About Me

I believe that there is a moment in every dancer's life where their experience in the studio becomes more than just learning a routine. For some it may be in their toddler combo class, making lifelong friends and falling in love with the stage. For others it may be in the trenches of middle school where our bodies start to shift and our souls begin to see what dance brings us. For some it may be in adulthood, finding dance again as an empowering form of movement and exercise. I remember how much this moment changed me in my life and aim as a teacher to allow my students to constantly understand what dance brings them outside of choreography and skills. The confidence to perform, the leadership and teamwork to thrive professionally, the emotional maturity that comes with translating stories and feelings into movements and choices, the discipline and perseverance of working at a challenging skill that will translate later to an unstoppable mindset. The reality is that the majority of our students will not dance professionally, but my goal is for each and every one of my students to gain one of these things and take it with them wherever they may go. In my experience as both a student and a teacher, dancers learn best when they are comfortable enough to fail. To break through a student’s natural fear of failure, I implement various improvisation exercises and techniques to teach students to make choices, stick behind them, and understand them. This was a foundational part of my dance training which I believe eliminated any fear of performance and allowed me to be fully present as a dancer in both performance and in class. Improvisation exercises combined with targeted progressions and conditioning can also help to train dancers to identify and be aware of their anatomy in order to understand their corrections at a deeper level. This concept was something I struggled with as a dancer, which led me to learn more about thoughtful and applicable corrections. Early in my teaching career, I described myself as more focused on artistry, emotional expression, and stylistic training rather than teaching skills and technique work. This is something that I still partially stand by, though I have a deep understanding for the co symbiotic relationship between these two things and would never aim to neglect one of the other from my curriculum. That being said, as a dancer who was not naturally talented in flexibility or balance, I found contemporary and modern classes my favorite, where I was able to showcase my strengths outside of splits, turn sections, and acrobatic tricks. I believe that no matter a student’s particular strength or weaknesses in these areas, many dancers are missing the artistic training that makes good dancers great. This training consists of not only improvisation and anatomy awareness training, but with a substantial amount of practice learning choreography and trying out multiple different styles within a genre to understand the expansive boundaries of movement. I aim to create an environment for dancers at any level of commitment to improve their confidence and performance quality by connecting with themselves as dancers. All dancers deserve a safe, warm, and comfortable environment in order to excel in any of these areas. My role as a dance teacher is an incredibly important fixture in their lives as a trusted adult, coach, and cheerleader. It has been the job I have adored most in my life and is not only incredibly rewarding, but genuinely enriching every day. The many hats and the late nights that come with it we all know are out of pure passion.