From Student to Teacher, Julia Galanski Returns to The Ridgefield School of Dance

 

The Ridgefield School of Dance has been delighted to welcome back Julia Galanski, now completing her first year of teaching at the school.

Ms. Galanski first slipped on ballet shoes at the age of five at The Ridgefield School of Dance, and by her RHS 2012 graduation, she had danced leading roles in Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake, and the Nutcracker. Following graduation, she studied at NYU Tisch, where she earned a BFA in Dance and performed the works of choreographers Deborah Jowitt, Sean Curran, and Gregory Dolbashian, among others. She trained and performed with the Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance and the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance.

When Executive Director Alison Brown began her new faculty search last year, she thought of Galanski as a natural first choice—an accomplished student, professional dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Artistic Director Jessica Boelts recalls, “Julia was an exceptional dancer even as a young child, and it has been such a delight to see her progress and success, first as a student, and then as a professional dancer and choreographer. We are so pleased and proud to welcome her back to the studio, where she has become a valued teacher and member of our dance community.”

At The Ridgefield School of Dance, Galanski teaches Ballet 3 to children ages 7-9, and also leads workshops in contemporary dance. With her ballet students, she focuses on barre work and building her students’ fundamental strength and technique, creating a solid foundation for them. She loves working with the group she describes as bright and curious, playful and excited to be in class, and “with lots of good questions.” She finds the opportunity to help her students develop and gain confidence to be most important and rewarding.

In addition to her teaching responsibilities, Galanski performs with Third Rail Projects in Then She Fell, an award-winning immersive theater production in New York. She also dances as a company member in Katelyn Halpern and Dancers, with the upcoming world premiere of JUICE at the Alchemical Theatre Laboratory in New York. With training from San Francisco to Salzburg, Galanski enjoys returning to Ridgefield to teach in the community that first instilled her love of dance.