Instructors
Ballet, Pointe, Contemporary, 305 Fitness, SWERK, PBT, Conditioning
Kerry Kapaku
She/Her - Founder & Owner
Originally from Westford, MA, Kerry Kapaku began studying ballet at the age of 4, and then later continued her training at Southern NH Dance Theater under the direction of Patricia Lavoie.
Upon graduating high school, Kerry relocated to Columbus, OH to join BalletMet Columbus as a trainee. After realizing a love for modern and contemporary dance, Kerry enrolled in the Department of Dance at The Ohio State University on scholarship.
Kerry graduated with a BFA in dance performance and education with Magna Cum Laude honors and Distinction in Dance. During her time at Ohio State, Kerry studied ballet and contemporary dance with teachers such as Rodney Brown, Karen Elliot, Daniel Roberts, and Susan Hadley.
Kerry has a passion for teaching and has taught at many studios in the Ohio/Indiana region (as well as in New England), including BalletMet, Dance New England, Lafayette Ballet, and most recently, Expressenz Dance Center.
After moving to Indianapolis in 2014, Kerry performed professionally with Ballet Theatre of Indiana and Gregory Hancock Dance Theatre, performing ensemble and soloist roles.
In addition to holding a special place in her heart for ballet, Kerry has also discovered an developed a passion and talent for vintage jazz and swing dancing, and currently travels the country teaching and competing in Lindy Hop and St. Louis Shag.
Tap, Ballet, Conditioning
Gabby Morrison
She/Her - General Manager
Gabrielle Morrison started ballet at the age of 2 and performed in her first Nutcracker a few months after turning 3. At age 9 Gabby had her first tap class and knew she found her focus for her dancing passion. Gabby continued her training in tap, ballet, jazz and more with various studios across Central Indiana. She has been involved in 20+ full length ballet performances including: Cinderella in Cinderella; Dew Drop in The Nutcracker; Peasant Pas in Giselle. She is a theatre veteran and has performed, choreographed and stage managed for various shows and theaters over the past 15 years. Her choreography was most recently seen in CYT’s production of Peter Pan. Gabby was a member of the Circle City Tap Company from 2014-2019.
Over the years she has been certified in POUND fitness; SCW Barre Fitness; Zumba. Even with nearly a decade of teaching experience, Gabby is thankful and grateful for every minute she gets to spend teaching and sharing her art with others.
Ballet
Filipe Aragao
He/Him
A native of Brazil, Filipe Aragão began his ballet training at the age of 19 at Studio de Dança Luzia Aureliano in 2014. Within a few months, he was awarded a scholarship to study at Ballet Academy East in New York under the direction of Darla Hoover, former dancer with New York City Ballet and current Chair of Faculty of the School of American Ballet. While there, Filipe had the opportunity to work with renowned teachers and choreographers, such as Wendy Whelan, Ashley Bouder, and Claudia Schreier. One of his favorite performances was that of his graduation year, when he had the honor of performing in George Balanchine’s Donizetti Variations.
Filipe’s professional career began in 2017, joining Huntsville Ballet Company under the direction of Phillip Otto, where he danced for one season and also taught at Huntsville Ballet School under the direction of Rachel Butler. In 2018, he joined Utah Metropolitan Ballet performing works by George Balanchine, Heather Gray, Alan Hineline, and Jacqueline Colledge, founding artistic director of the company. While working with Utah Metropolitan Ballet, he choreographed two ballets for the second company that was selected to be performed at the Ballet Alliance Festival, and one for the main company. In Utah, Filipe also was a faculty member at Center Stage Performing Arts Studio, where he taught for two years. In 2020, he joined Indianapolis Ballet as a company dancer and faculty member of the Indianapolis School of Ballet (ISB). During his time in Indianapolis, he choreographed two ballets performed by the company and 4 ballets performed by students of ISB. In 2022, Filipe joined Ballet Tucson as a principal dancer and coordinator of the Trainee program at the School of Ballet Tucson. During his season there, he got the opportunity to perform works as the principal role in Balanchine’s Allegro Brilliante and the soloist man in “In Creases” by the Tony Award winner choreographer Justin Peck.
