About Us

After opening Encore Studio in 1990, Karen was the only instructor for all of our dance styles for the first few years. Now as our Artistic Director and certified instructor, Karen oversees our studio with wisdom and vision for our dance curriculum and produces our annual recital.

She grew up studying all styles of dance, with ballet as her favorite. Throughout her career, she’s performed with a handful of professional ballet companies. She brings her trained eye and love of performing arts to sincerely care for each of Encore's dancers. But her greatest achievement in her book has been the role of parent — her daughter, Mallory grew up dancing at Encore and continues to perform.

As our longest-standing instructor, Angelina is also the proud Director of The Collaborative, our competitive dance team. During her time here at Encore, she’s been the first to offer Contemporary Dance training in the Chesterfield area, and has trained dancers for acceptance in high school and collegiate dance programs and teams.

Angelina has come from Michigan and New York, and spends her free time with her fiancé and daughter, Kaia. She is looking forward to adding a second daughter to her family in the spring!

Cheryl has spent the past 12 years with Encore sharing her experiences from dancing on Broadway and receiving her BFA in Dance Performance and has loved watching the success of each dancer. 

Originally from Point Pleasant, New Jersey, Cheryl spends her time outside of the studio with her husband, Antonio, sons, Luka and Rocco, and her precious rescue Pitbull mix, Pongo.

Dana began instructing at Encore Studio in 2013, and currently teaches all genres and ages from 3 - 18, in addition working with our competitive team.

Before coming to Encore, she grew up in Virginia Beach, trained at Denise Wall’s Dance Energy, and was a captain of the East Carolina University Dance Team before graduating. In addition to her duties at Encore, she enjoys raising her son, Luke and is looking forward to bringing home his baby sister in November!

Carmen is a professional modern and contemporary dancer, originally trained in ballet. She studied at the Governor’s School for the Arts in Norfolk, Virginia, then went on to dance as a trainee at both the North Carolina Dance Theatre and Nashville Ballet under the direction of Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux and Paul Vasterling. 

After two seasons as a professional dancer with Todd Rosenlieb Dance, Carmen moved to NYC to train with Steps on Broadway, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, and Parsons Dance. She then joined Heidi Latsky Dance in 2016 as a contemporary member. Upon moving back to Virginia, Carmen remains a professional dancer with conflux Dance Theater and teaches at Arts In Motion, West End Academy, and Encore!

Miss Amanda is new to the Richmond area and is originally from Atlanta, GA. After attending the Cobb County Center for Excellence in the Performing Arts she continued her dance studies at the University of the Arts and then went on to the University of Georgia where she competed as a member of the NCAA D1 dance team, the Dance Dawgs.

In her time as a professional dancer, she trained with the Radio City Rockettes, Atlanta Ballet, and the Rock School. She began her teaching career in 2020 at a competitive studio in Buffalo, NY. In addition to her time as a teacher, she owns her own practice as a Registered Dietitian and spends her time outside of the studio with her fiance, Matt, and dog, Milo.

Liz grew up in the Midlothian area and has been dancing since the age of 3. She danced at Encore in High school and then was accepted as a Trainee with the Richmond Ballet after graduation. During her time in the School of Richmond Ballet and with the Richmond Ballet Company, Liz trained with Judy Jacob, Malcom Burn, Cecile Tuzii and Starrene Foster and performed roles in The Sleeping Beauty, Don Quixote, and The Nutcracker.

After an injury, Liz began focusing on teaching dance and has loved seeing her students grow. In addition to her time as a teacher, she loves spending time with her husband, Augie and son, Cole.

Amelia, hailing from Morgantown, West Virginia, embarked on her dance journey at Kat and Company Dance Studio and further honed her skills at Morgantown Dance Studio and Pittsburgh Youth Ballet. She attended prestigious summer intensives and even joined Ellison Ballet's Professional Training Program in New York City. Her journey continued with performances at Cincinnati Ballet and Nashville Ballet before taking on teaching roles in Kansas City.

Upon graduating with her BFA in Dance and Choreography from Virginia Commonwealth University, Amelia stayed in Richmond to dance professionally with Conflux Dance Theater and share her love for dance with Encore students!