Our Faculty

 Georgi Rusafov is a graduate of the National Dance High School in Sofia, Bulgaria studying under Peter Koldamov. After graduation he joined the National Opera and Ballet Sofia Bulgaria. Mr.Rusafov received advanced Vaganova master education for teaching ballet and choreography at the Bulgarian National Music Conservatory (P.Vladigerov). Mr. Rusafov has won several ballet awards and has participated in the International Ballet Competitions – Varna, and Helsinki. Mr.Rusafov has performed as a soloist and principal dancer with the Bulgarian National Opera and Ballet, and Estonia National Ballet. He was a principal dancer with Milwaukee Ballet, Northern Plains Ballet and Omaha Ballet Theater and company member with Ballet Arizona. Toured in Spain, Greece, Egypt, Germany, Holland, Italy, and all over the United States as a star principal dancer. Mr.Rusafov also is Master Ballet Class teacher. He has taught Master Ballet Workshops at New Mexico, Washington DC, Florida, New York and many other places at USA and Europe.   

Minghong Xu is a professional dancer and ABT Certified Teacher with a strong background in both classical and contemporary ballet.

Minghong danced professionally with Virginia National Ballet (2019 - 2024) and Columbia Classical Ballet (2018 - 2019), performing lead and soloist roles in productions such as Cinderella, The Nutcracker, Aladdin, and Boléro. She received her foundational training and Liaoning Ballet School, a Prix de de Lausanne partner school, and later trained on scholarships at Joffrey Ballet School, American Ballet Theatre NYC Summer Intensive, and the Washington School of Ballet.

As an experienced instructor, Minghong has taught at Virginia National Ballet Company School and Hong Dance Studio, coaching youth beginners to pre-professional dancers. Her students have achieved top rankings in competitions such as Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) adn WBAC Grand Prix.

With a passion for inspiring the next generation of dancers, Minghong is committed to fostering strong technique, artistic expression, and deep appreciation for the art of ballet in every student she teaches.

 Taylor has spent the majority of her life dancing in all forms of dance, she began dancing competitively at 5 years old.  Taylor has been classically trained at Ballet Etudes and Master Ballet Academy.  Taylor is a currently a member of the AZ Aces Worlds Dance team and has competed on the worlds stage for the past two years.  This past year she was given the opportunity to be the assistant spirit line coach at a valley high school and began teaching at various studies around the valley.  Taylor is also RYS 200 hour Yoga Alliance certified and Yoga for Athletes certified.  Currently she is working on becoming a certified personal trainer and stretch, flexibility and recovery certified.  As a teacher Taylor focuses on technique, strength, flexibility and proper alignment.  As a technical dancer and teacher she loves to clean routines to make sure dancers have smooth transitions and movements that flow with their natural graceful abilities.  

Sandee Walker is a competitive dance director, educator and choreographer. She shares her knowledge and passion for dance through teaching. Sandee brings 20+ years of competitive teaching experience complemented with immense technical knowledge in numerous styles including ballet, pointe, lyrical, jazz, contemporary, musical theatre and tap. Before committing herself to being a full-time educator and choreographer, she trained at Orange County School of the Arts in the Classical Contemporary Dance Department as well as completed training through Joffery Ballet, Kirov Ballet, and The Colorado Ballet. She also performed professionally with several companies including Scorpius Dance Theatre, Gravity Jazz Dance Theatre, and Joffery Ballet. She now shares her love of dance with students through teaching and choreography.  She has been on faculty at top dance studios throughout Arizona and her choreography has won numerous regional and national awards. Several of her students have gone on to dance professionally. Sandee is excited to share her knowledge for dance and inspire young dancers at Premier Ballet Conservatory. 

Nayon began dancing at age 10 under the instruction of Gisela Vaz at Studio Dancarte Brazil. At age 17, he was awarded a full scholarship to begin training with The Washington School of Ballet with Kee Juan Han and Carlos Valcárcel. In 2009 he joined Houston Ballet II and was featured in Stanton Welch’s Fingerprints, Blue, Long and Winding Road, Red Earth and Tales of Texas. In 2010 Nayon joined The Washington Ballet where he performed soloist roles in Septime Webre’s The Nutcracker, The Great Gatsby, and in Twyla Tharp’s Sinatra Songs, Push Comes to Shove, and Surfer at the River Rocks.  His accomplishments include finalist at the 2008 Youth America Grand Prix, the bronze medal at the 2009 Youth America Grand Prix and in 2012 he was awarded the gold medal at World Ballet Competition in Orlando. As a guest artist, he has performed with Terra Brazil touring throughout Germany and France. Nayon joined Ballet Arizona in 2012. Since joining Ballet Arizona in 2012 Nayon has performed in George Balanchine’s “Rubies” (from Jewels) at The Chicago Dancing Festival and Balanchine’s Serenade and Stravinsky Violin Concerto at Ballet Under the Stars. 

