Dance experience has included ten years performing to principal level in international companies and seven years working as a guest choreographer. He has performed leading roles in many new creations from some of the most outstanding choreographers on the world circuit.

Born in Trani, Southern Italy, Mr. De Nigris trained with the prestigious La Scala Di Milano, where he performed with the company in his graduate year. He continued his professional career with Dominic Walsh Dance Theatre in Houston Texas, and the Czech National Theatre Brno, and is currently a soloist with Augsburg Ballet in Germany under the direction of Robert Conn. Mr. De Nigris has been featured in numerous works from world-renowned choreographers, including, William Forsythe, Mauro Bigonzetti, Itzik Galili, Robert North, Young Soon Hue, Michael Pink, Mauro De Candia, Bridget Breiner, Angel Rodriguez, Francesco Ventriglia, and more. Many of these artists created roles for him and inspired him to follow his own passion and desire to choreograph. As a choreographer, Mr. De Nigris has showcased his talents in several creations for the Augsburg Ballet, among them a series of solos, Po Poff, Modo, and Summer from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. The past two seasons he has premiered new works, Ascending Glide, and Narcissis/Bolero. The first for Augsburg Ballet’s triple bill, Of Men and Gods, sharing alongside two choreographic icons, Edward Clug and George Balanchine.

Mr. De Nigris is the recipient of several prestigious awards, including the Augsburg Allgemeine Award for outstanding artist, and the audience prize for his choreography, Can I Say Something?, at the Genesis International Choreographic Competition for the Milwaukee Ballet. Following the premiere of his work, Ascending Glide, in 2016, Mr. De Negris was hailed as one of the young new choreographers to watch.

Nilas was born in Copenhagen and received his early dance training at the Royal Danish Ballet School in Denmark. As a student, he performed with the Royal Danish Ballet in works such as John Neumeier’s Romeo and Juliet, August Bournonville’s Konservatoriet, A Folk Tale, Napoli, and Glen Tetley’s Firebird. In 1984, he moved to New York City and enrolled at the School of American Ballet and in September 1986, he became a member of New York City Ballet (NYCB) where he was promoted to the rank of soloist and subsequently rose to the rank of Principal Dancer in 1993. While at NYCB, Mr. Martins danced numerous lead roles and worked closely with choreographers including John Alleyne, Lynn Taylor Corbett, Boris Eifman, William Forsythe, Peter Martins, Trey McIntyre, Kevin O’Day, Susan Stroman and Richard Tanner. His film credits include “Live from Lincoln Center” (broadcast of Ray Charles in Concert), “The Nutcracker” (released in 1993 by Warner Brothers) and “Dance in America” telecast of “Dinner with Balanchine” where he danced the role of Apollo with Paris Opera Ballet star ballerina, Isabel Guerin. In addition, Mr. Martins was featured in “Lincoln Center Celebrates Balanchine 100” where he performed “The Man I Love” from Balanchine’s Who Cares? featuring Wynton Marsalis. Mr. Martins has been lauded for his deep knowledge of both the Danish and Balanchine pedagogy and in addition to his skills as a dancer, instructor, choreographer and coach, he gained programming and management experience leading his own company, The Nilas Martins Dance Company, which toured around the world. It was during this time that he was described in the press as “a warm, dynamic, and engaging artist, bursting with passion for dance, for opera, for his new dance company and for New York City Ballet....” After an acclaimed twenty-four year dance career, Martins was accepted as one of ten fellows into the renowned DeVos Institute for Arts Management at The Kennedy Center under the direction of Michael Kaiser. As a repetiteur for The Balanchine Trust© as well as guest teacher and choreographer for companies, universities and festivals around the world, Martins brings programming management skills, institutional marketing and organizational leadership experience to Las Vegas. He also continues to teach master classes to students in Maryland and Washington.

Nadia was trained in Australia by her mother, Frances Davis Thompson, and graduated from the Royal Ballet School after winning the bronze medal at the Adeline Genee Awards. Before moving to the United States and to Boston Ballet, she worked with Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet, Northern Ballet Theatre and London City Ballet, performing for such dignitaries as HRH Princess Diana, Princess Margaret, the Duchess of York and Her Majesty the Queen at the Royal Command Performance.Nadia has danced principal roles in Swan Lake, Giselle, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, Coppélia, Don Quixote and Abdallah, Twyla Tharp’s Upper Room and Waterbaby Bagatelles. In addition, Lila York created Brown Girl in Celts and Principal Lady in Ode to Joy on her. Her vast Balanchine repertoire includes Russian and Elegy in Serenade, Principal Lady in Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto #2, Divertimento #15, Tchaikovsky Pas De Deux, Mozartiana, Rubies and Choleric in The Four Temperaments.Nadia has worked as a guest teacher with Trey McIntyre Project, White Oak, Colorado Ballet, Boston Ballet, Queensland Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, Harvard University, Wellesley College, West Australian Ballet and Queensland University of Technology Australia. She also works as a répétiteur for Michael Pink’s ballets, setting Dracula and The Hunchback of Notre Dame for Atlanta Ballet, Colorado Ballet and Kansas City Ballet, and stages Ballet Augsburg's House Choreographer, Riccardo DeNigris' works and Milwaukee Ballet's Resident Choreographer, Timothy O’Donnell’s works.  Ms. Thompson has been Co-Director of Ballet Hagen in Germany and is presently Docent at the Palucca University of Dance in Dresden, Germany. 

Nicole Miller is the successor to Ms. Grapes and now proudly serves as the new Owner and Director of Hinsdale Dance Academy.

A former soloist with Montgomery Ballet, Ms. Miller has been teaching and performing professionally since 2008. She began her early training with Ballet Repertory Theatre of New Mexico and later attended the Public Academy for Performing Arts, where she focused on dance and injury prevention. Her diverse training includes classical ballet, jazz, modern, contemporary, flamenco, and Ballet Folklorico, with specialization in the Vaganova, Bournonville, Cecchetti, and Balanchine techniques.

She received professional instruction at The Joffrey Ballet from renowned teachers such as Diane Orio, Trinette Singleton, and Willy Shives. At 18, she joined Montgomery Ballet as an apprentice under Elie Lazar, quickly advancing to soloist and performing leading roles in Coppélia, Don Quixote, Giselle, Sleeping Beauty, and more. She toured internationally, earning acclaim in Italy’s “Pietrasanta en Danza” festival.

In 2014, she was appointed Director of the Montgomery Ballet School and served as Ballet Mistress for the professional company under Foye DuBose. She has choreographed original works and restaged classical repertory excerpts, including from Swan Lake and Le Corsaire. Her students have achieved top placements at the Youth America Grand Prix, and she is certified in Progressing Ballet Technique (PBT).

Ms. Miller joined Hinsdale Dance Academy in 2015 as School Director and is the recipient of the prestigious Youth America Grand Prix Outstanding Teacher Award in 2024.