Danielle Balciunas
Program Founder and Director
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
Danielle Balciunas received her early exposure through the city of Fontana parks and Recreation department. Despite this humble introduction to dance, Ms Danielle learned the most important lesson of her career at the tender age of 7; the power of an exceptionally caring teacher. Under the guidance of ms Laura Torres, Danielle gained a broad exposure to the worlds of dance and musical theatre.
In 2005 Ms Danielle joined Heartbridge INC (through YWAM ministries) as a dancer touring through Hawaii, China, and California. She then went on to become a dancer for Light of the World Ballet Co in Syracuse, NY for the 2007-2008 season. Thereafter she returned to southern California and had the privilege to continue her classical ballet training under the tutelage and mentorship of Sofia Carreras through the Riverside City College dance Department and as a dancer for Intersect Dance Theatre. Ms Danielle also had the opportunity to begin exploring her range as a contemporary dance performer under the mentorship of Stephanie Gilliland, also through the RCC Dance Department and as a dancer for Infinitum Nataraj.
Ms Danielle completed her B.A. in World Arts and Cultures with a concentration in Dance from UCLA in 2012. Upon graduating, she established A Terre School of Dance.
She has had the privilege of performing in The Nutcracker with Inland Dance Theatre and Anaheim Ballet. At the suggestion of her late mentor, Sofia Carreras she took the stage as Sugar Plum Fairy in her production of The Nutcracker in 2019 receiving coaching from the late Stefan Wenta. From 2014-2020 she trained extensively through the open programs at Maple Conservatory of Dance, Westside Ballet, and Southland Ballet. She was fortunate to receive caring and dedicated instruction from Charles Maple, Hanna Przyludzka-Karacic, and Stella Viorica. She also had the privilege to learn in the classrooms of Tong Wang, Maria Cifuentes, and Kristin Hakala.
After first meeting Ms Hanna Pryludzka-Karacic in 2016, Ms Danielle became eager to study, learn, dance, and teach the Vaganova method. However this journey was interrupted by the pandemic shut down. During this time she moved to Colorado with her husband and spent most of her time focusing on supporting the teachers and students at A Terre School of Dance to simply stay engaged with remote learning.
However, in January, 2022 she had the special opportunity to resume studying the Vaganova method as a dancer for the Ballet Melange professional training program under the direction of Vaganova Academy alumnus, Elizabeth Shipiatsky. After a year and a half at Ballet Melange Ms Danielle decided to end her trainee commitment in order to focus on becoming certified to teach the Vaganova method. Though the Bolshoi academy program, Ms Danielle holds certification in the pre ballet and levels 1-6 syllabi in addition to the historical dance syllabus for level 1. In an effort to be the example of the dedication required for technical excellence Ms Danielle continues to train as an independent dancing artist. She is currently coached by Ms. Hanna Pryludzka-Karacic, Elizabeth Shipiatsky, and Ms. Stella Viorica.
In the fall of 2023 she established Aplomb Ballet Artistry LLC. Ms Danielle currently teaches full time for Aplomb Ballet Artistry in addition to creating choreography and dancing along side her students and fellow teachers for original and classical productions at Aplomb Ballet Artistry.
.
​​
Additional Teachers:
​​​​
Kelsey Hutchison
Liliana Watson
Cheyanne Rae Martinez
Karen Francis
​
Bios and photos coming soon
​
Remote Guest Teachers:
​
Liezl Austria
https://terpsballet.com/about-us
​
Dmitri Tuboltsev
