The Virtual Academy: Teachers
Kelly King
Class: Contemporary
Bio: Kelly King was a Radio City Rockette for 12 years and has performed extensively for television, stage, and film. She toured nationally with Fosse and Anything Goes and performed in Gregory Hines In Concert with Gregory Hines and Busker Alley with Tommy Tune. Her other credits include Alvin Ailey NY, Sinatra "His World, His Way, His Voice," The Tonight Show, MTV Music Awards, NBC's WOW Awards at Lincoln Center, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, The Today Show, and with the Pussycat Dolls at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. As a teacher, King held the resident faculty choreographer position at the Broadway Theatre Project for 11 years at the University of South Florida. She is also involved in The Performing Arts Project as head of the dance department and as a guest teacher for Broadway Dance Center in NYC. She recently finished teaching at GENDARC Dance Summer Intensive, with over 50 apprentices, held at Alvin Ailey in NYC. At the Patel Conservatory, King serves as Head Contemporary Teacher and Director of the commercial dance department. King was instrumental in the development of the Patel Conservatory Commercial Dance program, which provides dancers with education in other forms of dance for additional job opportunities in the dance industry.
Marimba Gold-Watts
Class: Pilates
Bio: Marimba Gold-Watts is the 2018 Winner of the Next Pilates Anytime Instructor Contest. A former professional dancer, Marimba performed with Ailey II and the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, amongst other dance companies in New York City. She was first introduced to Pilates in 1997 as a student at the Ailey School. She completed her Pilates certification at The Kane School of Core Integration under the direction of Kelly Kane in 2007. After a serious ankle injury (and 4 subsequent ankle reconstructions) forced her to retire from dance in 2008, Marimba began teaching Pilates full time with an emphasis on helping both clients recovering from injury and on cross-training professional dancers. Her clients include professional and pre-professional dancers from New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theater, Broadway, and the School of American Ballet, as well as retired dancers of all ages.
Marimba is a NCPT (Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher) and a Registered Certified Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapist®.
Marimba is a graduate of Barnard College of Columbia University with a degree in Art History. She has taught Horton technique in the Junior and Professional Divisions at the Ailey School since 2005 and at university dance programs throughout the country, as well as in Italy for the Italian Television series Amici and Tecniche Di Danza Moderna.
In her spare time, she loves to cook, go to dance performances, and run around after her 2 year old son.
Her goal is to help her clients achieve fluid, strong, and more articulate bodies.
