Instructors

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  Carrie Ann Cone

  With over 25 years of experience in the dance industry, Carrie is thrilled to bring her knowledge of all forms of dance with her to Las Vegas' new DanceCenter Ballroom & Latin Studio.

  Carrie Cone is proud to say that she has trained with some of the top professionals in the finest dance schools in the country, including Joffery Ballet, the Rock School Pennsylvania Ballet, Boca Ballet Theatre, Palm Beach County School of the Arts, JM Performing Arts Center, and many more. Carrie has extensive training in many diverse forms of dance, including all forms of Ballroom (both rhythm and smooth), Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Acrobatics, Modern, and Lyrical. Originally from Palm Beach, Florida, Carrie began competing at the age of seven. Her formal dancing career began in 1998 with the Columbia City Ballet in South Carolina. Carrie has performed a variety of notable ballets ranging from the Nutcracker and Romeo & Juliet, to Where The Wild Things Are, Dracula, and Sleeping Beauty. In the beginning of 2000 Carrie moved to Charlotte, NC to perform Macbeth with the Moving Poets Theatre of Dance—a professional dance-theater company presenting modern dance selections to the Southeastern region.

  In the summer of 2000, Carrie found her way into an Arthur Murray Dance Studio where she discovered her love for ballroom dance. Since then, she has had the opportunity to teach hundreds of dancers of all ages and levels. She has performed in countless shows and productions, ranging from performances with some of the top casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, to a variety of charitable events throughout the US. Carrie is a big supporter of local charities and an active participant in the fundraisers they orchestrate. In years past, Carrie has been involved with fundraising efforts for the Dance for Heart American Heart Association, Oprah's Angel Network, and Opportunity Village. In 2009, Carrie danced in the "Las Vegas Dancing with the Stars" to raise money for charitable organizations like: The Caring Place, American Cancer Society, Susan G. Komen Foundation, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and Candelighters Children's Cancer.

  Carrie has earned admiration from within the dance community, as well as a reputation for excellence amongst her students and peers.

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  Anne McNinch

  Born and raised in Orlando, Florida, Anne grew up with a love of dance. She started performing and choreographing in high school, while on a traditional dance team. Anne continued her training in jazz, ballet and tap at Brigham Young University, where her love of Ballroom Dance began in 1987. She performed with the BYU Ballroom Dance Tour Team for two years while student teaching in Latin and American styles. In 1992 Anne, competed with the BYU Latin Team winning the British National Formation Team Championships. The next year, she competed at the World Latin Team Formation Championships in Vienna, Austria, where the BYU Latin Team placed 6th. Anne also directed a beginning team and competed in International Latin as an amateur. In 1993 she and her partner placed 3rd nationally. After graduation, Anne continued teaching ballroom dance at the college level at Utah Valley University for two years. She coached the Latin Team at UVU, and taught bronze Standard, gold Latin, and bronze American classes. In 1997, Anne took the UVU Latin Team to the British National Formation Team Championships, where they placed 4th. Anne has taught at studios in Utah, San Diego, and Las Vegas. She has worked with many top professionals including: Ron Montez, Buddy Schwimmer, Pierre Allaire, Tony Meredith, Igor Suvorov, and others. She is also experienced as an adjudicator in all ballroom styles.

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  Michelle Graell

  Michelle Graell began dancing at the age of 17. Raised in Texas, she came into ballroom dancing as a means to improve her overall athletic skills. With no prior background in dance she fell in love with the rhythmic actions and rhinestone ways of the ballroom world. Michelle began competing six months after her first dance lesson and became enamored by the ballroom culture ever since.

  With titles including 1st place in the Latin Scholarship at People's Choice 2008, 1st place Latin Scholarship at Manhattan Dancesport 2008, as well as 1st Place Open Rhythm at several competitions nationwide, she has constantly strived to improve her dancing and that of those around her. After placing top three in the Amateur National Open Rhythm division, Michelle turned pro in order to help others learn and move to the beat.

  Constantly giving back to the community is also very important to her. She also dedicates time in the public schools by educating children on the art of ballroom dance. She currently also holds the title of Newsletter Editor for the southwest chapter of USA Dance. As a Board Member of the non-profit organization, she hopes to promote ballroom and help those around her find happiness through dance.