Heels, Hip Hop
Zoé Curry
She/Her
Zoé Curry is a South Bend native that fell in love with dance at the age of 13. She was a member of the Clay High School Dance magnet program, which brought on opportunities for competition through the poms team throughout her high school career. She also held lead dance roles in musicals such a Grease, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dream Coat, and Aida from 2010 to 2014. Zoe continued her dance career at IU- South Bend, joining the IUSB Dance Company, IUSB Tap Kick line, and IUSB African Dance Troup which preformed locally and at the University of Notre Dame. She began her teaching career with Southold Dance Theatre and Stanley Clark elementary running multiple of the creative movement classes fall of 2015. In 2016 she began her dance fitness career working along side Abbi Polyea at Tu Sei Bella and more recently with Movement Made Beautiful in Granger, IN. teaching Cardio Hip Hop for adults and Hip Hop for ages 9 to 13. In 2018 she had the opportunity to coach John Adams High’s School Dance Team, and was invited to many high school empowerment groups for young women in the Michigan area. Eventually wanting to take a small break from the world she was familiar with, she recently moved to Indianapolis spring of 2020 transferring to IUPUI and to start her dance career over by learning and getting back to the basics. She is thrilled to be sharing her love for dance with the DanceWorks Indy community!
Conditioning, Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Contemporary, Hip Hop
Arianna (Ari) Davis
She/Her
Arianna Davis (better known as Ari) is best known for her experience working as a professional dancer in the industry. Arianna has been traveling across the US and overseas performing at festivals and on tours! She is trained in all styles of dance including but not limited to ballet, tap, Jazz, hip hop, contemporary, and musical theatre. She loves dance because it allows her to express the feelings and emotions that she cannot say with words. Her main goal in life is to spread joy through music and dance. She is so excited to bring her skills to the table at Dance Works Indy!
SWERK
Mandy Hogan
She/Her
Mandy Hogan was born and raised in Beech Grove, IN. As a young girl she loved to sing and dance. Though her family at the time did not have the means to send her to dance class, she would play and replay dance videos of her favorite pop artists to learn choreography and perform for her family (sorry mom!). Throughout high school she was involved in cheerleading and show choir and continued her hobby of learning pop star choreography.
In college, Mandy was able to take some jazz dance classes and join the Anderson University swing dancing club. In 2008, she started traveling and attending Lindy Hop workshops around the Midwest and by 2010 she was performing, competing, and teaching. Today, Mandy works as a dental hygienist at the Atterbury Job Corps and teaches swing dancing locally and at events across the US. Though her primary dance focus the past 11 years has been swing (specifically Lindy Hop and Vernacular Jazz), she has always had a love for movement and can often be found binge watching YouTube hip hop videos.
Recently, Mandy has completed a certification in SWERK, LLC. She is excited to be a part of the DanceWorks Indy team and to be leading a new-to-Indianapolis class that is fun, upbeat, and uplifting.
Contemporary, Jazz, Ballet
Margo Korn
She/Her
Margaret “Margo” Korn began her pre-professional training at Expressenz Dance Center in Indianapolis, IN. Margo earned her BFA in Dance, alongside a BA in Health and Human Physiology, from the University of Iowa in May 2018 where she performed in works by Melinda Myers, Christopher Rasheem-McMillan, Rennie Harris, Jennifer Kayle, Eloy Barragán, Armando Duarte, Autumn Eckman, Chafin Seymour, and Marc Macaranas. Margo joined the Chicago dance community in 2018 on work-study with Hubbard Street’s Lou Conte Dance Studio and began her professional career as an apprentice with the Cambrians. While in Chicago, she free-lanced as both a choreographer and performer including performances with Chicago Dances 2019, the American Dance Guild Festival 2019 in NYC, Emergence Dance Festival and On Being Well. Additionally, Margo has spent summers with various programs including: chuthis., The Cambrians, DanceWorks Chicago, the Jordan Academy of Dance, BalletMet, and the Joffrey Ballet. She is so excited to be re-joining the Indianapolis dance community!
