Edmonton Fall Workshop Faculty

Gianna Martello is a dancer, teacher and choreographer from Pittsburgh, PA. Her raw talent and intensive training under the direction of Abby Lee Miller and the faculty at the Abby Lee Dance Company earned her regional and national accolades growing up as a "competition kid." At 16, Gianna began choreographing routines alongside Ms. Miller as well as on her own which led her to discover her passion for teaching and choreography. She is currently on faculty at Artistic Dance Exchange, Wild Dance Intensive for the Star Dance Alliance, Crew Studio, Broadway Dance Center, Millennium Dance Complex, and serves as a guest instructor and competition judge around the world.

Gianna was able to balance her academic and dance opportunities with great success. She graduated from Point Park University in 2011 with a B.A. in Advertising and Public Relations.

Gianna's choreography can be seen in the movie "Dance-Off," Go90's 'Crashed' series, Kid's Choice Awards and Dance Class Live promos, Australia's "ASTRA Awards," Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition, and music videos for Rachael Sage, Allegra Miles, Alexx Calise, Todrick Hall, The Pretty Wild, Emily Rowed and many more. You may know her from the fan favorite, Dance Moms! You can catch her choreography on all 8 seasons of the hit reality TV show.

Gianna's true passion lies in teaching and making you feel confident when you step out on stage, or into the real world. She believes that you can learn so much more from a dance teacher than just the steps. Her teacher instilled life long lessons throughout her entire childhood and Gianna wishes to do the same.

Gretta's dance journey truly took flight at age 13 when she began training with Alberta Ballet School and YYC Dance Project. During her formative years, she travelled internationally to attend conventions and intensives, immersing herself in a range of styles and mentorship experiences that shaped her artistry and vision as both a dancer and choreographer.

After an accomplished competitive career, Gretta concluded her final season in 2019 as a Beat Squad Member and choreographer's assistant with Revel Dance Convention. She has since continued to share her passion for dance as an instructor and choreographer across Calgary, teaching at studios such as Elite Dance Academy and Edge Studios.

Beyond the studio, Gretta spent three years as a professional cheerleader with the Calgary Roughnecks Drill Crew, before transitioning her focus toward her work in youth mental health with Kids Help Phone and her growing role as the Director of Excel Dance Experience. Gretta holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology (First Class Honours) from the University of Calgary and is a certified Acrobatic Arts Module 3 instructor.

Excel Dance Experience was born out of Gretta's firsthand understanding of the limitations in dance opportunities available in the city. As a young dancer, Gretta recognized that Calgary's dance community often faced challenges in accessing the same resources and training that dancers in major dance hubs like Vancouver, Toronto, and Los Angeles enjoyed. This gap sparked a vision: to create a convention that not only elevated local talent but also brought in high-caliber instructors and choreographers to provide the mentorship and exposure needed for dancers to thrive. With this vision in mind, Excel Dance Experience was established as a platform for Calgary dancers to expand their horizons, hone their craft, and connect with the broader dance community.

From a very young age Liz knew she needed dance to be a part of her life. Her career has allowed her to experience a wide scope of what the industry has to offer.

She started performing with Princess Cruises, travelled to Tokyo, Japan where she was part of the featured pas de deux couple in "Encore!" at Tokyo Disney Sea, and also Egypt and Israel performing in a show tour for the Canadian military.

Liz was able to exercise all of her skills in dancing, acting and singing when the love of the stage drew her to the world of musical theatre. Throughout her career she got to play a wide variety of characters. In Theatre Calgary's production of "Anne of Green Gables," The Arts Club production of "Spamalot," and a dream come true performance in the North American Premiere / Toronto Mirvish production of "Dirty Dancing" she performed as ensemble and 1st "Baby" understudy.

