Our Staff
Our Faculty
Principal Mandy Pellicano Castagna
Head Ballet Teacher
Founded this team in 1998 to offer opportunities to the dancers to perform, share and showcase their talent as well as to collaborate with other cultural entities. Mandy is the Maltese representative for the British Ballet Organization whereby students attending the academy can do annual exam leading to professional qualifications and diplomas. Mandy is a fully registered teacher of the British Ballet Organization. She is always on the look out for opportunities to boost the students such as organizing workshops, international camps, TV shows and scholarships.
Evie Cezek
Musical Theatre
Throughout the years, Evie has trained various styles of dance such as hip hop, classical ballet, contemporary, lyrical, and commercial dance. Evie particularly enjoys attending master classes with several talented choreographers both locally and internationally. Evie has attended 2 editions of Nox camp in Pozzallo, Sicily where she was awarded scholarships for more dance opportunities. Evie was recently living abroad in Ireland where she was part of the dance club at the University College Cork. She attended many open classes in jazz, hip-hop and contemporary. This opportunity helped her realize how much she wants to attend classes abroad and learn from international choreographers. Now being in the middle of her university course she finds dance as the perfect remedy for stress and allows her to have a balance in her life. Evie can’t imagine her life without dance and looks forward to continuing to grow and improve her dance career together with her team. Teaching has helped her become more confident in class and made her love for dance grow even more. Lastly, she hopes that she could eventually further her dance career abroad to advance her profession.
Jade Montesin
Ballet
Jade Montesin has been dancing ballet since she was 3 years old. She recently received her advanced 1 BBO ballet certificate, and is currently following the advanced 2 BBO syllabus. Additionally, she teaches ballet to children between the ages of 5-8. Along the years, she has also practiced a variety of different dance styles, such as hip-hop, jazz, lyrical, latin American, contemporary, etc. Jade also participated in numerous dancing competitions and attended numerous workshops both locally and abroad.
Kelly Chircop
Jazz/Contemporary/ Choreographer
A passionate dance teacher and choreographer, Kelly embarked on her dance journey at the young age of 4. Growing up, her focus on Modern, Latin American, Jazz and Contemporary shaped her versatile skill set. Having competed internationally for several years, she brought her talent to productions and TV program both locally and abroad. For the past 6 years, Kelly has been sharing her expertise, teaching students of all ages, and creating captivating choreography for diverse competitions and events..
KYLIE AQUILINA
Ballet
Kylie Aquilina is currently studying at the University of Malta. She has been dancing since she was 4 years of age up until this very day. She started dancing ballet and achieved all 8 grades of the British Ballet syllabus (BBO). Along the years she was introduced to other genres of dance such as jazz, jazz funk, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary and musical theatre. She is beyond pleased and thankful that she had received two scholarships to study with foreign teachers at Elmhurst School of Dance in Birmingham where she met various students from all over the world. She also achieved other scholarships to attend different dance camps such as Nox by Michele Nocca, Blandi Events, and The Unit. Recently she was also given the opportunity to teach ballet at Mandy’s Dance Academy, where she delivers what she has learnt to younger students, while also helping them achieve their dreams in dancing.
Kirstie Cutajar
Ballet teacher
Since an early age, Kristie has been immersed in the world of dance, focusing on ballet, modern, and contemporary styles. Her journey in dance has been a lifelong passion, shaping her into a versatile and expressive performer. Through dance, she express herself with grace and creativity, bringing stories to life on the stage. Kristie loves teaching young ballerinas and teaches at MDA the junior ballet.
MARTINA FRANCALANZA
BalletTeacher/Competition Choreographer
Martina Francalanza is currently a student at the University of Malta studying to become a Physiotherapist. She began her dance journey with Mandy Dance Academy at the young age of 4 years, where she has since obtained an Advanced qualification in ballet with the British Ballet Organisation. Martina still continues to train ballet, as well as other dance styles including lyrical, contemporary, jazz and commercial. Over the years she has had the opportunity to work both locally in the Film Industry and cultural festivals such as Notte Bianca, as well as abroad on scholarships, where she danced at Elmhurst Ballet School in the UK and NOXcamp in Sicily. Martina’s love for dance also sparked her interest in teaching. She currently teaches Grade 5 Ballet classes at Mandy Dance Academy. Another one of her major goals is to specialize in physiotherapy for dancers.
Mardy Farrugia
Musical Theatre - singing and drama
Mardy Farrugia, is currently in her third year at the University of Malta, studying to become a Speech language Pathologist. She studies voice, piano, acting and Musical theatre. She has been singing since she was 7 years old and at the moment she’s under the guidance of ms Gillian Zammit. She took part in various local and international festivals including star rain in Prague, Northern lights in Finland and Una stella sta nascendo in Italy . Recently she’s working on her Grade 8 classical voice exam. She had the opportunity to sing with several local bands including that of the Armed Forces of Malta. She also took part in a master class organised by Malta opera where she had the chance to work with conductor Ben woodward and director Detlef Soelter. She took part in various masterclasses namely Carlos Conde Gonzalez, Mackenzie Thomas(Broadway) , Kurt olimann, John Ferguson, Iskra Menarini ,Miriam Gauci and Gabriele Lombardi. She is also part of the Monteverdi project which is under the direction of maestro Marco Mencoboni and Ms Gillian Zammit. She also plays the piano and is currently preparing for her Grade 8 exam both in theory and practice. She also studies Musical theatre as well as drama at a local Drama school.
