CDA DANCE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
- OWNER
- Owner & Artistic Director )
Job Titles:
- SUMMER CAMP ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
Bisi Taylor-Lewis is a second year student pursuing psychology at University of Western and loves working with children. She competed in gymnastics for 8 years and understands the work ethic to get to a high level of competing. She enjoys painting, drawing, photography and is excited for all the crafts at summer camp! Miss Bisi has also worked at Airriderz and is thrilled we are taking our campers for a field trip once a week there! She has her Emergency First Aid & CPR and always ensures safety for the enjoyment of all at camp.
Miss Bisi's passion for creative arts, fitness, and positive team player will ensure your child has a fabulous experience at CDA Summer Camp!
Carly Gordon's versatility and devotion to her craft sets her apart and allows her to successfully merge her active and ever evolving performance career with her passion for passing on her expertise to the next generation of artists. Carly has been performing professionally for over fifteen years and prides herself on being both a well rounded performer and a well educated, passionate teacher and choreographer. Carly's passion for performing developed during her over twenty years of dance and vocal training with the Paul Gordon Dancers. She trained in a wide variety of genres and performed as a member of the PGD Dance Company in numerous variety, charity and industrial shows. The experience of being trained by her expert parents Paul and Anita Gordon was nothing short of phenomenal. Carly later began to shift her focus to musical theatre and after training with various industry professionals such as Melissa Williams, Carly joined the St.Clair Centre for the Arts touring company as a dancer in the cast of "It's Contagious". Shortly after, Carly made her professional choreographic debut with Village Theatre choreographing the Rocky Horror Show. She then accepted a year long contract in Mexico, performing in nightly shows as a member of the main stage cast for the Royal Solaris. There, Carly continued to broaden her training and expertise in both ballroom and latin rhythms. Not only has Carly performed in a variety of corporate shows with 444 Theatrical Creations, Stop Tyme productions, The Farm Incorporated and more. Carly and her father Paul Gordon debuted their original 30's & 40's review show entitled "All Of Me" as special guest performers with VegasNorth in Toronto and they continue to perform their act in various venues. After three years performing as a dancer/singer with Carnival Cruise Lines, Carly was asked to take on a managerial position and completed her most recent contract at sea as the Playlist Cast Manager and Dance Captain, performing in a range of CCL's main stage production shows across international waters. Carly is happy to have been recently invited as a guest to speak on some cruise ship focused Podcasts including "Ur Not Ur Talent" with Lady Red Live and "Shiplife TV". Carly recently had the privilege to work with a talented group of international dancers in the UAE. She acted as the Competitive Team Director and Choreographer at Abu Dhabi's largest competitive and performance studio. Carly continues to emcee, teach and choreograph for companies such as Luv2Dance, Showtime Dance Challenge, Dance Attack and more. Carly is a well sought after choreographer and guest teacher, regularly working with top young talent at conventions, studios and national competitions across Canada.
Job Titles:
- Dance Instructor in Newmarket / Aurora
Emily Pagliaro has been dancing since the early age of two. She started competing at the age of five, in various styles such as tap, jazz, ballet, and more. She joined CDA Dance Inc in 2015, continuing to compete and win multiple awards for groups, solos, duets and trios. Every year, Emily continues to be selected for a large number of dances, in diverse styles, including tap, jazz, ballet, acro, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary, pointe, and more. Emily has been selected and participated in a dance pageant, competing for dancer of the year, with an interview score of over 98. Winning an immense amount of awards for her solos, including an invitation to compete with Team Canada in Spain, multiple overalls, constant 94+ scores, and more, Emily never loses her passion, and enjoys dancing everyday. She has completed up to six levels in Vaganova ballet, and continues to train and improve her ballet technique, including pointe. She has attended many workshops and conventions to expose herself to new styles of dance and improve her own abilities. Since the age of 11, Emily has assisted various classes and has learned how to adapt to all dancers, and their ages and abilities. She has taught Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Hip Hop, Musical Theatre, Lyrical and Acro for the past couple of years. She has also led summer camps, birthday parties, and other events to participate and engage in the dance community. She is friendly, fun, kind-hearted and has great skills to show dancers how to improve and grow in dance. With her experience, she is hoping to share her passion with the new generation of dancers here at CDA Dance Inc!
