Alamo Arts Ballet Theatre

Judith Gani was three years old when her dance studies began. She holds Bachelors and Masters degrees in Fine Arts from Texas Christian University where she majored in Dance and Theatre. She continued her studies in the Ph.D. program in Dance at New York University and in the field of Bioenergetics with Dr. John Pierrakos at the Institute for the New Age of Man in New York City.

She performed with the Fort Worth Civic Ballet Association, the Fort Worth Civic Opera Association, the Wichita Falls Ballet Theatre, the British Restoration Arts Theatre, and the San Antonio Civic Opera. She performed liturgical dance in Fort Worth and Dallas churches. While in New York, she performed with the Contemporary Choreographers ensemble, the Dance Company of the Center for the Living Force, and the children’s theatre company Theatre in a Trunk. In McAllen, Texas, she performed with South Texas Dance Theatre and with the Rio Grand Valley Orchestra and Chorus.

Ms. Gani has choreographed musicals, plays, operas, ballet and modern pieces for companies in Fort Worth, New York, McAllen, and San Antonio.

She served as a piano accompanist for the ballet division at T.C.U., as the Musical Assistant for the Fort Worth Civic Ballet Association, as the co-director of South Texas Dance Theatre in McAllen, as the rehearsal assistant for seven years for the Ballet West Nutcracker production in San Antonio, and for fifteen years as the associate director of San Antonio Metropolitan Ballet. She was a founding director of the Ballet Conservatory of South Texas. She is a member of the National Society for Arts and Letters and an honorary member of the Tuesday Musical Club.

Ms. Gani has taught dance and theatre in studios, private schools and universities in Fort Worth, New York, McAllen, and San Antonio. She now owns Ballet Arts School.

Julie Morton-Simpson, Artistic Director

Julie began her ballet training at the age of eight with Ruth Matlock. She pursued her studies with Vladimir Marek, then continued her studies with Robert Joffrey and the American Ballet Theatre in New York. Ms. Morton-Simpson joined the San Antonio Ballet at age 14, where she performed such roles as Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty and the Grand Pas de Deux from Don Quixote. She has performed with the Festival Ballet of San Antonio, the Kansas City Ballet, the Southwest Jazz Ballet of Houston, and with Houston’s Theatre Under the Stars.

Ms. Morton-Simpson joined Ballet San Antonio in 1988. After joining the company, she danced principal roles in The Nutcracker, Coppelia, and Les Sylphides. While at Ballet San Antonio she assumed the Ballet Mistress position.

After 18 years with Ballet San Antonio she now embarks with Judith Gani as Artistic Director of Alamo Arts Ballet Theatre and brings her vision and choreographic talents to this new company.

Lauren Anderson, Development Director

Ms. Lauren Anderson trained exclusively at Houston Ballet’s Ben Stevenson Academy from the age of seven. She joined Houston Ballet in 1983 and in 1990 became the first African-American to be promoted to principal dancer. Ms. Anderson has danced leading roles in numerous classical ballets. Her repertoire also includes works by George Balanchine, Sir Kenneth MacMillan, Christopher Bruce, James Kudelka, and Trey McIntyre. Ms. Anderson created the title role in Ben Stevenson’s Cleopatra, and her performance as Cleopatra received accolades from international critics. Anna Kisselgoff of the New York Times compared her to the great Italian Actress Eleanora Duse, and Christine Temin of The Boston Globe pronounced her a powerhouse in interpreting the role that Stevenson created for her. Ms. Anderson has performed across the world as a guest artist, appearing in New York, Chile, Moscow, and Chicago. In April 1999, Ms. Anderson was featured on the cover of Dance Magazine. She has also been featured in the magazines People and Pointe, as well as on the television programs A & E Breakfast With the Arts, CBS News Sunday Morning, and the game show, To Tell the Truth. Ms. Anderson is an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and has also been honored by the Urban League and by the Delta Gamma Foundation. She is married to jazz saxophonist Kyle Turner. Ms. Anderson and Mr. Turner are the proud parents of Lawrence Bell Fitzgerald Turner.

Ms. Anderson retired as a dancer from Houston Ballet in December 2006. She continues as their Development Director.