Our Dance Instructors
Darci K. Ward
President/CEO
An avid lover of dance and performance from an early age, Ms. Darci began dancing at Parish School of the Performing Arts located in Jerseyville, IL at the age of three. Studying ballet, jazz, tap, pointe, and tumbling until the age of 18 under the direction of Linda Parish, Ms. Darci received several overall regional and overall national awards through varies talent competitions.
Ms. Darci attended Missouri Valley College in Marshall, MO where she majored in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing and Dance, studying under the direction of the artist, Patricia Downey. While a full-time student, Ms. Darci cheered on the coed competitive cheer squad and began her love of teaching at the Marshall Dance Academy under the direction of Russian ballerina, Tatiana Toliver. Ms. Darci became the coach of the Missouri Valley College Dance team during her final two years at Missouri Valley College.
After graduation, Ms. Darci received her MBA at Lindenwood University while working for Anheuser Busch and teaching at Bridget James “The Studio Art of Dance” in Florissant. She served as a Director/Teacher for the Company students before purchasing the studio and changing the name to DK Dance Productions in 2006.
Under her direction, DK Dance Productions has won numerous sportsmanship, choreography, technique, and community excellence awards. DK Dance Productions has produced students that are successful in college dance programs, college dance teams, professional dance companies, dance teachers, dance administrators, and tons of other occupations that are not dance related. DK Dance Productions lives by the quote, “We don’t teach kids to make great dancers, we teach dance to make great kids!”.
Ms. Darci sits as an Executive Member and a Certified Coach for More Than Just Great Dancing based in La Crosse, WI. More Than Just Great Dancing is an elite network of studios worldwide who have the very best curriculum and business practices for their students and clients.
Ms. Darci has recently become a national speaker in the dance industry. She has had the opportunity to share her past corporate experience to help small business entrepreneurs in their daily struggle of efficiently growing their businesses.
Currently residing in her hometown of Jerseyville, IL, Darci loves spending time with her family and traveling to warm destinations.
Tabi Young
Director of Operations
BORN AND RAISED IN ALTON, ILLINOIS WITH 28 YEARS OF DANCE EXPERIENCE AND OVER 15 YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE, TABI STILL FINDS JOY IN TEACHING THE ART OF DANCE TO THE NEXT GENERATION. TABI IS AN ACCOMPLISHED CHOREOGRAPHER IN THE STYLES OF LYRICAL, CONTEMPORARY, JAZZ, ACRO AND CHEER DANCE. CURRENT AND ALUMNI STUDENTS HAVE DANCED WITH THE AMERICAN DANCE COMPANY, DANCING / CHEERING FOR COLLEGIATE & PROFESSIONAL TEAMS, SCOUTED BY AGENCIES IN BOTH NEW YORK & LOS ANGELES AS WELL AS MANY STUDENTS WHO HAVE GONE ON TO SHARE THEIR KNOWLEDGE AND COACH.
GROWING UP AS A COMPETITIVE DANCER, TABI HAS ATTENED MANY CONVENTIONS TROUGHOUT HER TIME AS A DANCER. STILL, TO THIS DAY, TABI ATTENDS AT LEAST 5 CONVENTIONS A YEAR TO CONTINUE HER EDUCATION AS WELL AS ATTENDING THE DANCE TEACHER SUMMIT EVERY SUMMER. TABI TAKES CLASSES FROM ESTABLISED CHOREOGRAPHERS SUCH AS MARK MEISMER, TRAVIS WALL, STACEY TOOKEY, MANDY MOORE, MIA MICHAELS, MELISSA JACKSON, RAY LEEPER, WILL LOFTIS, AL BLACKSTONE, AND MANY MORE, TO CONTINUE TO INSPIRE AND TRAIN HER STUDENTS.
TABI IS ALSO AN AVID LOVER OF CHEERLEADING AND COACHED VARSITY CHEER FOR 6 YEARS AT A COMPETITIVE LEVEL. SHE HAS CHOREOGRAPHED 16 STATE QUALIFYING ROUTINES. TABI PERFORMED AT BOTH THE CITRUS BOWL & ORANGE BOWL AS WELL AS WORKED AS A UCA CHEERLEADER, WHERE SHE TRAVELED AND TAUGHT CHEER CAMPS TO BOTH HIGH SCHOOL & COLLEGE TEAMS.
TABI IS CURRENTLY AT DK DANCE PRODUCTIONS WHERE SHE HAS BEEN SINCE 2007, AS THE DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS. TABI IS THE COMPANY CHOREOGRAPHER, TECHNIQUE & MOVEMENT TEACHER, AND BEHIND THE SCENCES RUNNING ALL OPERTAIONS.
