ABOUT: CF Dance academy
CF Dance Academy, The Orange County Destination For A Performing Arts Education, prides itself on providing families with high quality dance education and training in a nurturing and encouraging environment. CF Dance Academy currently offers beginning to advanced classes for dancers as young as 2 years old through teen and adult age groups. We offer classes both at our studio location in historic downtown Fullerton, and throughout various cities in Orange County such as Anaheim, Yorba Linda and Buena Park community services departments. CF Dance Academy also offer on-site dance programs at private schools, preschools, and after-school programs throughout Orange County. Our dance programs are all performance-based, rather than competition-based. We strive to provide a nurturing and fun-filled environment for dancers in all age groups, and we emphasize the importance of teamwork as we prepare for our many annual performance opportunities.
ABOUT: The Studios
CF Dance Academy - East Campus is located on the 3rd Floor of The Williams Building which is situated in downtown Fullerton on Commonwealth Avenue. CF Dance Academy - East Campus has 2 large dance studios and is a total of 5000 square feet. Built in 1927 as an Oddfellows Hall, the structure was promptly put into use as a speakeasy. Renovations began to modernize the building for its current use as a banquet venue and dance studio.
CF Dance Academy - West Campus is located on 109 South Harbor Blvd, Suite A, in beautiful downtown Fullerton (cross streets are Harbor Blvd and Commonwealth Ave.). This dance studio dubbed "The Fishtank", due to its large windows facing busy Harbor Blvd, always attracts attention from passersby. From the street and sidewalk, the 2000 square foot space features a custom painted mural and 40 foot long mirror which is perfect for large dance groups and crews.
Click thumbnails below for larger image of West Campus.
ABOUT: Founder, Owner/Co-Directors and Instructors
Cathleen Forcucci - Heideman (Founder)
December 24, 1947 - August 14, 2003
Cathleen Forcucci-Heideman was the founder and long-time director of Cathleen Forcucci Dance Academy (now known as CF Dance Academy). Miss Cathy was a fully accredited teacher with the Cecchetti Council of America and received certification with the Cecchetti Society of America ISTD, their international affiliation. Miss Cathy also taught with the City of Anaheim for twenty-two years. She directed the studio for many years with the support of her loving husband William Heideman. Now, C.F.D.A. is owned and directed by Miss Cathy’s daughters Jennifer Forcucci-Marzluf and Leanna Forcucci-Herron. Our mission is to continue our mother’s legacy of excellent dance instruction.
Jennifer Forcucci-Marzluf, ACUSA (Co-Owner/Co-Director)
Jennifer Forcucci-Marzluf has been teaching dance for over 14 years. She specializes in the instruction of Ballet, Tap, Jazz, and Ballroom. Miss Jennifer holds her Associates Teachers Certification with Cecchetti, USA (www.cecchettiusa.org) and has completed her Advanced 1 (Grade 9) Examination. Miss Jennifer continues her teachers studies with Cecchetti USA’s Executive Director, Marnell Himes-Ushijima. Miss Jennifer is currently the Director of CF Dance Academy’s Ballet Intensive Program and submits her dancers for yearly ballet examinations. Throughout her ballet career, Miss Jennifer has attended numerous seminars and workshops, receiving instruction directly from top ballet masters. Miss Jennifer attended the Orange County High School of Performing Arts, where she studied jazz dance and commercial arts as well as ballet. At the age of seventeen, Miss Jennifer became a certified ballroom dance instructor for the Imperial Ballroom, and went on to dance and compete professionally.
