Performing Arts of Germantown

Ms. Elizabeth has been a dancer, teacher, and choreographer in the Memphis area for many years. She has choreographed numerous productions for Theatre Memphis including 1776 ; Shenandoah ; How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying ; Annie , and most recently, The Mystery of Edwin Drood . Mrs. Brown also has worked as a choreographer for many of the musical productions at Libertyland. She choreographed the Poplar Pike Playhouse productions of Man of La Mancha; The Mystery of Edwin Drood ; No, No, Nanette ; Into the Woods ; Trixie True ; Anything Goes ; Oklahoma! ; Chess ; Once On This Island ; The Secret Garden ; The Sound of Music ; The Music Man ; Pippin' Rags ; South Pacific ; Children of Eden ; Crazy for You ; Show Boat ; Seussical and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

Ms. Misty has been involved in the performing arts industry for over 30 years, accumulating knowledge and experience as a “triple threat” performer, a dedicated student, a devoted teacher and an award-winning choreographer. Her broad performance career spans musical theatre, theme parks, concerts, workshops, film, print and industrials. Regionally, Misty earned a Best Actress nomination for her portrayal of Peggy Sawyer in 42nd Street and received a Best Supporting Actress award for the role of Sheila in A Chorus Line . Misty is a respected and sought-after dance instructor, and has had the honor of teaching both jazz and tap at the famous Broadway Dance Center in New York City. Her choreography has won numerous accolades, including a Best Choreography award from L.A. Danceforce Competition. Misty continues to be an active part of the NYC dance industry and has the great pleasure and privilege to work for legendary composer, Charles Strouse, and his director/choreographer wife, Barbara Siman.

Ms. Whitney is originally from Memphis, Tennessee and has performed across the country (Be The Dance at Bally's Casino, Las Vegas) and across the ocean (three award-winning trips to the International Fringe Festival.) Whitney was the resident tap coach and trainer for the Broadway production of Billy Elliot , and was a founding member of the New York dance company Directions Dance Ensemble. She was introduced to dance at Performing Arts at the age of two, and has been teaching in Memphis and New York since graduating with honors from Wagner College with a B.A. in Musical Theatre Performance with a focus on Dance. She has studied under Ann Reinking, Ben Vereen, Wade Robson, Sheila Barker, Andrea Brown, and Ray Hesselink. As a choreographer and director, she has worked from Beale Street to Broadway, LA to Europe. Favorite director/choreographer credits include Oklahoma!, Beauty and the Beast, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. She created the original choreography for the world premiere musical Changing Minds for Theatrical Rights Worldwide and choreographed and directed four shows on the American Queen Luxury Steamboat. As a performer, the New York community has seen her play "Janet" in The Drowsy Chaperone, "Sheila" in Hairspray , and the heroine "Catherine" in Pippin . On the big screen, Whitney can also been seen (and heard) as Lemming's sassy secretary in The Blind Side . Proud member of AEA and SAG/AFTRA unions. www.whitneybranan.com

Ms. Yvette began her ballet training with Nancy Sulik at Ballet Academy of Corpus Christi, Texas, where she performed in classical ballets including The Nutcracker, The Firebird, Cinderella, Coppélia, and La Fille Mal Gardée . At age 13, Ms. Yvette began assisting with preschool dance classes under the mentorship of Mrs. Sulik and helped launch a program in local schools to introduce children to the magic of music and dance. While a student, Ms. Yvette was accepted to summer dance intensives at the schools of Houston Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet, as well as Ballet Magnificat, where she spent several summers training with Russian teacher George Lysenko. Ms. Yvette graduated summa cum laude from Belhaven University with a degree in Elementary Education and a minor in Dance. While pursuing her degree, she taught at Ballet Magnificat School of the Arts and eventually rose to serve as director of the school’s Junior Company. Ms. Yvette completed her student teaching at Wells APAC, an advanced academic and performing arts school in Jackson, Mississippi. Upon graduation, Ms. Yvette joined the Belhaven University dance faculty as an adjunct professor, where she continued refining her skills as a teacher of the Vaganova ballet curriculum with freshman and sophomore students. Ms. Yvette later left her role at Belhaven to help found a professional dance company in Jackson.

Ms. Brooke began her dance training at Performing Arts of Germantown in 1999, where she studied tap, ballet, pointe, jazz, and musical theatre from the ages of three to eighteen. In May 2018, she graduated Magna Cum Laude (Honors College Graduate) from the University of Southern Mississippi with a BFA in Dance Education (emphasis in ballet and modern dance). From 2014 - 2018, Brooke choreographed and danced with USM Dance's Repertory Dance Company and RDC II, as well as served as a Co-Director of RDC II. At Southern Miss, Brooke was awarded the 2017 - 2018 Outstanding Dance Educator award. Brooke served on the National Dance Education Organization’s Advisory Board from 2017 - 2018. She presented her research on dance education, "Dancing for Diversity: The Creation of a K-12 Outreach Program," at the 2017 NDEO National Conference (San Antonio, TX), and presented at the 2018 NDEO National Conference (San Diego, CA). She is a professional Dance Educator with Shelby County Schools, licensed in both Mississippi and Tennessee, and served as a Co-Coordinator for the Mississippi Dance Festival. She is currently a member of Memphis’s only professional tap dance company, The Hot Foot Honeys. Brooke has choreographed, staged, and directed for DeSoto Family Theatre, DFT Kids!, DFT's Summer Camp and Theatre Conservatory series, LRP Studios, Inc., Young Actors Guild, and Overton High School.

Mr. Steve (Dancer, Choreographer, Director, Producer ) has performed since the age of seven, involved in the performing arts industry for over 35+ years, accumulating knowledge and experience. He danced with Performing Arts since he was 11 and the outcome was a Grand Award Winner, at the Mid-South Fair in the dance group, "The City Slickers." He quickly became the male dancer of Memphis theater. With many memorable roles for Theatre Memphis, in The King and I , Music Man , A Christmas Carol and Guys and Dolls and Mike in A Chorus Line at Playhouse on the Square. He danced under the direction of Michael and Judy Tevlin at Memphis Ballet and later with George Latimer. He danced many seasons in the Nutcracker , Harlequin, Russian and Chinese. He was also in the award winning clogging team "The River City Cloggers" with national awards from Fontana, NC, TNN and The Grand Ole Opry. He went to the Alhambra Dinner Theatre and earned his Equity Card in A Chorus Line . He was cast at the acclaimed Opryland USA, theme park in Nashville for three seasons. Moving to Florida, he was cast at Busch Gardens in many of their extravagant productions. While in Florida, he play Cosmo in Singing in the Rain . He was cast as Grover in the national touring company of Sesame Street Live . He then began his longest career move to date, on the ocean with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line. During his 16 years he was dancer, dance captain, assistant choreographer, costume designer, stage manager, assistant director, director and producer. He then missed land and had to come back home. Now, Interior Designer with a client list of some of the Mid-South's top "A" list clients. He is now coaching, teaching and choreographing for Memphis's Top studio for performing arts excellence, Performing Arts of Germantown. Now, get out there and Dance!

Ms. Dana began dancing at the age of two, and began dancing at Performing Arts of Germantown at the age of 9. A graduate of the University of Memphis, with a degree in Elementary Education, Dana has been teaching in Shelby County Schools for over 20 years. At the University of Memphis, Dana was a member of the nationally recognized Memphis Pom Squad. With over 20 years of experience, she has taught cheerleading and pom at several schools in the Mid-South. At Performing Arts, Dana teaches jazz, hip hop, tumbling, and works closely with competition groups.