Spotlight Dance Center
SDPAC Teachers
About our teachers

Spotlight Dance & Performing Arts Center instructors are a remarkable group of smart, dedicated and passionate teachers who strive to bring out the very best in themselves and their students. They boast an impressive set of credentials, both in and out of the studio. And though their personalities and teaching styles are as diverse as their outside areas of expertise, they share several important attributes:

Every instructor at SDPAC is University trained in Dance, Theatre or Performing Arts and holds a BA , BFA or MFA.

Become an instructor for Spotlight

At Spotlight, we are committed to providing each student with a professional, well rounded performing arts education. To achieve this, we hire the most experienced instructors who love sharing their passion for dance, musical theatre and voice with each and every student.

We are always interested in speaking with qualified instructors. Please read through the material on our website to learn as much as you can about SDPAC. If you believe our values align with yours, please submit your resume to applications@spotlightdance.net, or contact us to inquire about current openings for substitute and permanent faculty

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Our Teachers

Mrs Amanda
A Puget Sound native, Mrs Amanda (Owner & Artistic Director) returned to the PNW after eight years performing, choreographing, teaching, and continuing her own dance training in other corners of the globe. Upon completing her B.A. from Hobart and William Smith Colleges in NY where she graduated Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa, with a double major in Dance and Movement Science and a minor in Science and Society, Mrs Amanda embarked on a professional career as a dancer, performing in a variety of venues in AZ, CT, NY, OR, WA, WY, Italy and Austria. Her choreography has been presented at several regional American College Dance Festivals, and was selected for the 2006 Gala Performance of the NW region. Mrs Amanda has danced with such companies as Center Dance Ensemble (soloist) in Arizona, Co-Art Dance, University of Oregon Repertory Dance Company, and Joint Forces Dance Company all in Oregon, as well as Walrus Dance Company in Seattle, and currently performs with Stone Dance Collective, BQ Danza, and the BareFoot Collective. Mrs Amanda holds an M.F.A in Dance from the University of Oregon where she was a Graduate Teaching Fellow instructing students in modern, ballet, jazz, and tap dance. Mrs. Amanda is also a certified DanceAbiltiy (dance for people both with and without disabilities) teacher, has presented research at annual Int’l Assoc. of Dance Medicine and Science conferences, and is published in the Journal of Dance Medicine and Science as well as the Journal of Dance Education.

Ms Meredith
Miss Meredith, a genuine Georgia peach, recently arrived in Seattle after a series of cross country moves with her husband. She is a 2007 graduate of Bates College (Lewiston, Maine) where she received her B.A. in Art History with a secondary concentration in dance. At Bates, Miss Meredith worked with choreographers such as Jodi Melnick, Louis Gervais, and Carol Dilley. She was a member of Fuzion Dance Artists in Sarasota, Florida and has recently performed with the BareFoot Collective of Tacoma and Josephine's Echopraxia of Seattle. Currently a company member with Khambatta Dance Company of Seattle. Miss Meredith is excited to expand her teaching experience to the Seattle area. Miss Meredith taught company classes for Fuzion Dance Artists, was a substitute dance teacher at Manatee School for the Arts (Palmetto, FL), and taught modern dance technique at Beyond Dance (a private studio in Sarasota, FL). She was also a student teacher during her high school dance training all the way back in Thomasville, GA!

Miss Kate
Miss Kate began her dance training with Ballet, Lyrical, Ballroom and classical Jazz at a small studio in North Eastern WA. While in high school Miss Kate choreographed and helped to stage musical productions of Grease and The Wizard of Oz, and also organized and taught summer dance camps for students of all ages. While studying Dance and Communication Studies at the University of Oregon, Miss Kate became actively involved in technical production for the dance department. She acted as production manager for the University of Oregon Repertory Dance Company and led both production workshops and dance classes to high school and middle school students throughout Oregon. Miss Kate was the recipient of the Lotta Carll Scholarship, and the U of O’s School of Music and Dance Dean’s Award for Outstanding Service. Miss Kate has completed STOTT Pilates teacher certification courses in Mat and Reformer work. Recently Miss Kate taught adult jazz and Pilates classes, and choreographed for children's musical theater workshops at Spectrum Dance Theater, where she also works as Company and Production Manager for Spectrum's professional company. This summer Miss Kate worked as a Jazz, Hip-Hop and Musical Theater instructor with the American Dance Training Camp's first Pacific Northwest camp on Whidbey Island. She is excited to join the teaching staff at Spotlight this year!

Miss Laura
Miss Laura began her dance training in Virginia and has studied under Carol Crawford Smith, formerly of Dance Theatre of Harlem. She attended Virginia Tech and was an executive and lead choreographer for the dance company. She also coached a nationally ranked High School dance team. Upon graduation Miss Laura moved to New York and was accepted into Broadway Dance Centers IAP training program. She has performed for various independent companies in New York and has also choreographed works featured at the Judson Church as well as the Artists in the Kitchen festival in Manhattan.In addition to performing she has been a teacher for over 14 years and has taught advanced Contemporary Jazz, Lyrical, Modern, Ballet, and Tap in Virginia, North Carolina, New York, and Connecticut. While in New York she was the assistant coordinator for the School at Peridance, and the Summer Intensive Coordinator for pre-professional dancers. Miss Laura holds a Masters in Dance Education in Higher Education and the Professions from NYU and is happy to now be in the Pacific Northwest.

Miss Alaina
Miss Alaina graduated from the University of Oregon with a B.A. in business administration as well as minors in dance and music. Originally from Fort Collins, CO, Miss Alaina has been dancing since she was 8, performing with The Mountain Moving Company, Fort Collins Children’s Theatre, and Opera Fort Collins. Miss Alaina has toured with the Dance Theatre of Oregon and the University of Oregon Repertory Dance Company, and taught and choreographed for 4 years at Ta-Da Dance Productions Studio in Eugene. Since moving to Seattle, she has performed with En L’air, Westlake Dance Center, and the BareFoot Collective. Miss Alaina also teaches at Westlake Dance Center.

Ms Toni
In addition to studying and performing classical Ballet for 11 years, Ms Toni ran track at the University of Washington where she was an NCAA national qualifier. Currently Ms Toni is a choreographer and member of a dance team, the mother of two beautiful girls, and proudly turned 50 in 2010! Fitness and dance have always been two passions in her life. Zumba is a vehicle which allows her to pass these passions on to you. She facilitates the synergy between you and Latin music; then rhythm moves you in a party like atmosphere allowing you to burn calories as you dance your hour away. Come allow Ms Toni to orchestrate one of the most fun and healthy hours of your day!

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