School of Performing Arts | Instructors

Tap | Jazz | Ballet Instructor
Ashley Spicer has lived dance, in and out, for the past 16 years. Her love and passion for this beautiful art form has brought her to the place where she is now proficient in performing, choreographing and teaching Polynesian & Tahitian, Jazz, Tap, Hip-Hop, Salsa, Theatre, and Cheerleading. Some of her work includes choreographing the musical Grease, Sound of Music, and Beauty and the Beast.
Accomplishments include, 2002 Cheerleading State Champion. An appearance in Sinque Grier’s music video as well as appearing as an extra on the WB’s Dawson’s Creek and Christina Aguleira’s stripped in NYC. Some of her performance experience includes performing at Slave Hall of Fame’s Benefit Concert for Hurricane Katrina Relief and the What’s Next Concert in New York City as a backup dancer for Justin Timberlake and Sean Paul.
She will be lead dancer in Jeffrey Williams’s upcoming tour. Her most recent endeavor was competing in FOX’S Hit Show ‘SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE’. After many days of auditions she made it to the top 3% out of 1400 people. This has only made Ashley more determined to perform and continuing her education of dance.  Currently she is in the process of obtaining her Associate in Fine Arts Degree. Break-

ContemporaRy \ Lyrical \ Tap Instructor
Kim Urba graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Richmond, where she majored in Theatre Arts and was a member of the dance company, The University Players and Dancers. Kim has trained in several forms of dance with teachers and choreographers in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia and England. She currently teaches dance at the YM-YWHA and soon will be choreographing Aladdin There.

In February Kim was invited back to the University of Richmond to choreograph a piece for the annual dance concert.  Kim currently performs, choreographs and teaches for the Garden State Dance Project.  In the summer she runs an international dance program in Switzerland. Kim is in the process of obtaining a masters degree in elementary education.

Creative movement \ hip-hop \ break-dance instructor
Co-founder and Artistic Director of the Garden State Dance Project, company in residence at the YM-YWHA of North Jersey.  There, he provides community dance programs through instruction, education, and performance. Eli began his dance career outside of the “dance” studio. In his high school years he studied Tae Kwon Do, earning black belt rank.  His martial art training lead-him to learn his first dance technique, breaking.  Wanting to deepen his study of movement he became a dance major at the County College of Morris, graduating with an Associate in Fine Art Degree.  While there he received special recognition for his work in Dance Theater at the Prague International Dance Festival.  

Through his residency at the YM-YWHA of North Jersey Eli has founded the School of Performing Arts which is now going into its’ third year.  He directs and GSDP Professional Company as well as facilitate several school programs in and around the area.  He is in his fifth year with New York City Ballet Education Department where he is a teaching artist for their Ballet Bridges Middle School Program.  He continues to share, instruct, choreograph and perform all around the tri-state area