Summer Faculty

SWBT’s faculty are the most sought-after instructors in the valley. They bring their wide range of expertise and experiences to share with our aspiring dancers. Scroll down to read more about each faculty member and the expertise they bring to SWBT’s dancers. 

Crystal Fullmer – Classes & Intensives

With 25 years of teaching experience at universities, private studios and conservatories, Crystal Fullmer brings a wealth of knowledge into the classroom and rehearsal process.

Her early training started with Jacquie Kunzman, Nina Vasilieff Raimondo, and Frank Bays at a small classical studio in Oregon, while later she studied with Greg Halloran and Lorraine Person at University of Idaho, and Donna Jewell, Mary Anne Santos Newhall, and Eva Encinias-Sandoval at University of New Mexico.

Crystal owned and directed her own dance studio in eastern Washington for a few years, and has also been on faculty with Washington State University, Central Washington University, Alma College, and University of Idaho. She is currently an adjunct with the Dance Department of Grand Canyon University.

Her former students have been accepted to dance programs at Cornish College of the Arts, University of Utah, LINES Ballet at Dominican University, The Hartt School, Western Washington University, University of Idaho, University of Arizona, and University of New Mexico. Some have also danced professionally with Ballet 5:8, State Street Ballet, Ballet Idaho, ArtLab J, and Third Coast Dance Company. 

Sydney Walker Arriaga – Classes

Sydney Walker Arriaga started classical ballet at the age of four and completed several Royal Academy of Dance examinations with Arizona Youth Ballet under the instruction of Kelly Moul.  She earned exceptional marks in her classical performance and musicality, receiving one of the highest total grades in her studio in 2013. RAD, a worldwide classical ballet syllabus program, inspired her passion for character dance and its strong technique.  After ten years, she joined Southwest Ballet Theatre and has thrived dancing in their professional performances.  Her favorite roles include the Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz, Pretty Bird in Tarzan, the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella, and a Czardas soloist in Coppélia.

Sydney has over six years of teaching and choreography experience. She 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. Sydney is passionate about educating dancers and enjoys her role at SWBT as it connects her with the staff and families. On the side, she plays piano recreationally with her 15 years of piano experience.  She hopes to continue teaching and dancing in the future.

Sydney is ABT® certified in Pre-Primary through Level 3. She is also certified in adaptive dance by the Boston Ballet Company, Progressing Ballet Technique (PBT), and has earned an Associate in Arts Degree.

Tiffany Fox – Intensives

Tiffany Fox is a native of Arizona and began her dance journey at the age of 4. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Performance and Choreography from ASU, as well as her Master of Fine Arts in Dance with a Dance Teaching Artist Praxis Certificate. She further refined her pedagogical approach by obtaining a license in Massage Therapy with a specialization in Myotherapy from the Southwest Institute of the Healing Arts (SWIHA). In her dance career, she has been lucky enough to do summer training with Chuck Davis, Mark Morris, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Alvin Ailey Dance Co., and The Pulse. She was awarded a Pulse Teacher Scholarship, which took her to New York with the SYTYCD choreographers. She was tested and certified in ballet, jazz, and modern in 2006, to become a member of Dance Masters of America, a national dance teacher association. Tiffany is the previous owner and director of Dynamic Motion Dance Academy in Anthem from 2000 until June 2025, when she sold the studio to further pursue her passion and expand her impact within the collegiate dance community. She is currently an Adjunct Professor at Grand Canyon University, teaching Technique and Lecture courses, as well as a Faculty Associate in Dance at ASU, assisting the Dance Education Students. Inspiring children to discover the discipline and passion that dance fosters is what drives her as an educator. She is deeply committed to nurturing both the mental and physical well-being of every student she has the privilege to teach.

Bernadette Gaxiola – Classes

Bernadette Gaxiola began her dance training at age of 6 in Flamenco, Classical Spanish, Spanish Folk, Mexican Folk with Laura Moya/AZ. She began her professional carrier at the age of 13 with Laura Moya Hispanic Dance Company. Her studies also took her nationally and abroad to Spain, which includes flamenco artists Luis Montero, Oscar Nieto, Julia Lopez, La Meida, La Conja, Carola Zertuche, Yolanda Heredia, Isabel Bayón, Antonio “El Pipa”, Antonio Granjero, and Pastora Galvan, among many others.

