December 6th and 7th, 2025
California Contemporary Ballet
California Contemporary Ballet is one of Southern California’s burgeoning dance companies, featuring the innovative works of choreographer and Artistic Director Aerin Holt. Her unique choreographic blend of classical, contemporary, and theatrical dance provides the company’s dancers with the opportunity to perform an exciting repertoire of innovative and original dance projects, including full-scale ballets, dance concerts, theater productions, and festivals throughout Southern California and abroad. The company is located in La Cañada Flintridge and has been working with dancers and collaborating artists from surrounding communities for over 35 years. California Contemporary Ballet (CCBallet) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. In 2008, the company established itself as a professional repertory company and frequently performs works with original music by guest and resident composers. Among the company’s many full-length presentations for Los Angeles audiences has been its most popular original ballet, The Snow Queen, with story by Hans Christian Andersen, presented annually for a successful 20-year run as a welcomed alternative to The Nutcracker. In 2021, the company performed with the New West Symphony and presented original choreography to the music of composer Pauline Frechette. Demonstrating the company’s versatility, California Contemporary Ballet returns to NWS with new choreography certain to swing you into the holidays.
Company Members
Aerin Holt, Choreographer and Artist Director
Alexis Ash – — Choreographer’s Assistant and Dancer
Mauricio La Fuente – Dancer
Bogdan Shcherbakov – Dancer
Jessica Bally – Dancer
Elkin Follett – Dancer
Tiffany Zern – Dancer
Aerin Holt
Choreographer & Artistic Director, California Contemporary Ballet
Aerin’s mother claimed that she danced before she walked— straight from the womb! As a young soloist, Aerin performed frequently at Santa Barbara’s Lobero Theater alongside premier dance and opera companies. Selected as a demonstrating assistant for her Martha Graham teacher, she toured and demonstrated class material for college and University students across Southern California, Colorado, and Utah. There, she captivated student audiences with solo improvisations and self-choreographed works. Scholarships from distinguished institutions followed, leading her to study at UC Santa Barbara and the University of New Mexico. She was offered opportunities to train and perform with artists of Martha Graham Dance Company, Joffrey Ballet, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, Utah Repertory Dance Company, and Momentum Dance Company, among others. Her performances have aired on commercial and educational television.
Recognizing her gift for teaching and creating, Aerin dedicated her life to dance education and choreography.
An award-winning international choreographer, she founded California Contemporary Ballet over 35 years ago and has since led the company in presenting innovative original works and full-length ballets. She also established California DanceArts, a school nurturing young to pre-professional dancers.
Aerin’s choreography is defined by her passion for storytelling and concepts that deliver emotional impact. She believes emotion must lead the body. Drawing from a versatile blend of ballet, jazz, and modern dance, she forges a distinctive style that resonates and has been enjoyed by audiences in the US. and Europe.
Aerin’s last choreographic work for New West Symphony was in 2021. She is happy to once again have the opportunity to work with such a great orchestra and organization to present this fresh, fun version of Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker and to swing everyone into the holidays!
Alexis Ash
Choreographer’s Assistant, Dancer
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Alexis Ash is a graduate of California Dance Arts, where she trained for over a decade under Aerin Holt in ballet, modern, and contemporary dance. As a lead dancer for California Contemporary Ballet, she has enjoyed stand out performances in the companies full-scale ballets and concerts. She is certified with American Ballet Theater- National Training Curriculum and recently celebrated ten years of inspiring the next generation of dancers through ballet instruction. A graduate of Woodbury University with a degree in Fashion Marketing, she also works creatively in the marketing field. As a performing artist, Alexis always attempts to blend artistry, discipline, and creativity in every performance.
Mauricio La Fuente
Dancer
Mauricio`s first encounter with the arts was not by choice, he was forced to be part of the arts program in the school he attended to in 2008, he didn’t like it at first but over time ended up loving the arts. When he turned 18 years old he decided he wanted to make a career out of it, he became 3 times National Latin Ballroom and 2 times HHI(Hip Hop International) Bolivia Champion, since then he never stopped pushing forward to become a full time artist. In 2020 he left his birth country Bolivia to the United States with the support of his wife. He joined several dance and entertainment companies as a performer, actor and choreographer. He also worked with local artists Jon Glenn, Jaysn, and Cara in his time in Houston, TX. In 2024 he moved to LA to further grow as an artist and since then has successfully managed to continue doing art, joining companies such as LA Choreographers and Dancers, Infinite Flow, Conga Kids and more. Also doing several independent projects on camera and live with brands such as Disney, Pokemon and more. As much as he enjoys moving and leaping around, in his free time he enjoys gaming, traveling, spending time with his wife, his dogs and extreme activities.
Bogdan Shcherbakov
Dancer
Multitalented performer based in Los Angeles. Professionally trained dancer (contemporary, jazz, hip-hop), actor, and model with international stage and screen experience. Passionate, expressive, and always camera-ready. Fluent in movement, emotion, and energy. Let’s create something unforgettable.
Kelinda Star
Dancer
Kelinda Star is a professionally trained dancer and pageant queen known for her grace, confidence, and captivating stage presence. She is an alumni of California DanceArts, where she has trained under Aerin Holt for many years. Kelinda has performed many featured and leading roles from California Contemporary Ballet. With years of experience in performance and choreography, she’s brought powerful storytelling to the stage—from leading roles in original ballet’ such as The Snow Queen, to commercial dance projects. Her background in pageantry, including earning the title of Miss International with Women of Achievement, adds a polished poise and elegance that shines through every performance.
Elkin Follett
Dancer
Elkin Follett works every day to fulfill the highest expression of herself as a human being and an artist. She is a John Muir Senior. Elkin Follett has been dancing since the age of four and has studied ballet at California DanceArts, at Bolshoi Ballet Academy Summer Intensive, which offers intensive ballet training to talented students, and with the Bolshoi Ballet in New York City during a pre-professional summer ballet training program, conducted in the Russian language. Additionally, Elkin was awarded a scholarship in a six week program that combines Russian language instruction, cultural, and ballet education run by the U.S. Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Elkin is thankful for the wonderful teachers who have provided her with many wonderful opportunities and to be dancing now, for the New West Symphony.
Tiffany Zern
Dancer
Tiffany Zern, began dancing at age six, she trained at Philadelphia’s Creative and Performing Arts High School and the renowned Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York, mastering Horton, Graham, Ballet, Jazz, and Dunham techniques. Tiffany performed with seven dance theater companies across the U.S. and Canada before earning her BFA in Dance Theater from The American Musical and Dramatic Academy in Hollywood and an MBA in Leadership and Organizational Change from Pepperdine University. Tiffany Zern is a passionate Dance Fitness Instructor and Trainer with a lifelong love for movement and has been Teaching in Los Angeles since 2015, she brings energy, artistry, and fun to every class. She aspires to become a performer with Cirque du Soleil.