Artistic Staff
Karen Russo | Artistic Director
During her career in Dayton (OH), Karen has taught at Dayton Ballet School for sixteen years. In 1997, Ms. Russo Burke became coordinator of Dayton Ballet’s Outreach Program: DANCE POWER.
In 1998, she was appointed Director of Dayton Ballet II Senior Company, where she choreographed many works for the pre-professional company that have been performed in and around the Miami Valley for 12 years.
Since 2000, Karen has choreographed ten repertory pieces for Dayton Ballet including Into the Blue, a well-received tribute in honor of the 100th Anniversary of Flight. In 2003, she co-choreographed Dayton Ballet’s The Nutcracker with over 75 area children. She has also premiered many ballets for Dayton Ballet, including the critically-acclaimed A Streetcar Named Desire (to an original score), the magnificent Canyons and the very athletic woman’s ballet, Freudian Slip. In addition to the Dayton Ballet, Ms. Russo also choreographed for American Repertory Ballet and has taught at Wright State University, University of Dayton and the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music.
Ms. Russo Burke was awarded the Ohio Arts Council Excellence in Individual Creativity Award in 2006 and was honored by American Repertory Ballet for her commitment and excellence in the field of dance in 2005. In 2010, she was honored by the Dayton Business Journal.
She would like to take this time to thank her wonderful family for keeping it real.
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Justin Michael Koertgen | Ballet Master / Dancer |
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JUSTIN MICHAEL KOERTGEN joins Dayton Ballet for his tenth season. Born and raised in Michigan, Justin attended the Interlochen Arts Academy from 1994 -2000. Justin also studied in New York City with the Joffrey Ballet School, performing with the Joffrey Dance Ensemble. Highlights from previous seasons with Dayton Ballet include the roles of “Dracula” in Dayton Ballet’s Dracula, “Laertes” in Stephen Mills’ Hamlet and featured roles in Mills’ Red Roses and Five Flights Up as well as Christopher Fleming’s Janis & Joe. Mr. Koertgen has enjoyed several other roles including: “Romeo” and “Tybalt” in Septime Webre’s Romeo & Juliet, “Cavalier” in The Nutcracker, “Don José” opposite Anna Kirker in Carmen, “James Smith” in the highly praised There Was a Time by Dermot Burke and Stephen Mills and the title role in Christopher Fleming’s The Who’s Tommy.
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Abigail Beam | Director, DB II Senior Company / Outreach Coordinator
ABIGAIL BEAM studied extensively with Dayton Ballet and Pontecorvo Ballet Studios and has performed with Dayton Ballet II and Ballet de Jeunesse. Ms. Beam’s summer studies included the Boston Ballet, Chautauqua School of Dance, BalletMet and Hartford Ballet programs. She teaches at the Dayton Ballet School. Ms. Beam’s most recent role was as the Mother in the 2006 Dayton Ballet production of Septime Webre’s Swan Lake.
Megan Reckamp | Director, DB II Junior Company
Megan Reckamp has been a teacher at Dayton Ballet School since 2008. Originally from St. Louis, Missouri, Megan moved to Dayton to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance degree from Wright State University. While at Wright State, Megan performed with the Wright State Dance Ensemble and was a member of the Dayton Ballet II Senior Company. During her summers away from WSU, she studied at Ballet Chicago and Ballet Internationale. As a member of Dayton Ballet II Senior Company, Ms. Reckamp performed in Dayton Ballet productions including The Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, An American Cinderella, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Swan Lake, America’s Robin Hood and There Was a Time.
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