Leanna Forcucci-Herron (Co-Owner/Co-Director)
Leanna Forcucci-Herron has been teaching dance for over 23 years. She has taught for several dance studios in Orange County and even worked as the lead ballet teacher for a competing dance troupe in Austin, TX, where she also worked as a professional hip-hop dancer. Miss Leanna has taught many different dance and movement forms including ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop, and tumbling. Her specializations are in hip-hop dance and teaching advanced hip-hop technique to young children. She currently trains with industry recognized hip-hop choreographers in Los Angeles and tours her CF Dance Academy Hip-Hop Crews, Bring the Noise, K-mot10n 2.0 and Fortissimo throughout Orange, Riverside & LA Counties. These crews that she directs are award winning, have gained professional recognition and have received numerous awards for their crowd pleasing productions. Currently she is director of the largest Hip Hop program in Central and North Orange County and has put CF Dance on the map for hosting professional hip-hop choreographers in master class workshops and weekly classes at the academy. She has her B.A. in Child Development and Family Studies from Cal State Long Beach, where she also attended graduate school to work on her Multiple Subject Teaching Credential. During the past ten years, Leanna has also directed and taught CF Dance Academy dance programs at preschool and after school programs in cities throughout Orange, Riverside & LA Counties.
Jessica Anderson (Assistant Director/ Instructor Ballet, Tap and Hip Hop)
Jessica began her training as a young girl and has studied seriously at CF Dance Academy since 2004. She also receives dance training at Cypress College. She has had the privilege of studying in L.A. with professional choreographers such as Jabari, Tricia Miranda, Glenda Morales, and Havic. She studies Hip Hop, Ballet, and Pointe. Jessica dances with our Bring the Noise Hip Hop Troupe and Fortissimo. Her responsibilities include: managing the front desk, stage managing our showcases, organizing most offsite events, and supporting management.She has worked very closely with CFDA directors and has become a very strong instructor as well as office personnel manager. Jessica currently teaches Hip Hop, Ballet and Tap.
Vanessa Benitez (Senior Instructor, Tap, Hip Hop, Jazz)
Vanessa Benitez born and raised in California has been dancing since she was 9 years old. Going between sports and dance classes, she finally found her true calling in continuing her love for dance. Vanessa teaches tap and hip hop and been taught by nationally acclaimed instructors. Vanessa has been teaching Tap for CF Dance Academy for the past 5 years and is the assistant instructor for the CFDA Senior Hip-Hop Troupe. She brings a different element by blending her tap with hip hop to bring out "FUNKY TAP". Vanessa states, "My true inspiration comes from watching my students improve each class, they are the ones that make my ideas come to life!" She has participated in 2005 Hip Hop International, continues her education in hip hop by taking workshops/classes in LA. Such choreographers she has taken from are Teresa Espinosa, Shane Sparks, Leslie Scott, Dave Scott, and many more. She hopes to continue to tap and dancing hip hop for many years to come. One thing she likes to emphasize to her students in her hip hop classes, "Hip Hop is not just a dance, it's a lifestyle."
Jana Taylor (Senior Instructor, Ballet, Tap, Jazz & Lyrical)
Jana Taylor received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance with an emphasis in Ballet from Brigham Young University, with minors in French and Art History. While attending BYU, she performed and toured with the university’s Ballet Showcase and Theatre Ballet companies, dancing in classical ballet productions including Snow Queen and Coppelia, as well as serving as Theatre Ballet President. Jana received a grant from the Office of Research and Creative Activities to choreograph a contemporary ballet piece, for which choreography she later received the Phi Eta Sigma Outstanding Performing Arts Award. She also published an article in the BYU Dance Journal on the fusion of styles in contemporary dance. Prior to college, she began her dance training in Las Vegas, NV, in classical ballet with the Royal Academy of Dancing ballet technique and in many other dance styles: modern, jazz, lyrical, tap, character, and swing. Since moving to Orange County, Jana has performed at the Disneyland Resort, dancing numerous roles in several parades including Disney’s Electrical Parade, Celebrate! A Street Party, and A Christmas Fantasy Parade. She is currently performing with ENCORE Dance Company, a modern dance company based in Huntington Beach. Jana is passionate about performing, choreographing, and especially teaching, as she has been teaching many styles of dance to all ages for over 10 years.
