Born in Puerto Rico, Frances Ortiz started her early dance training at the Royal Academy of Ballet in Orlando, FL and continued her training at the New World School of the Arts High School in Miami. She has been awarded full scholarships at several prestigious institutions including; The Alvin Ailey American Dance School, The Jose Limon Dance Institute, The Martha Graham School of Dance and The Dance Theater of Harlem. Ms. Ortiz received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the State University of New York, Conservatory of the Performing Arts, College at Purchase. She then went on to earn a Master of Arts in Dance in Higher Education from New York University. Upon graduating she received the award for “Outstanding Achievement in Choreography” from the Department of Music and Performing Arts Professionals.
Ms. Ortiz has directed, choreographed and staged full length ballets and musicals in Connecticut and New York including The Nutcracker, Coppelia, Guys and Dolls and Little Abner to name a few, as well as her own works. In 1998 while working to establish her own dance company, Ms. Ortiz was commissioned to choreograph works on the students at New York University and Yale University.
In 2001 she co-founded the contemporary dance company Thomas/Ortiz Dance with her husband Ted Thomas, which is dedicated to developing new audiences through its groundbreaking narrative and thought-provoking works. The company is committed to expanding the knowledge and appreciation of dance through live performance and the implementation of community-based outreach, educational programs and artistic activities. Additionally, Ms. Ortiz co-owns and teaches at her private ballet institution in Connecticut, The New England Academy of Dance in New Canaan. She is a Connecticut State and American Ballet Theater Certified dance teacher and tenured with the Greenwich Public Schools.
Ms. Ortiz has directed, choreographed and staged full length ballets and musicals in Connecticut and New York including The Nutcracker, Coppelia, Guys and Dolls and Little Abner to name a few, as well as her own works. In 1998 while working to establish her own dance company, Ms. Ortiz was commissioned to choreograph works on the students at New York University and Yale University.
In 2001 she co-founded the contemporary dance company Thomas/Ortiz Dance with her husband Ted Thomas, which is dedicated to developing new audiences through its groundbreaking narrative and thought-provoking works. The company is committed to expanding the knowledge and appreciation of dance through live performance and the implementation of community-based outreach, educational programs and artistic activities. Additionally, Ms. Ortiz co-owns and teaches at her private ballet institution in Connecticut, The New England Academy of Dance in New Canaan. She is a Connecticut State and American Ballet Theater Certified dance teacher and tenured with the Greenwich Public Schools.