Amber Hoene
Enrollment & Retention Director
Miss Amber began dancing at the age of three years old at a studio in her hometown of Alton, Illinois called Showtime Productions. She studied various styles including ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, pointe, hip hop, tumbling and acrobatics, as well as musical theater. Miss Amber began competitive dance at the age of six and went on to receive numerous high point awards and top ten placings. Some of these awards include Regional Standout Dancer at Stage One Dance Competition, chosen for opening number of Encore Nationals routine, a Scholarship to The One Dance Intensive, Senior Runner-Up Best Dancer at Stage One 2013 Nationals. In high school Miss Amber went on to make the Varsity Cheerleading Squad as a freshman and compete with them every year. Miss Amber was recognized by UCA Staff as an All-Star at camp and was able to perform in the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade and then was selected again another year to perform in the London New Year’s Day Parade.
Miss Amber attended her freshman year of college at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. There she auditioned for the Mizzou Competitive Club Dance team where she made the performance team as well as both competitive teams. She was able to perform at various events both on and off campus throughout the year. She was asked by the President and Vice President of the team to take over the program for the next year, but her heart was calling her elsewhere. Miss Amber decided to transfer to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville to major in Dance. She joined the program under the direction of Kristin Best-Kinscherff, where she had many performance opportunities. She auditioned for the University Dance Company and remained member all three years. She was also cast in numerous pieces each year for Dance In Concert(Fall Concert) and Student Dance Concert(Spring Concert). She also attended the American College Dance Festival each year and was selected to be in the pieces the University would bring to be adjudicated, being chosen to perform in the Gala at the end of the festival twice. Miss Amber also received the Dance Department Full Scholarship, selected by Department Faculty, for the 2016 year. Miss Amber also received a full scholarship to the Jon Lehrer Dance Intensive in Buffalo, New York. She also recieved a full scholarship to the BackhausDance Intensive in Orange, California where she was also able to take class at the world renowned studios The Edge, IMMASPACE and Millennium Dance Complex. Miss Amber graduated cum laude in May 2017 with a Bachelor of Arts in Theater and Dance with an emphasis in Dance.
Miss Amber loves sharing her passion of dance with her students and seeing what dance can do for them both in and out of the studio. She is very excited to continue her career with DK Dance Productions.
Jamie Craten
Accounts Manager
Miss Jamie has been teaching at DK Dance productions for about 5 years now, but is now very excited to be a teacher at our new Alton location for the 2017-2018 dance season!She began dancing at the age of 3 at Bridget James Dance Studio. Here she studied the dance genres of ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, and tumbling. She then continued her dancing at DK Dance Productions in 2006, where she became a competitive dancer and expanded her dance knowledge by taking lyrical, contemporary, pointe, musical theater, and poms. Since she was on the competitive team, she traveled to many regional and national dance competitions. She has competed at Masquerade, Stage One, Starpower, Rainbow Connection, Kids Artistic Revue, Starquest, and Talent on Parade. While competing, she also went to dance conventions and earned scholarships from JUMP, Adrenaline, Velocity, and Hollywood Vibe. Currently, she is a student at Florissant Valley Community College and will be graduating with her Associate's Degree in Accounting in May of 2018. She then plans to attend University of Missouri-St. Louis in the fall of 2018, where she will begin earning her Bachelor's Degree and minor in Business Administration.
Brittni Collins
Dance Instructor / NHSDA Director
Brittni has been dancing for over 22 years. She is from the St. Louis area where she grew up dancing at St. Peters Academy of Dance. Brittni is trained in ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, hip-hop and modern. During her time at St. Peters Academy of Dance, Brittni participated in numerous regional and national dance competitions winning many titles and overalls.
Brittni has taken classes from many well-known dancers and choreographers all over the United States including, but not limited to; Billy Bell, Gil Mata, Alex Blitstein, Matt Boyce, Luam, Michael Mindlin, and Stacey Tookey. Brittni was a member of the Collaboration Dance Company as a middle school and high school student. The dance company performed in the St. Louis area in the styles of tap, jazz, lyrical and hip-hop. Brittni was also part of a Nationally Ranked Collegian Team at the University of Central Missouri where she was captain of the team for 2 years before graduating from college a year early.
She has been teaching and choreographing for different studios in the St. Louis and Kansas City areas for the past 7 years. Brittni has also been choreographing for St. Louis and Kansas City high school and college teams in the past 3 years. Brittni taught and choreographed for St. Peters Academy of Dance for 8 years and is currently a Teacher/Choreographer for DK Dance Productions in St. Louis. She recently graduated with a Master’s in Clinical/Mental Health Counseling from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Brittni is also a Therapist at a non-profit agency helping homeless youth and their families. While studying her Master’s, Brittni recreationally participated in the University of Missouri-St. Louis’ Dance Program being featured in many performances.
