Our Staff
KIM KINNEAR, Owner/Artistic Director
Kim has studied Ballet, Tap, Modern and Jazz since the age of five. While a dance major at Loretto Heights Fine Arts College, she studied intensively with Jeri McAndrews (Paul Taylor Company), Milenko Banovich. In Los Angeles, shestudied Jazz at Moro-Landis (currently “Millennium”) under Joe Tremain and Jaimie Rogers. She also worked professionally in L.A. and Japan. She holds a BA in education and taught school in the Parker area for 6 years. She opened Parker Dance in 1993, is a member of Dance Educators of America, won the DEA Outstanding Choreography Award several times, has collaborated with dance professionals such as David Taylor and International Ballet School, and has trained students who grew up at Parker Dance Academy and continued to dance with scholarships to Alonzo King Lines Ballet in San Francisco, Alvin Ailey in New York, University of Utah, University of Hawaii, among others. She is proud to be a part of the education of multiple students who have continued on to successful commercial dance careers, professional concert dance careers with national and international dance companies, and broadway performance and choreography careers. She has 38+ years of teaching experience and a lifelong passion for dance and education.
Learn more about our philosophy, alumni, and approach to dance at Parker Dance Academy
KATRINA LAIRSMITH Managing Director, Leaps & Turns, Contemporary & Jazz Company Choreography
Katrina Lairsmith began her dance training by watching classes at a local ballet school located across the alley from her house. She would go straight there after school and watch for hours and practice what she saw, she was offered a scholarship to Cleo Parker Robinson training group and that’s where she fell in love with dance. She spent 3 years dancing for the Denver Nuggets and began dabbling in choreography. Los Angeles came calling and she packed her car and headed out for Hollywood, receiving a spot in the notorious EDGE scholarship program, she met Mia Michaels, Jackie Sleight, Terry Beeman and fell in love with contemporary dance and began developing her unique style of movement. She trained in NYC at Alvin Ailey and Steps, finding inspiration in every class.
Katrina founded The Damsels Dance Company in 1998, a contemporary ballet dance company dedicated to providing assistance to women in crisis. The Damsels and Katrina Lairsmith received accolades from Glen Giffin, the Denver Post Arts critic writing, “At her best Lairsmith choreography is visually arresting.” She opened Colorado Contemporary Dance Academy where she won the national title from LAdanceforce for Hide and seek. Katrina was also awarded Educator of the year from the Co-Dance dance convention. Additionally, she was a guest judge on Dance Moms in 2017 and received a national championship from KAR dance competition for No choir.
Katrina is the owner of Collabratory Complex opened in 2021, and this is her first year as managing director of Parker Dance Academy!
CORINA KINNEAR Business Manager, Week of Dance
Corina Kinnear started her training at Parker Dance Academy, and then at International Ballet School. She continued in San Francisco, where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts with Alonzo King’s Lines Ballet and Dominican University and minor in Business, as well as her certification as a Gyrotonic® instructor. Since, she has danced and toured as a performing artist and choreographer with companies in Los Angeles, New York, Montreal, Colorado, San Francisco, and throughout Europe including the Deutche Oper Ballet, LA Opera, Invertigo Dance Theatre, MiMoDa, Gibson Muriva Dance Company, Deutche Fernsehballet, The Movement Movement, Apex Contemporary Dance Theatre, Arrogant Elbow, and creating work in residencies at PARTS in Brussels, the CND in Paris, TanzFabrik in Berlin, and for the Odyssey Theatre Dance Festival.
Corina loves teaching and mentoring young dancers, and feels honored to support the staff and students at Parker Dance Academy in any way possible.
SHELLY CATES WILLIAMS, Ballet Director, Ballet, Ballet Company
Shelly earned her Bachelors Degree in Fine Arts at the United States International University School of Performing Arts in San Diego CA. She continued professionally, performing lead rolls in over 500 major ballet stage and television productions and teaching all levels of ballet and Master Classes for Ballet West, Milwaukee Ballet, Academy of Ballet Florida and San Diego Ballet. Shelly has had the privilege of working under the direction of Agnes DeMille, Sallie Wilson and Tony Landers of the American Ballet Theatre; John Hart, Basil Thompson, Erling Sunde and Brian Shaw of Royal Ballet in England. Bobby Rodham, Vicky Simon and Violette Verde of the New York City Ballet and T.C. Wilson. This will be her 12th year teaching with Parker Dance Academy.
