|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Melanie A. Dale, Owner of A Step To Gold International Ballroom
Originally a Ballet Major at Virginia Intermont College, Melanie continued to study at East Carolina University and danced professionally with the Savannah Ballet Company under the direction of Ballerina Karina Brock. She then found her way into the world of partnership dancing. After teaching Ballroom for a franchise studio in Savannah, Georgia and Venice, Florida for 2 years, Melanie decided to work as an independent in 1984. In 1986 she married 11 time US 10-dance champion, Larry Silvers. He, as well as many World-Class European coaches, trained her in the International Style of Ballroom & Latin Dancing. During the last 25 years, Melanie competed in the American Style & International Style of Ballroom Dancing and earned a Licentiate Degree with the North American Dance Teachers Association as well as an Associate Degree with the Imperial Society Teachers of Dancing. Melanie continues to be a certified championship adjudicator (judge). In 1997, she began her study of Argentine Tango at the first US Tango Congress held in Miami. Afterwards Melanie was credited with bringing Argentine Tango into the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area. Her students organized the "Triangle Tangueros" a nonprofit organization promoting the study of Argentine Tango. While some people see the differences in different styles, Melanie says that she sees the similarities-the common way the bodies work to lead and follow in all partnership dances. "Each dance has its own mood and feeling which contributes to the beauty of the choreography." Melanie's amateur students usually do very well in competition-she trained the US Preteen and Junior Champions for 4 years consecutively. Private lessons and group classes are held at her Raleigh studio, Apex, Rocky Mount, and various Raleigh area high schools. Melanie has also taught at at GlaxoSmithKline, the Capital City Club in Raleigh and the Carolina Club in Chapel Hill. She will be offering a class at SAS Institute for their employees. Dan & Carole Barber A life-long love of music and dance has given Jack countless hours of happiness. Jack’s first Showcase was in Melanie Dale’s 1999 Christmas Show. Since then he has taken lessons at A Step to Gold and with other fabulous instructors in swing, country and western dance, and ballroom. He has participated in private and group lessons, workshops, dance camps, and competitions.
Jack recently attended A Step to Gold International’s Teacher Training Program and will be working towards multiple certifications in American Style Ballroom Dancing. His goal is to continue improving his own dance while being an inspiring instructor.
Jack believes that dancing is one of the best emotional therapies available. By providing physical and mental exercise, dancing helps people stay young and agile. It allows a person to participate with friends in the dance sport, unwind in an exciting and energetic way, and make music more enjoyable. Jack wants to share his love of music and dance with others.
Quinten Knight is from New York City where he began tapping almost fifteen years ago with the great Omar Edwards. Beginning in Harlem, he has performed on over 100 stagesincluding the Apollo and on Broadway in Billy Elliot. Quinten is available for group classes and private lessons at ASTG and instructs all age groups.
As a college student in the fall of 2002, Dennis unwittingly followed a group of girls into his first social dance class. His dancing quickly stood out to the organizers, who approached him after the class to ask him to join the university's competitive collegiate team. He happily accepted and began to learn and compete at the bronze level until he graduated the following year. While he did his best to remain active in the dance community, adjusting to the workplace and life after college took its toll. It was not until Dennis returned to school for his Master's degree that he could focus on improving his dance. In the following years, Dennis trained very hard to become a successful competitive dancer in the bronze, silver, and gold divisions. Dennis has competed all over the country from New York to California and has won several regional championships in the syllabus divisions of Standard and Latin and has been a finalist at the USA Dance National Championships. As a graduate student, he coached the newcomer and bronze levels of his university's team. He showed them the basic steps and provided them with a foundation in the technique and movements behind the figures. He is very proud that many of his former students have moved on to become strong social dancers and competitors; some have become finalists in the bronze divisions of the USA Dance Nationals. Currently, Dennis is a lecturer of Communication at a local university and continues to strive to improve his own dancing both as an amateur competitor and as a teacher of dance. He has begun to study for his ISTD associate degree in International Standard and will soon begin training to enter the open syllabus divisions of International Latin. Dennis has a very enthusiastic and fun teaching style and works hard to Ensure that his classes are lighthearted and enjoyable. "Over the past several years, dance has become such a large part of my life, and I enjoy it so much. I have so much fun dancing, and I absolutely love sharing my knowledge of it and the excitement it brings me." Amanda started dancing at the age of four. She has taken a wide range of classes, however her main focus being in tap, jazz, ballet, pointe, and lyrical dance in which she continued until she graduated from high school. Amanda continued her education in dance by studying ballet technique and pointe technique under Margaret Rowland at Broadway Dance in Raleigh, NC, and Lori Christman Bourtesenkov at Infinity Ballet Conservatory in Apex, NC. Amanda also attended Masters Classes with Charissa Seaman, Dena Rizzo, Julian Thorne, Andrei Ustinov, Elena Martinson, Rachel Ross, Judine Richard, Mary McCatty and Timour Bourtesenkov. She danced with the Moscow Ballet in "The Nutcracker" at Duke University. She has served as a student assistant in several dance classes at her home studio and has won numerous awards at national dance competitions. Amanda exhibits a grace, maturity, and poise that carries over to any form of dance. Currently, Amanda is a Teacher and Certified Zumba Instructor at A Step to Gold Ballroom. She has also been studying, and working towards multiple certifications in the DIVIDA Ballroom Teachers College. She firmly believes in a strong technical foundation, and is looking foward to continuing her education in the exciting field of Ballroom dance.
Karen has over 10 years of experience ballroom dancing. This includes a semester class at SUNY Brockport, 3 years at an Arthur Murray studio in upstate New York, and over 4 years at A Step to Gold. She completed the instructor training program through the North Carolina Ballroom Dance Teacher’s College in December of 2009 where she learned how to teach 17 styles of dancing. She also has a Bachelors degree in Biology and a Masters in Education. In order to continually improve her dancing skills, Karen assists in Melanie’s Associate Silver class whenever possible. She also performs in multiple showcases each year as well as mini matches and competitions.
Karen began teaching group classes and private lessons at A Step to Gold in the summer of 2008. Teaching adults to enjoy dancing is very rewarding for her and she is looking forward to meeting new students. Her other teaching experiences include teaching special and elementary education as well as training new instructors at A Step to Gold. She loves dancing a wide variety of styles of smooth, rhythm, and night club dances with her favorites being Rumba, Salsa, Samba, Bolero, West Coast Swing, Waltz, Viennese Waltz, and Tango. Kat Truitt
John H. (Jack) Wasser: Melanie's student for over 9 years. He has
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A Step To Gold International Ballroom
6278 Glenwood Ave., Suite 200 Raleigh, NC 27612 E-Mail: asteptogold@bellsouth.net Telephone: 919-781-6868 |
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Questions About This Web Site: ru@asteptogold.com
|
|
|
