Faculty + Staff

Gisella McCallion graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Media Arts from Sacred Heart University where she was a part of the Dance Company, Ballroom Dance Ensemble, and Kickline team, training weekly with renowned teachers in all styles. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in Business Administration from Pace University.

Growing up in Port Chester, NY, she studied ballet, pointe, jazz, hip hop, tap, and contemporary at East Pointe Dance and City Center Dance. She has performed at prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Barclays Center and participated in several local benefit events like Dancers Responding to Aids, Will Dance for Food, and Light the Night. She also had the opportunity to take master classes at Broadway Dance Center, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and with the Radio City Rockettes.

Gisella has also performed in several theatre productions through Port Chester Council for the Arts with lead and dance captain roles such as Skylar in “Bring It On”, Holly in “The Wedding Singer”, and Fastrada in “Pippin”, to name a few. Most recently she choreographed productions of “Rock of Ages” and “The Little Mermaid” for the Port Chester Middle and High School drama clubs and choreographed for EPD's junior company.

As an alumnus of EPD, Gisella is so excited to be back at the studio where she first developed her passion for performing!

Jessica Jhingoor began her dance career at Windwood Hill Dance Academy in New Milford, Pennsylvania. There, she was a member of the competition team, participating in competitions up and down the east coast as well as competing as a soloist at the national level. She has also spent time traveling for performances to places such as Disney World, New York City as well as local venues. Jessica has taken master classes with NADAA, The New York City Rockettes, The New York City Ballet as well as several former finalists of SYTYCD. She has also performed under Paul Taylor 2 Company at Binghamton University performing a variation of “Esplanade”.

Jessica continued her dancing career throughout her time at Manhattanville College, appearing in seven dance concerts and three senior theses. She was also a member of Manhattanville Dance Troupe. During this time, she has the honor of working with many notable artists and choreographers such as Peter Pucci, Marta Renzi, Heather Cornell, Larry Goldhuber, Shawn Garnier, Deborah Tacon and Ara Fitzgerald. She has also appeared in the dance on film project entitled “Swagging Bach” by Peter Pucci which appeared in the Dance on Film Festival at the Jacob Burns Theater in New York. Jessica has worked at the offices Peridance Capezio Center and Peridance Contemporary Dance Company under the founder and artistic director Igal Perry. She has performed in two New York City performances to date for Segarra Dance and Theater Projects.

Lori Strelec Reynolds is a ballet teacher and choreographer with over 30 years of experience in the studio. Ballet, pointe, and preschool dance are among her favorite classes to teach. As a professional ballerina, Lori was a principal dancer with Alberta Ballet in Calgary, Canada (1991-1993) and Eglevsky Ballet in New York (1993-1997). During her tenure with Eglevsky Ballet, she was also given the title of Ballet Mistress, helping to rehearse and coach the corps de ballet. Lori is very excited to be joining the faculty at East Pointe Dance for the upcoming season.

Bio coming soon!

Bio coming soon!

Julianna's love for dance began in Katonah, NY, where she danced as a dedicated company member at Northern Westchester School of Dance. Throughout high school, she showcased her leadership talents by directing the dance program for two successful years.

Venturing into higher education, Julianna pursued her passion for both the arts and business, graduating from Pace University with a Bachelor's in Marketing and Business
Development, specializing in Arts & Entertainment. During her time at university, she became the Hip Hop director at a studio in Putnam County, NY and left her mark by choreographing performances in the tri-state area.

In 2020, she delved into stretch therapy, discovering a new calling that would eventually
lead her to establishing her own training and stretch recovery business in Greenwich,
CT in 2023.
Today, Julianna continues to inspire and transform lives through her unique blend of
Jazz, Hip Hop and Contemporary dance expertise and wellness advocacy. Her mission
is to empower individuals to embrace their fullest potential, both on and off the stage.
Julianna is looking forward to being back at EPD!

Brianna received a Bachelors of Arts degree in Dance from Manhattanville College in 2017. She has studied with choreographers such as Shawn Garnier, Peter Pucci, Marta Renzi, Shawn Bible, and Lawrence Goldhuber. Brianna was a featured dancer in a choreography documentary presented at The Jacob Burns Film Center in titled “Swag and Bach”. During her time at Manhattanville she choreographed two contemporary pieces for the Spring Dance Concerts in 2015 and 2016. This past spring she presented her senior thesis, “Setting Fire” the piece was an experimental contemporary piece that incorporated digital media. She has trained with dancers from the hit show “So You Think You Can Dance” through conventions such as Tremaine, Excel in Motion and Kids Artistic Revue. Through the years she has studied jazz, modern, contemporary, hip-hop, tap, ballet, African jazz, and lyrical. Brianna has taught a variety of styles including tap, ballet, jazz, contemporary, hip hop and lyrical for a range of ages, since 2015. Through her years of teaching, she has presented original choreography at Dancefest Stamford, DRA’s Stars of Tomorrow, and Broadway Dance Centers AIM Invitational. She has completed Broadway Dance Centers Teacher training and continues to expand her teaching knowledge.

