Judges

Abby has spent 15+ years as a choreographer, artistic director and dance educator. For
over a decade she has been working professionally in the entertainment industry while
simultaneously managing the esteemed dance studio in Los Angeles, Movement
Lifestyle. Abby has spent a large portion of her career touring the world educating
artists, and her greatest joy has been her work in building sustainable programs that
promote arts education for youth throughout the country. In 2020 she co-founded a
company called Æ Creative to continue cultivating experiences to inspire artists. These
days, Abby spends a majority of her time traveling to studios, schools and universities
sharing her love of dance.
Credits include: Nike, Mini Cooper, Herbalife, Walk The Moon, Aerial Experience, Aerial
Conexions, Believe Performing Arts, Æ Creative Arts, The Young Americans

Emily Jeffries, an Ohio native, is a professional dancer, teacher, choreographer, and adjudicator residing in New York City. Emily graduated from Point Park University‘s Conservatory of Performing Arts with a bachelor of fine arts in jazz dance. Most recently, Emily was seen performing in Tokyo, Japan at the Tokyo Orb Theatre in “Broadway Christmas Wonderland”, and in Times Square for New Year’s Eve as a dancer with Pzazz Productions for 2024, 2025, and 2026. Emily was also recently seen performing in the Lucille Lortel Awards in New York City as a swing for a section of “Contact” choreographed by Susan Stroman and set by Tome’ Cousin. Other career highlights include performing at the Jarvis Estate in Napa Valley, CA, as a Can-Can Dancer in the “Cabaret Cabernet”, dancing for Dublin Worldwide Production’s “Christmas on Ice” at the Fallsview Resort in Niagara Falls, Ontario, and at the Eldorado Showroom in Reno, NV, dance captain for “Cinderella”at the Pittsburgh Playhouse, and performing as a swing for a reconstruction of “Rich Man’s Frug” with the Fosse Verdon Legacy. She is currently earning her Master’s in Dance Education from Point Park University. Emily is represented artistically by Nick Baldasare with YOU Talent Agency.

Gail Cannaday is a Professional Dancer, Teacher, Choreographer, and Adjudicator from Chesapeake, Virginia that now resides in Morehead City, North Carolina. Gail started training, competing, and setting choreography at an early age. Her training under Arnora Hummell, Melissa Moore, and Andre Yemelianov includes: Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Lyrical, Hip Hop, Character, Modern, and Contemporary. In 2010 she joined the Dance Program at East Carolina University where she continued her dance training under Tommi Galaska, Dirk Lumbard, Galina Panova, Clarine Powell, Teal Darkenwald, and John Dixon. While at ECU she performed in various works and toured such pieces in concerts throughout North Carolina, Virginia, and Chicago, IL. She was also selected to have her own choreography performed alongside faculty pieces as well as teach alongside her faculty mentors at ECU during the Day of Dance, the Roots Festivals, in Musical Theatre Tap Classes, and for the East Carolina Tap Ensemble. Gail graduated from ECU in 2014 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Dance Performance. Gail’s further training includes the North Carolina Rhythm Tap Festival, Rhythm World Chicago, the Chicago Human Rhythm Project, Denise Wall’s Dance Energy, Millennium Dance Complex in Chicago, IL, #Taplife NY, and Broadway Dance Center in Manhattan, NY. In 2013, Gail was an apprentice with the Chicago Human Rhythm Project where she furthered her training and teaching career. She also had the opportunity to study closely under Tap Dance Masters Derick K. Grant and Charles Renato at that time. Since then, she has been teaching master classes and setting choreography at various studios along the East Coast in North Carolina, Virginia, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts. Gail currently teaches Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Lyrical, Contemporary, and Hip Hop at Justice Elite Dance Company in Morehead City, North Carolina.