SUMMER 2025 BALLET INTENSIVE
Grand Rapids Ballet School’s Summer 2025 Ballet Intensive, running from June 23 to July 25, provides students with the opportunity to refine their technique and artistry through daily classes. The program includes training in ballet, contemporary, pointe, repertoire, and variations, along with specialized classes in Progressing Ballet Technique®, jazz, cardio training, and more. Students will also have the unique experience of working with GRB Company dancers and guest faculty. Students will have the opportunity to perform in a showcase at the end of the summer.
OUR SUMMER 2025 FACULTY INCLUDES
Attila Mosolygo
Grand Rapids Ballet School Director
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Attila was born in Kisvarda, Hungary. He received his early training at the National Ballet Institute in Budapest. After moving to the United States, he joined the Joffrey Ballet School. He has performed as a guest artist with Mobile Ballet, Bravo Dance, Harrisburg Ballet, Ballet Theatre of Chicago and the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. Attila spent sixteen years as a company dancer and eight years as a Ballet Master at Grand Rapids Ballet. As a company dancer, a few of his notable roles include The Prodigal Son in George Balanchine’s Prodigal Son, Max in Septime Webre’s Where The Wild Things Are, Charlie Chaplin in Gordon Peirce Schmidt’s Flickers, Tibalt in Mario Radacovsky’s Romeo and Juliet, and Melancholic in George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments. Attila became the Director of the Grand Rapids Ballet School Junior Company in 2011 and School Director in 2017. For the Junior Company, Attila has choreographed Snow White, Peter Pan, Beauty and the Beast, Carnival of the Animals, Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes, and The Wizard of Oz.
James Sofranko
Grand Rapids Ballet Artistic Director
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A dancer for 18 years at San Francisco Ballet, James Sofranko has danced in numerous works and world premieres by choreographers such as Helgi Tomasson, Val Caniparoli, William Forsythe, Liam Scarlett, Justin Peck, Alexei Ratmansky, Edwaard Liang, Lar Lubovitch, Wayne McGregor, Mark Morris, Julia Adam, Yuri Possokhov, Christopher Wheeldon, Paul Taylor, Arthur Pita, Stanton Welch, Jorma Elo, Hans Van Manen, Jiri Kylian, John Neumeier, James Kudelka, Lila York, Kenneth Macmillan, George Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins. Some of his favorite roles include ‘Mercutio’ in Tomasson’s Romeo and Juliet, ‘Eros’ in Mark Morris’ Sylvia, ‘Bugle Boy’ in Taylor’s Company B, and the second sailor in Robbins’ Fancy Free.
He received an Isadora Duncan award (“Izzie”) for Best Performance in 2011 in Yuri Possokhov’s Classical Symphony.
James was featured in the principal role of ‘Eddie’ in the Broadway touring company of Movin’ Out, a musical choreographed by Twyla Tharp to the songs of Billy Joel.
In 2012, Sofranko co-founded DanceFAR (Dance For A Reason), an annual benefit performance and after-party that brings the Bay Area dance community together to support the work of the Cancer Prevention Institute of California (CPIC). In 2014, he received the Inspiration Award from CPIC. To date, DanceFAR has raised over $450,000 in support of their programs and initiatives to prevent cancer.
In 2014, Sofranko formed a new contemporary repertory company in San Francisco, SFDanceworks. The first two seasons have played to sold out houses and the company has presented works by Alejandro Cerrudo, Lar Lubovitch, José Limón, and world premieres by Penny Saunders, James Graham, Danielle Rowe, Dana Genshaft, and James Sofranko.
Sofranko has also created many original choreographic works, including two for the San Francisco Ballet School Trainee program, SFDanceworks, Long Beach Ballet, and Marin Dance Theater. James also works as a repetiteur for Yuri Possokhov, resident choreographer for San Francisco Ballet, and has staged his ballets on Cincinnati Ballet, Colorado Ballet, and San Francisco Ballet.
Along with his duties to Grand Rapids Ballet, Sofranko will continue to develop SFDanceworks, currently presenting a San Francisco season every summer.
Michael Kelly
Contemporary Instructor
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Michael Kelly was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan where he began his dance training at West Michigan Dance Center and the Grand Rapids Ballet School. He later earned his B.F.A. in Dance from NYU Tisch School of the Arts in New York City. Upon graduation, Michael embarked on an international performance career, starting with the world-renowned Feerie at the Moulin Rouge in Paris. During his time in France, he was featured as a Can-Can Soloist in La Grand Soirée à Fontainebleau, a special televised New Year’s Eve celebration. His additional credits include performing with Rambert Contemporary Dance Company in London, the White Light Festival at Lincoln Center, the Bright Lights Gala at the Joyce Theater, and Extravaganza the Show in Las Vegas. Currently based in Las Vegas, Michael is a performer in WOW: A Vegas Spectacular at the Rio Hotel and Casino. While working with Rambert, he toured the UK, showcasing works by renowned choreographers Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Jermaine Spivey, and Andrea Miller. In 2020, he collaborated with 59 Productions on the creation of a groundbreaking show for the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Cultural Center in Kuwait. In addition to performing, Michael is a passionate educator and choreographer. He has taught and created works for institutions such as the Grand Rapids Ballet School, Live Arts Collective, and the Las Vegas Academy of the Arts. Michael has a passion for teaching young dancers, helping them bridge the gap between their training and the professional world
Andi Salazar
Contemporary Instructor
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Born and raised in Santiago, Chile, Andi is a choreographer, dance educator, performer, and sociologist with a multifaceted career. She got her BA degree in Sociology at UC of Chile, the same place where she founded Kazé Dance, a Contemporary dance company where she was the Artistic Director and Choreographer for eight years. In 2017, Andi relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area, California, and obtained her MFA in Dance and Choreography from Mills College. There, she also had the opportunity to perform for choreographers such as Joe Landini and Molissa Fenley and showed her work with her Dance Company “A Pulso Dance Project” at many festivals around the State. During her years in the Bay, Andi also worked as a faculty member at the Bay Area Ballet Conservatory, Shawl Anderson Dance Center, and as a Teaching Artist at Alonzo King Lines Ballet Dance Center. In 2023, she relocated to New York to keep her studies and joined the Master’s degree “Teaching Dance in the Profession: ABT Ballet Pedagogy” at New York University while working as a Teaching Artist for ABT and as an assistant at the ABT JKO School. During her time in NYC, she also did an internship at Peridance Contemporary Dance Company with Igal Perry as an administrative assistant and worked as a Contemporary faculty member for Maria Kowroski’s New Jersey Ballet Summer Intensive. In 2024, she moved to Michigan, where she has taught at UofM Dance Department, Western Michigan University, Alma College, and Grand Rapids Ballet, as well as choreographed for Eastern Michigan University and Grand Valley State University.
