>>> Dance Stop Studios

Lynette Grubb Strickland, Director, brings 25 years dance experience to the school. She is an outstanding and gifted teacher and a tap technician beyond words.

Since 1974 she has been director of one of Atlanta's largest dance schools. She is well known for her children's work and her loving ability to make dance fun for the student, at the same time developing them to their highest potential.

Ms. Strickland has assembled an outstanding staff of instructors and administrators to achieve continuing excellence in all disciplines of dance. She has served on the faculty of the Internationale Tanzwerkstatt Bonn, The Tanz Progekt in Aachen and Bielefeld, Germany, and the Festival Dance of the World in Gdansk, Poland.

She was the 1990 recipient of the professional achievement award from the Cobb Arts Council.

Dee Baskerville, has over 30years of dance experience. She credits her training to Frank Hatchett, studying both at the Frank Hatchett Center for the Performing Arts in Springfield, Massachusetts, and the Broadway Dance Studio in New York City.
She was a member of the Frank Hatchett Dance Company for more than 11 years, traveling through out New England, New York, and Canada.
She has studied under such notables as the late Gregory Hines, Maurice Hines, and Connie Brazelton (ER).
She has performed with entertainers Bill Cosby, Billy Daniels, The Jackson Five and many others.

Kathy Pickle, a former June Taylor Dancer, has danced in such films and TV Specials as "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", "Pennies from Heaven", "Annie" as Bernadette Peter's double, plus "The Sonny & Cher Show" and "Disney on Parade".

Her talents and training are of exceptional quality. She taught on the faculty of Showcase Studio, Inc. in Hollydale, California for 13 years.

While she has trained dancers of all ages and levels, she specializes in working with young students.

Ray A. Hall, Jr., an alumni of the Dance Stop Company, has also studied with the Atlanta School of Ballet and the Kris Cangelosi Dance Project.

His performance has received high honors including a Gold Award from the Los Angeles Dance Force Competition. He has danced in "The Nutcracker", "Romeo & Juliet", and "Cinderella" and has also performed with Colors Dance Theatre.

Ray has attended dance programs at School of American Ballet in New York, the Bolshoi Ballet, and throughout Germany.

Ray's choreography, "Voice of Light", won Best Jazz Choreography in the Panoly 2000 Choreographers' Competition.

Julia McElmoyle, received her early training at Dance Stop and has been dancing for over 16 years.

At Dance Stop, she participated in the student assisting program and as a member of the Dance Stop Company, she had the opportunity to study under Debbie Bray and Jason Weiss.

We are pleased to have Julia return to the Dance Stop faculty again this year.

Terrel Paulk, a masterful and well-respected ballet teacher has studied under Igor Schwezoff, Oleg Tupine, Edward Caton, Anatole Vilzak, Ludmilla Schollar and Eugene Valukin.

He has performed with the Washington Ballet and the National Ballet of Canada. He is well-known as a teacher and has taught for all major dance teacher organizations.

Melanie Forsberg's more than 30 years of dance experience includes scholarship studies with National Ballet School of Canada (Toronto) and School of American et (NY).

After touring Italy as a principal dancer, she returned to the Southeast to dance professionally.

Melanie first came to Dance Stop Studios in 1983 and developed the ballet curriculum to provide the more serious student with an opportunity to intensify their training.

With 17 years as teacher/choreographer, she is delighted to have returned to the Dance Stop in 2002.

Bevin Newton has performed in ballet, modern, and jazz repertory with The Virginia Ballet Company, Center Dance Company, Duke Ballet Repertory Ensemble, Chapel Hill Ballet Company, and is currently a professional ensemble member of Decatur City Dance.

In addition to Dance Stop, Bevin currently teaches at Decatur School of Ballet and choreographs for Decatur City Dance and Cartersville City Ballet.

Bevin graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Duke University where she won the Julia Wray Memorial Dance Award and earned a BA in economics and minors in business and dance. She also has an MBA from The Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Michelle Dennis, an alumni of the Dance Stop Company, began her training at the age of 5 at Dance Stop.

Through her 16 years of dance experience she has had the opportunity to participate in the student assisting program at Dance Stop and had the privilege to study under Alvin Ailey of the American Dance Theatre in New York City.

Michelle is entering her junior year at Kennesaw State University and is thrilled to be a part of the Dance Stop Studio’s staff.

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