Karen Fender, Owner and Director of the Dance Gallery, KU Graduate with a degree in Education, University
of Kansas Pom Pom Girl & Women's Gymnastics team. Karen studied dance in Kansas City and studied ballet at UMKC Conservatory
of Dance. A former Miss Kansas, she was chosen to be on two USO tours, and won the Talent Award in both the Miss Kansas
and The Miss America Pageant for her jazz and acrobatic dancing. She has choreographed and judged for the Miss Kansas
Pageant, Rock Chalk Revue, Showbiz National Talent Competition, Nexstar Talent Competition and numerous Miss
America Preliminary Pageants. She has taught all forms of dance and tumbling for over 30 years and is the director of
the Dance Gallery Troupes.
For Karen's Biography Click Here
Cynthia Griffith was a principal dancer with the Tulsa Ballet, and has performed both in numerous musicals
("Paint Your Wagon", "On a Clear Day", "The King and I", "Oklahoma", "I Do, I Do", "My Fair Lady", "Caberet","A Chorus Line"-to
name a few) and many ballets (Nutcracker, Coppelia, Firebird, Giselle, Swan Lake Tribute, Square Dance and many others!).
She has performed with the Tampa Ballet, Spanish Lyric Theater, the Tulsa Opera, Festival Ballet USA in Houston, and the Oklahoma
City Lyric Theater. She has taught ballet, dance and stage movement for over 25 years and is an accomplished choregrapher.
Cynthia graduated with honors with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Ballet Pedagogy from the University of Oklahoma. She
has studied with the Tulsa Civic Ballet, American Ballet Center (Joffrey Ballet), Harkness Ballet and has attended several
intensive teachers seminars covering the Russian Ballet Syllabus. Cindy has taught for 8 years now at the Dance
Gallery both ballet and lyrical.
Tristan Conway has many years of hip hop experience starting in junior high school. He served as
a manager for the Olathe North Eaglette's, and has choreographed and performed with them for 3 years. Tristan was a member of
the Unity Hip Hop Dance Troupe at KU. This membership has opened the door to many opportunities including the Monsters
of Hip Hop 2004 Dallas, Texas convention. When it comes to hip hop dancing, his love and talent is used to encourage
individual style and to focus alot on mainstream dancing. Tristan is currently teaching the Jazz,
Musical Theater, Acro, & Hip Hop group numbers as well as private solos, duos and trios at Dance Gallery.
Kallie Campbell-A senior at the University of Kansas and current Rock Chalk Dancer has been taking dance
since she was 10 years old. She competed for Dance Gallery through her senior year of high school winning many regional
platinum and overall awards. She has taught at Dance Gallery while being a KU student and choreographs Jazz, Lyrical, &
Musical Theater numbers as will as being a private teacher for solos and duos.
Emily Thomas- Also a former Dance Gallery Troupe member is a senior at the University of Kansas.
She has been a DG student since she was 4 years old. She danced on the troupe teams for 6 years and has taken tap, ballet,
jazz, lyrical & tumbling. Emily was on the pom squad for FSHS & LHS. She is a very accomplished dancer,
winning top awards in the solo/duo/and group divisions. She has been teaching at Dance Gallery while attending KU and choreographs
many competitive troupes this year including including lyrical and jazz.
Cierra Roberts-Cierra began teaching dance at the age of 14 years old and from there has enjoyed teaching
and choreographing for children throughout kansas. She has been competeing in secular dance competitions since she was twelve;
first with Dance Ascension and then with The Movement Authority under noted choreographer and proffessional dancer Kacy Combs.
She has staffed for National Dance Alliance(NDA), choreographed and performed with Unity Hip Hop of University of Kansas,
and danced for the University of Kansas' Spirit Squad 2007-2008 season. She currently choreographs and teaches with Dance
Line Image of Liberty Missouri and Dance Gallery in Lawrence, Kansas. In addition she has been recognized by Pulse faculty
and currently a Pulse protege-a scholarship allowing her to take from the well-famed, such as Mia Michaels and Brian Friedman.Specializing
in jazz technique, street jazz and contemporary movement, her classes and choreography center around unique movement and expression
with knowledge.
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Krystyna Jurkowski Hilding was a principal dancer with the Joffrey Ballet for 12 years, dancing featured
roles in Gerald Arpino's "Trinity" and "Kettentanz", Ruthanna Boris' "Cakewalk", and Sir Frederic Ashton's "The Dream. She
performed as a guest artist with Edward Villella's touring company and as a leading dancer with the New Jersey Ballet. Before
moving to Lawrence, she was on the faculty of the New Jersey School of Ballet and coached privately. As a performer, she toured
internationally and throughout the United States, appeared in the acclaimed PBS series Dance in America, and in a television
special featuring Diana Ross. She also danced at the Kennedy Center Performance of American Arts for President Jimmy Carter
and Vice-Premier of China, Deng Xiapong. Ms. Hilding is on the dance faculty at the University of Kansas teaches master
classes, is a choreographer and coaches privately. Krystyna has been teaching ballet at the Dance Gallery for over ten years.
Jerel Hilding was a principal dancer with the Joffrey Ballet for 15 years, touring internationally and
performing in works by many of the 20th century's most influential choreographers, including George Balanchine, Gerald Arpino,
Jerome Robbins, Sir Frederic Ashton, John Cranko, Kurt Jooss, Leonide Massine, and Twyla Tharp. Currently, he is in his fifteenth
year teaching all levels of ballet, pointe, repertory, pas de deux, choreography, and rhythms and structures of music. Currently
the Director of Dance at the University of Kansas, Mr Hilding also choreographs and helps direct the University Dance Company
and has collaborated with the Kansas University Symphony Orchestra, the Opera Workshop at Kansas university and the Department
of Theatre & Film at KU on musicals, operas, and dance concerts. He directed the New Jersey Ballet's Artist-in-Education
program and worked as an instructor for New York's City Center Theatre Outreach Program. He has taught in New York, New Jersey,
and Louisiana, and has been a guest teacher and choreographer throughout the Midwest. During his performing career Mr Hilding
appeared in numerous PBS specials (Dance in America, among others), commercials and television specials; was featured in various
magazine and publications (Dance Magazine, L.A. Magazine, Who's Who in Arts); and was a guest artist with many dance companies
in the U.S. And Puerto Rico. Mr Hilding holds a bachelor's degree from Louisiana State University in New Orleans (now the
University of New Orleans), where he studied music history, theory and composition, and piano.
Amanda Reichert-Student Teacher-has been dancing/tumbling at Dance Gallery for 8 years. This will
be her 9th year on Troupe and currently is a senior at Free State High School. She competes on many competitive troupe
teams and has won many regional and national awards.
Chelsea Reichert-
Jessica Prather-
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