Marissa Baney is seventeen years old and a senior at Gibbs High School as a Dance major at the Pinellas County Center for the Arts. This is her third year dancing at the Academy of Ballet Arts while she previously attended John Hopkins Middle School and Perkins Elementary School for Dance. She has participated in many performances throughout her training including the Nutcracker and Paquita with Academy of Ballet Arts and Fall Dance Show, Senior Projects, and numerous showcases as well as music collaborations at Gibbs High School. In addition to her love for dance, she is also a skilled cellist and has performed in many musicals as well. This year in the Nutcracker she is excited to be in Reed Pipes, Snow Corps, Waltz, and a Big Mouse. Although she is sad that this is her last Nutcracker production with the Academy of Ballet Arts, she has loved performing and would like to thank her friends, family, and teachers for supporting her.
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Lacie Bibelhauser is an 18-year-old senior who attends The PCCA Dance Program at Gibbs High School with a 4.0 GPA. This is her second year attending the Academy of Ballet Arts but began dancing at the age of 5 and has fallen in love with dance since. She has studied a broad range of dance styles such as ballet, modern, jazz, and contemporary. She has been a part of many performances throughout her years such as ABA’s Nutcracker and Spring Show, PCCA’s Fall concerts, A performance at the Straz with PCCA, and a performance on St. Petersburg’s central Avenue with Arts Conservatory for Teens. Her future plans consist of majoring in dance for college and continuing on with her passion and love for dance and the arts. She feels bittersweet about graduating this year and wants to thank all her teachers, friends, and family for helping her become the person she is today.
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Sophia Poole is seventeen years old and a senior at St. Petersburg High School in the Early College Program with St. Petersburg College. She began dancing at the Academy of Ballet Arts at age two and discovered her love for ballet. Throughout her education, at the Academy of Ballet Arts, she has participated in numerous shows and received many lead roles including roles in The Nutcracker such as Arabian, Spanish Lead, and Reedpipes Lead. In this year’s Nutcracker, she has the great joy of performing Sugar Plum Fairy and Snow Queen. This being her senior year, Sophia is sad this show is her final Nutcracker with the Academy of Ballet Arts; however, she is forever grateful for her incredible experiences dancing with this company. Sophia would like to personally thank all of her teachers, friends, and family for being her biggest supporters.
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