Liz can be seen on various episodes of the CW Network's "Hellcats" as a featured dancer, and as Ashley Tisdale's dance double. As Maggie Lawson's dance double in the musical episode of "Psych," a featured dancer in ABC's "Once Upon a Time," Nickelodeon's "Jinxed," "The Layover," NBC's "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist" and Paramount's "Rise Of The Pink Ladies."

Transitioning to the world of choreography, Liz began by assisting choreographers on So You Think You Can Dance Canada. She was also part of the creative team for "Reefer Madness." Liz's choreography can be seen on Super Channel's "When Calls the Heart" and ABC's "Once Upon a Time," she was the personal dance coach for award winning actor Domhnall Gleeson for the feature film Crash Pad and most recently directed the opening and closing numbers for Air Canada Vacations national corporate tour.

Liz loves to share her passion for what she does with pre-professional and professional dancers across North America via master classes, adjudicating and choreography.

Luke is a dancer from Calgary, Alberta and a proud recent graduate of Excel Dance Experience, where he trained and worked as an assistant. Throughout his dance journey, Luke has had the opportunity to train in several prestigious invite-only programs, including the 4th edition of the Lukas McFarlane Intensive in Europe, as well as Camp Protégé, Stacey Tookey’s invite-only program.

While competing, Luke earned numerous overall awards and titles, including becoming a provincial champion in Alberta alongside his duet partner Alice, who is now an Excel Pro Assistant. Their award-winning duet was choreographed by Excel Director Gretta Briceno, who Luke has worked closely with for many years. Luke also holds a special place in Excel’s history, as he taught one of his first classes at the debut Excel Assistant Pop-Up, which sold out in less than 24 hours.

Luke is currently performing professionally aboard the Spectrum of the Seas with Royal Caribbean International. He now specializes in jazz and commercial dance, bringing together his technical training, performance experience, and knowledge from his time working as a professional dancer. Luke is so excited to return to Excel and share his passion, energy, choreography, and everything he has learned with dancers at this fall’s convention.

Anna Steele began dancing at the age of 3 and has fallen in love with it ever since. Growing up as a competitive dancer, she trained in a wide range of styles including Jazz, Ballet, Lyrical, Contemporary, Hip Hop, Tap, Pointe, and Acro, graduating from Airborne Dance Centre in 2018.

Anna has trained extensively with top choreographers and instructors across Vancouver, Toronto, and Los Angeles, as well as professional cheer coaches from the NFL, NBA, and beyond. Her diverse training continues to shape her dynamic style as both a performer and choreographer.

Currently, Anna performs with the Rhinestone Cowgirls, the Roughnecks Drill Crew, and the Calgary Stampeders Outriders — and has choreographed for all three. She also had the incredible opportunity to perform with the Jonas Brothers at the 2024 Grey Cup Halftime Show, and has also appeared in multiple music videos as a dancer.

As a teacher and choreographer at multiple studios across Calgary, Anna brings passion, creativity, and a love for continuous growth to every class. She strives to create a supportive, fun, and positive environment where every student feels seen, encouraged, and empowered to be their best — both as dancers and as people.

Nia grew up dancing at Elite Dance Academy here in Calgary, Alberta. She started off in Ballet but as her love for dance grew, Nia branched out into all other styles including Jazz, Lyrical, Modern, Hip Hop and Tap. She competed for many years and spent two years in the Young Canadians of the Calgary Stampede where she danced and sang. Over the course of her childhood, she spent time in all areas of the performing arts by also participating in acting lessons, performing in plays with local theatre, and taking piano and voice lessons from the ages of five to 18.

Currently, Nia is attending school part-time studying early learning and child studies. She also continues to pursue her love of dance by performing with the Calgary Roughnecks Drill Crew, the Rhinestone Cowgirls and the Calgary Stampeders Outriders. She is a huge animal lover and can often be found hanging out with her many pets. Nia loves to further her professional development and is constantly learning. She has completed year one of the ADAPT teacher training school, as well as modules 1 and 2 of Acrobatic Arts.

Bio Coming Soon!