At Scarborough Dance Center our teachers are highly experienced dancers, teachers, and are great with children. Our teachers must continue with their education and travel to seminars and conventions throughout the year. The teachers keep updated with cutting edge choreography and learning techniques.
Melissa Willey (Owner Director)
Melissa has been teaching in Maine for over 25 years. She bought the dance center in 2004 & strives on making the studio a home for both young & young at heart, beginner thru advanced. Her training began with Ballet, Pointe, Tap, Jazz, Lyrical and Modern. She competed regionally and nationally winning top awards for technique and performance. Melissa danced in New York with finale performances for ADA and DEA as a young dancer. She traveled to New York, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire to competitions and conventions. Melissa took classes with ADA, Dance Masters of America, Talent America, Jump, Boston Ballet,Dance Educators of America, Maine Dance Teachers Club and several other organizations. Melissa has taught workshops for Maine Dance Teachers Club in both Ballet and Lyrical. She has taken classes at Broadway Dance Center, Boston Ballet, Steps, Janette Neil & Portland Ballet. She has studied Cecchetti, Balanchine, Vaganova and RAD Ballet technique. In the last couple of years her Ballet emphasis is on RAD technique working with a detailed syllabus and influences of Vaganova style. Melissa is part of several dance organizations to continue her education while taking classes weekly and talking internationally with teachers and studio owners from all over the world. She believes a great teacher never stops learning, so she prides herself on taking classes to improve herself & the studio. Melissa has recently taken a focus on the anatomy of dance as well where she teaches proper, alignment placement and strength.Melissa is a Pilates and Barre Sculpt certified teacher. Melissa is a Acrobatics Arts Module 1 certified instructor. Melissa is certified in Progressing Ballet Technique. Melissa continues her education in anatomy and teaches injury prevention along with developing and maintaining a strong mind and body. She has taken classes from. Jolenta Valikete, Peter De Hart, Frank Hatchett, David Howard, Rhapsody, Chio. Linda Giancaspro, Juan Sanchez, Dan Barris, & Brian Santora. Melissa’s love for teaching is rare and her smile welcomes you everyday. She cares about each student and pushes them to their highest level. Melissa won Business Woman of the Year from the National Association of Professional and Executive woman in 2008. Melissa has choreographed pieces that have performed for the Celtics, Red Claws and in London, England in 2012. Melissa’s Choreograohy has won Top choreography awards all over the country. Several former students have gone off to have professional dance careers. Melissa was invited to choreograph for American Associates of Professional Arts Educators, where her dance and dancers perfumed in an internationally dance festival outside the 2012 London Olympics. Melissa has been invited to choreograph for them again in 2016 and 2018. Scarborough Dance Center was named best dance studio in the state of Maine by Dancer magazine in 2009. Melissa Choreographed and directed SDC’s 3 full performances of Nutcracker and several other Holiday productions. She has a positive attitude and urges students to never to give up. She lets students know they can achieve anything if they work hard enough for it. Melissa has won numerous awards; unique choreography, best technique, best ballet technique, precision, most entertaining, most dramatic, best use of props, best patterns, & top score prizes. Melissa has worked with American Cancer Society, Toys for Tots, Perform for a Cure,Maine Veterans Home, Atria Nursing Home and Project Graduation. Melissa brings a true love for dance to the classroom & every student leaves inspired.
Miranda Emmons has been a teacher at Scarborough Dance Center since 2004-2005 dance season. She began dancing at the age of three and competed at many regional and national competitions including: Dance Educators of America, Dance Master of America and Headliners where she earned silver, gold and platinum awards. Miranda has danced in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and at Walt Disney World in Florida. She has participated in Dance Master of America Teacher Training Program for four years and is a certified Dance Masters of America teacher. Miranda is certified in Pre-School Acrobatic Arts. Miranda is warm and compassionate and loves working with children.
Kaitlyn Hayes began her dance training on Cape Cod, MA with Virginia Zango. In 2003, she attended Boston Ballet, where she performed in their annual production of The Nutcracker. After attending three years of high school at North Carolina School of the Arts (now the University of North Carolina School of the Arts), she proceeded to attend and graduate Magna Cum Laude from SUNY Purchase College with a BFA in dance and a concentration in choreography. She had the pleasure of working with many choreographers while attending both schools, including Camille A. Brown, Brenda Daniels and Bradley Shelver, as well as performing works by Merce Cunnigham. Upon graduation, she has performed all over Massachusetts with many choreographers including Tony Williams, Thomas Vacanti, Maryanne Kodzis, David Sun and Jackie Underwood. She joined Portland Ballet in 2013 and has performed many roles, some including Arabian Coffee, Victorian Doll and Snow Crystal in The Victorian Nutcracker, both Catherine Edwards and Annie Chapman in Shipman’s Jack the Ripper, the Narrator in the story Tell Tale Heart in Shipman’s Three Tales by Poe, the title role of Alice in Roberto Forleo’s Alice with the Portland Symphony Orchestra, Push Me Pull You, among others.
Juliette has captivated audiences for years as a dancer. She is sought after throughout the state as a dancer, teacher and choreographer. Her dance training began at the age of 5 with the Dorothy Mason School of Dance (now the Maine State Ballet School for the Performing Arts) where she studied Ballet, Tap, Jazz and Modern dance.
Juliette is a founding member of the Maine State Ballet, and has performed in nearly every production with the company. As a child, Juliette performed with the Windham Center Stage Theater, and The Children’s Theater of Maine-allowing her to spread her “theatrical wings”. She performed with the Dance Theater of Southern Maine, and also as a soloist with the Ram Island Dance Company.
You may have seen Juliette, as a featured performer, in several benefit performances including Inspired Voices, The Best of Broadway, and as a dancer in The Maine Tap Event. Since 1994, Juliette has been a teacher here at the Scarborough Dance Center. She is a dance instructor for the Maine State Ballet School, the Ballroom in Harrison, and a guest teacher for the Maine Dance Teacher’s Club workshops. Juliette contributes choreography for the Windham Center Stage Theater, the Sanford Maine Stage Company and the Cape Elizabeth High School Theater. Juliette is a magnificent teacher with a great eye for technique.
Liza Schrader-Collins
Bryanna Bride
Jalyn Rioux
Teall Dibiase
Student Teachers
Krysta Raymond
Madison Duguay
Guest Teachers
Ray Dumont
Yunhee Keough
Michelle Bruckner
Jenn Fink
Andrea Michaud Tracy
Bruce Tracy
Abi Sears
Ava Foley
Sarah Rosen
Theo Martinez