KDC STAFF 2026-2027

Miss Kelley discovered her love for dance at the age of four. She has studied Tap, Jazz, and Ballet, and competed in many regional and national dance competitions, including Dance Masters of Michigan and Showstopper. Years later, Miss Kelley immersed herself in her first love, Tap. She enjoyed her Advanced Adult Tap classes so much, she pursued a career as a Tap instructor. From 2006-2013, Miss Kelley was the Competition Team Director, Competitive Tap Team Choreographer, and Office Manager for Neu Wixom Dance Academy in Wixom, MI. After moving in 2013, Miss Kelley taught at The Dance Academy in Westland, MI as a Competition Team Choreographer for the next 5 years. She has led her Solos/Duets/Trios and Groups to numerous awards and accolades over the past 20 years including “Innovative Concept”, “Tip Top Tappers’, “Excellent Execution”, "Sassy Taps", "Clean As a Whistle", “Future Rockettes”, and "Crystal Clear", as well as multiple Top Overall achievements, Title Winners, and 2 Video of the Year nominations. Her dancers consistently place in the top 10 at competition. 

In 2016, Miss Kelley’s Mini Tap Team "Going To The Chapel" won 1st Place Overall National Champions at Hall Of Fame Dance Nationals in Virginia Beach. In 2018, she had a huge highlight in her career winning a Best Tap Choreographer award at Platinum Dance Competition.  In 2019 (Miss Kelley's first year as a Studio Owner/Director), KDC was a two time winner of the ADCC Studio of Excellence Award. KDC won the award again in 2021 and 2023. KDC also won the "Studio Spirit" award in 2024 at ID Dance Competition. She was also named as the Head Coach for the 2019-2020 Walled Lake Western Pom Team. 

In 2022, Miss Kelley's Tap Soloist, Gianna DeGolyer "Little Secret", went on to become a 1st Place Overall, National Champion at ID Nationals in Sandusky. In 2023, her Shining Stars Tap Team "Shake The Room" won 1st Place Overall National Champions at Groove Nationals in Atlantic City, NJ. In 2024, her Solo "Great Balls of Fire"created for KDC dancer Makayala Lucas, won for Best Choreography. In 2025, her Sparkling Stars Tap Team "Born To Be Wild" won 1st Place Overall National Champions at StarQuest World Finals, as well as the studio winning "Classic Studio of Excellence".

Miss Kelley is a proud resident of Wixom, residing with her husband- John (a Wixom Firefighter and Inspector for MDOT). She is also the proud Mom of daughter-Gabi (who also teaches at KDC), and son-Logan, as well as becoming a Grandma in 2023 to her sweet grandson- Maverick.

Through dance, Miss Kelley also gets to live out her other passion- working with children. She is a former preschool teacher with a great love for teaching dancers of all ages. She hopes to instill in your child a love for dance, and the determination to never give up on your dreams. 

Miss Kelley would like to welcome all of the KDC families to our 9th season with open arms! 

Miss Gabi began dancing at the age of 3. She has trained in Tap, Ballet, Jazz, Musical Theatre, Contemporary, Modern, Lyrical, and Pointe, dancing for 15 years and competing for 9. During her years as a dancer, she assisted multiple dances for many ages, which fostered her love for working with children in this art form. 

In her time at Kelley’s Dance Craze, Miss Gabi's Musical Theatre and Jazz routines have won multiple top 10 placements, including two national champions, and special awards including "Personality and Musicality", "Broadway Bound", and “Ultimate Entertainment.” 

She has co-choreographed multiple finale productions with Miss Bri for KDC’s annual recitals and has choreographed multiple Jazz lines and large groups with Miss Bri as well. 

She is a proud mom to a little boy, and is so grateful to teach in a place she calls her second home. 

She is excited to help her students grow in poise, grace, and confidence as dancers and looks forward to continuing to grow the KDC Musical Theatre program for many years to come! 

Miss Bri began dancing at the age of 3, and dance has remained a constant and meaningful part of her life ever since. Beginning her competitive dance journey at age 7, she quickly developed a passion for performing, training, and pushing herself to grow as a dancer. She competed regionally from a young age before advancing to the national level at 14, earning numerous awards throughout her 10-year competitive dance career.

Following her competitive dance career, Miss Bri continued her education at Wayne State University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Dance with a minor in Business Administration. During her time at Wayne State, she had the opportunity to train and work with accomplished artists including Meg Paul, Lisa LaMarre, and Della Hamby.

