Founder /Artistic Director

·  Deborah Marquez (Founding Director) was born in Havana, Cuba and trained at the Provincial Ballet School “Alejo Carpentier” and later at the National Ballet School in Havana. When she graduated at 1993 .She trained and danced under the direction of Laura  Alonso, for several years .In 2000 she join National Ballet of Cuba under the direction of Alicia Alonso ,performing around the world before coming to the United States to dance with Ballet Florida, in 2002 under the leadership of Marie Hale. She danced professionally for 20 years, as described below.  

·  In 2010 founded the School of Ballet Arts in Palm Beach County, where she has trained and coached 100’s of students, with many of her graduating seniors continuing to study dance at prestigious college programs and dance companies’ internship programs. With every passing year, an increasing number of her students are dancing with major American Dance Companies.

·  In 2016 received the Palm Beach County Randolph A Frank Award, for outstanding Arts Educator, having enriched many of her students’ lives with exceptional training and opportunities to prepare them for a dance career.

·  Since 2011 has choreographed and staged many full length classical ballet productions for her company, including the annual Nutcracker, Dracula, Coppélia, Don Quixote, Sleeping Beauty, Paquita, to name a few.  Has also presented award winning new contemporary ballets, including Florida, 1st place winner at Universal Ballet Competition - South Florida, Out Of Breath, Art of War, and Perpetual Motion, all semi-finalist winners at the Youth American Grand Prix International Competition.

·  As a Professional Dancer joined the Centro Pro-Danza led by the great maitre Laura Alonso where she was a Classic principal dancer, dancing the leading roles including: Sugar Plum in Nutcracker, Le Sylphide, Swanilda in Coppelia, Kitri and Mercedes in Don Quixote, Teresita in Napoli, Lucy in Dracula, ​Constanza in 3 Musketeers, Ganzatti in Le Bayadere  ... among others. Ms. Marquez's awards include: First Prize - Best Choreography Song to the Movement at National Arts School Festival of Havana in Cuba (1989).

·   First Prize for Best Performance and Technique at National Art SchoolsFestival ​in Havana, Cuba (1990); Bronze Medal at Second International ​Ballet Competition “Alicia Alonso” in Havana, Cuba ( 1997), Silver Medal at International Ballet Competition of Bello Horizonte in Brazil (1998). In 1999, Marquez performed The Nutcracker with the Ontario Ballet Theater in Toronto, Canada. Back in Cuba she joined the National Ballet of Cuba where she danced the main classic repertoire, some contemporary masterpieces as Alberto Mendez Rara Avis and toured extensively through Europe and South America guided by the celebrated maitres Alicia Alonso, Joaquin Banegas, Lopia Araujo, Josefina Mendez ,Fernando Alonso and others. Deborah came to the USA in 2002 and joined the Ballet Florida directed by Marie Hale. There, she had the opportunity to work with well known choreographers as Ben Stevenson (Dracula, Cleopatra, Esmeralda, Five Poems, Bartók Concerto, Four Last Songs, Three Preludes), Mauricio Wainrot (Libertango pas de deux, Rite of Spring, From Far Away, Anne Frank), Twyla Tharp (Baker's Dozen), Vicente Nebrada (Our Waltzes, Handel Celebration, Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella), Trey McIntyre (Second Before the Ground), Val Caniparoli (Lambarena, Lady of Camelias), Norbert Vesak (A Midsummer Night Dream), Thierry Malandaine (Stone Flower), David Parsons (The Envelope), Marie Hale (The Nutcracker, Le Corsaire). While at Ballet Florida she also performed in George Balanchine’s (Allegro Brillante, Classic Symphony, Il Ballo della Regina).

·  “…Bravo Deborah Marquez... was a lustrous Snow Queen…with classic grace and charisma.”(Lawrence Budmen, The Sun Sentinel, Maris Hale's “The Nutcracker”, Ballet Florida, 2007) “Deborah Marquez (Lady of Camellias, pas de deux) revisit the romance, dancing with joyous freedom…” (Sharon McDaniel, The Palm Beach Post, Florida 2007).