Growing up, my mother often had to tell me to stop dancing around upstairs. Being one of three children in the house, I found some comfort in denial. I was hoping that either my older brother or my younger sister was also performing every dance routine from “Grease the Movie” while strategically placed in front of their dresser mirror. Usually the denial technique only got me in more trouble, since my bedroom was directly above the dining room and Mom did not enjoy watching the chandelier move to the beat of “Greased Lightening”. When I was not performing in front of the mirror in my bedroom, I was sneaking my double LP album of “Grease” to school for show and tell. The album was merely my accompaniment for the various styles of dance I was “showing”. Forget the dolls, cars and pets my friends were bringing, I had found my first venue with a captive audience! My parents soon learned where my priorities were, and understood and supported my desire to dance. I knew at a very early age, that I would spend my life dancing somehow. I admired the glamorous lives my instructors lead and wanted to be just like them. Each new instructor I trained with was just as envied as the one before. In my eyes, to have a wardrobe of leotards was far more fabulous than the Gloria Vanderbilt Jeans, my peers were awing. I feel like it was just yesterday when these thoughts were going through my mind. I never stopped dreaming and yearning for the opportunity to live the life as a dance teacher!

After many years of training, I was unsure how to reach my goal of being a dance teacher. I was offered the opportunity to teach at a local dance school in Richmond and I finally realized I was in a position where, I was no longer the student. I had a young dancer looking at me, the same way I had always looked at my instructors. That was it, I had found the place where I could perform to whatever soundtrack that was popular and I could dance like the child in her room and share my talents with aspiring dancers.

In 1990, my parents offered me a generous and unique business opportunity. I had no idea what that could or would become, but I knew this would be the best way for me to continue to dance; and Encore Performing Arts Studio was established. Now 20 years later, many things have changed; what I once thought of as glamour is now understood to be hard work, the LPs and tapes I used to hold in high regard, have converted into mp3s, the dance styles I trained in is now considered “dated” or “old” and the leg that used to extend beyond my head stops short of my shoulder due to the additional “layer” my body has developed. The one thing that has not changed is the feeling I get when I see a dancer walk into the door….Being a dance instructor is exactly what I was meant to be.

Although the business has grown beyond my expectations, I am looking forward to the next 20 years. I still have the feeling of home when I am in the studio working with the students. Although I do not have the physical stamina that I once did, my passion to dance and the admiration of the art is still the same. I know the instructors that grace the studios of Encore are also sharing in my joy, and living the glamorous life with me!