Mary Rotella - Musical Dance Theatre - Ballet - Tap - Acting
Mary Rotella received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance from
Stephens College, where she also studied voice and acting. Her National Tour
and Broadway credits include 42nd Street, Cabaret with Joel Gray and Jerome
Robbins’ Broadway. She performed in an international tour of My Fair Lady and
several regional productions including, Damn Yankees directed by George
Abbott. Mary has also appeared in
industrial shows, commercials and on film. She’s directed and choreographed in
the United States and abroad. After a successful career as a freelance artist,
Mary transitioned to academia teaching both theater and dance courses. She
served as Chair of Dance at Stephens (2002-2007), Director of Dance at The
Masters School in Dobbs Ferry (2008-2016) and Chair of Performing Arts at The
John Cooper School in the Woodlands, TX (2016-2019). Mary is thrilled to be
back in New York working as a freelance actor, director/choreographer, and
teacher.
Setsuko Maruhashi - Ballet
Setsuko
Maruhashi was
born and raised in Japan and started her ballet training at the age of eight.
After moving to NY, she added jazz, tap and modern to her dance training. She
became the first minority Rockette at Radio City Music Hall and
performed for many years in numerous productions, including: The Christmas
Spectacular, The Easter Show, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Super Bowl
half-time show, and Late Night with David Letterman. She also performed in
musicals and industrial shows. She holds a BA in dance from Empire State
College, SUNY and is a certified personal trainer and an accredited Pilates
instructor. Before moving to Red Hook,
she taught from introduction level to open level ballet and her own
private-group fitness class over 20 years in New York City. At Garage
Dance Co-Operative, she teaches a 90 minute beginner/advanced beginner level
ballet class for adults on Tuesdays in a friendly, supportive and
non-competitive environment.

Ellen Chrystal - Argentine Tango
Ellen Chrystal - Ellen Chrystal has been teaching Argentine Tango in the Mid-Hudson Valley for over fifteen years. She founded Tango New Paltz and Tango Hudson, as well as teaching classes in Rhinebeck and Red Hook. The Hudson Valley has a thriving tango community and there are many opportunities to dance socially. Classes at GDC are currently available for Int./Adv. level dancers. Everyone is welcome. No partner is necessary, as we change partners throughout class. We are also planning to offer a beginner tango class in the near future!

Jeanette Kravic - Ballet - Tap - Combo Class
Miss
Jeannette is pleased to join us and brings to us her extensive dance training,
and passion for the dance. She has studied under the direction of Tom Adair and
was a member of the Poughkeepsie Ballet Theater and the Dutchess Dance Theater
performing several principal roles and as a featured soloist in many a
Nutcracker. She has performed in many ensembles and has been cast in dozens of
plays to include Oliver, Taming of the Shrew, The Apple Tree, The Man Who Came
to Dinner, George M. Cohan. She began her love for dance at the Pinewood Ballet
Academy where she trained in Jazz and Tap for 1981-1989. She continued her
dance studies at SUNY Albany, Union College, and the Guilderland Dance Center.
Jeannette settled down in Red Hook NY to become a Mom of her three lovely
children, and now as they are older has the time to return to her love of
dance. She has taught for the Poughkeepsie Civic Ballet Company, and the
Pinewood School of Ballet in children’s ballet, and combination classes.
Jeannette is excited to meet her new students and looks forward to a great year
of dance, and of course, learning the fundamentals!
Toni Hedges - ZUMBA
Toni Hedges has been a group exercise instructor since 1985.
I have taught it all- aerobics , Step, strength, stretch , cycle and
most recently, Zumba and senior fitness. My love for dance and Latin music has
made Zumba the perfect fit for me. The
aging process has shown me just how important regular exercise is for our
physical and mental health