KAYLA DISHUCK, Company Director, Contemporary & Jazz, Hip Hop
Kayla has been dancing since she was 2 years old and started competing at 4 years old. She has trained in styles like ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary, musical theater, Afro-Brazilian dance, and many more. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs with degrees in both Psychology and Dance. Kayla has earned a spot on the UCCS President and Dean’s list repeatedly. She also has been put in leadership positions with The National Society of Leadership and Success as well as a mentorship where she worked one-on-one with “at-risk” middle schoolers in her community. She has had many teaching and choreographing opportunities while at UCCS. She has been President/Captain of the UCCS Dance Team. During the 4 years of being on the team, she did administrative work as well as coaching them throughout their seasons. In her senior year of high school at Parker Dance Academy, she toured with Fluid Dance Convention, as part of the Fluid Force to assist the faculty members in classes and help with the logistics of the convention. One of her favorite roles while at Parker Dance Academy was being given the opportunity to be Snow Queen in The Nutcracker. She has won many awards including the Vickie Sheer Award at the Sheer Elite International Dance Convention. This will be Kayla’s first year teaching at Parker Dance Academy.
CHLOE STACEY, Ballet, Ballet Company
Chloe Stacey was born and raised in a rural town outside of Atlanta, Georgia. She began her dance training at age 4 under the direction of Phyllis Allen at the Lawrenceville School of Ballet. She danced on their ballet company, the Southern Ballet Theatre, as a lead and soloist performer until she graduated high school. Chloe attended college at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in the Dance Department, with an emphasis in ballet. She performed on BYU’s ballet company and had the opportunity to work with master teachers like Summer Rhatigan from the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance, and Alexandre Munz of France as he introduced his S.A.F.E. barre project to the United States.
During her time at BYU, Chloe spent a summer studying ballet and performing throughout Italy. There she worked with Desmond Richardson, Teddy Forance, and trained at La Scala Ballet, where Enrico Cecchetti created his Cecchetti method of technique. In addition to her degree in Dance, Chloe received a minor in Writing, and also enjoys writing about the arts. She has written numerous dance concert reviews and has been published in multiple dance journals. Chloe has taught dance, specifically pointe and ballet technique, for over 10 years to a variety of ages in Georgia, Utah, Ohio, and Tennessee. She is excited to continue her career in Colorado at Parker Dance Academy. This is Chloe’s 4th year teaching with Parker Dance Academy.
ROBERT SHELLEY, Tap, Ballet, and Tap Company
Robert Shelley, a seasoned ballet performer, serves as a soloist at Ballet Ariel and collaborates with various organizations like Performance Now Theater Company. Sharing his expertise in ballet and tap, Robert mentors the next generation. His journey began at Maine State Ballet, where he danced as a soloist from 2014 to 2019. In 2021, he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Dance from Dean College. Presently, Robert is a valued member of Ballet Ariel and Performance Now Theatre Company, dedicated to nurturing his love for dance and teaching in the vibrant Denver metro area! This marks Robert’s second year teaching with Parker Dance Academy.
JESSICA STRONG, Little Ones, and Ballet/Tap.
Jessica has been a member of the Colorado Dance Community for over 20 years. Having started her training at Gayton Dance World and Youth Ballet Colorado, she was bit by the ballet bug at an early age. She devoted her younger years to intensive ballet training at the Academy of Colorado Ballet where she had the honor to perform in several Company and Studio Company performances. As a professional ballerina she spent seven seasons with Ballet Ariel, Denver’s Ballet Company. Now as a retired ballerina she still performs in musical theatre productions with Vintage Theatre and Performance Now Theatre Company, as well as others. She has dedicated her career to building her in-school performing arts Company – Exploration Kids! Enrichment which brings dance, cheerleading, yoga and other mediums to local schools. She also owns and operates Dance to Learn, LLC where she has created her own preschool dance curriculum dedicated to teaching the whole child through dance and movement. Additionally, she operates Dancing Princess Parties, a magical dance based birthday party company. This is Jessica’s 5th year teaching with Parker Dance Academy.
CALLEY KRAUSS, Contemporary & Jazz, Ballet/Tap
Calley Krauss has been dancing since about three years old and the Parker Dance studio was shared with a coffee shop! It is in her blood- Calley has played many characters and parts in shows with Parker Dance including Cinderella and Aladian. Calley is now an addiction counselor by day and while in her spare time, she continues her enthusiasm and passion for dance through teaching! Calley is very excited to be back at Parker Dance and working with the kids to share that passion and enthusiasm. This is Calley’s 4th year teaching with Parker Dance Academy.
KAREN WEAVER, Tumbling, Acrobatics, Yoga
Karen Weaver is married with two beautiful children and lives in Elizabeth, CO. Dance and Gymnastics have been a large part of her life since the age of three. She was a competitive gymnast growing up and continued through her senior year in high school. When not practicing, she was still in the gym teaching. Karen started coaching again in 2003 for the competitive team at Gymnastics Etc. and later moved to Chalkbox. She works with all ages and skill levels including developmental/recreational. Her biggest joy is working with the kids and being a part of their success from year to year. This is Karen’s 3rd year teaching with Parker Dance Academy.
