Hello!

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A native of Fountain Inn, South Carolina, Katie-Laken began her dance training at the age of two, and then began to dance competitively at the age of five. She competed all the way through high school, and continued to dance and train at studios across the upstate. Not only is Katie-Laken experienced in the competition world of dance, but she also has performed and choreographed for her high school (Hillcrest High School) and college (Winthrop University) dance teams. These various opportunities led her to discover that she wanted to pursue a career in dance.

 

Her first teaching experiences were in the studio setting, with beginning as a student assistant that eventually turned into student teaching various genres of dance. While completing her Bachelor of Arts in Dance Performance with a minor in Educational Studies, Katie-Laken taught throughout the Rock Hill area with ages ranging from pre-school to college level students. She also performed and choreographed for Winthrop's faculty and student showcases, while also remaining to be involved on campus. Her studies included taking various dance kinesiology, dance history, choreography, improvisation, dance education, modern, ballet, jazz, tap and pedagogy courses. Katie-Laken has performed in the SCDAncing Festival that was held at Greenville's Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities in March of 2018, and her senior choreography piece was chosen to be performed at the ACDA Southern Conference informal showcase.

 

This summer, she is traveling to the west coast to study under two time Emmy Award Winning Choreographer for "So You Think You Can Dance" and Artistic Director for Shaping Sound, Travis Wall. Katie-Laken has also studied under artists such as: Mia Cunningham, Ben Kubie, Margaret Schriffen, Lauren Skrabalak, Kelly Ozust, Mia Michaels, Alan Sheperd, Mandy Moore, Nathan Makolandra, Jaci LaFountain, Napoleon & Tabitha D'umo, Nick DeMoura, Bobby Newberry, Mikey Alley, and Mitchel Feredan. She is over-joyed that she is able to provide children with the opportunity to dance, and to work throughout the Greenville community.

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Enjoy your visit to her website!