Antwan Thomas (Hip Hop)
Born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, Antwan Thomas had an interest for the arts and sports at a young age. He started training at the age seven in gymnastics and martial arts, competing on a national level; he later transitioned to spring-board diving at the age fourteen. Competing on a national level as well in diving, he decided to put college on hold to train for the 2009 Olympic Trials. This would have been Antwan’s greatest athletic achievement, until he suffered an injury right before the event. However, having come from a school of performing arts, Antwan always had a deep appreciation for singing and dance of all styles. It was Antwan‘s passion for dance that pushed him to fully immerce himself into the dance scene. He quickly moved to the west coast and began to pursue his life as a professional dancer. Training in studios across the nation, he later signed with Bloc South agency and began working as a professional dancer/choreographer. Now back in Atlanta, GA, Antwan has choreographed and danced for various artists such as Promise, O M G Girls, QT JAZZ and Katerina Graham of “Vampire Diaries,” on WB. He has taught numerous master workshops from Florida to California and has performed on live TV in shows such as: the BET Hip Hop Awards, Soul Train Awards, the Durrty Awards, VH1 Hip-Hop Honors Awards, and season five of Randy Jackson’s America’s Best Dance Crew. Antwan appeared in Tyler Perry’s film “I Can Do Bad All by Myself,” Aaron Spellings Warner Bros. series “Safe Harbor,” the independent films “Strip Off” and “Inside Out.” Antwan continues to push the creative boundaries of dance, quickly making himself known as one of today’s hottest new choreographers!
Stephan Isileli Tuifua (Jazz, Lyrical, Contemporary & Hip Hop)
Stephan Isileli Tuifua, better known as Isi, was born and raised in South San Francisco. Coming from a Tongan (Pacific Islander) family dance was not the first choice for Isi. It was Isi’s goal to become a basketball player in the NBA. Isi didn’t start dancing until his freshman year in high school when he decided to take a jazz class. Since then, it was impossible to keep him away from the studio. He trained in jazz, lyrical, and contemporary. It wasn’t until he graduated college with an Associates Degree in Performing Arts that Isi joined the hip hop scene, dancing with the Oddacities SF and Funks SF. After being accepted into the University of California Berkeley, Isi decided to take a semester off venture off to LA. After living in LA for a year, he competed on season 5 of America’s Best Dance Crew with Heavy Impact Crew and since then has been on Keeping Up With the Kardashians. Isi continues to dance and teach in LA and hopes to spread his love and passion for dance worldwide.
Leon Henderson, a native New Yorker, living in Hollywood California has been dancing for a decade, 3 years as a professional. Upon entering his professional career, he has been training rigorously in acrobatics. With that training, he was blessed to be apart of the new released film “Bring It On 5” where he got to show his extensive training with tumbling as well as dancing. He also had the privilege to be a featured tumbler in the new Britney Spears video “Circus”. To end off 2008, Leon is featured in the unreleased film Boogie Town, Written and Directed by Chris Stolkes. Leon’s success continues to grow. In 2010, Leon and crew “Heavy Impact were chosen to compete on the hit MTV show ABDC (America’s Best Dance Crew). Big boys out to break negative stereotypes and prove dancers come in all sizes. These guys have big hearts and hope they can inspire others who have a passion for dance, "No matter what the size, if you love to dance, you are a dancer." Leon’s infectious feel good dancing and inspirational charm has definitely won over America. Along with his talent in acrobatics and dancing, he has a strong passion for choreography. That passion has led him to travel and teach around the world. With all that talent, he hopes to share it with the world whether it be on tour with an artist or teaching workshops. His passion for dance is unexplainable and it can only be demonstrated through his teaching.