Miss Bri also completed an internship with Amber Gilbert, owner of The Dance Academy in Westland, Michigan, where she gained valuable experience and expanded her knowledge of dance studio ownership and operations.

For the past eight years, Miss Bri has shared her passion for dance through competition choreography. Her groups and soloists have consistently earned top overall placements at competitions, with students receiving special awards such as “Technique Standout,” “Ultimate Entertainment,” and “Artistic Vision.” Miss Bri has also been honored with multiple choreography awards for her work.

Miss Bri is certified in Acrobatic Arts’ AcroDance program. Through this training, she provides students with safe, structured, and progressive acro instruction while helping them develop strength, flexibility, control, and confidence.

In addition to teaching and choreographing, Miss Bri is now a Co-Director at Kelley’s Dance Craze alongside Miss Gabi. She also serves as the studio seamstress and Co-Director of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts (NHSDA) program alongside Miss Chrissy.

At Kelley’s Dance Craze, Miss Bri is passionate about helping her students develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for dance while continuing to advance their technical and physical abilities. She places a strong emphasis on technique, strength, fluidity, and, most importantly, fostering a lifelong passion for dance.

Miss Bri is thrilled to begin her 9th season with KDC! She is excited to continue growing alongside the studio, inspiring and supporting her students, and helping the next generation of dancers discover their confidence, strength, and love for dance.

 Miss Chrissy’s love for dance started in her first ballet class at age three, and she continued to foster that love when she began competing regionally and nationally at age thirteen. 

During her time as a student, she studied a variety of styles including ballet, pointe, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, modern, musical theatre, and hip hop. She then added Tap and Hawaiian to her repertoire as an adult. At twelve years old, she accepted her first assistant teaching position and continued with multiple styles and ages leading up to her graduation. 

During her senior year of high school, she served as Dance Captain and Assistant Choreographer for her school’s production of The Beauty and the Beast. Post-graduation, she has taught varying styles and ages, both recreationally and competitively, at Kelley’s Dance Craze for seven seasons, while also studying through Progressing Ballet Technique, the Godfrey Method, and the National Dance Education Organization. 

In this time, her dancers have had numerous top ten placements, including three national championships, and many judge's awards, such as “Visual Poetry”, “Undeniably Adorable”, and multiple “Best Costume” awards. 

She also served as Assistant Coach and Co-Choreographer for the Walled Lake Western Poms team alongside Kelley Paronish and Gabrielle Young. 

She had the honor of choreographing four of the opening ballet productions for KDC’s annual recital. 

In July of 2021, she was appointed as Chapter Sponsor for KDC’s National Honor Society of Dance Arts program and she is very excited to welcome Miss Bri to the program and work alongside her. 

Miss Chrissy is a mom to two beautiful daughters, Zaia and Phoebe, and she is so excited to now have the title of "Dance Mom" added to the list. 

Miss Chrissy is thrilled to take on Season 8 of Kelley’s Dance Craze and continue to push her students to be their best selves, both inside and out of the classroom, using our collective passion and hard work to make this season the best one yet! 

Miss Kylie began dancing at the age of 3. Her passion for dance grew quickly once she started competitive dance at Debbie Felton’s Academy of Dance in Livonia, MI. 

She furthered her dance career at Western Michigan University and graduated with her BFA in Dance in 2019. Miss Kylie has trained in a variety of styles including Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Lyrical, Modern, Contemporary, Pointe. 

She is a professional dancer and the Company Manager of ConteXture Dance Detroit, a non-profit dance company, where she performs locally around the Metro-Detroit area. She is also the Artistic Director of the ConteXture Pre-Professional Summer Program she created in 2023 where she connects aspiring artists to the world of concert dance. She is proud to have had many KDC dancers participate in the program this past summer! 

Miss Kylie has performed professionally in Chicago, New York, and Europe. Along with performing, Miss Kylie has a passion for creating and has choreographed for Wayne State University, Michigan State University's Orchesis Dance Society, Grand Valley State University's Elite Dance Club, and Churchill High School where her choreography was chosen to perform in the 2022, 2023, and 2024 Oakland Dance Festival College Showcase. 

Miss Kylie recently received her MA as a Dance Teaching Artist at Wayne State University with her thesis “Effects of the Creative Process for Pre-Professional Learners in Dance: Enhancing Well-Being Through Creative Expression.” 