Brittni strives to provide a dance room environment that is supportive, encouraging and safe for all dancers. She is focused on body image and making sure all dancers feel comfortable in their own skin. Brittni is passionate about helping and encouraging students and clients to reach their full potential as people and dancers.
Joria Davis
Dance Instructor/Customer Care Specialist
Miss Joria started dance at the age of 8 at DK Dance Productions studying many different styles that include jazz, hip hop, ballet, tap, lyrical, contemporary, and tumbling. She has attended a variety of dance conventions such as Adrenaline, Velocity, and Jump. Miss Joria has also been a competitive dancer at DK since the age of 9 and has competed at Starpower, Talent on Parade, Stage One, Kids Artistic Revue, Rainbow Connection, and Starquest dance competitions. Miss Joria is currently in the Rockstar Performing Company and was the recipient of the Teacher's Apprentice Program for the 2015-2016 year.
Elyse Guttmann
Dance Instructor
Elyse Andersen Guttmann is a native Oklahoman who loves calling St Louis home. A graduate from the University of Oklahoma, she earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Modern Dance Performance studying with Austin Hartel, Derrick Minter, and Rebecca Herrin. During her collegiate summers, she attended the American Dance Festival and Boulder Jazz Dance Workshop where she worked with such artists as Wade Madsen, Amanda Miller, and Mark Haim. Since joining MADCO in 2012, she has enjoyed working with Cecil Slaughter, Gina Patterson, Jennifer Archibald, Hanna Brictson, and Lindsay Hawkins, among others. Over the years, MADCO has encouraged her growth both in performance and teaching. Elyse reaches her local community through educational movement programs like Books Motion, Insight, and Freedom. In addition to working in schools, Elyse has had the privilege of teaching creative movement and dance to children and young adults through organizations like DEAF Inc., Shriner’s Children’s Hospital, and the UMSL Succeed Program. As new member of NDEO(National Dance Education Organization), Elyse is thrilled to further her knowledge of teaching and dance education. When she’s not in the studio, you can find her cooking, snuggling with her two cats(Pina and Graham), and spending time with her wonderful husband, Shaun.
Katie Glenn
Dance Instructor
Katie began dancing at the age of 4 at Studio CAC. At age 8, she moved to DK Dance
Productions and finished her competitive dancing career there. She studied many varieties of dance including ballet, contemporary, musical theatre, lyrical, jazz, hip hop, tumbling, poms, and tap. She has participated in numerous regional and national dance competitions, earning high score and placement awards for her groups, duets, and tap solos.
She has also attended many dance conventions and earned scholarships from JUMP, NUVO,
NYCDA, Tapdemics, and Talent On Parade, and she received a special invitation to ArchCore 20
summer intensive in New York with Jennifer Archibald. Katie was a participant at
DancerPalooza in 2016 and 2017, where she performed at the wrap party with Bobby
Newberry. Other performances include Cardinals games, Ambush games, the Riverfront Dance festival, Fair St. Louis, and the AAHPERD CDA Dance Gala-“A Celebration of Dance”. Katie is currently an apprentice for the professional tap company MoSTLy Tap, has just been certified as an esthetician, is pursuing a degree in nursing at St.Louis Community Collage and is tap program director at DK Dance Productions.
Maddy Hansen
Dance Instructor
Miss Maddy began dancing and tumbling at the age of 3 in Jerseyville, Illinois at Parish School of Performing Arts. Starting at the age of 7, Miss Maddy traveled yearly around the United States competing at numerous dance competitions including, Starquest, Rainbow National Dance Competition, Platinum Dance, and Masquerade. While also competing, she also went to dance conventions including Adrenaline and JUMP. While attending Jersey Community High School, she was a varsity cheerleader, attending UCA camps and was selected to be an All American Cheerleader through UCA. Miss Maddy also attended cheerleading competitions at the conference and state levels including ICCA and IHSA. In the fall of 2016, Miss Maddy came to DK Dance Productions and competed on the Shooting Stars team. She is now teaching a variety of dance and tumbling classes in both Florissant, MO and Alton, IL. Miss Maddy is a student at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville studying Elementary Education, graduating in December of 2021. She also owns her own embroidery company and loves making things for the Dancer’s Kloset at the Florissant location! Be sure to check it out! Miss Maddy is looking forward to another great season here at DK Dance Productions!
