Maraya Performing Arts
Maraya Performing Arts, 2506 Catamaran Way, Chula Vista, CA 91914
About
Maraya Performing Arts offers programs in dance, acting, singing, and musical theatre, including professional youth theatre musical productions such as past shows of Descendants, Moana, and Finding Nemo Jr. The program also offers audition preparation, private lessons, audition self-tapes, and original dance theatre shows and productions for hire. Additional offerings include early childhood development music and play with caregiver (Zumbini), open level adult dance classes in ballet, contemporary, and musical theatre jazz plus tap, as well as professional development and career coaching for emerging artists and business development and nonprofit consulting for artists and arts organizations focused on grant writing and fundraising.
• Ages: 0–18 years old
• Schedule: Business hours Monday–Thursday with morning to evening class times, Friday and Saturday by appointment, and closed Sunday
Maraya Performing Arts was founded in 2020 by Anjanette Maraya-Ramey (“Miss AJ”), a cancer survivor and lifelong artist. Anjanette is a professional dancer, choreographer, and educator who holds a BFA in Dance and Choreography from the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) and a Master’s Degree in Nonprofit Leadership and Management from the University of San Diego (USD). Her experience includes serving as Company Manager for the Tony Award–winning La Jolla Playhouse, consulting with numerous arts and nonprofit organizations on grant writing, fundraising strategy, and organizational development, teaching grant writing and nonprofit management through RISE San Diego and CalArts, and serving as Senior Funding Manager for the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture. The leadership team includes Anjanette as CEO and Artistic Director and Arjay Avellano as Executive Assistant, who has nine years of business experience and an associate's degree in International Studies from the University of the East in the Philippines.
Faculty credentials include dancer Xavier Hicks, who has an extensive career in San Diego as a Principal Dancer, is an alumnus of the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts (SDSCPA), trained at the Ailey School of Dance, and became a Principal Dancer with California Ballet. Instructor Corina Maggi holds a Pilates Certification from Kore Pilates and is a PMA™ Certified Pilates Instructor. Instructor Camelina Cedillo holds a Bachelor’s degree in Theatre Performance from San Diego State University and is undergoing training to become a certified intimacy coordinator for stage and screen with IDC.
The mission of Maraya Performing Arts is rooted in founder Anjanette Maraya-Ramey’s belief that the arts have the power to transform lives. Maraya is described as a professional training ground, production hub, and community arts leader that provides professional training in dance, acting, singing, and musical theatre led by working artists and industry professionals with connections to Broadway, Disney, and Hollywood. The Academy offers programs in acting, dance, and voice, with productions, musical theatre competitions, and professional-caliber opportunities, and its programs are described as being for students who are committed to consistent training and personal and artistic growth.
Maraya Performing Arts Collective, a nonprofit 501c3, provides scholarships and grant-funded projects that make arts education accessible for all and brings the arts into schools, neighborhoods, and communities. The Collective is described as belonging to the community and being driven by equity, creativity, and connection. Some students are working professionally and have appeared in Netflix, Disney, Paramount+, Apple TV, and professional regional theatre. Anjanette has been commissioned to create original works for La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe, East West Players, San Diego Dance Theater, and Grossmont College, and she serves as a community ambassador for the San Diego Blood Bank. Her signature original dance-theatre work, Bayanihan: For Life, For Blood, encourages civic engagement and inspires diverse communities to donate blood to strengthen and diversify San Diego’s blood supply.
One community testimonial describes Maraya Performing Arts as a “home away from home,” noting that a student “adores his instructors,” “has found his tribe,” and that the team has “brought out talents in him” that the parent “never knew he had,” while thanking the program for providing a “welcoming and inclusive environment to thrive.” Another testimonial from Jacole Kitchen, a local casting director at La Jolla Playhouse, describes Maraya Performing Arts as “the newest gem to grow from the soil of San Diego's South Bay,” with “an unwavering commitment to equity, inclusion, and access to the arts,” and states that Maraya “celebrates the vast diversity in the community that they serve” and “will be an asset to not only the students themselves, but to the community as a whole by providing an artistic home and a safe haven for people of all generations to nurture individuality and creativity in a supportive and disciplined environment.”
Last updated March 24, 2026.
• Ages: 0–18 years old
• Schedule: Business hours Monday–Thursday with morning to evening class times, Friday and Saturday by appointment, and closed Sunday
Maraya Performing Arts was founded in 2020 by Anjanette Maraya-Ramey (“Miss AJ”), a cancer survivor and lifelong artist. Anjanette is a professional dancer, choreographer, and educator who holds a BFA in Dance and Choreography from the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) and a Master’s Degree in Nonprofit Leadership and Management from the University of San Diego (USD). Her experience includes serving as Company Manager for the Tony Award–winning La Jolla Playhouse, consulting with numerous arts and nonprofit organizations on grant writing, fundraising strategy, and organizational development, teaching grant writing and nonprofit management through RISE San Diego and CalArts, and serving as Senior Funding Manager for the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture. The leadership team includes Anjanette as CEO and Artistic Director and Arjay Avellano as Executive Assistant, who has nine years of business experience and an associate's degree in International Studies from the University of the East in the Philippines.
Faculty credentials include dancer Xavier Hicks, who has an extensive career in San Diego as a Principal Dancer, is an alumnus of the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts (SDSCPA), trained at the Ailey School of Dance, and became a Principal Dancer with California Ballet. Instructor Corina Maggi holds a Pilates Certification from Kore Pilates and is a PMA™ Certified Pilates Instructor. Instructor Camelina Cedillo holds a Bachelor’s degree in Theatre Performance from San Diego State University and is undergoing training to become a certified intimacy coordinator for stage and screen with IDC.
The mission of Maraya Performing Arts is rooted in founder Anjanette Maraya-Ramey’s belief that the arts have the power to transform lives. Maraya is described as a professional training ground, production hub, and community arts leader that provides professional training in dance, acting, singing, and musical theatre led by working artists and industry professionals with connections to Broadway, Disney, and Hollywood. The Academy offers programs in acting, dance, and voice, with productions, musical theatre competitions, and professional-caliber opportunities, and its programs are described as being for students who are committed to consistent training and personal and artistic growth.
Maraya Performing Arts Collective, a nonprofit 501c3, provides scholarships and grant-funded projects that make arts education accessible for all and brings the arts into schools, neighborhoods, and communities. The Collective is described as belonging to the community and being driven by equity, creativity, and connection. Some students are working professionally and have appeared in Netflix, Disney, Paramount+, Apple TV, and professional regional theatre. Anjanette has been commissioned to create original works for La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe, East West Players, San Diego Dance Theater, and Grossmont College, and she serves as a community ambassador for the San Diego Blood Bank. Her signature original dance-theatre work, Bayanihan: For Life, For Blood, encourages civic engagement and inspires diverse communities to donate blood to strengthen and diversify San Diego’s blood supply.
One community testimonial describes Maraya Performing Arts as a “home away from home,” noting that a student “adores his instructors,” “has found his tribe,” and that the team has “brought out talents in him” that the parent “never knew he had,” while thanking the program for providing a “welcoming and inclusive environment to thrive.” Another testimonial from Jacole Kitchen, a local casting director at La Jolla Playhouse, describes Maraya Performing Arts as “the newest gem to grow from the soil of San Diego's South Bay,” with “an unwavering commitment to equity, inclusion, and access to the arts,” and states that Maraya “celebrates the vast diversity in the community that they serve” and “will be an asset to not only the students themselves, but to the community as a whole by providing an artistic home and a safe haven for people of all generations to nurture individuality and creativity in a supportive and disciplined environment.”
Last updated March 24, 2026.
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