Miss Kylie’s students at KDC have achieved numerous top ten placements and special awards such as artistic execution, and has received recognition for her students' technique, and choreography. Miss Kylie is unbelievably proud that her students brought home multiple national championships from her first KDC nationals at Starquest in Virginia Beach this past summer. 

Besides teaching dance, Miss Kylie teaches barre classes weekly at Pure Barre in Novi. Combining her love of fitness and dance, she focuses on safe ways to train the body physically while making mental health in the studio a priority. 

Miss Kylie’s goal is to inspire her students as much as they continue to inspire her through authenticity and artistry. Miss Kylie has developed such a passion for teaching throughout her four years at KDC and is looking forward to another incredible season! 

Miss Zayda began dancing at the age of 3 and went on to dance competitively at Kelley’s Dance Craze for many years. Throughout her career, she has trained in many different styles and has had the opportunity to work with dancers of many ages and levels. Miss Zayda began assistant teaching at the age of 13 and continued through her senior year of high school. During her senior year, she began student teaching and has continued teaching ever since, working with a range of styles and age groups. Miss Zayda currently dances with ConteXture Dance Detroit under the direction of Tracy Halloran and recently performed in their season 13 concert, EXponential. She is also in her fourth and final year at Oakland University, where she is pursuing a BFA in Dance. During her time at Oakland, she has presented several pieces as a student choreographer for performances. Miss Zayda has furthered her training through programs including Eisenhower Dance Detroit’s UprootEDD and NewDANCEFest intensives, Oakland Dance Festival, and ConteXture Dance Detroit’s Workshops and Summer Intensive. Throughout her training, she has had the opportunity to work with many talented choreographers, including Teresa Muller, Denise Caston, Meagan Cubides, and Cameron McKinney. Miss Zayda is so excited to continue teaching at Kelley’s Dance Craze and enjoys sharing her love for dance with all of her students! 

Miss Ava began dancing at the age of 3, and starting dancing competitively at age 11, while also assisting numerous Tap, Ballet, and Jazz classes. She has trained in the styles of Ballet, Contemporary, Lyrical, Hip Hop, Jazz, Musical Theatre, Pointe, and Tap. Throughout her years competing, she won many awards regionally and nationally. Miss Ava was a student teacher her senior year of high school for a Preschool Tap class, choreographing and teaching their recital dance under the direction of Miss Kelley. Along with that, she has taught several different dance styles and ages over the last couple of years. She is currently in her third year at Oakland University as a BFA Dance Major. Miss Ava also enjoys attending dance events outside of school, such as Dance City Festival master classes, Eisenhower Dance Detroit’s NewDanceFest, and ConteXture Dance Detroit’s Winter, Spring, and Summer Workshops. This Summer she had the opportunity to be an associate company member with ConteXture Dance Detroit as well as assist the artistic director of their Pre-Professional Program. She is so excited for the opportunity to teach in KDC’s 9th Season!  

Miss Kim graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training/Sports Medicine from Central Michigan University in 2005 and continued on to complete her Doctorate of 

Physical Therapy at Oakland University in 2009. 

She furthers her clinical knowledge by participating in continuing education: she has completed training in Kinesio Taping® and Mulligan Concept as well as certification in Graston Technique. 

 Miss Kim has in-depth experience working with high school athletes, patients in acute trauma, post-op orthopedic patients and is a staff therapist for ATI Physical therapy.  

She is also part-time faculty at Washtenaw Community College, teaching soft tissue mobilization techniques in the PTA program. 

Miss Marisa is the proud dance Mom of competition team dancer, Gianna.   A competitive Tahitian team dancer herself growing up, Marisa was thrilled when Gianna decided she wanted to compete!
Marisa has been associated with KDC since Miss Kelley opened her doors and Gianna started taking lessons.  This is Miss Marisa’s fourth year working on the front desk.  She loves hanging out with our wonderful dancers and meeting all the dance families.
Miss Marisa is a married mom with three, two-legged kids and a beloved dog-mom of 5 fur babies.  These are a few of her favorite things:  Talking about dogs, reading, concerts, crafting, talking about dogs, and cheering on the fabulous dancers at Kelley’s Dance Craze!

Miss Thea is a proud dance mom of Libby and Kaycie, both of whom enjoy the world of competitive dance at Kelley’s Dance Craze. She has been an elementary/middle school teacher for the past 27 years, and loves working with children. 

Miss Thea also found her love of dance at the young age of three taking Ballet, Tap, and Jazz. She quickly realized Tap was her most favorite style, and competed many tap solos 

over several years. 