Performance credits also include ‘ Zona Flamenca, Flamenco Ole/Antonio Granjero (PA), Ballet Etudes (AZ), Calo Flamenco Ballet de Martin Gaxiola. She has toured the throughout the US and debuted her Solo Solea’ por Buleria’s at the Hecksher Theatre at El Museo de Barrio, just to name a few. She founded Gitanitos del Sol student dance company and Zona Flamenca, also became director of Flamenco at Pepin Spanish restaurant. In 2016, she debuted her production at Arcosanti , Flamenco Meets Vivaldi. To name a few of her works include “Metropolis”/Ballet under the Stars, the Arizona Music Festivals, Orpheum Theatre, Herberger, presented her first Flamenco ensemble at YAGP 2019/ NY.

Teaching credits include School of Ballet Arizona, Scottsdale Dance Academy, Arizona School for the Arts, and is currently on staff at Master Ballet Academy. Now, she instructs/choreographs/performs and remains committed to her goal of inspiring future generations of dancers through the artistic expression of Flamenco. She is an AVP for a national insurance brokerage, and in her spare time, she enjoys Salsa Dancing with her husband and spending time with her children and extended family.

Melissa Marshall – Classes

Melissa Marshall started her dance training at the age of three, in Albany, New York. At the age of six, she began more serious ballet training with the Albany Berkshire Ballet under the direction of Madeline Cantarella Culpo. She performed in many ballets including Midsummer Night’s Dream, Cinderella, and the Nutcracker.

Melissa performed and travelled with the ABB company throughout the East coast and Canada performing several roles in the Nutcracker. She attended Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet for two summer programs under the direction of Marcia Dale Weary in 1995 and 1996. In 1997, she put her ballet career on hold to pursue a career in physical therapy at Springfield College, Massachusetts. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in 2001, and Master of Science degree in Physical Therapy in 2002.

Melissa worked as a licensed physical therapist in the state of New Mexico, in the school-age, early intervention, in-home pediatric, and geriatric settings for eight years. She moved to Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico, in 2010, where she resumed dancing and began teaching with Destiny Dance Academy. In 2017, Melissa opened Elegante School of Dance and Therapeutic Center where she choreographed and taught ballet, pointe, tap, jazz, hip hop, acrobatics, yoga, toning and conditioning as well as provided physical therapy services and therapeutic massages to children and adults. In late 2017, Melissa moved to Goodyear, and became a licensed physical therapist in AZ, working with children with disabilities. In 2018, Melissa began dancing and performing with Southwest Ballet Theatre. She currently teaches, assists and performs with SWBT.

Melissa has a passion for uniting her physical therapy and dance backgrounds to serve children with special needs in the ballet studio. She is certified in Progressing Ballet Technique (PBT).

Kristina Power – Classes & Intensives

Kristina Power

Kadynce Ross – Classes & Intensives

Kadynce Ross is a passionate and versatile dancer from Boise, Idaho. She began as a company member at Echo School of Dance, where she trained in various styles and competed both locally and nationally. Kadynce graduated from Idaho Arts Charter School, where she focused in dance, and is currently pursuing a degree in Exercise Science with an emphasis in Pre-Athletic Training and a minor in Dance at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona.

Kadynce toured with Velocity Dance Convention as an MVA+ dancer under the direction of Whitney Bezzant and Ashley Gonzalez, performing with artists such as Now United, Ava Max, and Tove Lo. She danced in a private performance under the direction of The Silhouettes, the Golden Buzzer act on America’s Got Talent: The Champions and First Runner-Up on AGT Season 6. She also performs with Southwest Ballet Theatre, where she has danced featured roles including Dew Drop Fairy in The Nutcracker and Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland, among other corps de ballet roles. Additionally, she has trained at Ballet West, artÉmotion, and in Italy with Compagnia Petrillo.

