The HaniBal Balboa Dance International Festival brings together an exceptional team of world-class Balboa instructors. Our teachers are renowned dancers, competitors, and educators who have dedicated themselves to preserving and evolving the art of the Balboa. With extensive experience in social dancing, competitions, and international workshops, they are committed to providing high-quality instruction for dancers of all levels.
Each instructor brings a unique style, deep technical knowledge, and a passion for sharing their expertise. Whether you want to refine your fundamentals, explore intricate footwork, or develop your musicality, our teaching team will guide you with insightful techniques, personalized feedback, and inspiring lessons.
Grace Babbes is passionate about preserving American Vernacular Jazz Dance from the 1920s–1950s. Growing up in a family of performers, she has been immersed in theatre, voiceover, and music from an early age. Her love for jazz and big band music led her to Lindy Hop in 2012, and she quickly became a dedicated social dancer, performer and competitor.
Now an active teacher and performer across Southern California, Grace has taught at major swing dance festivals, workshops, and studios, helping dancers of all levels refine their technique and style. She competes nationally in both partnered and team divisions, winning titles with the award-winning Special Delivery Stomp. As a member of The Hollywood Hotshots, she has performed in live events, music videos, commercials, and film productions, bringing authentic swing-era dance to the entertainment industry.
Beyond performing, Grace has choreographed for film and live productions, blending historical accuracy with creative storytelling. Her teaching emphasizes connection, musicality, and the joy of conversation through dance. Whether you’re new to swing, preparing for a special event, or looking to take your dancing to the next level, she’s excited to help you feel confident, look great, and have fun on the dance floor!
Blake Thiesen As a naive Southern California college student, Blake discovered swing dancing with a whimsical New Year’s resolution to try learning the dancing he saw in Swing Kids (1993). Little did he know, SoCal was one of the world’s largest scenes, with a rich history and dozens of the world’s best dancers and instructors. Immediately hooked, he developed a relentless obsession for Lindy, Balboa, and Collegiate Shag. He’s since gone on to win in a variety of international competitions and has taught around the world in places like Europe, Korea, Japan, Australia, and the US.
In his free time, Blake loves to study vintage dance clips. He has a deep reverence for the original dancers and loves to teach classes that focus on particular styles and techniques they used. As an instructor he also focuses on imparting his values of partner connection, tasteful musicality, and developing beautiful basics. While he loves practice, competition, and performance, his favorite thing about dancing is just having a simple, deeply-connected social dance with a like-minded partner.
Jenna Applegarth found swing dancing in 2004 in her small local scene of Wenatchee WA. Since then she has spent countless hours expanding her dancing repertoire and sharing her love and knowledge of these dances with others.
Her energy and passion create the perfect environment for learning.
Jenna has attended, coordinated, and taught various workshops and exchanges all across the globe. Some of her favorite highlights are performing at Benaroya Hall in The Jump Session Show and teaching for Lincoln Center’s Midsummer Night Swing. Above all else, she believes that learning to dance should be fun, and rooted in music and history.
With over 15 years of teaching/coaching/training experience, she loves finding new ways to connect with other dancers on the floor and in the classroom and to create challenging yet applicable lessons in the classroom.
Vasu Sharma discovered Swing Dancing at the University of Florida and has been hooked ever since. His dedication to the art takes him around the globe to dance socially, perform, compete, and teach in Lindy Hop, Balboa, and Collegiate Shag. Renowned for his precise technique and enthusiasm for swing dancing at any tempo, Vasu loves pushing the boundaries with unconventional rhythms, shapes, and connections. With a special affinity for Pure Balboa, he constantly seeks to innovate and redefine traditional dance partnerships. Whether he’s dancing all night on the social floor or rigorously training for competitions and performances, Vasu’s passion for swing dancing is evident. A lifelong learner, he is equally passionate about sharing his extensive knowledge with others. Vasu finds his home in Berlin where he constantly finds inspiration and often shares his love for Swing dancing.
Emiliya Bazlyankova – Her dance journey began in childhood, spanning styles from ballroom and traditional Bulgarian to modern dance. Since 2015, she has been dedicated to exploring all styles of swing dance. Over the past four years, she has deepened her practice with body awareness techniques, focusing on creativity, body mechanics, and pain-free movement to encourage a relaxed and mindful approach to dance. Emiliya values creating a deep, expressive connection with her dance partners, seeing dance as a canvas to express the full range of human emotions. Her classes are designed to foster a complete physical journey, emphasizing self-observation, experimentation, and creativity.
Borislav Enchev is among the first artists to help popularize and grow the Swing Dancing in Bulgaria, creator and main engine of the local Balboa scene. He is known for his politeness towards his partner and the desire to provide a cozy and comfortable environment for any dance. Borislav loves to play with rhythms and unusual ways to connect. Go with the flow of the dance, be prepared to react, surprise and let be surprised, that is where the unique experience on the dance floor could come from, according to him. A social dancer, a competitor, a teacher, a swing dance DJ, Borislav travels frequently to further explore, exchange and share his ideas in Balboa and Lindy Hop.
