MEET MS. MARIA
Owner/Artistic Director
Miss Maria began dancing when she was just 3 years old and has since studied Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Hip Hop, Modern and Bellydance. She graduated from Manhattanville College in 2010 with a degree in Dance & Theater and has been teaching dance to students of all ages ever since.
Maria has had the opportunity to work with and learn from incredible choreographers such as Peter Pucci, Val Pullman, Keith Saunders, Bill Hastings, Nicole Hockenberry, Hannah Nour and Tabatha Robinson- Scott. And she has had the chance to perform in Washington DC, Philadelphia Fringe Festival, Lincoln Center, and the Joyce SoHo.
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Since graduating, Maria has coached the Northampton High School Dance Team for several years, danced and cheered with both the Lehigh Valley Storm and Lehigh Valley Steelers Dance Teams, as well as danced with the Monarch Dance Company for 5 years.
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Maria also has extensive experience choreographing for high school musicals, dance teams, competition soloists, performance projects and more.
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In 2019 Maria opened Valley Dance with the goal of bringing her love of dance to the Lehigh Valley and creating a welcoming environment for all our dance families. The mission and goal of Valley Dance is to instill a great passion and love of dance, while inspiring self-confidence, discipline and respect of the performing arts. The goal is to give each individual dancer the tools they need to take dance as far as they dream to take it.
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**We believe that if you can dream it, you can achieve it!**
MEET MS. MARI
Dance Instructor
Mari Perrella started dancing when she was 6 years old at Orlando School of Dance in Schenectady, NY, where she took ballet, tap, and jazz. She went on to major in dance at the University at Buffalo and graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in dance and psychology. While at UB, she choreographed for Emerging Choreographers Showcase ("live in technicolor,") and Dancer's Workshop ("006," "Peanut Butter Jealous"). Mari was also a teaching assistant for a number of classes in the program and was the President of UB's chapter of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts. For the 2018-2019 dance season, Mari had the pleasure of teaching tap classes at Lancaster Dance Center near Buffalo, NY, but her goals to pursue graduate school brought her to Bethlehem, PA. Mari is now a graduate student at Lehigh University studying school psychology. She is so excited to start sharing her love for dance again with the students at Valley Dance, and she cannot wait for fall classes to start!
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MEET MS. JULIA
Dance Instructor
Miss Julia began her dance training at the age of 7 and has trained extensively in Ballet, Pointe, Jazz, Modern, Lyrical, and Contemporary. Her favorite style of dance has always been Ballet and Pointe. Miss Julia has performed in recitals, benefit shows/events, showcases, dance intensives, baseball games and more.
Miss Julia holds a B.A in Dance from DeSales University. While at DeSales, Miss Julia has danced in a number of performances including Dance Concerts, Senior Showcases, Composition pieces, as well as teaching for the DeSales Conservatory of Dance program, where she taught for two years under the direction of Jill Fitzgerald. At DeSales, she trained extensively under the instruction of Tim Cowart, Angela Sigley Grossman, Elise Jumes, Julia Mayo, Milan Misko, Trinette Singleton, and Caili Quan.
Meet Ms. Becka
Dance Instructor
Becka Morris has trained as a gymnast and a dancer since she was three years old. She attended Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts as a dance major, and has had the opportunity to perform and choreograph throughout the Lehigh Valley. Becka has taught dance and gymnastics for the past ten years in the Lehigh Valley, West Chester, PA, and Philadelphia. Her favorite classes to teach are acro and modern! Along with teaching dance and gymnastics, Becka is also an ACE Certified Personal Trainer. She loves working with clients to help them meet their athletic goals! Becka has also been teaching group exercise classes for the past two years. As a dancer, runner, cyclist, and swimmer, she understands the importance of proper strength training for athletes and for everyday life! In addition to teaching dance and fitness classes, Becka teaches 7th grade English at Bangor Area Middle School. Becka is very excited to work with all of the amazing students at Valley Dance this year!
Meet Ms. Carly
Dance Instructor
Carly Watson has been teaching dance for over 10 years in the Lehigh Valley and across Pennsylvania! She grew up performing as a featured dancer in the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parades and competing in competitions throughout the state. She attended Lock Haven University where she studied Early Childhood and Special Education while also minoring in Dance. During her time at Lock Haven, she was heavily involved with Dance Consort, Modern Dance Company, and Revamp. She was both a dancer and choreographer. She also served as President and secretary of Modern Dance Company and Dance Consort. Carly was instructed by Tennessee's Ballet Artistic Director at Bucknell University and attended the American College Dance Festival at Penn State University. Aside from collegiate dance classes, Carly also taught professionally within the Lock Haven community. She also assisted the LHU Dance department as a volunteer instructor for local elementary schools. Carly graduated from Lehigh University with a graduate degree in Educational Leadership with a Principal Certification and currently teaches special education. Carly is excited to share her love of dance with the next generation!
Meet Ms. ZoE
Dance Instructor
Zoë grew up on stage. Inspired by her mother (who also grew up on stage) and the desire to overcome shyness, she began dancing, playing multiple instruments, and performing in community theatre at a young age. In high school, Zoë realized her goals in life were to own a dance studio and continue sharing her passion of movement with others. She began teaching dance and choreographing for theatre productions at the age of 15.
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Zoë attended Jacksonville University and graduated in 2020 with a bachelors degree in Kinesiology. She began college as a nursing student, however, after signing up for a dance kinesiology class, she quickly came to conclusion that kinesiology was the path for her. Throughout college and after, she continued teaching dance and performing whenever she could. She was a company member for Paradigm Flux Dance Company for 5 years. She spent a year in Philadelphia, dancing at multiple studios and performed with a non profit company before moving back home.
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After moving back to Jacksonville, Zoë started teaching dance again. She got involved with Pilates soon after and has loved it. Zoë had very little experience with pilates but has come to find that it perfectly aligns with her goals. She is amazed at how pilates can help peoples bodies in everyday life. Zoë, eventually, wants to use her knowledge of pilates and kinesiology to integrate into dance teaching and her own future studio. She is excited to be back in Pennsylvania and teaching dance!
Meet Ms. Megan
Dance Instructor
Megan Fry has been a lifelong lover of all things dance, theatre, and art. She began her dance training at 4 years old and since then has trained extensively in Jazz, Tap, Musical Theatre, and Ballet.
Megan is an alumni of DeSales University’s Musical Theatre program. Since graduating in 2020, she has been performing professionally all over the world. She most recently returned from a year of working as an Artist in Residence at English Musicals Korea in South Korea. During her time there, she both choreographed and performed in world premiere musicals. She is thrilled to be back in the Valley and to continue pursuing her love for dance and theatre as an instructor.
Meet Ms. Nicole
Voice Instructor
Nicole has been singing and performing since she was two years old. Originally from NYC, Nicole has performed in over 200 shows throughout the tristate area, ranging from regional professional companies to community theatres. In addition to performing herself, Nicole has been giving voice, acting and dance lessons to young performers for the last 11 years. Nicole provides extensive training in vocal technique, making sure her students understand the importance of proper vocal health and placement to help them become the triple threats they are meant to be! Besides the world of the arts, Nicole is also a middle school English teacher in the Lehigh Valley, and produces full length musicals to children of all ages. Nicole is super excited to share her love of singing with new talented performers at Valley Dance!
