Lex Ishimoto Guest artist Dance Open: 2018Dance Open Award: People's Choice Award 2018

Originally from Irvine, California, Lex began working at an early age, performing on the national tour as Billy in Billy Elliot The Musical. Lex was a grand finalist at the Spotlight Awards in 2015 and earned the title Teen Male Best Dancer of the Year at the Dance Awards, as well as being named Elite Protégé on The Pulse on Tour 2014, touring all over the United States and internationally. He also won the Youth American Grand Prix Award at the 2015 YAGP Los Angeles regionals and placed as a finalist at the National YoungArts Foundation in 2016. In addition, he trained at Boston Ballet for two years, and won the Dance Awards title again in 2016 – this time as Senior Male Best Dancer of the Year. He then joined Travis Wall’s Shaping Sound company and began touring with JUMP Dance Convention as a choreographer and assistant. In 2017, he was crowned America’s Favorite Dancer on So You Think You Can Dance, Season 14.

Denys Drozdyuk Guest artist Dance Open: 2018, 2019Dance Open Award: People's Choice Award 2018

Started dancing at the age of four in Ukraine. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Dance from the world-famous Juilliard School in New York, which he attended on a full scholarship, and a Master of Arts Degree in Dance Education from New York University. Denys and his partner Antonina Skobina participate in the biggest international ballroom competitions and perform in galas, shows, and theatre productions all over the world. They have toured nationally as Featured Artists with the Ballroom Production of Dancing Pros Live as well as with a ballroom theatre production of They Called It Rock.

Elisa Badenes Principal Dancer of the Stuttgarter ballett Dance Open: 2018

Born in Valencia, Spain, she began her ballet training at the Conservatorio Profesional de Danza de Velanzia from 2002 to 2007, and graduated in 2008 from the Royal Ballet School. In 2009, Elisa became an apprentice with the Stuttgart Ballet and was invited to join the company as a member of the corps de ballet, and then as a principle dancer. Elisa has participated in various competitions. In 2008 at the Prix de Lausanne, she won a scholarship to the Royal Ballet School. One year later, she competed in the Youth American Grand Prix, where she won the Gold Medal in the Senior Women category and was acclaimed Best European Dancer. In 2011 she competed for the Erik Bruhn Prize in Toronto (Canada) and won the Audience Choice Award with her partner Daniel Camargo. They performed the pas de deux from the third act of Marius Petipa’s Don Quixote, as well as the pas de deux from Demis Volpi’s Little Monsters. Demis Volpi created the pas de deux for this very special occasion. In the 2015 season, Elisa Badenes won the German Dance Prize Future.

Gala Stars