Staff

T'Dance Instructors (L-R): Alyssa Smith, Riley Lanning, Brianna Cobb, Kalee Reams, Teresa Miller, Caitlin Bell, Angelica Barerra, Olivia Terwey, Bailey Johnson, Kay Jorgensen, Claire Osgood-Kring. (Not Pictured: Makenzie Kohmetscher)

Teresa Miller- Owner/Director

Teresa  started T’Dance in 1985 and lives in Hastings with her husband, Dave, and has three children:  Brett Miller, Logan & Ashlyn Miller and grandchildren Bron, Emelyn & Kiera, and Emma Miller. Teresa holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Modern Dance from Texas Christian University and an Associate in Arts degree from Stephens College, Columbia, Missouri, where she was also a dance major.

Teresa continues to study dance by regularly attending workshops and conventions: Manhattan Dance Project and Dance Olympus workshops in Omaha, and the Snowy Range Dance Festival at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, and the Dance Teacher Web Seminar in Las Vegas.  Teresa has studied with some of the legendary rhythm tappers such as Eddie Brown, Chuck Green and Steve Condos.  Most recently she has studied with Tony Waag of the American Tap Dance Foundation.  She has also studied Modern with Peter Pucci, of Pucci Plus Dance Company, Yoav Kaddar – Paul Taylor, Limon Dance Company/University of West Virginia, Kaye Richards – Univeristy of Utah, Darrell Thomas – Western Oregon University and Lawrence Jackson – University of Wyoming as well as dancers with the Repertory Dance Theatre of Utah and Ballet with Keith Saunders of the Dance Theatre of Harlem and Susan Israel Massey of the Richmond Ballet.  She also visits New York City annually with students to study dance at Broadway Dance Center, Steps on Broadway and Luigi Jazz Dance Center.  They also attend Broadway and professional dance company performances.

Teresa has choreographed for several local high school musical productions including West Side Story, Suessical The Musical, Camelot, Guys and Dolls and Oklahoma. She has also been a judge for the Kansas Miss Teen Pageant and many local high school, studio and college dance team auditions.

In 2008 Teresa completed her training and became the first certified practitioner in Yamuna Body Rolling in the state of Nebraska.  Teresa attended the Dance Teachers Web Live Seminar in Las Vegas during the summer of 2013-2015. She also participated in the American Tap Dance Foundation summer workshop in 2019 in New York City.

Her latest activity pursuit is Aerial Yoga, and she completed her first level of certification in 2016 and level two training in 2017! You can now find Teresa hanging and flying in studio 2 with her Aerial Yoga students.

She enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, golfing, yoga, fiber arts and jewelry making & silver smithing.

Kay Jorgensen- Instructor

Kay has studied dance for 20+ years. She started dancing at age 9 taking ballet, tumbling and tap, under Debbie Diggs in Red Cloud, NE. She was the lead role in “The Little Matchgirl”, which was a special Christmas performance.  Kathey Shaw took over Diggs School of Dance, where Kay continued to take classes through junior high.

Kay started dancing again when Teresa opened T’Dance School of Performing Arts where she studied ballet, jazz, hip hop and modern. She was a member of the Nebraska Dance Theatre founded by Teresa Miller and Kathy Shaw.  She was an assistant and taught classes for several years at T’Dance.  Kay attended Tremaine and LA Dance Magic Conventions in Kansas City, also with T’Dance.

She recently finished 7 years as co-sponsor of the Adams Central Dance Team and has been a judge for area dance team tryouts.  Kay is a Physical Education Teacher for the Adams Central Elementary Schools, and has used her dance experiences to incorporate dance into the PE program.  She also coached Junior High Volleyball for 11 years.  Kay grew up on a farm southwest of Ayr, NE and now lives in Hastings with her husband Byron.

Kalee Reams- Instructor

Kalee Reams grew up at T’Dance! She began taking dance classes with Teresa when she was 5 and hasn’t stopped since! While at T’Dance, Kalee was trained in Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Modern, Lyrical, Hip Hop, Clogging, Pointe, and Bellydancing. Her favorites are Ballet, Modern, and Musical Theater! Kalee attended school through Adams Central growing up. While enrolled at Adams Central, Kalee was a member of the Stars Dance Team. Kalee was also an assistant for six years at T’Dance.

After graduating high school, Kalee moved to Kearney to attend the University of Nebraska- Kearney, where she received a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology with a Minor in Dance in 2020. As a Dance minor, Kalee was taught under the direction of Noelle Bohaty and Leslie Abegglen. Under Noelle and Leslie, Kalee was able to learn and grow while also attending different festivals and learning from guest choreographers. Under their guidance, Kalee focused more on Modern, Ballet, and Musical Theater. She learned how to express and move her body in ways that fit her, as well as others with disabilities. Kalee has taken courses in choreography, light design, and costuming. Her first choreographic work was entitled (Equal)librium. Kalee was able to perform in every UNK Spring Dance Concert from 2017-2020, and for that she is incredibly thankful (and thankful to Teresa, who came to each of her performances). She owes everything to Teresa, Noelle, and Leslie for teaching her everything she knows.

She is currently working at Watson Elementary as a 5th Grade teacher! Kalee is so excited to be home and teaching at T’Dance!

Claire Osgood- Kring- Instructor

Caitlin Bell- Instructor/Owner

Brianna Cobb- Instructor

Bri has been dancing for 22 years! She grew up in York, NE where she studied at York Dance Center and was on her high school dance team. After high school, Bri moved to Hastings where she danced on the Crimson Spirit Dance Team at Hastings College. She now teaches 5th grade at Lincoln Elementary here in town. She has been trained in Ballet, Lyrical, Pointe, Tap, Jazz, Clogging, Hip Hop, and Pom! She loves expressing her emotion through dance, with her favorite being Hip Hop!