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  Camille Warden

  Camille started dancing in Albuquerque, New Mexico at the age of three studying ballet, tap, and jazz. Since childhood, she knew she wanted to become a dance teacher and spent her later studio years as a teaching assistant and substitute teacher. When she moved to Colorado, she fulfilled her dreams and became a full time dance teacher for the Glenwood Springs Center for the Arts teaching tap and jazz. Upon moving to Las Vegas, she owned and operated a mobile pre-school dance and tumbling program. In 2002 she entered the world of ballroom and never looked back.

  Camille is a mother of three children, two of whom dance, and specializes in teaching children classes.

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  Tara Palsha

  Tara Palsha was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Being the daughter of an opera singer, it was natural that she too would find herself on stage. She has been living and performing professionally in Las Vegas since 2003 and has performed in many of the shows on the Strip including Jubilee! at Bally's Hotel & Casino, the original cast of Bite at Stratosphere, Fantasy at Luxor, and played the feature role, Red Riding Hood in Peepshow at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino. Currently she has the wonderful title of "lead dancer" in the beautiful show, Vegas! The Show at Planet Hollywood. She has appeared in Mariah Carey's video I Stay in Love and with Toby Keith on the Country Music Awards. She holds a BFA, Cum Laude in Dance Performance from KSU and has recently found a new passion: training and competing in Latin Ballroom.

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  Jill Kellmyer

  Originally from Delaware, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science, Jill Kellmyer is a Las Vegas local of five years. She is the owner of her own personal training business, Just Jill, LLC, and is a strength and conditioning specialist with Cirque du Soleil. A graduate of Cab Calloway School of the Arts, Jill has an extensive dance background in ballet, jazz, lyrical, tap, and modern and studied with the Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and American Ballet Theatre's summer intensives. Since moving to Las Vegas, she has expanded her dance background to include both Smooth and Latin ballroom dance.

  Ms. Kellmyer was second runner-up to Miss Delaware and held the titles of Miss Delaware Junior National Teen-ager and Miss Delaware National Teen-ager, where she won talent awards on the national level. She is one of the official sponsors of the Miss Greater Las Vegas Scholarship Organization as their personal trainer and enjoys teaching adult ballet class at DanceCenter. When she is not dancing and personal training, Jill trains for half-marathons and travels.

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  Andres Avila

  Andres Leonardo Avila was born in Bogota, Colombia. He started to dance, train, and compete in sixth grade in many South American folk dances and Latin dances. Andres joined the Comfenalco Dance Team in 1996 and performed around Colombia for a year.

  At age 18 he joined the Army, where he was not only trained in the many aspects of the military life, but also learned and performed various formations and routines that helped his dancing.

  Andres moved to the States in 1999. Living in Massachusetts, he began studying at Quinsigamond College for Psychology. While there, he joined the Quinsigamond Ballroom Team and competed and performed with them for several years. In 2003, he joined the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Worcester, MA where he taught and competed. Andres then moved to North Carolina to join the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Durham where he also taught and competed.

  Andres has the ability to make dancing fun and challenging at the same time, whether you're 8 or 88 years old. His patience and sense of humor make it easy to learn and reach any goals that the student wants to achieve.

• Carlos Parreno

  Born of Latin decent, Carlos was born in Hollywood, California. Carlos discovered his love for dance at the age of five and was inspired by a musical family and the music of the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. Having moved to Las Vegas at a very young age, his talent was discovered dancing in local variety shows and talent contests. Carlos has also had a thriving career in the entertainment world as a dancer and performer with some of the greats such as David Copperfield, Siegfried & Roy, Legends in Concert, and Frank Marino.

  After performing in many TV commercials, events, and charities, Carlos decided to expand his career into the ballroom arena. He began his professional dance career at the age of 23, after achieving the difficult DVIDA Certification.

  Carlos has the innate ability to make you incredibly comfortable in dance class, whether you have a dance background or two left feet. His classes are fun, and he teaches with an amazing sense of humor, which everyone loves.

  Having found his dance home at DanceCenter in 2011, we are fortunate to have Carlos as part of our dance family.

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  Shaun Nolette

  Shaun's passion for the dance world started at a very young age with a love for music and musical theater. He has acted, danced, and sang in a variety of productions. After graduating with high honors from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, Shaun moved to Las Vegas in 2004. As a certified chef and working in the Hospitality Industry for over 10 years, Shaun has hosted companies such as Microsoft, Remax, BMW, and NBC, to name a few. He has also catered various VIP and celebrities, including hosting George Straight's 50th Birthday Party. Shaun specializes in catering DanceCenter's events, parties, and luncheons. He is proud to be a member of the DanceCenter family and is happy to personally customize any event to your needs.