Faculty

Elizabeth Barisser

Artistic Director

ebarriser@brasscityballet.org

Elizabeth was born and raised in Aruba before moving to Athens, Greece, Madrid, Spain, and Brussels, Belgium, and finally settling in London, England to train professionally at the Rambert School. Upon graduation, she danced professionally with the Hartford Ballet in Connecticut, Syracuse Ballet Theatre, the Saeko Ichinohe Dance Company in NYC, and made guest appearances in Europe and the U.S.  While dancing, she furthered her training with former New York City Ballet dancers, Melissa Hayden and Wilhelm Burmann, in New York City.  She pursued her studies in modern dance under the tutelage of Ms. Ernestine Stodelle, the world-renowned authority, at the time, on modern dance pioneer, Doris Humphrey.

Her professional teaching career includes Syracuse Ballet Theatre and the Istanbul State Conservatory in Istanbul, Turkey.  She met her former husband in Turkey and married in 1982. Upon moving back to the USA, she founded the Waterbury School of Ballet in Waterbury, CT, in 1985 which became a non-profit organization in 1989, now known as Brass City Ballet.

She has choreographed several original, full-length ballets such as the The Night of the Magic Ornaments, The Party and The Fantastic Toyshop, as well as modern dance works for Brass City Ballet.  Her work with St. Mary’s Children’s Theatre in Waterbury has included such works as Grease, Fiddler on the Roof, and Peter Pan.  In 1993, she received the Arts Recognition Award from the City of Waterbury. She has served on Waterbury’s Community Visions Task Force and the School and Community Fine Arts Committee of Waterbury. In 1993, her work was selected for the New Dance, New Haven Choreography Competition.  In 1999, she conceived and co-founded the first Connecticut Choreographer’s Forum and co-directed the subsequent three Forums. Ms. Barisser served on the Advisory Board of the CT Dance Alliance.  In 2006, she became a founding member of the Arts and Culture Collaborative of the Waterbury Region and currently chairs its Governing Council.

Ms. Barisser taught at The Taft School as Director of Dance from 2001-2008. From 2009-2011, she was adjunct facultjy at Westover School in Middlebury, CT. She serves on the CT Arts Alliance Network, a statewide arts advocacy organization


Julio Alegria

Associate Artistic Director

jalegria@brasscityballet.org

Bringing a wealth of experience in classical ballet, Julio Alegria’s dance journey began at CEDART in Mexico City, Mexico, where he rapidly garnered recognition for his talent. His dedication to the craft earned him scholarships to prestigious dance institutions in the US, including Joffrey Ballet and Boston Ballet. Alegria’s professional dance career saw him as both a member and guest performer with professional American ballet companies, including Alabama Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem and Atlantic City Ballet.

Alegria’s dance teacher training was enriched by the guidance of several renowned ballet educators, notably Gelsey Kirkland, former principal dancer with New York City Ballet and American Ballet Theatre; David Howard, distinguished ballet master-in-residence for eminent international ballet companies such as Royal Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and National Ballet of Canada; and Darla Hoover, Chair of Faculty at SAB, New York City Ballet’s School of American Ballet. 

From 2015 to 2018, Alegria held the role of dance instructor and supervisor at the Dwana Smallwood Performing Arts Center in Brooklyn, NY. In this capacity, he not only taught classical ballet, jazz and salsa but also choreographed for diverse age groups. Alegria effectively oversaw faculty procedures, managed the school’s digital presence, coordinated production endeavors, and orchestrated community outreach initiatives.

Relocating to Pennsylvania in 2018, Alegria directed his own school, NEPA Ballet, while simultaneously contributing his expertise to various ballet schools in the region. His initiatives in establishing and managing successful summer dance programs underscore his dedication to nurturing dance talent to the highest extent.

Alegria is no stranger to Brass City Ballet. The pivotal connection with the company was made in 2013 when Alegria was invited to dance the role of the Prince in the production of “Cinderella” and, in 2016, portrayed the celebrity doll, Bobby, in “The Fantastic Toyshop.” As a recurring guest teacher, the link between Alegria and BCB continued, most recently evidenced during his week long residency at BCB’s 2023 summer intensive training program.


Alison Rose

Alison Rose began ballet lessons at the age of six and continues to train as an adult.  She studied many years with Balanchine dancer Dorothy Burdette and European soloist, Marthe Krueger.  Her training continued at Hofstra University with Joffrey II ballet master, Lance Westergard.  Other influential teachers have been Muriel Stuart, Karen Festog, Dan Sas, Linda Freyer, Dieter Riesle, and Mimi Wallace.  In addition to many other roles, Alison has performed the lead roles of Clara, Snow Queen, and Sugar Plum Fairy in Danbury Music Centre’s Nutcracker. During her time as a member of the Danbury Ballet Company, she also performed in various other ballets, including Graduation Ball and Stars and Stripes.  Mrs. Rose enjoys all dance forms and has also studied jazz, lyrical, modern, tap, ballroom, and flamenco.

Mrs. Rose is a CT state-certified teacher and has taught English in local secondary schools.  She has been teaching ballet for thirteen years to students ages 5 through adult at various studios in Connecticut including Academy of Dance Arts, Sas School of Dance, Freyer Academy of Ballet, and now Brass City Ballet.  In addition to recital pieces, Mrs. Rose has choreographed several ballet productions, including The NutcrackerVivaldi’s Four SeasonsDanse Macabres, and Rodeo.

Mrs. Rose truly enjoys teaching and encourages all students to reach their full potential.  She believes the art of ballet can help instill self-discipline and foster a sense of achievement and confidence in her students that will carry over to other aspects of their lives.


Deanna Russo

Mrs. Russo began dancing at 18 months, studying tap, jazz, and ballet for the first sixteen years, and then continuing her dance education at Naugatuck Valley Community College’s dance program with Professor Elena DelVecchio Rusnak. While at NVCC Mrs. Russo studied modern,  dance pedagogy, social/ballroom, jazz, and ballet. Along with her studies she attended master classes with Lori May, Jim May (both of the Anna Solokov Company), Jim Clark (Bob Fosse extraordinaire), Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance, and Pilobolous. Mrs. Russo attended Central Connecticut State University where she received her Bachelor’s Degree in English and a minor in Psychology and later received her Master’s Degree and Certification in Elementary Education from the University of Bridgeport. 

Mrs. Russo was one of the first in the State of Connecticut to attain her Unique Endorsement in Dance Education and holds her CT Teaching License in Dance in both Elementary and PreK-12 grade. Mrs. Russo spent four years, from 2009-2013, as an instructor at Kinsella Magnet School of Performing Arts in Hartford, CT where she taught creative movement, tap, jazz, ballet, social/ballroom, modern, and cultural dance to students ages 3-16. She also helped facilitate the development of the curriculum for dance education in the state, co-created numerous original works including: The Polar Express, Beatles ‘Love’, Westside Story, The Wizard of Oz (ft. music from Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon), and implemented arts integration into her everyday lessons.