Mid-Atlantic Contemporary         Ballet

Gerard W. Holt ~ Co-Founder, Artistic Director

Mr. Holt began dancing at the school of the Hartford Ballet.  At sixteen, Mr. Holt was offered an apprenticeship with the Hartford Ballet Company where he performed soloist roles in “The Nutcracker” and began learning the Balanchine repertoire.  His professional training includes The Dance Theatre of Harlem School, the School of American Ballet and the School of the San Francisco Ballet, all of which he attended as a scholarship and stipend student.

Mr. Holt’s professional career includes the San Francisco Ballet, the Richmond Ballet, the State Ballet of Missouri (now Kansas City Ballet), Ballet Met in Columbus Ohio and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre.  Mr. Holt joined Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre in 1990 and was featured in works such as Choo San Ghoos’ “In the Glow of the Night,” “Beginnings” and  “Configurations,” as well as the Balanchine works “La Sonnombula”, Balanchines "Nutcracker" and “Allegro Brilliante”, and contemporary ballets including Sir Kenneth McMillan’s “Elite Syncopations", Lynne Taylor- Corbetts "Gottschalk", Lisa de Riberes "The Mighty Casey", and Alvin Ailey's "The River". 

While a member of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Mr. Holt taught ballet classes throughout the greater Pittsburgh area at such schools as the Laurel Ballet, Pittsburgh Youth Ballet, Ballet Baroque, Rodgers School for the Creative and Performing Arts and Pittsburgh High School for the Creative and Performing Arts.  He was on staff for two years at Point Park University and was ballet master for five years at the Western Pennsylvania Performing Arts Company in Vandergrift, Pa.  Mr. Holt became the Artistic Director of the La Roche College Dance Department in January 2001 until May 2010.  In June of 2010 Mr. Holt returned as Principal Ballet Instructor for Sandra Lynn School of Dance.  During this time, from June 2010 to May 2013, Mr. Holt also served as ballet instructor for the Father Ryan Arts Center under the centers director Ms. Pat Moran, and program co-ordinator Ms. Staycee Pearl. From May 2014 to June 2017, Mr. Holt was the Director of Curriculum and Ballet Master for Impact Dance Center, which was a new pre-professional dance center headed by colleague Cherie Cox Habian in Monroeville, PA. 

Currently, Mr. Holt is the Co-Founder and Artistic Director of the Mid-Atlantic Contemporary Ballet Company, which he founded with colleague Miriam Scigliano in April of 2008.  Mr. Holt returned to Point Park University in 2013 as an adjunct ballet and pas de deux instructor. Mr. Holt worked as a guest choreographer for Seton Hill University Department of Theatre and Dance starting in 2015, and became an adjunct ballet and pointe technique instructor in the spring of 2017. Mr. Holt is also one of the ballet instructors for Pennsylvania Academy of Dance in Sewickley PA.

Miriam Scigliano ~ Co-Founder     

Ms. Scigliano is a native of Maryland.  Ms. Scigliano trained in ballet and modern dance at Washington D.C.'s National Ballet School. Ms. Scigliano decided to continue her dance education in ballet and modern and attended the North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem North Carolina.  Upon graduating from NCSA, Ms. Scigliano attended Point Park University as a modern dance and jazz dance major. Ms. Scigliano graduated from Point Park University with a Bachelors of Arts degree in dance. Soon after graduating, Ms. Scigliano began her teaching career teaching throughout the greater Pittsburgh area and the greater Maryland metropolitan areas.

Ms. Scigliano joined the dance department staff at La Roche College, under the artistic direction of Gerard W. Holt in 2003. Ms. Scigliano taught in the Academy of Dance at La Roche College as modern and jazz instructor but quickly became the Minors Principal of the Minors program in the dance department at La Roche College, and the primary modern instructor of the dance majors. In addition to her Minors Principals duties, Ms. Scigliano became the Director of the Academy of Dance at La Roche College.  As Minors Principal and primary modern instructor, Ms. Scigliano choreographed many modern pieces for the dance minors and the dance majors to perform in both, the students winter performances and their spring performances at the Byham Theatre. 

While on staff at La Roche College Dance Department, Ms. Scigliano and colleague, Gerard W. Holt founded the Mid-Atlantic Contemporary Ballet Company in 2008.