Faculty

Ballet, Pointe, Modern, Modern Repertoire

Rebecca Jones received her BFA in Dance Performance from Butler University. She enjoyed her first career performing with Dance Kaleidoscope, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, American Repertory Ballet Company, and Princeton Ballet. Rebecca began her second career teaching professional workshops and classes in various forms of dance. She has taught Ballet, Pointe, Modern, Jazz, Contemporary, Broadway, Hip-Hop, Lyrical, and Liturgical. Rebecca is also is the director of the ADA Ensemble. She is proud to be raising three wonderful children with her husband Shawn. Rebecca understands it is a privilege to have been teaching at ADA for so long and finds it a joy to train the dancers of the next generation.

Ballet, Pointe, Progressive Ballet Technique

Emily Dyson received her BFA in Ballet Pedagogy from the University of Oklahoma, where she performed with Oklahoma Festival Ballet and Contemporary Dance Oklahoma. She began ballet training in Houston, TX with Gilbert Rome and Victoria Vittum and was later inspired by Austin Hartel to study modern. She trained with Paul Taylor Dance Company, American Ballet Theatre, The Joffery, Washington School of Ballet, and Atlanta Ballet. Emily enjoys teaching around the city and passing forward her love of dance to younger students and she thanks her family and friends for their endless love and encouragement.

Dance Abiltities, Lyrical, Preschool

Claire Liechty received her BFA in Contemporary Dance with a minor in Adaptive Movement and Exercise and most recently received her MS in Recreational Therapy during her time at Indiana University. Throughout her undergraduate education she performed works by several companies including Paul Taylor Dance Company, Company SBB, Eisenhower Dance Detroit, Company Danzante, Boy Friday, and more. In addition to performing, she’s directed and choreographed several dance concerts and musicals and was awarded the Jane Fox Creative Arts scholarship for her excellence in creative projects, showcase of work in various places and her collaboration with several populations in the Bloomington community. Claire loves sharing the joy of dance with her students in the Indianapolis community!

Pre-Ballet, Beginner Baller, Teen Ballet, Teen Tap

Melissa began dancing at the age of 7 at her mother’s in-home dance studio. Performing yearly recitals, showcases at the Greenwood Park Mall and retirement facilities, talent competitions, Butler Ballet’s “The Nutcracker”, and Young Artists summer productions at Footlite Musicals, she was also honored to be a Prelude Awards finalist and guest dancer with Dance Kaleidoscope.

Melissa received extensive training in all genres at the Jordan Academy of Dance (a former extension of Butler Ballet), earning a B.A. in Dance, Pedagogy from Butler University, 1993. She was thrilled to perform as a Pacemate for the Indiana Pacers 1996-1998 seasons. Melissa has taught ballet, jazz, modern, tap, and hip-hop to students of all ages for over 30 years, including Broad Ripple HS, G. Scotten Talent, HSE HS, and Academy of Dance Arts. She is certified in Progressing Ballet Technique. Choreography credits include DeVeau's Gymnastics competition floor routines, Fall Creek JH, HIJH, and FHS musicals and choirs, and HSE HS choirs and dance curriculum. Melissa is looking forward to sharing her passion for dance with you!

Hip-Hop

Daniel Korrie is a versatile hip-hop dancer, performer, and instructor based in Indianapolis, known for a fluid, unrestricted style that blends popping, waving, groove, Afrobeats, and floorwork. He currently performs with the Indiana Pacers Hype Crew (3 seasons), bringing high energy to NBA games, halftime shows, and live events including NBA All-Star. His training includes Monster Dance Convention, Kaos Convention, and other hip-hop intensives, sharpening his foundation across multiple street styles. As an instructor at 31SVN Dance Academy, Dance Innovation, and formerly InDanza, he helps dancers of all levels build confidence, musicality, and self-expression. His competitive credits include 1st Place at the Sparks Battle (Indianapolis) and a Top 8 finish at a Chicago hip-hop battle. Rooted in freestyle and creativity, Daniel's philosophy is simple: move authentically, blend styles freely.