MELISSA FRENZNICK
Ballet/contemporary Teacher
Melissa Frenznick obtained her Bachleor in Dance Studies (Honours) from the University
of Malta in 2019. During this time, she further discovered contemporary dance and
deepened her knowledge in ballet technique and dance theory.
MILENA PELLICANO
Ballet and Lyrical/ Competition Choreographer
Milena teaches Ballet and Lyrical Dance at Mandy Dance Academy. She has been dancing since the age of 3 and started with Classical Ballet with the British Ballet Organisation. She has recently obtained a diploma level in Ballet, with the BBO. Throughout the years, Milena continued her dance training further and tried various other styles, such as modern, jazz, hip hop, lyrical and contemporary. Her favourite style growed to be lyrical - which is a more classic version of contemporary. Through a lot of experience at a young age, she has gained a lot of knowledge in choreography and teaching. Milena not only enjoys dance but pursues a passion for it. She is always eager to learn and grow further. Furthermore, she has attended several dance courses in Malta and overseas, and won various scholarships. She is currently a university student at the Univesity of Malta. She recently directed and choreographed the SAC Soirèe. Dance to Milena means a lot as it is the perfect means of expression. She particularly enjoys working and dancing with her team, whom she has known and danced with from a young age. Her love for dance continues to grow and she hopes to advance her dance studies abroad and pursue it as a professional career. Milena was dance director in Mumenti Dance Show and is Dance Coordinator at Student’s Fest at University of Malta.
MONIQUE MICALLEF
Hip-Hop/Commercial/Competition choreographer
From an early age Monique began her training in her home country, Malta. Having moved
to London to further her studies in Hip Hop and Commercial, she was dedicated and
committed enough to be offered a spot in Brendon Hansford’s dance company where she
got the opportunity to work on various projects.
NAOMI DELORENZO
Ballet
Since the age of 4 up until this very day, dance has been Naomi’s escape ever since. She is currently a 3rd year University student and supply teacher studying for her degree and I also aiming to achieve a Diploma in dance. Started off with ballet and eventually got to experience and dance to different styles. Some unforgettable experiences she is grateful for include earning a scholarship to go and learn in the Elmhurst academy in Birmingham and also achieving 2 scholarships for Nox Camp by Michele Nocca, not to mention winning more scholarships for workshops with The Unit, Blandi Events, and Spring Dance in Italy during the camp. All the great show productions by our academy are also great experiences in themselves which keep on getting better each year. Today, apart from still learning dance and expanding her knowledge, Naomi is a teacher of 2 classes in our academy: Ballet and Hip-Hop. Since Naomi joined MDA at such a young age, the studio feels like home where she can enjoys what she does best with people she enjoys being around with sharing their passion for dance.
Jade Montesin
Ballet
Jade Montesin has been dancing ballet since she was 3 years old. She recently received her advanced 1 BBO ballet certificate, and is currently following the advanced 2 BBO syllabus. Additionally, she teaches ballet to children between the ages of 5-8. Along the years, she has also practiced a variety of different dance styles, such as hip-hop, jazz, lyrical, latin American, contemporary, etc. Jade also participated in numerous dancing competitions and attended numerous workshops both locally and abroad.
Evie Cezek
Musical Theatre
Throughout the years, Evie has trained various styles of dance such as hip hop, classical ballet, contemporary, lyrical, and commercial dance. Evie particularly enjoys attending master classes with several talented choreographers both locally and internationally. Evie has attended 2 editions of Nox camp in Pozzallo, Sicily where she was awarded scholarships for more dance opportunities. Evie was recently living abroad in Ireland where she was part of the dance club at the University College Cork. She attended many open classes in jazz, hip-hop and contemporary. This opportunity helped her realize how much she wants to attend classes abroad and learn from international choreographers. Now being in the middle of her university course she finds dance as the perfect remedy for stress and allows her to have a balance in her life. Evie can’t imagine her life without dance and looks forward to continuing to grow and improve her dance career together with her team. Teaching has helped her become more confident in class and made her love for dance grow even more. Lastly, she hopes that she could eventually further her dance career abroad to advance her profession.
Kelly Chircop
Jazz/Contemporary/Choreographer
A passionate dance teacher and choreographer, Kelly embarked on her dance journey at the young age of 4. Growing up, her focus on Modern, Latin American, Jazz and Contemporary shaped her versatile skill set.
Having competed internationally for several years, she brought her talent to productions and TV program both locally and abroad.
