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| Head Judge: Gerald "Jerry" More |
| Born in Massachusetts, raised in Colorado, and now a resident of Los Angeles, Jerry has
been on the dance floor for over two decades. Inspired by Fred Astaire, whom he calls “the epitome of male class
and elegance on the dance floor”, Jerry now works to bring that “dream of dance” to his students. When not on the
floor he enjoys movie-going, swimming, motorcycle riding and dining out.
His credentials include:
- 1983 Regional winner in the Colorado/Utah/Wyoming area with the TV show ‘Dance Fever'
- 1985 and 1987 America's Amateur Dance Champion
- 1990, 1991 and 1995 National and International Dance Finalist
- Danced as one of three featured couples on a Michael Feinstein TV special aboard the Queen Mary
- One of the lead “Dream Dancer” couples on Days of Our Lives
- Numerous other Semi-Final and Final Placings in Regional Ballroom Dance Competitions throughout the U.S. from 1989 to 1996
- A 15 year full-time Professional Teacher of both the American and International Styles of Ballroom and Latin Dancing
- 2004 20th Annual S.T.A.G.E. Production “The Perfect Year” - Featured Dancer
- One of the lead “Dream Dancer” couples on the 100th episode of the TV show Strong Medicine
- An accredited member of both Terpsichore, the I.S.T.D. and the U.S.I.S.T.D.
- Official editor of the newsletter TopLine for the U.S. I.S.T.D.
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| Susannah Murdoch-Cuesta |
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Susannah Cuesta has danced professionally and taught for 20 years. Moreover, she currently competes in the American Smooth
Division (Waltz, Tango, Foxtrot, and Viennese Waltz).
Nationally ranked in the top 18, her most recent victories include the California Star Ball Open Professional and the
Florida Triple Crown, winning both the Rising Star and the Open Professional competitions.
In the past, she has also competed in the International Standard (representing the United States at Blackpool), American Rhythm,
and Theatre Arts).
She is a member of the Imperial Society of Dance, the United States Terpsichore Society, and the Professional Dancers Federation.
She is a certified instructor of Ballroom and Latin dance.
Many of you saw her on the TV show Ballroom Bootcamp, where in 5 weeks she trained 10 newcomers to dance and compete.
She is especially proud that 6 of the competitors continue to take lessons from her. Incidentally, two of the six were
competitors from the other instructors.
She and her husband, Anthony, own and operate Ballroom Blitz, a ballroom dance studio in Eagle Rock, California. |
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| Andre Fortin |
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Born and raised in Montreal, Canada, Andre started dancing at the age of 7. Andre has 25 years of ballroom
dancing experience, including 9 years of teaching. After a successful
competitive career in his home country, including finishing 3rd in the Canadian Latin-American Amateur finals,
Andre moved to Los Angeles to pursue a teaching career. He's been featured in several movies and TV shows as a
dancer, choreographer and assistant choreographer and recently worked with Patrick Dempsey, Amy Adams and
James Marsden for the Disney movie Enchanted. Andre has also coached the USC Smooth Dance Team.
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| Jonathan Atkinson |
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Jonathan didn't begin dancing until the age of 20. Up until that point, he was studying
jazz piano and composition with the Grove School of Music. After taking a few lessons with
an Arthur Murray studio, he was immediately offered a position as a teacher, and took it.
He eventually graduated music school and took up dancing full time.
In 1995, Jonathan and his partner Melissa began training rigorously for competition in
the American Ballroom style, under the guidance of U.S. champions David Hamilton, Olga Foropanova,
Victor Veyrasset and Heather Smith. They eventually began pursuing International Style Ballroom as
well, and have been competing and performing both styles ever since.
In addition to their smooth ballroom training, Melissa and Jonathan both have extensive experience
in both American Rhythm and International Latin, as well as Salsa and West Coast Swing. Jonathan and Melissa
are both certified through Licenciate level of International style Ballroom with the ISTD. They plan to
continue their certification through Member and Fellow in both International Standard and Latin, as well
as through Gold in American style.
For more information please see Jonathan and Melissa's website:
http://ballroomdancers.com/Dancers/Default2.asp?Name=Atkinson. .
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| Trevor Luff |
| Trevor was born in England and moved to the U.S.A. in 1983. He holds a Dual Licentiate degree I.S.T.D. in American Smooth and Rhythm
and a Dual Fellowship degree I.S.T.D. in International Standard & Latin. He received ballroom and Latin training from top coaches in England and
the U.S.A. He placed 1st in the British Rock and Roll (jive with lifts) championships in England and was invited to represent
England for the world championships in Hamburg, Germany, in 1982. Trevor has competed and performed throughout the world including:
Blackpool, England, China, Korea and Japan. He represented the U.S.A dancing ballroom against Russia in California. In addition to winning
many competitions throughout the U.S. and England, Trevor has taught Ballroom and Latin Dancing for over 18 years, mainly at the
Westmor studio in Los Angeles. His interests are to promote ballroom and Latin dancing, maintaining a high standard for
both students and competitors. |
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| Carina Fourmyle |
| Beginning with jazz, tap, ballet and gymnastics as a child, Carina has competed nationally and worked as an instructor,
choreographer and performer for over 15 years. Her ballroom and Latin career began in 1993. She has been teaching, performing and
competing ever since. Carina has competed in all styles.
Her background of training includes numerous nationally and internationally recognized coaches such as: Ron Montez, Ray Rivers, Melanie La Patin, Tony Meredith, Peter Eggleton, Kerry Wilson, Jean-Marc Genereux, France Mousseau, James and Janna Kunitz, Jim and Jenell Maranto, Mark and Viola Weiss, Louis Van Amstel and others.
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| Erik Cyr |
| Erik started dancing at five years of age and entered the dance competition arena when he was nine years old. At the
age of 12 he won the title of Junior American Style Champion at the North American Dance Competition in Atlantic City, New Jersey. That same year
Erik started competing in the International Latin Style.
Since the age of eighteen Erik's talents and efforts in dancing continuously landed him a spot in the finals of the Amateur Canadian and
United States Dance Competitions. In 1996 Erik was second in the North American Dance Championships. He then moved to the United States with
stops in San Francisco and San Diego before settling in Orange County. Erik's numerous titles include 2002 Canadian National Open Latin Finalist
and 2001 United States Rising Star Couple of the Year. His teachers have included Jean-Marc Généreux and France Mousseau, Johan and Nadia Eftidal,
Richard Porter, Ruud Ver May, Maximillian Winklehuis, Rufus Dustin, Wendy Johnson, Ginette Cournoyer, Buddy Schwimmer, Ray Rivers,
Alan Torsberg, and Vibke Toft. Erik was one of the principal dancers on Days of Our Lives in 2001
and has also worked with Cirque Du Soleil. |
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| Joe Way |
| Joe is a 2x World Championship Adjudicator, former U.S. Professional Finalist, and owner of Promenade Dance Studio in
Orange County, CA. Also a former Arthur Murray World International Latin Champion and Top Over All Industry Teacher, Joe has run a total of
7 dance studios throughout the U.S., and serves as an NDCA certified consultant, adjudicator, and master of ceremonies. Joe has also worked
on dance shows “Dancing with the Stars” and “America’s Ballroom Challenge,” and is creative director of “Once Upon A Waltz.” |
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