Genoa Belson – Founder and Director of Full Circle Dance

From a professional ballet dancer to a passionate dance educator

Genoa Belson began her dance career in North Florida, where she performed principal roles in many classical and contemporary works including The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, and Spring Waters. She was fortunate to receive excellent training from the Southern Academy of Ballet Arts, Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts, and the Joffrey Ballet School.

In 2005, she began teaching ballet classes and immediately fell in love with teaching. In 2013, she became Ballet Mistress and Assistant Artistic Director for World Ballet in Tallahassee, Florida. During her time as a teacher, she worked on and produced many rich, vibrant productions as a director, dancer, and freelance choreographer.

For Genoa, teaching combines her two favorite things, children and dance. Her classes are known for being imaginative, engaging and challenging. Her love of classical ballet has given her the tools to teach technique in a fun, safe environment. Her classes also give students an opportunity for artistic expression and musical interpretation, key for developing true artistry.

Knowing that she had something unique to offer, Genoa developed her own curriculum and founded Full Circle Dance in 2016.

Education and teaching experience

Principal Dancer, Pas de Vie Ballet, 2002-2009
Teacher, Southern Academy of Ballet Arts, 2005-2009
Guest Teacher, Ballet South, 2006-2009
Teacher and Choreographer, Hannah Bergstrom School of Dance, 2008-2011
Guest Choreographer, Resurgence Theater, 2012
Guest Choreographer, Florida State University School, 2013
Principal Dancer/Ballet Mistress/Assistant Artistic Director, World Ballet, 2011-2013
Guest Performer, Albany State University, 2012-2013
Teacher and Choreographer, Studio 8100, 2013-2016
Teaching Artist and Teaching Assistant, Celebrate the Beat, 2013-2016
Associate of Arts Degree, Tallahassee Community College, 2012
Licensed Massage Therapist, Denver Integrative Massage School, 2017

In her own words…

I was eleven years old, halfway through my first dance class when I realized that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I was captivated. Within five years, I was a soloist with a local ballet company. It is safe to say that my passion for dance has only grown over the last 20 years.

Naturally, I wanted to share my love and appreciation of dance, so in 2005, I started teaching. Over the years, I taught in a wide variety of settings from pre-professional ballet schools to small studios to public schools. The emotional, physical and social benefits of dance were abundantly clear! Along the way I observed a massive gap in quality dance education. Pre-professional ballet schools offered quality training to committed dancers but it came with a high price and was too serious for most children. Recreational studios offered less expensive classes, but students were often receiving poor training from under qualified student teachers.

The sad truth is that MOST children who could greatly benefit from dance don’t have access to high quality classes. This includes kids with busy working parents, low income parents, and boys who were not interested in dance because of the “princess” label slapped on many children’s dance classes.

Based on the idea that all children deserve to benefit from high quality dance classes, Full Circle Dance was created. Fast forward two exciting years and Full Circle Dance has partnered with 15 schools and counting, reaching hundreds of students the greater Denver area. My hope for this company is to continue to develop high quality dance programming and provide top-notch classes to as many students as possible.

From a professional ballet dancer to a passionate dance educator

Genoa Belson began her dance career in North Florida, where she performed principal roles in many classical and contemporary works including The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, and Spring Waters. She was fortunate to receive excellent training from the Southern Academy of Ballet Arts, Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts, and the Joffrey Ballet School.

In 2005, she began teaching ballet classes and immediately fell in love with teaching. In 2013, she became Ballet Mistress and Assistant Artistic Director for World Ballet in Tallahassee, Florida. During her time as a teacher, she worked on and produced many rich, vibrant productions as a director, dancer, and freelance choreographer.

For Genoa, teaching combines her two favorite things, children and dance. Her classes are known for being imaginative, engaging and challenging. Her love of classical ballet has given her the tools to teach technique in a fun, safe environment. Her classes also give students an opportunity for artistic expression and musical interpretation, key for developing true artistry.

Knowing that she had something unique to offer, Genoa developed her own curriculum and founded Full Circle Dance in 2016.

Education and teaching experience

Principal Dancer, Pas de Vie Ballet, 2002-2009
Teacher, Southern Academy of Ballet Arts, 2005-2009
Guest Teacher, Ballet South, 2006-2009
Teacher and Choreographer, Hannah Bergstrom School of Dance, 2008-2011
Guest Choreographer, Resurgence Theater, 2012
Guest Choreographer, Florida State University School, 2013
Principal Dancer/Ballet Mistress/Assistant Artistic Director, World Ballet, 2011-2013
Guest Performer, Albany State University, 2012-2013
Teacher and Choreographer, Studio 8100, 2013-2016
Teaching Artist and Teaching Assistant, Celebrate the Beat, 2013-2016
Associate of Arts Degree, Tallahassee Community College, 2012
Licensed Massage Therapist, Denver Integrative Massage School, 2017

In her own words…

I was eleven years old, halfway through my first dance class when I realized that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I was captivated. Within five years, I was a soloist with a local ballet company. It is safe to say that my passion for dance has only grown over the last 20 years.

Naturally, I wanted to share my love and appreciation of dance, so in 2005, I started teaching. Over the years, I taught in a wide variety of settings from pre-professional ballet schools to small studios to public schools. The emotional, physical and social benefits of dance were abundantly clear! Along the way I observed a massive gap in quality dance education. Pre-professional ballet schools offered quality training to committed dancers but it came with a high price and was too serious for most children. Recreational studios offered less expensive classes, but students were often receiving poor training from under qualified student teachers.

The sad truth is that MOST children who could greatly benefit from dance don’t have access to high quality classes. This includes kids with busy working parents, low income parents, and boys who were not interested in dance because of the “princess” label slapped on many children’s dance classes.

Based on the idea that all children deserve to benefit from high quality dance classes, Full Circle Dance was created. Fast forward two exciting years and Full Circle Dance has partnered with 15 schools and counting, reaching hundreds of students the greater Denver area. My hope for this company is to continue to develop high quality dance programming and provide top-notch classes to as many students as possible.