Yumi la Rosa studied in Spain with well-known Flamenco artists such as Rafaela Carrasco, Juana Amaya, Belen Maya, Leonor Leal, Isabel Bayón, “La Truco”, and others.

Upon returning to Phoenix, Ms. La Rosa joined Viva Flamenco directed by Lydia Torea as a company dancer and later became a soloist with Mosaico Flamenco at Hyatt Scottsdale Resort.  Ms. La Rosa was also selected as a soloist with the prestigious touring group, Calo Flamenco, directed by Martin Gaxiola. She was later invited to Mexico, India and Singapore to teach Flamenco workshops and to perform. Currently, she is performing at Tapas Papa Frita Spanish restaurant in Scottsdale as a featured dancer.

Ms. La Rosa has been teaching flamenco for all ages throughout the valley to introduce the art of Flamenco. In 2009, she founded her own group, Yumi La Rosa Flamenco Dance and presented her very first dance production called Mujeres at Tempe Center for the Arts.  The production has been growing each year featuring invited artists from other dance disciplines in addition to her own group. Yumi created Mujeres to give the public an appreciation of other cultures in general and of the richness of Spanish culture in particular.

Natalia Magnicaballi was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and has been the only principal dancer leading simultaneously two major ballet companies in the United States for almost 2 decades, The Suzanne Farrell Ballet since its conception in 1999 and Ballet Arizona since 2002.

A graduate of Teatro Colón, Natalia became a principal dancer at age 19. In Europe she led the Italian company Aterballetto for two seasons. Her repertoire includes the lead roles in 38 Balanchine ballets, she has also danced the leads in all the most beloved classic ballets, as well as in works and premieres by renown international choreographers. Natalia has toured around 6 continents, performing in the main houses, opera theatres and arenas, including the Paris Opera Garnier and the Mariinsky Theatre.

Natalia has built a widespread reputation for herself as a sought-after master ballet instructor and artist coach since young age, continuously for over 18 years now, while simultaneously performing as a principal dancer. Natalia holds a masters in coaching and personal psychology (CLEA) and has pursued psychological education studies at Stanford; her experience and continuing development, research and studies in educational psychology, has led her to develop a comprehensive teaching method, focused not just on the dance students’ technique and physicality, but in their overall growth, providing each with key tools for their physical, psychological and emotional development, essential not only when performing on stage, but throughout their lives.

Lily Douglas is a student in the Pre-Professional Program at Premier Ballet Conservatory and a member of the Youth American Ballet Company. She began dancing at the age of four and has trained and competed in jazz, lyrical, tap, contemporary and ballroom. After years of exploring various styles, she discovered her true love in classical ballet and now focuses her training andperformance on the art form that inspires her the most.

Currently a senior at Casteel High School, Lily maintains a 4.4 GPA while taking a rigorous course load of Honors and AP classes. She has earned scholarships to attend respected programs including Oklahoma City Ballet’s Summer Intensive and John Cranko’s International Contemporary Masters. She also had the honor of participating in YAGP’s International Contemporary Ensemble.

Over the years, Lily has performed a wide range of roles in both classical and contemporary ballet, including Clara, Snow Queen and Sugar Plum Fairy. She was privileged to perform in the Hartly Project- Arizona Grand Gala of the Stars—highlighting her versatility and dedication to the art of dance.

In addition to performing, Lily is an emerging choreographer. Her self-choreographed contemporary solo earned third place in the senior category at NYCDA Phoenix in 2025. She has also choreographed jazz, lyrical, and contemporary pieces for the advanced dance program at Casteel High School.

Above all, Lily loves teaching and mentoring young dancers. Sharing her passion for dance and watching her students grow and succeed is one of the most rewarding parts of her journey.

She is excited to join the faculty at Premier Ballet Conservatory, where she will be teaching Primary Ballet.

Carlin Ciocchetti attends Premier Ballet Conservatory's Pre Professional program and is a company member of the Youth American Ballet Company. She began her dance training at the age of three and has since earned top honors at the Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP), including 1st place in Classical as the youngest senior competitor, as well as recognition in the Contemporary category.

Most recently, Carlin was awarded the People’s Choice Award in the Herberger Young Artists Competition, a testament to her artistry and connection with audiences. She has trained at some of the nation’s most prestigious summer programs, including the School of American Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet.

Carlin has performed a wide range of leading roles, with favorites including Dew Drop Fairy, Kitri, and Aurora. She was also honored to perform Serenade with Ballet Arizona—an experience that deepened her love for classical repertoire.

This season, Carlin is excited to join the faculty at Premier Ballet Conservatory, where she will be teaching Princess Ballet and sharing her joy and passion for dance with the next generation of young dancers.