Miss Thea and her family reside in Wixom. They love the welcoming community and beauty that it has to offer.  

Miss Thea’s favorite hobbies are spending time with family, watching movies/tv series, loving on her pets, and watching all the talented dancers from KDC take the stage! 

Bio coming soon!

This year, Miss Paige will be a Junior at Northville High School, and she has been dancing for 8 years at Kelley’s Dance Craze. Miss Paige began dancing at age 2, and has continued to train in various styles including Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Musical Theatre, Lyrical, Hip Hop, Pointe, etc. 

She has been a part of the National Honors Society of Dance Arts for 4 years, and took on the roles of both Secretary and Treasurer this past year. 

This will be Miss Paige's third year assisting at KDC. Miss Paige loves to compete and attend conventions and has won many overall awards during her years of dance. 

She is looking forward to spending season 8 with her KDC  dance family. 

Miss Marissa has been dancing since she was 2 years old. She has been competing for 9 years ,starting at the age of 7. She has trained in many styles including: Jazz, Tap, Contemporary, Lyrical, Musical Theatre, Hip Hop, and Ballet. She has also been a member of the National Honors Society of Dance Arts (NHSDA) for 5 years. 

Miss Marissa loves to attend conventions and competitions. She has won many overall awards during her years as a competition dancer. 

Miss Marissa began student assisting for Kelley’s Dance Craze in season 6.

She is so excited to assist for her 3rd year for season 8!

Miss Whitney began dancing at the age of 5. She has trained in the styles of Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Pointe, Lyrical, Musical Theatre, Contemporary and Hip Hop. 

Miss Whitney has been competing for eight years and can’t wait for this next season of dance! She has been a proud member of the National Honor Society of Dance Arts for several years. 

Miss Whitney loves attending competitions and can’t wait to compete at nationals again next year. She has won many overall and title awards. Her biggest accomplishment was placing 1st place overall, winning the Teen title and highest overall score of the day with her solo “ Ring Them Bells” choreographed by Miss Gabi, at Applause Talent in Grand Rapids. 

Miss Whitney is very excited to began her student assisting journey for season 8!

Miss Libby has been competing for 9 seasons, eight of them at Kelley’s Dance Craze. She has trained in various styles including: Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Contemporary, Hip Hop, Lyrical, Musical Theatre, and Pointe. 

This will be Miss Libby’s third year assisting Miss Kelley in Tap class! She has also been included in the National Honor Society of Dance Arts for the past 4 years. 

Miss Libby is always happy to lend a hand when 

anyone needs help. 

Her biggest accomplishment is winning the KDC "MVP" at  our competition team banquet last season. 

Miss Libby is very excited to attend all of the conventions, and competitions this year! 

She is also very eager to start season 8! 

Miss Mackenzie has been dancing since she was 3, and competing since she was 7. She has been dancing at Kelley's Dance Craze since the studio's first year. During her time here, she has trained in numerous styles including Lyrical, Jazz, Tap, Contemporary, Hip Hop, Musical Theater, Ballet, and Pointe. She has won many top awards, including regional first overalls and a national first place overall.

Miss Mackenzie takes private acro lessons every summer to further her dance ability. She has also taken part in the National Honor Society of Dance Arts for the past 5 years.

 Dance is Miss Mackenzie's passion, and she cannot wait to share her love of dance in season 8!  

Miss Brennan started dancing in 1st grade, and this is her third year at Kelley’s Dance Craze. She has trained in Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Lyrical, Hip Hop, Musical Theatre, Contemporary, Pointe, and Hawaiian. Her favorite styles of dance are Musical Theatre and Jazz . She has so many great dance memories over the years and loves learning and improving. 

Miss Brennan has been in the National Honor Society of Dance Arts for the last 3 years. This is her third time being a student assistant, and she loves meeting all of the younger kids in the studio. 

She loves being a part of the KDC dance family! 

Miss Chloe has been passionate about dancing since the age of 5, and began competing at age10. With 7 years of experience at KDC, she has been training in various styles, including Jazz, Hip Hop, Ballet, Lyrical, Contemporary, Musical Theatre, Tap, and more! 

Additionally, she has been a proud member of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts (NHSDA) for the past 3 years.

Miss Chloe has achieved numerous regional and national awards throughout her dancing journey. Her most cherished memories revolve around the bonds she has formed with her dance family.

Miss Chloe is thrilled and eager to begin her 2nd year as an Assistant in season 8!