Olivia Terwey- Instructor

Olivia is a lifelong dancer at T'Dance, and took classes from the ages of 3-18. Olivia has studied Ballet, Pointe, Tap, Jazz, Modern, Hip Hop, Leaps & Turns, Pom, and Lyrical. Olivia was a 4-year member of the Hastings High Tigerette Dance Team and was a co-captain her junior and senior year. She is now a student at Hastings College, double majoring in Biology and Respiratory Therapy, and is currently a member of the Hastings College Crimson Spirit Dance Team. 

Olivia has attended numerous camps and conventions such as The Oklahoma City University Dance Intensive, Midland Dance Days, UNL and UNO Dance conventions, and many more. Olivia is also a competitor in the Miss America Organization and shares her love and passion for dance with the audience for her talent. Additionally, she has had the opportunity to judge multiple dance team tryouts and choreograph state routines for incredible high school dance teams in Nebraska.

Olivia also created an after school dance program called “Get up and Dance,” where she provides free dance classes to underprivileged youth. Through her after school program, she teaches youth basic technique, combos, and the importance of a healthy lifestyle. 

Olivia is excited to be back at her home, sharing her love and passion with young students at T’Dance! 

Bailey Johnson- Instructor

Bailey began her dance journey with formal lessons at a small dance studio in Okoboji, IA. Bailey was the captain of her high school dance team and went on to dance for four years at Morningside College. Bailey’s professional experience includes dancing for the Bandits indoor football team in Sioux City, IA, and the Danger indoor football team in Grand Island, NE. Additionally, Bailey coached a high school dance team in Hinton, IA.  Bailey loves Jazz, Hip Hop, Lyrical, Modern and Ballet the most!

Alyssa Smith- Instructor

Alyssa Smith has been dancing since the age of five and teaching ballet pointe at T’Dance since 2015. She has studied Ballet, Pointe, Character, Tap, Jazz and Lyrical; focusing primarily on Ballet and Pointe from high school on studying both the French and Russian schools of ballet. Her first 8 years of dance were spent at The Dance Factory in North Platte, Nebraska under Becky Wagner. The later years she studied at Julia’s Academy of International Dance in Norman, Oklahoma, receiving Julia’s “Most Promising Dancer” award. Classes were taught by Russian Prima Ballerinas Yulia Zhmutski and Svetlana Todinova, former soloist with the Moscow Ballet. Alyssa also attended 3 master ballet classes taught by world esteemed Russian dancer and choreographer Valery Lantratov, receiving many awards for his work. Lantratov is the Artistic Director of the Russian National Ballet Foundation. Alyssa has performed in the Ballet of Cinderella, as well as pieces from Swan Lake, the Nutcracker, Don Quixote and Giselle. She was also selected to perform the Russian variation in Moscow Ballet’s Great Russian Nutcracker alongside professional ballet dancers and T’Dance students.

In her spare time, Alyssa loves attending professional ballet performances. She has had the opportunity to attend Moscow’s Great Russian Nutcracker in Texas, as well as Oklahoma City Ballet Company’s performances of The Nutcracker, Mowgli, Carmen, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, and Romeo and Juliet and American Ballet Theater’s Firebird staring Misty Copeland and Isabella Boylston. Alyssa graduated from Hastings College with Bachelor degrees in History and Psychology. While at Hastings she was the captain and choreographer for the color guard. She also choreographed for the Grand Island Senior High color guard for two years. Alyssa currently works for Stuhr Museum as the Director of
Interpretive Resources after receiving her Master of Arts in Material Culture and Textile Studies with a Minor in History from the University of Nebraska Lincoln.

Riley Lanning- Instructor

Riley is from Phoenix, Arizona and has been dancing since she was 4 years old. She received rigorous Ballet and Pointe training, as well as training in Tap, Jazz, Modern, Lyrical, Contemporary, Hip-Hop, Salsa, Bachata, and Afro-Jazz. During high school, she danced for the Ironwood High School Performance Dance Team and POM spirit line. She is now a senior at Hastings College, double majoring in Psychology and History+Philosophy with a minor in Biology. She is also a member of the Hastings College honors program, the Women’s golf team, president of Psi-Chi, and treasurer of Phi-Alpha-Theta, among involvement in many other organizations. Additionally, Riley competed with the Hastings College Crimson Spirit Dance Team for 2 years. 

Throughout her dance journey, she has competed at several local and national dance conventions around the country. In addition to competing, she has performed at Disneyland, local festivals, and countless school performances! She has also received dance training in New York at studios such as, Steps on Broadway, and in California received training at Millennium Dance Complex. Now, Riley enjoys taking a variety of Latin dance classes when she is home in Phoenix! 

Riley loves teaching! She has been instructing ballet, tap, and lyrical at Step it Up Dance Academy in Grand Island for the past year. She has also done freelance choreography for the past 3 years for competition and solo choreography. In line with her passion for education, Riley is a tutor at Hastings College for Psychology and Statistics. She also created a new official student group at Hastings College called the Association for Women’s Health Education and Research which aims to bring women at Hastings College and the broader community together through multidisciplinary research and educational initiatives. In the future, Riley hopes to take her passion for teaching and health and become a university professor and researcher in neuroscience.

Riley is excited to teach and hopes to inspire all of her students this year at T’Dance! 

Angelica Barerra- Instructor

Angelica started dance at 5 years old and danced at T'Dance for 6 years until graduating high school. She is grateful to have taken classes in Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Hip Hop, Pointe, and Clogging. She is so excited to be able to put on her shoes again! 

Makenzie Kohmetscher- Instructor