Tap, Adult jazz

Sue began dancing and age 5, and her love of dance has continued for 40+ years. She has been an instructor for ADA since 1999, and loves sharing her passion with others. Sue has performed in many productions at the Indianapolis Civic Theatre. Her favorites roles include, Carmen; Sweet Charity, Minnie Faye; Hello Dolly, and Phyllis; 42nd Street. This year she was thrilled to make her debut at the American Cabaret Theatre in Victor/Victoria. Sue has also performed in many opening ceremonies, including the Pan Am Games, the World Gymnastics Championships, and Indiana Special Olympics. As a member of the All-Star Professional dance team, The Indy Blues, she had the honor of performing her own choreography in the 2004 Indiana "Circle of Lights Ceremonies." Sue and her husband, Lyle, live in Carmel with their 3 children; Christopher, Caroline and Claire.

Adult tap, Adult ballet, Lyrical

Natalie was raised in a soccer family. At 8 years old, she wanted something different, so she took a dance class and was instantly hooked. Through high school, she danced competitively in tap, jazz, and lyrical. For extra training, she took classes at a ballet studio and with a professional tap company. While minoring in dance at The Ohio State University, she fell in love with modern dance and performed in several honors and grad concerts. After graduating, while working in Paris, Natalie had the opportunity to study ballet under Paris Opera Etoile Mireille Negre and tap under Victor Cuno. Back in the States, she became a founding member of the Columbus, OH based Exclaim Dance Company, a jazz company with a focus on community outreach. Since 2014, she has been teaching ballet, tap, jazz, creative movement, hip hop, and lyrical to dancers of all ages. One of her life goals is to never say, "I used to dance."

Preschool Creative, Ballet & PBT

Lauren Ulm began her ballet training at a small studio in Westfield, IN, before advancing her studies at En Pointe Indiana Ballet under the artistic direction of Robert Moore and Pollyana Ribeiro. She has performed a variety of roles, including Swanhilda in Coppélia, Kitri’s Friends in Don Quixote, Arabian Coffee and Snow Queen in The Nutcracker, and Wendy in Peter Pan. Lauren also trained at summer intensives on scholarship with Joffrey Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, and has taken class with master teachers such as Edward Ellison, Patrick Armand, Suki Schorer, Franco De Vita, and Gillian Murphy. Lauren danced as a Trainee with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre before returning home to focus on her education. She is currently in graduate school pursuing both a Master of Social Work and a Master of Public Health. Lauren is thrilled to be back teaching at Academy of Dance Arts for the 2026–2027 season!

Jazz, Lyrical

Manuel Valdes began gymnastics training at the age of five in Dallas, TX, and continued as a competitive gymnast for 12 years. He began dancing at Dallas Black Dance Theater and went on to receive his BFA of Modern Dance Performance from the University of Oklahoma under the direction of Austin Hartel and Roxanne Lyst. While performing with Contemporary Dance Oklahoma, he not only had the pleasure of performing works by his professors, but also Ilya Kozadayev, Sonia Dawkins, Raimondo Rebeck, Jose Limón, and Alvin Ailey. Manuel has attended intensives with Paul Taylor American Dance Theater, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, BODYTRAFFIC and SALT. Dancing with Dance Kaleidoscope these past 10 seasons has afforded him the opportunity to dance in works by David Hochoy, Joshua Blake Carter, Brock Clawson, Stuart Lewis, Sean Aaron Camron, Autumn Eckman, Tsai-Hsi Hung and Robyn Mineko Williams. Manuel has had the opportunity to set choreography with companies Dance Kaleidoscope, Relevations and Pulse Dance Theater. He also has had featured work in the Indy Dance Film Festival. He is forever grateful for all the love and support from friends and family on this continued artistic journey and looks forward to many more years with Academy of Dance Arts.