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Meet The Team

Gianni Caliandro

Originally from southern Italy Gianni started dancing dancing at the

age of 7.  By the age of 13, he had decided to make ballroom dancing his career and set his goal to be a great ballroom dancer.  In 2006, he became semi-finalist in Under-21 Ballroom at Blackpool, International, and German Open.

Arianna Esposito

Arianna started her dance training at the age of 5 because her parents

wanted to discipline her strong personality.  When she was 9 years old, she was introduced to ballroom dancing and immediately fell in love.  Together with her brother, Enzo, they worked hard and became very strong 10-dance couple in Italy.

Gianni and Arianna met in 2008 and started dancing together.  Their partnership started successfully, becoming WDC Italian Amateur Champion in 2009.  They moved to USA and turned professional in 2011 and currently they are ranked 10th in the world in WDC Professional Ballroom Division.  They travel to Europe and Asia to compete and for training, making sure to stay always up to date with the information and knowledge of ballroom dancing. 

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Gianni and Arianna's major accomplishments include:

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  • 2017 UK Open RS Ballroom Winner

  • 2nd Place 2017 Blackpool RS Ballroom 

  • 3rd Place 2013 International Championship RS Ballroom 

  • Quarter Finalist Blackpool Open Ballroom

  • Semi-Finalist 2018 Asian Tour (Tokyo, Taipei, Shanghai, Hongkong)

 

Enzo Esposito

Vincenzo (Enzo) started his ballroom career when he was 11 years old with his sister Arianna. Some of his accomplishments include:

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  • South Italian Italian-Smooth Champions.  

  • National 10-Dance finalist

  • 3rd at the FIDS Puglia Regional Championships in International Standard

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After graduating with a degree in “Science and Technology of Visual Art, Music, Show and Fashion”, he took a time off from competitive dancing and pursued path in sound technology, which has helped to shape his brand, FENIX Sound!

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Enzo decided to return to dancing in 2015, and moved to USA following his sister's path. 

Yo Matsubara

Yo comes from a different background than the others.  She didn't start dancing as a child.  Her childhood dream was to become a scientist.  She started dancing while she was in graduate school.  She was immediately hooked and started dancing as much as possible.  After graduation, she started working as a postdoc at Smithsonian Institution and continued to study ballroom on the side.  While she was working at Smithsonian, she met Enzo and her career path changed completely!

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She is a great example that it's never too late to start dancing!

Enzo and Yo have been dancing together since 2016.  They've been competing both nationally and internationally and getting trained by world's top teachers.  Their accomplishments include:

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  • Amateur Champion at Heritage Classic

  • 2nd in Cleveland Dancesport Challenge RS Ballroom

  • 4th VA State Dancesport Championship Open Ballroom

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