Brianna Paci started dancing at the age of 3 and has not stopped since. She is a 2014 graduate of Hofstra University where she earned her degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education. While at Hofstra, Brianna continued performing in a company called Danceworks. She went on to receive a Masters degree in Early Childhood Special Education at Hunter College. she haS HAD the opportunity to perform at various charity events such as Light the Night, March of Dimes walk, nursing homes, and children’s hospitals. Brianna has performed at venues such as Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, Lincoln Center, and performed “Single Ladies” on the Rachael Ray Show! Brianna continues to dance in a New York based company, Danceworks NYC, which holds performances twice a year. She is so excited to finally join the East Pointe Dance Faculty after being on the sub list for so many years!

Micki Reynolds was born in New Fairfield, Connecticut and started dancing when they were 3 years old. Growing up in the competitive dance circuit, as well as performing for charity based events, they trained in jazz, ballet, contemporary, lyrical, tap, acrobatics, and pointe. After graduating from the Musical Theater program at AMDA, they have been consistently working professionally across the country; recent credits include The Polar Express (Whippany Railroad), Slash Mob/The Monsters are Coming (Cedar Point Halloweekends), and a variety of shows at Nickelodeon Universe. Micki is excited to be going into their second season with East Pointe Dance! Their overall goal is to provide kids a safe space to grow as dancers, cultivate their training, and learn more about themselves.

Kenneth Hernandez is a dancer and choreographer from The Bronx, NY. Growing up, he started to build his street style by training with many different dance teams based in NYC. He would perform in shows and competitions including Prelude, Elements, and World of Dance. He later continued his individual training at Broadway Dance Center, EXPG, BrickHouseDance, and MonstersDanceConvention. Kenny later became a part of the traveling faculty for Liberate Artists, where he found his passion for teaching. There he taught workshops and master classes all over the country and internationally for almost a decade. Kenny loves to inspire the youth and loves to share his knowledge and passion with all of his students.

Originally from Miami, Florida, Deanna began studying ballet at the age of four with Marielena Mencia and Yanis Pikieris at the Mencia-Pikieris School of Dance. At the age of nine, Deanna was accepted to study with Miami City Ballet where she trained before moving to Gainesville, Florida. Deanna then attended the University of Florida's, P.K Yonge Developmental Research School where she was accepted into their competitive middle and high school Performing Arts Program. At P.K Yonge, Deanna served as dance captain and was featured in musicals such as Hairspray, Curtains, and 42nd street as well as ensemble pieces for various community productions and competitions with the highly selective Vocal Ensemble. Deanna was also accepted as a scholarship recipient at Pofahls Dance Studios, the teaching studio for Dance Alive National Ballet, under the tutelage of Kim Tuttle and Judy Skinner, where she began training at the age of ten. At Pofahls, Deanna was trained in various dance styles including ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary, and hip hop. At the age of twelve, Deanna became an apprentice with Dance Alive National Ballet where she performed and toured in productions such as Nutcracker, Carmina Burana, Dracula, Robin Hood, Le Corsaire and others. Deanna also performed as part of Next Generation, a community outreach program, to provide dance to the Greater Gainesville Community; especially for disadvantaged youth and elderly populations, who normally would not have access to the cultural arts. As a junior in High School, Deanna was accepted as a performing arts dual enrollment student at Santa Fe College where she pursued an Associate in Fine Arts Degree under the direction of Alora Haynes. After graduating, she moved back to Miami to attend New World School of the Arts in collaboration with Miami Dade College and the University of Florida where she was accepted as a scholarship recipient. At New World, Deanna studied Ballet with Laura Murphy and Horton technique with Rebecca Cannan. Deanna was also chosen to be a part of Thomas Armour's production of The Nutcracker in collaboration with their youth program and New World. Deanna then moved to New York City to study at the Joffrey Ballet School and was featured in classical works such as Don Quixote, as well as contemporary works from Earl Mosley and Africa Guzmán. Deanna is currently a company member with Thomas Ortiz Dance and has performed original works by Ted Thomas and Francis Ortiz throughout Fairfield county in the Fairfield County Dance Festival. As well in collaboration with the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra has performed in Rite of Spring and performed the role of Louise in Carousel. She has also guested in several Nutcrackers most recently being for Tony Williams Urban Nutcracker with the City of Boston Ballet.