Ryan Perry Marks (Ballet, Contemporary & Jazz)
Ryan is an OC native and is thrilled to be a part of the CF Dance Academy family! He is a third year Principal Dancer with ENCORE Dance Company, a modern company based out of Huntington Beach. He has lived and danced professionally in Los Angeles, New York, Paris, and has performed in countless festivals worldwide. He has studied with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, as well as the David Parsons Company in NYC. At the New Prague Dance Festival 2011, Ryan was honored with a Contemporary Dance Award for his solo performance of "The Depraved". Ryan just released his debut pop/dance album entitled Static, which is now available on iTunes. He has performed in many parades and shows at The Disneyland Resort for the last 6 years in a variety of dancing roles. Ryan is a proud APA graduate of Dance/Musical Theatre. He is a sought after choreographer and teacher throughout Orange County, and is currently a resident guest choreographer for the APA Dance Department. www.ryan-marks.com
Clarizcel Perez (Contemporary)
Clarizcel Perez, born and raised in the bay area of California, has been dancing since the age of 4 learning various technique styles such as jazz, ballet, lyrical and pointe. In 1999 she was introduced to hip hop as a dancer on City Slam, led by Ronnie Reddick of San Francisco. She moved to Irvine in 2005 for college where her love for hip hop grew exponentially when she became a member of UCI's Kaba Modern from 05-07, and further assisted as staff coordinator on Kreative Movement (formerly Kaba Kids). Currently, Clarizcel's artistic talents ventured onto Kaba Modern's professional counterpart, KM Legacy, where she is one of the Artistic Directors. She is also part of the Artistic Circle of Essence Ladies, an all-female professional dance company led by Gigi Torres based in Los Angeles. Clarizcel specializes in ballet, jazz, contemporary and various styles of hip-hop including poppin, lockin, whackin, house, and commercial. She can be found teaching these styles to our future youth dancers at West Coast School of the Arts in Costa Mesa and CF Dance Academy. Her credits also include performing in the Theater Ballet of San Francisco's "The Nutcracker" from 1996 - 2003 and being featured as a principal dancer from 2001-2003. Clarizcel has also danced in Disney's California Adventure's "High School Musical 3" parade, Young Bob's "Skinny Jeans" and Clara’s “It’s Burning Now” music videos, as well as choreographing for Vietnamese Pop Artists such as Ho Ngoc Ha and Hoang Thuy Lihn, and teaching dance workshops in various parts of California and around the world in including Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China. What started as a hobby has blossomed into love and passion where she loves to express her artistry through her movement, teach and inspire dancers all over the world.
Morgan Cook (Creative Dance, Musical Theatre, Ballet/Tap Combo, Jazz & Contemporary)
Morgan Elizabeth Cook is currently a Dancer at Disney as well as has been working in Theatre, Film and Dance for her entire life. Some of her training includes the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre in NYC, Sacramento Theatre Companies Young Professionals Conservatory, California Musical Theatres Music Circus, as well as the school of the Sacramento Ballet. She also attended a performing arts high school studying Dance, Theatre and Music. Morgan has been teaching all ages and levels of Jazz, Contemporary, modern and hip hop at several different Performing Arts Schools and Studios in northern and southern California. Her specialty is teaching creative dance, parent and me, ballet/tap combo classes and musical theatre to children. She fell in love with teaching children dance while at the Los Angeles Children’s Hospital. Morgan is so excited to be a part of the CF Dance Academy family.
Jay Kim (Hip Hop)
Jay Kim started dancing at the age of 16. He found dancing to be his passion and his getaway. He made it into Cerritos All-Male Dance Team in 2007, and became Leader of Cerritos All-Male in 2008. His team won first place in Miss Dance Drill Team USA Nationals both years consecutively. Even though he has graduated, he still continues to be involved with the dance team and is currently coaching Cerritos All-Male Dance Team. He has had the opportunity to perform with Anthony Qureshi, Derrick Caldwell, David Gonzalez, and Dominic Byrd. He currently dances with Step Off Dance Crew in Buena Park, CA, and directs Guidance, a church dance ministry, at Sarang Community Church. Jay Kim currently teaches Hip-hop at CF Dance Academy.