LAUREN ANDREZEICIK Ballet/Tap, and Little Ones
Lauren started dancing when she was 6 years old and fell in love with it! She loved it so much she auditioned for company when she was 10 and started competing. While her favorite style of dance is lyrical, she also truly loves them all. Lauren also has a love for children and has always been passionate about their learning and development. Throughout her high school years and time in college in Miami, Florida (graduating with a degree in business), she has worked with children. She loves teaching kids dance skills and watching how confident they become in dance, and finds that her passions for dance and children came together perfectly as a dance teacher! Her intention is to keep her classes fun and light while focusing on helping her students become better people and dancers! This will be Lauren’s second year at Parker Dance Academy.
HANNAH McSWAIN Ballet, Tap, Little Ones
Having always adored the ballet, Hannah began training at a small studio called Joyful Soles Dance at the age of 14. There, she had the opportunity to study under Scarlett Wynne as well as many other fabulous instructors. This instilled in her a deep love for what the ballet world has yet to think of. By age 16, Hannah’s previous theatrical training and her wonderful experiences at JSD let her to pursue the goal of dancing professionally. She began attending Colorado Christian University’s School of Music in the fall of 2017. She currently holds a self-designed BA in Dance and Music which has since served as the framework for the dance program CCU is working to build. She also received a Theatre minor, which allowed her to further develop as a performer throughout her time at CCU. Aside from taking many open-level adult classes at Colorado Ballet Academy and Denver Dance Center, Hannah now teaches at Redemptive Dance Ministries in Littleton Colorado. The immense joy of the young dancers she works with continues to drive her in the pursuit of her own performance career. Hannah hopes to both dance and live her life so as to touch the human spirit and inspire young dancers for years to come. This will be Hannah’s second year at Parker Dance Academy.
BRITTANY FANNING Little Ones, Ballet/Tap, Contemporary & Jazz
Brittany is an accomplished and versatile professional dancer with a passion for teaching others. With over 22 years of extensive training and performance experience, Brittany has trained in various dance styles including ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, pom, and Game-day. She began her dance journey at just 3 years old here at Parker Dance Academy. She then went on to be a 4 year member of the Cherokee Trail Varsity Poms team. Following high school, she entered the collegiate world of dance at The University of Colorado Boulder on the CU Dance Team. After a successful collegiate dance career she began her professional career as a Denver Outlaws Dancer. Brittany is now a current member of the Denver Broncos Cheerleaders. With a strong foundation in dance, a dedication to continuous development, and a passion for inspiring others through movement, Brittany is honored to contribute to the growth and success of young dancers. This will be Brittany’s first year at Parker Dance Academy.
MADDIE DOUGLAS Contemporary & Jazz Funk
Maddie received her formal dance education from the Lines Training Program in San Francisco, CA (2017-2019). She has studied under and performed works by Ohad Naharin, Crystal Pite, Victor Quijada, Tom Weinberger, Sidra Bell, Flock, Alex Ketley, and Annamari Keskinen. Now based in Colorado Springs, Maddie has participated as both a dancer and a choreographer in local project-based work at the Movement Gallery and with Ormao Dance Co. In 2022, Maddie founded InnerChange Collective as a way to continue her choreographic journey. Currently Maddie shifts between regular teaching, project work, and choreographing on local studios and companies. This is Maddie’s first year at Parker Dance Academy.
SHARON WEHNER Ballet Guest Teacher
Sharon enjoyed a fulfilling 22-year career as a Principal Dancer with the Colorado Ballet and has had the opportunity to travel the world as a guest artist, working with companies and renowned choreographers throughout her field. She currently performs as a freelance artist and teacher and recently made Denver Dance Center the home of her Dance and Movement Coaching business. Sharon loves working with people of all ages and abilities to find more health, vitality, and joy in their bodies through modalities such as ballet, yoga, Dance for Parkinson’s disease and mobility challenges, and the GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® methods. She runs a mentoring program for teen and pre-professionals to help aspiring dancers develop holistic mind-body practices that support their dance journeys. Sharon is also a certified sports nutrition coach and member of the International Association of Dance Medicine. This will be Sharon’s first year teaching at Parker Dance Academy.
MARLA McCLURE Front Desk
Marla McClure has a wealth of experience in music education and dance instruction. With a background as a Choir Director, dance teacher at Arthur Murray Dance Center, and Music Teacher at James Madison High School, Marla has developed a passion for teaching and inspiring others through the arts.