatti’s Sister), Swan Lake (Pas de trois and Little Swans), Giselle (Peasant Pas de deux and Zulma), Romeo & Juliet (Juliet’s friend), Cinderella (Spring Fairy), Jane Eyre (Adele), and roles in Vespertine, The Four Temperaments, Fool’s Paradise, Orphée et Eurydice, Forgotten Land, Sylvia, Mammatus, Glass Pieces, Interplay, Tulle, Son of Chamber Symphony, Othello, Le Sacre du Printemps, Age of Innocence, Allegro Brillante, Continuum, In Creases, Incantations, Commedia and The Times Are Racing.
Prior to joining The Joffrey Ballet, Ms. Gary danced with American Ballet Theatre’s ABT II and was an apprentice with Orlando Ballet. Her repertoire included roles in The Sleeping Beauty, Stars and Stripes pas de deux, Flames of Paris pas de deux, Continuo, Vivace Motifs, Pavlovsk, and Ballo Per Sei. She has also performed the title role in The Nutcracker, La Sylphide, Don Quixote, Paquita, Coppélia, and Giselle.
Ms. Gary received a Diploma of Laureate at the VI Serge Lifar International Ballet Competition in 2006. Ms. Gary was a top twelve finalist in the Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) National Finals in 2008 and 2009, won the overall Grand Prix Award in the 2009 YAGP regional semi-finals and competed in the IX USA International Ballet Competition held in 2010. In 2014, Nicolas Blanc choreographed Rendez-vous on Ms. Gary and Aaron Smyth for their participation in the X USA IBC, which received the Best Choreography Award.
Ms. Gary received her formal ballet training at International Ballet Academy in Greer, South Carolina, under Vlada Kysselova and Hennadii Bespechnyi. To honor her mother’s legacy, the Gary family and International Ballet founded the Cassandra Gary Memorial Scholarship in 2015, which supports the training of pre-professional students.
Ms. Gary graduated Summa Cum Laude from North Greenville University in May 2014 with a B.S. in Business Administration. She is currently pursuing additional prerequisites to apply to Physical Therapy school.