Instructor Bios

Alex began her dance training at the age of two. Her mother was a dance instructor and cultivated Alex’s love for dance early on. At the age of five, she began ballet training with the Champaign Park District, where she continued for nine years. During that time, she expanded her dance strengths with her mother’s instruction. She gained experience in Hip Hop, Lyrical, Tap, and Jazz. While attending college for English and Theatre, Alex participated in two dance organizations, furthering development in Tap, Lyrical, Contemporary, Jazz, Ballet, Musical Theatre, and Modern. She also served as the captain of a third dance organization, strengthening her love for Hip Hop.

Gwen Kaiser was born and raised in Champaign and began participating in Park District programs in 2010. They started with the youth theatre program, where they quickly fell in love with dancing by performing in musicals. In 2014, Gwen joined the Dance Arts Conservatory, where they studied ballet and modern dance, and began volunteering as a ballet teacher’s assistant in 2016. Gwen started choreographing original pieces in 2022, exploring how to express emotions and experiences through unconventional movement. They began teaching at the Dance Arts conservatory in 2023, where they have found a passion for strength training and for making ballet classes accessible.
Gwen had the privilege of studying with Eisenhower Dance Detroit during their 2019 summer intensive and has attended workshops with the Mark Morris Dance Group.

Jessica began her training in Decatur, Illinois where she was an exam candidate with the Royal Academy of Dance. At age eleven, she was accepted to the National Academy of Arts in Champaign where she trained until its closure in the spring of 1987. Jessica has trained and performed under a variety of notable teachers to include Petrus Bosman, David Keener, Robert Dicello, and Mark Schneider. Jessica has been a Dance Arts instructor since 1989 where she has taught all levels of Royal Academy of Dance ballet syllabus classes, as well as all levels of Adult Ballet.

Lorelei Cosper was born and raised in Champaign-Urbana and has been performing across the area since 2010. Their training started off through local schools and theatre programs in musical theatre, tap, and jazz. For the past decade, she has trained in ballet and Cunningham and Limon-based Modern. They have also taken classes learning Character and the foundations of Graham and Horton technique. She’s had the privilege of attending workshops with Mark Morris Dance Group members Billy Smith and Domingo Estrada Jr. 
Lorelei studied Psychology at Parkland College and is most interested in how the field entwines with dance. More specifically, how neurodiverse students can find safety, confidence, and joy through movement.

Anna Oates Schlaack (she/her) began her dance studies at the age of 14 at Dance Studio B in Wilson, NC after years of wishing to dance. Anna was and continues to be inspired by her younger sister who started to dance at the age of two, before she could even walk. Her sister has Down Syndrome. From Western Carolina University, where she received a minor in dance, into her adulthood, Anna has carried her love for dance in academic applications and studio classes. 
Anna has studied ballet (primarily Cecchetti and Vaganova Methods), tap, jazz, musical theater dance, contemporary, and Modern, and has taught ballet, tap, tumbling, and creative movement for ages 3-7.
From her home to the studio and other forms of teaching, Anna is mindful of different learning abilities and strives to create an inclusive environment, especially for those individuals with intellectual and physical disabilities.

Taryn Melvin (she/her) began in gymnastics but transitioned to dance training early in her childhood. She grew up taking kick, pom, jazz, and hip-hop classes and spent winters competing with her dance program. In high school, she was a part of her Varsity dance team, serving as captain her senior year. With her team, she qualified for the IHSA Dance State Final twice. During her senior year, she also received the All-American Designation at the UDA Dance Camp
she attended every year. After high school, she took hip-hop, jazz, and contemporary classes at a local studio, instructed at the studio where she had trained as a child, and choreographed for local musical theatre productions. Taryn moved to Champaign-Urbana to attend UIUC. While studying there, she took elective dance classes, including Iranian Dance. She also participated in a dance RSO, where she served as treasurer for two years. She loves working with students of all ages, hoping everyone can find joy in movement.

Whitney Havice began her dance training in ballet at the age of five in the Vaganova method at the Lee School of Ballet in Champaign, IL. and since then has studied, trained, and performed in numerous other styles of dance. She has choreographed, directed and/or appeared in over fifty musical theatre productions locally and in the Chicago area for the Champaign Urbana Theatre Company, Parkland College, the Station Theatre, Brown Paper Box Co, and others. In addition, she has served as the Dance Rehearsal Director for the LyricTheatre at the UI, and as the Musical Theatre Dance instructor at the Little Theatre on the Square.  She has also taught dance classes in a variety of styles at other studios in the Champaign-Urbana area, and is the class coordinator for the Dance for People with Parkinsons program at Krannert Center for the Performing Arts.

Amelia Gimbel (she/they) has been dancing in Champaign County since the age of four and has been training with the Dance Arts Conservatory since 2015. For the past decade and a half, she has had a strong work ethic in many areas of performance arts, including ballet, tap, modern, musical theatre, Irish dance, improv comedy, and circus arts. They also find great pleasure in helping behind the scenes, with stage management and sound design skills. She has had the opportunity to train under Jessica Bengtson, Corbin Phillips, Tanya Picard and Luciana Rezende, along with having taken master classes from Diane Walker, Jason Janas, The Joffrey Ballet and Ballet Chicago. She is currently working toward a master’s degree in accountancy at ISU, with minors in French and Japanese Studies. Amelia finds immense joy in creating encouraging environments for dancers from all walks of life to help them learn, grow, and find a sense of community. She mainly works as a substitute teacher and stage manager for the annual dance performances at the Dance Arts Conservatory. Check out their Instagram @actsbyamelia to see some more of their work.