Meet the Owner & Lead Instructor
Miss Emily Ricci – B.S. Business Management, Minor in Dance
Miss Emily has danced since the age of five, she minored in dance throughout college, and has educated students in dance for ten years now. She has studied many styles of dance including ballet, Pointe, jazz, tap, lyrical, contemporary, modern, hip hop, heels, popping, locking, breaking, house dance, and has also taught all of these genres. She is also a certified yoga instructor through the International Sports Sciences Association. Over the years, she has performed in countless dance events. She has danced in Walt Disney World’s Dance the World Parade, the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Miss America Parade in Atlantic City, Fourth of July Parades, local park concerts, and annual dance recitals. Miss Emily has also attended numerous dance workshops and competitions in various states along the East Coast. She currently performs with ContempraDANCE Theatre Company, dancing in shows, such as Philly Nutt Crak-Up. She has taken master classes at Koresh Dance Company in Philadelphia and Broadway Dance Center in New York City. She is a member of the Dance Studio Owner’s Association which allows her to constantly refine her business skills and stay up to date with current dance studio analytics. Her choreographing career includes competitive and noncompetitive solos, duets, trios, and group numbers, some of which are award winning numbers. Miss Emily has not only choreographed for dance studios, but also for grade school, high school, and college students as well as weddings.
Our Teachers
Miss Natalie Mancini
Miss Natalie has danced for twelve years now. She began her training at the age of three and is now a junior in high school. She has studied various styles of dance, including ballet, Pointe, contemporary, jazz, tap, and hip-hop. She has performed in the Walt Disney World’s Dance the World parade, the Miss America Parade in Atlantic City, numerous dance competitions, local park performances, Fourth of July parades, and yearly dance recitals. She is currently a select member of ERDC’s Senior Dance Company and performs with the company at several events, such as parades, festivals, and competitions during the regular dance season in addition to performing in ERDC’s annual recitals. She served as an apprentice during both seasons 2021-2022 and Summer 2022 and then began teaching in Season 2022-2023. Miss Natalie teaches Mini Ballet/Jazz for ages 3-4 and Beginner Ballet/Tap for ages 5-6.
Miss Kelley Campbell
Miss Kelley has been teaching dance for the last 20 years in her hometown of Columbia, Maryland. She has choreographed award winning routines that are nationally recognized. She has had the pleasure of training students for both collegiate and professional dance teams. Her professional dance career includes cheering for the Washington Capitals during the 2018-2020 seasons. She is a certified Cecchetti ballet student and instructor. She specializes in ballet, tap, jazz, and lyrical instruction. She is also a nurse in the Philadelphia area and enjoys making dance not only a hobby, but a way of life for herself and her students!
Miss Sophia Pinkham
Sophia Pinkham began dance classes at age 3 and fell in love with movement. She began assistant teaching at age 12, where she learned her of love teaching dance. She has performed many leading roles in her pre-professional dance career and placed top 12 at YAGP her senior year for classical variations. After high school, she spent two years dancing with Nashville Ballet Company in the trainee program and taught her second year there. Afterwards, she went to Eastern University where she earned a degree in exercise science. She is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine. She currently dances with the Roger Lee Dance Company and teaches ballet/pre-pointe/pointe, contemporary, lyrical, and conditioning classes. She has choreographed for competitions such as YAGP, Elite, Elevate, and Access Broadway. She has also choreographed for independent shows and Eastern University’s Dance Department Showcases.
Miss Christina Brown
Christina Brown has taught dance at many dance studios throughout Philadelphia, the surrounding suburbs, and Baltimore, MD. She began teaching dance as an assistant at age 13, and became a lead dance teacher at age 16. Miss Christina is trained in classical ballet, tap, jazz, modern, hiphop, and African. She currently teaches dance full time to Kindergarten through 12th grade students at a charter school in Chester. She is a member of the National Dance Education Association, and continues to educate herself on the latest in dance pedagogy. Miss Christina has a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education, and a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership. She plans on pursuing a Masters Degree in Dance in the upcoming year. Miss Christina loves how dance expresses what is in your soul. She is passionate about properly educating the younger dance generation, and helping them reach their highest potential as a dancer.
Miss Cassandra Kaeppel
Cassandra “Cass” Kaeppel is 21 years old, a dancer, choreographer, and educator from Allentown, PA. She is currently working on her B.A. in Dance and Psychology at Eastern University with the intention to graduate in May 2025. She has been dancing in several genres (ballet, jazz, tap, hip-hop, pointe, lyrical, modern, contemporary, and African) for 14 years. Cassandra enjoys performing at showcases at her University and is currently dancing with Roger Lee Arts in Philadelphia.
Miss Lauren Thomas
Lauren began dancing at the age of three and has been teaching for over 18 years. She has trained in a wide range of styles, including jazz, tap, hip hop, ballet, and lyrical. She continued her passion for dance at West Chester University, where she performed with the University Dance Company and expanded her training in modern and contemporary techniques. She remains active with West Chester’s Alumni Dance Chapter, where she has contributed as a choreographer and performer.
Throughout her career, Lauren has taken master classes in Philadelphia and New York, further broadening her dance experience. With a genuine love for teaching, she is dedicated to nurturing her students’ growth all year long. Lauren enjoys working with children and strives to create a positive, supportive, and encouraging classroom environment. Above all, she looks forward to sharing her passion and joy for dance with her students each year.