Marissa Sands (Lyrical/Contemporary & Hip Hop , fortissimo co-captain)
Marissa Sands has been with CF Dance Academy for 14 years and started her dance career with Cathleen Forcucci, the founder of CF Dance. She studies ballet, pointe, lyrical, jazz, flamenco and hip hop. In her first two years of high school, she participated in Fullerton Union High School’s “Dance Company”. During her second year, she co-choreographed a lyrical/contemporary piece and received the award of “Most Valuable Dancer”. She also takes classes at Millennium dance studio in Hollywood, CA and has been coached by many professional dancers and choreographers. Marissa is currently preparing for Cecchetti Class Ballet Level 9 Professional Examination. She is also studying for her teacher’s certification through Cecchetti USA, www.cecchettiusa.org. Marissa currently teaches ballet, tap, lyrical/contemporary and hip hop at CF Dance Academy, Fullerton.
Faith Forcucci (Ballet, Tap, Hip Hop, fortissimo co-captain)
Faith Forcucci has been dancing for more than 13 years at CF Dance Academy. She has studied Cecchetti Classical Ballet along with many other dance forms including tap, jazz, modern, lyrical, and hip-hop. Faith is currently a member of both performance troupe's belonging to CF Dance Academy: the Bring the Noise Hip-Hop Troupe and the Fortissimo Ballet Performance Troupe. She has had the opportunity to experience the dance industry in competitions that include World of Dance and Studio 429's K-12 Competition. Faith has attended numerous dance workshops and classes with industry professionals in Hollywood, CA. She has been studying Cecchetti Ballet for more than 9 years, and has completed up to the Cecchetti Grade 8 Exam. She is also currently studying for her Cecchetti USA Teachers Certification.
Paige Boulanger (Ballet & Tap)
Paige Boulanger started dancing 11 years ago with Miss Cathy, founder of CFDA, at the Anaheim Downtown Community Center. Paige began as a demonstrator for ballet and tap classes 5 years ago where she has developed a love for teaching. At Fullerton Union High School, she had an opportunity to expand her teaching skills as a Teacher’s Assistant for Dance I. Currently studying for her Cecchetti Ballet Grade 9 Exam and her Teacher’s Certificate with Cecchetti USA, Paige studies ballet, pointe, contemporary/lyrical and also has a background in modern, tap and hip hop. She has studied with many professional instructors and choreographers at the Cecchetti seminars and workshops as well as at the Millennium Studio in Hollywood. Paige enjoys teaching Ballet and Tap, Tiny Tot Ballet and Parent and Me classes for CFDA.
Hope Forcucci (Assistant Teacher)
Hope Forcucci has been dancing at CF Dance Academy for over 13 years. She has studied ballet, tap, hip-hop, jazz, and lyrical dance. Hope is currently a member of both the award-winning Bring the Noise Hip-Hop Troupe and the Fortissimo Troupe. With these groups, she has competed and participated in exhibitions such as World of Dance and Studio 429’s K-12 Competition. Hope has studied with professionals in LA and Hollywood, CA in workshops and classes at Edge and Millenium studios. She continues her dance education and assists in various hip-hop, tap, jazz, and Zumba classes at CF Dance and off-site programs.
Sierra Ledesma (Assistant Teacher)
Sierra Ledesma has been dancing under the direction of CF Dance Academy for 4 years. It is her love for dancing and learning that brought her to CFDA. She currently studies ballet, pointe, tap, lyrical, jazz, flaminco, and hip hop and is a proud participant of both performance troupes; “Bring the Noise” hip hop troupe and “Fortissimo” ballet troupe. She continues to expand her knowledge and experience in dance by attending various master classes and studying under many of the top dance professionals in Hollywood, CA. As a continuous learner, Sierra is working on her grade 7 & grade 8 Cecchetti Ballet Exam, as well as a teaching certificate. Sierra attends Cypress High School and is a member of the song team. At this time, Sierra is teaching ballet, tap, and various levels of hip hop. A quote by Constanze is the way Sierra lives and dances: “Dancing is like dreaming with your feet!”
109 South Harbor, Suite A, Fullerton, California 92832 -