About AJ

AJ GARCIA-RAMEAU (she/her) is a professional dance artist based in Austin, Texas. AJ is the director & founder of Ventana Ballet, partner-owner of East Side Performing Arts, director of the Connec(TX)ions Dance Festival, and a national field service engineering manager in the semiconductor sector.

AJ’s formal training spans Vaganova-based ballet technique, Horton-based modern technique, as well as contemporary and neo-classical dance forms. AJ was born in Houston, TX where she received her extensive dance training at the Houston Academy of Dance under the direction of Evelyn Ireton and the mentorship of Ginger Herrera, Naomi Glass, Damian Schwiethale, Jose Herrera, Sally Rojas, Joe Celej, Eddy Ocampo, and Troy Powell. AJ performed as a company member and soloist with the Exclamation Dance Company under the artistic direction of Kenneth Epting. She performed works by Ken Epting, Troy Powell, Gina Lewis, Tyrone Walker, and others.

In 2011, AJ earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas, where she also earned her minor in dance under the coaching of David Justin and Grace Holmes. AJ trained in the Vaganova method at the Austin School of Classical Ballet and as a company member of the Austin Classical Ballet under the artistic direction & coaching of Jennifer Felkner. AJ also performed as a company member of BHumn Dance Company under the artistic direction of Cheryl Copeland. AJ has also performed as a Resident Artist of the Austin Metamorphosis Dance Ensemble, under the direction of Melanie Kregel. In between her college semesters and engineering internships, AJ completed additional dance training under scholarships and fellowship with the Alvin Ailey School, performing works by Cornelius Carter, Troy Powell, and Sonia Dawkins. AJ also trained under scholarship with Joffrey Jazz & Contemporary, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, and Northwest Dance Project. In 2017 at NW Dance Project's LAUNCH11, AJ performed original works by Anton Rudakov & Luca Signoretti and workshopped several works by Banning Bouldin, Ishan Rustem, and Nacho Duato (led by Lucas Crandall).

After college, AJ spent a half-year in Michigan and three years in Philadelphia working as a semiconductor engineer, a freelance dance artist, and a dance teacher. When AJ returned to Austin in 2014, she continued her work in those fields, performing as a guest artist with various local companies in Austin, Dallas, Houston, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. AJ's choreography and solo works were featured at Dallas DanceFest, Austin Dance Festival, Philadelphia’s Come Together Dance Festival, Waco’s 254 Dance Festival, and Houston’s Barnstorm Dance Festival. AJ's guest work afforded her the opportunities to perform several roles in Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, The Sleeping Beauty, Paquita, Le Corsaire, Stars & Stripes, Romeo & Juliet, A Christmas Carol Ballet, and more.

In 2018, AJ founded Ventana Ballet as a means to offer more professional performance opportunities in ATX to artists and audiences alike. Ventana Ballet presents approximately 6 to 8 full-length productions per year, amounting to approximately 20 to 30 performances per year, highlighting local professional talent from many art forms. AJ has performed in every Ventana Ballet show since its founding, and she has choreographed 10 full-length evening shows: UNDEAD (annual, since 2019), Night Birds (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024), Frostbite! (annual since 2025, co-choreographed), Variations on a Love Theme (annual, since 2021), BEAUTIFUL WORLD (2022, co-choreographed), LEAP! (2020, 2024), Hidden Strings (2021), ZAZZY! (2022), ALLUVIUS (2025, co-choreographed), and Flower Shop (premiering September 2026). AJ has produced over 50 productions for Ventana Ballet alone, including The Watchmaker’s Song (2018-2024), KALEIDOSCOPE (2023, 2024, 2025), and KOMOREBI (2023, co-produced). AJ and Ventana Ballet are grateful for the opportunities to collaborate over the years with Austin Camerata, Austin Symphony Orchestra, Red Nightfall Dance Theatre, Vitacca Ballet, BHumn Arts Ensemble, and the East Side Performing Arts Professional Training Program.

AJ is also partner-owner and standing technical director of East Side Performing Arts (ESPA), a brand-new white-box theater and dance studio venue, serving the Austin area as an accessible performance, rehearsal, and education space. AJ joined the co-ownership team of the well-known First Street Studio (FSS) in 2019, and she helped the space survive through the 2020 pandemic, 2 physical space displacements, and countless property tax increases. In 2025, FSS officially transferred to ESPA, expanding from its humble origins while remaining mission-focused. ESPA has become the artistic home to more than 150 Austin-based performing arts companies and individual professional artists. As standing technical director of ESPA, AJ has outfitted the space with wall-to-wall sprung dance floors, 16-foot tall surrounding curtains, stage lighting, and more. As partner-owner of the business, AJ specializes in systems-creation, cash position accounting, team leadership, and more.

In 2023, AJ co-founded Connec(TX)ions Dance Festival (CTXDF) as a co-presentation with Ventana Ballet. In 2024, AJ shifted the presentation of the festival to East Side Performing Arts, and it has become an annual celebration of the ESPA’s grand opening in 2025. CTXDF celebrates Texas-based professional and pre-professional dance, offering a week-long intensive workshop in three tracks: Pro, Pre-Pro, and Open. The separate tracks offer a series of classes offered by professional teaching artists in various art forms including ballet, jazz, theater, contemporary, modern, heels, house, hip hop, and more. The week culminates in performances by Texas-based artists, each of whom has been selected through an application process. In 2026, CTXDF presented 27 works by Texas-based dance companies and independent artists.

When AJ isn't dancing, choreographing, lighting designing, or playing in spreadsheets, she is usually frolicking in the garden where she likes to grow things, or playing darts in the backyard with her husband! AJ is grateful for the love and support she receives from her community of family, friends, and colleagues.