Job Titles:
- GUEST CHOREOGRAPHER
- Professional Dance Artist
Sami Eismont is a 21-year-old professional dance artist based around Toronto, Ontario. She began her training at a young age and since then has been lucky enough to train and dance at multiple dance companies and ballet schools across the country. Due to her passion, drive and skills as a technician, Samantha has been fortunate enough to have experienced many incredible dance opportunities. She was a faculty assistant at Artists Simply Human Dance Convention, where she was able to assist choreographers such as Dwight Rhoden, Dee Caspary, TOKYO, Lisette Bustamante, Talia Favia, and other notable artists. She was personally invited by Stacey Tookey to attend Camp Protege, a week long dance intensive, where she was able to dance and train under the direct guidance of Stacey Tookey and Jason Parsons. She was also one of the top 10 senior best dancers at The Dance Awards in New York City. Sami's perfectionism and ability to take direction from many different choreographers has allowed her to be a part of many notable performances. She performed at the Capezio A.C.E Awards in New York City and Long Beach, California as well as Hit The Floor in Quebec with Ashley Schofield's Opus Dance Collective. She was also personally invited to perform as part of TOKYOtheCOMPANY in TOKYO'S professional show in Washington, DC. Sami has also been lucky enough to perform in many professional shows within Toronto including Fever After Dark, MIZPAH, and REVOLT, artistically directed and choreographed by Christina Digiuseppe. Most notably she was on the TV show World of Dance as a member of OPUS Dance Collective. Sami has been fortunate enough to be a guest choreographer at CDA's Dance Inc competitive dance camp as well as a guest choreographer during their competitive season. She is excited to continue working with the amazing students at CDA Dance Inc in the future.
Job Titles:
- Dance Instructor in Newmarket / Aurora
Jesse Weafer began his dance career at the early age of 6 at Jaymor School of Dancing in Aurora Ont. At age 12, he made his first professional debut in Mirvish's production of Jolson. By the time he was 14, he had performed alongside Michael Buble in the hit show Forever Swing. His Theatre credits include; œKinky Boots (Original Canadian Company) Andrew Lloyd Webber's "The Wizard of Oz" (Original Canadian Company and Original North American Tour Company), lead dancer in Cirque du Soleil's - Criss Angel "BELIEVE" choreographed by Wade Robson in Las Vegas, the role of "IQ" in "Hairspray" (Original Canadian Company), Hello Dolly and The Tempest (Stratford Festival of Canada), "IQ" on the 1st U.S National Tour of Hairspray, We Will Rock You (Original Canadian Company). His film credits include; Carrie starring Julianne Moore, Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen starring Lindsay Lohan, The Music Man starring Matthew Broderick and Molly Shannon, "Hairspray" Playing the role of "IQ" starring John Travolta, Queen Latifah and Michelle Pfeiffer. Jesse also appeared in the season finale of So You Think You Can Dance in Wade Robson's piece "Homage to the Rabbits". He also performed alongside Shawn Desmond at the 2011 Juno Awards on CTV, as well with Far East Movement and DEV at the 2011 MMVA'S. Jesse made his reality television debut in Canada's hit show So You Think you Can Dance Canada season 3 as a top 16 finalist. He is thrilled to be living his dream everyday, and looks forward to spreading his passion and knowledge of dance for many years to come.
Job Titles:
- DANCE INSTRUCTOR
- Dance Instructor in Newmarket / Aurora
Nicole is a graduate of the Dance Performance Diploma program at Centennial College with a specialized focus in dance/movement. Nicole is an award-winning choreographer with a passion and dedication to succeed. Nicole has won provincial accolades and scholarships as well trained at intensives in places such as Artist in Motion, OIP, The Pulse, Broadway Dance Centre, Alvin Ailey, and Build a Beast to name a few. She has traveled to New York, Miami, and California to train underneath world-renowned choreographers and artists. She also trained for years under the direction of Derrick Robinson and Lineen Doung with Dark Dance company. Currently, she is apart of a hip-hop collective called Keystone dance where they authentically train in the history and theory of Hiphop. Nicole most recently worked for Disney on their cruise line in the entertainment department where they travelled the Eastern and Western Caribbean bringing magic to all families on board.
Nicole is a dedicated young choreographer who is making a huge impact on the dance community. Nicole is constantly involved in different aspects of the Canadian art industry, working with musicians, hair and fashion stylists, and mainly using her experience and creativity to enlighten her students. She also is co-owner of an entertainment company startup called The Gordian Collective which is your one-stop-shop for all things art & entertainment. She is continuously looking to grow and learn from a multitude of teachers and mentors, in order to achieve the best version of herself she can be.