With a strong foundation in anatomy, kinesiology, and physics, Kadynce incorporates injury prevention and biomechanical awareness into her teaching. She is passionate about helping dancers understand their bodies on a deeper level, empowering them to move safely, efficiently, and sustainably throughout their careers.

Catherine Seufert – Classes

Catherine Seufert began her dance training at Southwest Ballet Theatre at the age of seven under Artistic Director/Founder Melissa Hahne and Artistic Advisor Daniel Baudendistel.

Since then, her training has included ballet, pointe, jazz, modern, contemporary, tap, and Flamenco. She has performed in every SWBT production since its inception; her favorite roles include the Magical Clock Bird and Clara in The Nutcracker, White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland, Serenity Fairy in Sleeping Beauty, and a Fairy in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

She looks forward to continuing her dance training at Grand Canyon University where she will major in Biology and minor in Dance.

Hannah Stough – Classes

Hannah Stough holds more than two decades of dance training, including forms such as Ballet, Modern, Contemporary, Jazz, Hip-Hop, Tap, and Flamenco. Her experience began with five years competing at the national level until graduating from high school in 2018. Hannah’s ambition led to her acceptance into the rigorous program at the School of Ballet Arizona (SBAZ), where she refined her technique and deepened her love for ballet.

While training at SBAZ, she earned featured roles in Cinderella (2019) and Swan Lake at Desert Botanical Garden (2021), showcasing her stage presence and growing artistry. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Dance from Grand Canyon University in 2025, where she performed in numerous mainstage productions, including Emerge, Flourish, Odyssey, and Worthy, to name a few. Alongside performing, Hannah developed her choreographic voice through original works presented in student showcases, such as Ambivalence and Transcendence. Her work, Wings, was selected as the faculty pick for the mainstage production of Worthy.

Hannah is passionate about empowering the next generation to explore their values through movement in a safe, supportive environment. As a current instructor throughout the valley of Arizona, she encourages every dancer to feel confident both in class and on stage. She believes that while dance requires precision, alignment, and technical clarity, its greatest power lies in authentic expression. For Hannah, storytelling is at the heart of the art form, and she believes it to be an embodied language that brings emotion to life. Her teaching philosophy centers on helping students discover the vital connection between technique and narrative, both in rehearsal and performance.

Lisa Gray Young – Classes & Intensives

Lisa Gray Young, a Phoenix native, grew up studying various genres of dance, as well as acting, voice, piano, and flute. After graduating from South Mountain Center for the Arts High School, Young went to Arizona State University, graduating with honors and earning a B.F.A. in Choreography/Performance.

She has performed, taught, and choreographed for a myriad of dance companies, theaters, schools, studios, and churches around the Valley, including Center Dance Ensemble (dancing the principle role of “Gerda” in The Snow Queen, ’98-’00), The Movement Source, Inc., Dance Arizona Repertory Theater, Stageworks, MesaYoutheatre, East Valley Children’s Theatre, Greasepaint Youtheatre, The Mesa Arts Center (co-founded/co-directed Step to This Dance Company), Grand Canyon University, Mesa Community College, Phoenix College, and Paradise Valley Community College.

She has received numerous ariZoni Theater Awards of Excellence nominations for her choreography in the theater community and has won twice for her work in The Orphan Train and The Jungle Book, both with MesaYoutheatre.

Young currently also teaches children and teens at Dance Theater West.

Julie Zukaitis – Intensives

Originally from Nebraska, Julie Zukaitis began her dance training at the Omaha Academy of Ballet where she studied the ISTD ballet syllabus, along with jazz, modern, and tap. She continued her dance education at the University of Arizona graduating Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in dance.

After graduating, Julie joined American Midwest Ballet performing in Swan Lake, The Nutcracker and original works. She danced with Princess Cruises for three years traveling to over 30 countries and performing various shows including two directed by Stephen Schwartz and choreographed by Al Blackstone. Julie has danced with tbd., Convergence Ballet Company, Scorpius Dance Theater, and Arizona Repertory Ballet.

She teaches dance locally, in both studio and collegiate settings, and she is certified in the ABT® National Training Curriculum Pre-Primary-Level 5 and “Minding The Gap” mental health for dancers.