Musical Theatre, Jazz
Kali Libby
She/Her
Kali Libby grew up in the world of musical theater where began her love of the performing arts. She studied at Columbia College in Chicago, College of Dupage, and Northern Illinois University where she had the opportunity to work with decorated faculty members like Paige Cunningham Caldarella, Jon Sloven, and Paula Franz. Kali has choreographed numerous productions throughout the Midwest as well as been a guest teacher and coach to organizations such as Paramount School of the Arts and Iowa State University’s Orchasis. Kali has a passion for teaching all ages and abilities, as well as creating choreography that highlights each student’s talents and abilities.
Ballet, Tap, Contemporary, Jazz
Madison Mora
She/Her
Madison Mora, from Indianapolis, started dancing at 5 years old within the competitive and convention world, training in styles including jazz, ballet, tap, contemporary, hip-hop, musical theatre, and lyrical. In high school, she was also an active member of the seven-time, state-winning dance team, the Brebeuf Jesuit Dance Team. After high school, Madison earned a BFA in Dance and a BAJ in Journalism at Indiana University, recently graduating in May 2022. There, she trained under Liz Shea, Selene Carter, Baba Stafford, Beatrice Capote, Lalah Hazelwood, Christian Claessens, and Robert Burden with particular emphasis in the styles of modern, contemporary, the African Diaspora, improvisation, House, and ballet. At IU, she also presented her own choreographic works in departmental shows and performed in professional works by Azuki Umeda, Cameron McKinney, Erik Abbott-Main, and Juel D. Lane. Earning numerous awards and opportunities, Madison was the Jane Fox Dance Scholarship recipient, has experience teaching adaptive movement technique to patients, and recently spent her summer as a PR intern at Jacob’s Pillow. Madison currently works as a Marketing Associate at Riley Children’s Health, but she is excited to integrate her passion for dance at Danceworks Indy!
Ballet, Pointe, PBT
Becky Pettit
She/Her
Becky grew up in Clinton, New York, where she began taking ballet lessons at the age of four. She trained with Delia Foley, ARAD and was a member of the Mohawk Valley Ballet. She supplemented her training with summer intensive programs at New York State Summer School for the Arts, The Rock School, Boston Ballet and American Ballet Theatre. After graduating high school, Becky moved to Indianapolis to attend Butler University where she earned her B.S. in Dance/Arts Administration. She studied under Michelle Jarvis, Marek Cholewa, Rosanna Ruffo, Derek Reid, Stephan Laurent and Cynthia Pratt and performed soloist and principal roles with the Butler Ballet. Ms. Pettit joined the Louisville Ballet in 2007 and began teaching for the Louisville Ballet School in 2008.
After a short performing career, Becky moved back to Indianapolis and continued teaching and choreographing at multiple dance schools, most recently at Expressenz Dance Center. Her focus is on ballet and pointe, in both group classes and private lessons. Additionally, she has coached several students for Youth America Grand Prix and is certified in Progressing Ballet Technique.
When not teaching ballet, Becky is a full-time Accountant and part-time Pure Barre Instructor at Pure Barre Broad Ripple. She lives on the North side with her husband, John, and two fur babies. She could not be more excited about this new venture at DanceWorks and looks forward to meeting new students!