For the past 6 years, Kelly has been sharing her expertise, teaching students of all ages, and creating captivating choreography for diverse competitions and events..
Mardy Farrugia
Musical Theatre - singing and drama
Mardy Farrugia, is currently in her third year at the University of Malta, studying to become a Speech language Pathologist. She studies voice, piano, acting and Musical theatre. She has been singing since she was 7 years old and at the moment she’s under the guidance of ms Gillian Zammit. She took part in various local and international festivals including star rain in Prague, Northern lights in Finland and Una stella sta nascendo in Italy . Recently she’s working on her Grade 8 classical voice exam. She had the opportunity to sing with several local bands including that of the Armed Forces of Malta. She also took part in a master class organised by Malta opera where she had the chance to work with conductor Ben woodward and director Detlef Soelter. She took part in various masterclasses namely Carlos Conde Gonzalez, Mackenzie Thomas(Broadway) , Kurt olimann, John Ferguson, Iskra Menarini ,Miriam Gauci and Gabriele Lombardi. She is also part of the Monteverdi project which is under the direction of maestro Marco Mencoboni and Ms Gillian Zammit. She also plays the piano and is currently preparing for her Grade 8 exam both in theory and practice. She also studies Musical theatre as well as drama at a local Drama school.
KYLIE AQUILINA
Ballet
Kylie Aquilina is currently studying at the University of Malta. She has been dancing since she was 4 years of age up until this very day. She started dancing ballet and achieved all 8 grades of the British Ballet syllabus (BBO). Along the years she was introduced to other genres of dance such as jazz, jazz funk, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary and musical theatre. She is beyond pleased and thankful that she had received two scholarships to study with foreign teachers at Elmhurst School of Dance in Birmingham where she met various students from all over the world. She also achieved other scholarships to attend different dance camps such as Nox by Michele Nocca, Blandi Events, and The Unit. Recently she was also given the opportunity to teach ballet at Mandy’s Dance Academy, where she delivers what she has learnt to younger students, while also helping them achieve their dreams in dancing.
MARTINA FRANCALANZA
Ballet Teacher/Competition Choreographer
Martina Francalanza is currently a student at the University of Malta studying to become a Physiotherapist. She began her dance journey with Mandy Dance Academy at the young age of 4 years, where she has since obtained an Advanced qualification in ballet with the British Ballet Organisation. Martina still continues to train ballet, as well as other dance styles including lyrical, contemporary, jazz and commercial. Over the years she has had the opportunity to work both locally in the Film Industry and cultural festivals such as Notte Bianca, as well as abroad on scholarships, where she danced at Elmhurst Ballet School in the UK and NOXcamp in Sicily. Martina’s love for dance also sparked her interest in teaching. She currently teaches Grade 5 Ballet classes at Mandy Dance Academy. Another one of her major goals is to specialize in physiotherapy for dancers.
MILENA PELLICANO
Ballet and Lyrical/ Competition Choreographer
Milena teaches Ballet and Lyrical Dance at Mandy Dance Academy. She has been dancing since the age of 3 and started with Classical Ballet with the British Ballet Organisation. She has recently obtained a diploma level in Ballet, with the BBO. Throughout the years, Milena continued her dance training further and tried various other styles, such as modern, jazz, hip hop, lyrical and contemporary. Her favourite style growed to be lyrical - which is a more classic version of contemporary. Through a lot of experience at a young age, she has gained a lot of knowledge in choreography and teaching. Milena not only enjoys dance but pursues a passion for it. She is always eager to learn and grow further. Furthermore, she has attended several dance courses in Malta and overseas, and won various scholarships. She is currently a university student at the Univesity of Malta. She recently directed and choreographed the SAC Soirèe. Dance to Milena means a lot as it is the perfect means of expression. She particularly enjoys working and dancing with her team, whom she has known and danced with from a young age. Her love for dance continues to grow and she hopes to advance her dance studies abroad and pursue it as a professional career. Milena was dance director in Mumenti Dance Show and is Dance Coordinator at Student’s Fest at University of Malta.
NAOMI DELORENZO
Ballet
Since the age of 4 up until this very day, dance has been Naomi’s escape ever since. She is currently a 3rd year University student and supply teacher studying for her degree and I also aiming to achieve a Diploma in dance. Started off with ballet and eventually got to experience and dance to different styles. Some unforgettable experiences she is grateful for include earning a scholarship to go and learn in the Elmhurst academy in Birmingham and also achieving 2 scholarships for Nox Camp by Michele Nocca, not to mention winning more scholarships for workshops with The Unit, Blandi Events, and Spring Dance in Italy during the camp. All the great show productions by our academy are also great experiences in themselves which keep on getting better each year. Today, apart from still learning dance and expanding her knowledge, Naomi is a teacher of 2 classes in our academy: Ballet and Hip-Hop. Since Naomi joined MDA at such a young age, the studio feels like home where she can enjoys what she does best with people she enjoys being around with sharing their passion for dance.