Mary Gegg
Dance Instructor/DK Stars Coordinator
Mrs. Mary began dancing at Bridget James Dance Center at the age of three. She has studied in the disciplines of jazz, ballet, tap, lyrical, modern, hip hop, and poms. Throughout her years dancing, Mrs. Mary has attended West Coast Dance Explosion and JUMP! dance conventions, as well as competed in Masquerade, Starpower, and Rainbow Connection dance competitions, winning several awards at each. After a few years of assistant teaching at Bridget James, Mrs. Mary began teaching her own classes in 2006 for DK Dance Productions. While in high school at Incarnate Word Academy, she was on the competitive dance team for four years and captain of the Varsity team her senior year in which they received a second place state title at the Missouri State Dance Competition. She has traveled to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida to compete at the National Dance Team Championship. Mrss Mary also attended four years of Universal Dance Association summer camps and received a UDA All-Star award. Mrs. Mary also served as the Junior Varsity dance coach at Incarnate Word Academy for two years after graduating.
Mrs. Mary graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Occupational Science degree from Saint Louis University in May 2013 and her Master of Occupational Therapy in May 2014. She is currently working as a Occupational Therapist for Stars School Services in the Wentzville School District. In April 2015, Mrs. Mary became certified as an Autism Movement Therapy Instructor. It has long been a passion of her's to teach a dance class for children with disabilities, which has led to the development of her new program, SPARK/AMT!
Mrs. Mary is also certified in BLS for Healthcare Providers (CPR & AED).
Mrs. Mary wed her husband Cory in May 2017.
Bri Green
Dance Instructor
Miss Bri is originally from Alton, Illinois where she began her dance career at Showtime Productions at seven years old. She has been in the Florissant area for about three years now. Currently, she is a student at STLCC where she studies elementary education. Her dance background consist of all genres of dance competitive and recreational. Some achievements and accomplishments that she has achieved are auditioning and winning a scholarship through Tremaine Dance Conventions to travel to LA and take classes at a very popular studio. Her favorite aspect of dance is being able to take what she has learned throughout the years and teaching the youth of today.
Donetta Hailer
Dance Instructor
My name is Donetta Hailer. I am 22 years old. I am married with two beautiful daughters; Lynnox age 2 and Everleigh 3 months old. I started dancing at the age of 2! I fell in love with it right away. I participated in many dance competitions and year end recitals. In all the years I competed I won many titles, overalls, and judges awards. I realized my love for teaching at the age of 14 and I started student teaching at the dance studio I was attending. After graduating from Alton Senior High School I began teaching classes in many different fields; jazz, tap, hip hop, ballet, musical theater, and contemporary! I love the fact that I can take everything I've learned and help others find their love for dance. I've learned that dance isnt just about movement and it isnt about what you do... it's how you do it!
Stephanie Jost
Customer Care Specialist
Stephanie has been part of the DK family since 2009, when her daughter Brooke started dancing.
She became more involved with the studio when her daughter joined the Competitive team in 2011. Fast forward two years and in 2013 joined the staff as a Customer Care Specialist.
Stephanie also works at ELANTAS PDG, Inc. as a Production Scheduler/Inventory Control. She has been employed with the company since 2005.
She is currently taking classes for her CPIM (Certification in Inventory & Production Management).
In her free time, Stephanie loves to spend time with Family and Friends. Some of her favorite things to do is camping and fishing and hanging out with her daughter Brooke and their dog Gizmo.
Her favorite thing about working at DK Dance Productions is being able to interact each of the families that come through the doors. Nothing really compares to the feeling you get
When a little one runs up to give you a hug and tells you about the fun things they did that day at school or with family before coming to class, where they are going on their upcoming vacation, or just to say “HI” because they just missed talking to you. J
Tracy Karrenbrock
Customer Care Specialist
I am proud dance mom! I originally became a member of the DK Dance Productions family in 2009 when my oldest wanted to dance. Since then, she has become a part of the Competitive team. My youngest has also taken dance at the studio. My entire family loves DK Dance Productions because we are a family here.
I started working as a Customer Care Specialist at the studio in 2015 when we transitioned to the new building. I work in the store and front desk. You can mainly find me in the store working though. I love coming to work and having the conversations with the dancers and their parents. There is nothing more special than when a little dancer tries on their first pair of dance shoes and seeing their face light up!
I have been in the customer service field for 25+ years. I also work as a Supervisor in a call center for healthcare. I have 14+ years Supervisor experience. I have studied psychology and web design at Florissant Valley Community College. I would like to return to school someday in the future. So, when I am not working, I am with my family making memories.