Ballet, PBT, Contemporary, Tap
Erika Ripley
She/They
Erika has spent the last decade in northern California teaching and performing. She grew up dancing at her local studio in the Chicago suburbs and had the honor of dancing alongside working professionals starting at the age of twelve thanks to the wonderful people of the Schaumburg Dance Ensemble. In 2013, she graduated with a degree in performance dance, costuming, and entrepreneurship from Ball State University in Muncie, IN. The same year she moved to Davis, CA and began teaching multiple genres throughout the Sacramento region. From 2016-2018 they danced with Core Contemporary Dance under direction of Kelli Leighton and Jared Baker. In teaching, she believes dance is for anybody who has a body and values the safety and longevity of a student’s body and mental wellbeing.
She received her certification in Progressing Ballet Technique in 2018 and took the Movement Analysis Course with Leah Bueno in 2021. Erika Ripley is an ABT® Certified Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.
Yoga, Contemporary, Jazz, Tap
Audrey Surina
She/Her
Audrey Surina graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Contemporary Dance and a minor in Arts Management. She is from Indianapolis, Indiana where she began dancing at the age of 3. She received her dance training at Indy Dance Academy and A-List Dance Center where she trained in various styles of dance. She received the Pat Wiehe Choral Music Award and the Outstanding Senior Award for both exceptional leadership in performing arts. She has attended the Radio City Rockettes Summer Intensive, Nashville Ballet Summer Intensive, and the Boston Conservatory at Berklee Summer Intensive. At Indiana University, she was cast in original work by Juel D. Lane, Ego (2020), Never Not a Place by Azuki Umeda, and was in the music video for “When the Strong One Cries,” by Kacie Swierk, choreographed by Fiona Schlegel. She has choreographed original work A Woman’s Worth, An Ode to R.B.G (2020), Something Tells Me (2020), and The Big Red Barn (2022). In 2020, she became a 200 RYT Certified Yoga Instructor and teaches various levels. In fall of 2022, she completed the Disney College Program and is now living in Indianapolis looking to dance, create, and entertain.
305 Fitness, Jazz Pop
Kasey Walker
She/Her
Kasey is an actor, dancer, singer, and choreographer originally from the Carmel area and is thrilled to be part of the DanceWorks Indy team! After receiving her BFA in Musical Theatre Performance from the University of Oklahoma, she lived in NYC for 10 years performing in the national Broadway tours of Legally Blonde and We Will Rock You, the Queen musical, in addition to regional theatres in Hilton Head, Ogunquit, Miami, and Oklahoma City. You can also catch her on screen in episodes ofi Blue Bloods, The Good Fight, Law & Order: SVU, and The Other Two!
While in NYC, Kasey fell in love with and taught 305 Fitness classes, as well as music video-inspired choreography classes (think Britney Spears), heels classes, and children’s ballet, tap, and jazz for ages 18 months to 7 years. Since returning to the Indy area, she’s had the privilege to choreograph for the Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre’s Junior summer musicals including Frozen, The Little Mermaid, and Newsies. Kasey is so excited to reconnect with the Indianapolis dance and fitness community and can’t wait to see you in the studio!
Ballet, PBT, Pointe
Marissa Ward
She/Her
SWERK, Hip Hop
Amanda White
She/Her
Originally from Flint, MI, Amanda’s started Ballet, Tap and Jazz at age 8 and kept going until 20. Along the way, if there was a chance to learn a different style, she went for it. From joining the Bollywood dance team in college, getting way too into Kpop after graduating, and most recently after getting her Graduate degree in International Relations dove into Pole Fitness. You can say Amanda just really likes to move!
When she’s not dancing or training, she studies Japanese, has a collection of house plants she cares for and two pairs of skates being criminally underused.
Hip Hop
Donta "DJ" Wright
He/Him
Dancing since the age of seven Donta Wright (DJ) has been trained in all kinds of styles; from Hip Hop to Tap, to ballet, lyrical, and contemporary giving him a diverse outlook on teaching dance. His dance career has taken him all around the nation allowing him to take in all kinds of different styles of Hip Hop. Donta has been teaching hip hop and contemporary for 7 years and has performed in front of vast audiences including the 2008 orange bowl halftime show, productions of the Nutcracker, countless competition and conventions.