DanceArts Greenville

DanceArts Greenville, located at 255 Service Bay Road in Mauldin, was founded in 1972 as the School of Carolina Ballet Theatre. In 2004, it came under the ownership and direction of Anita Sun Pacylowski and Hernan Justo, who brought decades of professional dance experience to the studio. The studio rebranded as DanceArts Greenville in 2014 and continues to operate on a philosophy described as "Art is Within"—nurturing the artist within each child through dance, with an emphasis on the wellness of body, mind, and spirit.

Anita Sun Pacylowski grew up in Columbia, Maryland, and trained at The Washington School of Ballet under Mary Day. She became a Principal Dancer with The Washington Ballet and was honoured with the Princess Grace Award in Dance, the National YoungArts Award, and recognition as a Presidential Scholar in the Arts. Hernan Justo trained at the prestigious Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and enjoyed a distinguished professional career with Argentina's leading ballet companies before joining The Washington Ballet. The two met in Washington, D.C., and danced together with North Carolina Dance Theatre (now Charlotte Ballet) for seven seasons before moving to Greenville in 2001 when Hernan accepted the role of Artistic Director of Ballet Greenville.

The studio teaches across multiple age groups and levels. Twinkle Dance classes serve ages 3–5 and include Twinkle Mini/Junior and Twinkle Junior sessions, many combined with tap or jazz. The Youth Dance Track, designed for students aged 8–12 without prior ballet training or audition requirements, offers Youth Ballet and Hip Hop. The studio requires all students to take a ballet class as the foundation for their dance training, with hip hop as an exception to this rule. Monthly instalment options are available, drafted on the 1st of each month from September through May.

Anita serves as Chair of the Fine Arts Center Dance Department, while Hernan continues as Artistic Director of Ballet Greenville. Their children Martin and Sofia work as faculty members at DanceArts Greenville, and Nicolas contributes through photography and videography of performances and studio events. The studio emphasises that over its decades of operation, it has produced dancers who have gone on to professional ballet companies worldwide, Broadway, collegiate dance programmes, and diverse careers in education, medicine, engineering, and entrepreneurship.

Classes are structured by age and experience level, from Twinkle dancers (ages 3–5) learning through creative movement and basic ballet, to youth and teen programmes. You can expect a focus on technique grounded in classical ballet terminology, combined with an emphasis on creativity, discipline, and building confidence alongside physical skill.

Anita Sun Pacylowski is Co-Director and Associate Artistic Director, bringing her background as a Principal Dancer with The Washington Ballet and training under Mary Day at The Washington School of Ballet. Hernan Justo is Co-Director and holds the role of Artistic Director of Ballet Greenville; he trained at Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires and had a distinguished career with Argentina's leading ballet companies. Martin and Sofia, the directors' children, are members of the faculty.

Twinkle classes for ages 3–5 teach independence and listening skills through creative movement; the Youth Dance Track (ages 8–12) requires no prior ballet training or audition.