A native of New York City, Ralph Ramirez has earned his place in the world of dance the old fashioned way: raw talent and tireless perseverance. Having performed at Studio 54, Limelight, Dance Fever, Star Search and The ...

In 1978, Vida Vongsay was living in a refugee camp in Thailand. Born in Laos, her family fled the Communist takeover when she was seven, escaping to Thailand by boat. Thirty years later, Vida doesn’t remember much about ...

John is one dancer who can truly say he was “discovered.” After mastering the bass clarinet, earning a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Music from Florida State University, and spending a lot of time on the West Palm Beach ...

Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name... If you ask Abe Catalan, this should be the theme song for his Dance Elite Dance Club, the atmosphere of which is often compared with the camaraderie at Cheers. ...

Part therapist, part dance instructor, part friend. Allan Alday fills his students’ dance cards with more than just a turn around the dance floor at Dance Alday Studio, the only ballroom dance studio in Jacksonville ...

As an accomplished performer, choreographer, instructor and competitor, Richard Mathews has attracted a loyal following of dance enthusiasts and fun-seekers to his studio. Richard learned to dance in his native Puerto ...

Sarwat Kaluby has literally danced his way around the world. After performing with companies that have taken him, among other places, to France, Russia and Japan and giving guest performances at the Royal Ballet, the ...

Brent’s love affair with all things musical goes back decades. He’s traveled with gospel groups as a professional singer, directed music programs at churches and written and produced albums. Ask him what his greatest ...

Despite the success and steady growth of their ballroom dance academy in Russia, Marina and Vasiliy Vlasova were becoming more and more unsettled by the economic and political instability gripping their country in the ...

After graduating from Jacksonville University with degrees in Accounting and Dance and spending two years as Captain of the Jacksonville Jaguars Roar, Brittany Bines began teaching ballroom at Dance International. She’s ...