Company

Anjali Hern began her ballet education at the age of three in her hometown of Valencia, California before continuing her training with the Marat Daukayev School of Ballet in Los Angeles. After graduating, she was offered a scholarship to Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s graduate program, where she spent two seasons training and performing with the company.

Ms. Anjali joined Ballet RI in 2023, and is currently in her fourth season with the company. She began teaching in the School of Ballet RI in the spring of 2024, beginning in the young children’s program before moving up into the core program. Ms. Anjali is passionate about sharing her love for ballet and fostering the next generation of dancers.

*Ballet RI Dancer

Chu Ling graduated from Beijing Dance Academy with a major in choreography. She moved to the U.S. in 1996, and founded the Chu Ling Dance Academy at Boston in 1998. She has been teaching Chinese dance at the Boston Ballet School since 2000. Ms. Chu has conducted workshops at Harvard, Wellesley, BU and Curry college frequently. Chu Ling has presented Boston First Night annually since 2000. Her works have been staged across China, Japan, and the U.S. She is the recipient of the 2002 Artist/Humanist Fellowship from the Boston Cultural Council and the FY23–24 Traditional Arts Apprenticeship from the Mass Cultural Council.

Ms Chu joined Ballet RI in 2020.

Gina DeRoma is a faculty member at School of Ballet RI, where she teaches Pre-Ballet 1, 2, and 3, Primary 2A/B Floor Barre, Primary 2A/B Jazz, and Adaptive Dance. She joined the School of Ballet RI in 2023 and is originally from Dracut, Massachusetts. She trained at the International Ballet Academy of Norwell and participated in Integrarte’s Year-Round Pre-Professional Ballet Program. She is a Boston Ballet Adaptive Dance Teacher Training Certified instructor and is currently a Ballet RI Trainee.

One of Gina’s proudest accomplishments is serving on the Artistic Staff for Ballet RI’s 2024 and 2025 productions of The Nutcracker. She is especially inspired by Erica Cornejo, whose artistry, work ethic, and compassionate spirit have greatly influenced Gina’s approach to dance and teaching.

Gina’s favorite quote is: “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” — Albert Einstein

Fun fact: Gina has watched the entire series of Gilmore Girls ten times!

AJ Maio began his Ballet training with The School of Ballet RI (Formerly Festival Ballet Providence) under the direction of Mihailo Djuric and Mary Ann Meyer and had the privilege of performing in company productions of The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and The Little Mermaid as a student. In 2018, AJ attended the University of Utah and graduated with a B.F.A. in Ballet and a B.A. in Russian. While there, he performed lead roles from Le Corsaire, Carmen, Raymonda, Don Quixote, Giselle, La Vivandiere, Paquita and, La Fille Mal Gardée as well as participating in international gala performances in Estonia and South Korea.

AJ Joined Ballet RI in 2022 as an apprentice and was promoted to the main company in 2023. He has performed in Yury Yanowsky’s The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty as well as Balanchine’s Allegro Brilliante. Additionally, AJ trained with the Syzokryli Ukrainian Dance Ensemble and now teaches character dance at the School of Ballet RI.

*Ballet RI Dancer

Brenna Mulligan began her training under the direction of her mother Melissa Mulligan. Throughout her pre-professional career, Brenna competed and placed in several ballet scholarship competitions. During this time, she extensively explored creation in choreography. In 2020 she was awarded the Outstand Choreographer Award by internationally acclaimed choreographer Peter Quanz.

Brenna joined Ballet San Antonio in 2020 as a Corps de Ballet member where she progressed up the ranks the following seasons. In 2023, she was promoted to principal under the directorship of Sofiane Sylve at age 21. During her time at Ballet San Antonio, Brenna performed roles such as Princess Florine, the Rose Adagio, Aurora Wedding Pas de Deux (Sleeping Beauty), Black Swan, Little Swans (Swan Lake) Clara, Sugar Plum (Nutcracker/Smith), Kitri (Don Quixote/Armand), Cinderella, Winter Fairy (Cinderella/Mathot), Alice (Alice in Wonderland/Enos), Principal Female (Creation #10 Pauline’s Project/ Thomas), Belle (Beauty and the Beast/ Wells), Titania (Midsummer Night’s Dream/ Ferreras), Wendy (Peter Pan/Enos), and Giselle (Giselle/Liang). In 2024, Brenna was highlighted in Pointe Magazine’s 12 Standout Performances of 2024 for her portrayal of Kitri in Patrick Armand’s Don Quixote.

Brenna loves sharing her passion for dance and her greatest goal is to bring other joy through her movement and motivation. She is elated to join Ballet RI and the School of Ballet RI for their upcoming 26/27 season.

*Ballet RI Dancer

Tara McCally began teaching at Feijoo Ballet School while still a dedicated student, training extensively in ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, musical theatre, and conditioning. Her diverse training shaped a versatile approach to movement and sparked an early passion for teaching and choreography. For the past four years, Tara has taught contemporary dance at the School of Ballet Rhode Island, where she works with students to develop artistry, musicality, confidence, and a strong technical foundation. As a choreographer, she has created and coached competitive solos for Youth America Grand Prix, earning placements at the competition, while also choreographing original works for the school’s student ensemble. Drawing from her experience as both a professional dancer and multidisciplinary teacher, Tara brings a thoughtful, energetic approach to the studio, encouraging dancers to explore their individuality while developing the technique, versatility, and performance quality needed to grow as artists.

*Ballet RI Dancer

Katherine (Katie) Vigly is a current company dancer with Ballet RI and has been teaching in the school’s adult program since 2021. Though Katie has taught students of all ages through her professional career, she especially loves working with adult students, from absolute beginner to advanced. She tries to create a welcoming environment that meets the needs of all students, whether they want to seriously progress their technique or they simply want a fun creative outlet to find greater connection to their bodies. Outside of ballet Katie also teaches barre and pilates classes at Barre & Soul in Wayland Square.

*Ballet RI Dancer

coming soon…