Our Instructors
Heather Manuka Owner/Director/Choreographer
For the past 25 plus years, Heather has worked with dance studios and schools from coast to coast.
Heather has been a member of Texas Association Teachers of Dance since 2015, passing her exam in Ballet. She also enjoys teaching for and participating in their annual teacher workshop and convention, sharing her mutual love of dance and choreography.
Since 2018, Heather has served as an adjudicator on the core panel of judges for Crowd Pleasers Dance Competition where she enjoys giving feedback to thousands of middle and high school dance team members in the state of Texas. In 2021, she joined the core panel of judges and continues to judge for their OUTSTANDING studio competition, Elevation On Tour which is featured in Dance magazine!
A native of Bryan, TX, Heather and her family relocated to the southern coast of Georgia at 6 yrs old where she quickly found her place on the elementary school playground. Sharing her love for music and movement, she was actively choreographing talent show dance numbers for her friends, memorizing dance choreography from hit music videos, and fully embracing street and hip-hop dance styles. At age 11, she began her formal training at a local dance studio where she joined the competition team after 6 months. While training and competing there with a heavy focus on tap, and then branching out to other genres, Heather won many scholarships to various dance conventions and schools across the U.S. She began assistant teaching and choreographing at the young age of 14; her dances and students receiving numerous awards. Returning to Texas at age 15, she began teaching competition classes and choreographing dance numbers throughout high school and into college for local dance studios.
Heather continued to receive dance training in her teen years from various national dance conventions and Sam Houston State University dance department. While at SHSU, she fell in love with the Vaganova Ballet Method and stylized Jazz and Broadway dance. At age 18, she won a scholarship to the Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles, CA under the direction of choreographer Joseph Malone (Michael Jackson, Ally McBeal, Tracy Ullman, Hocus Pocus). While there, she took classes and learned choreography techniques in workshops from great artists such as the Emmy award-winning Marguerite Derricks (Austin Powers, Marvelous Mrs Maisal etc), Jackie Sleight (the ‘teacher’s teacher”), Michael Rooney (Bjork, Fatboy Slim, VH1, MTV), Mia Michaels (SYTYCD, Rockettes etc), and many others. Her other scholarship winnings have included classes at renowned dance studios on both coasts such as the famous Debbie Allen Dance Academy, Broadway Dance Center, and The Edge in Los Angeles to name a few.
Turning down the opportunity to perform professionally in the commercial dance world at the age of 19, she instead turned her focus on her love and passion for TEACHING and creating dance choreography.
After teaching and directing at local studios in her hometown for some years, she was honored to teach at Dance Workshop, a pre-professional ballet school outside of Boston, MA in 2004. Her experience there allowed her to specialize in creative movement and young children's ballet based on the international RAD program (Royal Academy of Dance, England). She also was in charge of the Jazz, Tap, and Hip-Hop program for older children and teens. Many of the students at this school have gone to perform with the Boston Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, and the Boston Conservatory. Returning to Texas in 2006, she spent a few years as company director of one of the largest studios in Central Texas before opening her own studio in Franklin, TX. Her time in Franklin allowed her to bring the art of dance to the public school system. Teaching for 6 years in the Physical Education and Fine Arts program, she enjoyed bringing the joy of music and movement to both boys and girls of all ages. She also brought movement and wellness to the adult and elderly community with great support. In March of 2011, Heather was awarded a scholarship from "The Pulse on Tour" to attend the 11th Annual Teacher Workshop in NYC sponsored by The Pulse and Broadway Dance Center. While in New York, she was once again taking classes from world renowned choreographers from SYTYCD, Tony award winning Broadway choreographers, and many more. She also received various fitness certifications during this time, bringing health and wellness to her repertoire.
Besides dance, fitness, and wellness, Heather spent time as an intern in the public school system and Psyche-ED centers, focusing on “Kids at Risk.” Her commitment to assist young people with behavior disorders and mental and emotional instability is a driving force behind her love of teaching.
After taking time off from full time studio instruction from 2018-2021 to focus on her family, dance adjudication, and choreography, Heather returned to studio life in 2022. She is thrilled to reconnect with the artistry, human connection, and emotional healing that dance provides to her students.
She is extremely grateful and excited to have settled here in Bell County with her husband Izzy, her sons Vincent and Luc, seven pygmy goats, seven chickens, one horse, one horse-sized dog, five cats, and a few colonies of honeybees.
Indey Di Giacomo
Choreographer/Instructor
Texas born and raised, Indey began her dance journey early on by constantly twirling or playing dress up in ballerina costumes. Enrolled at the age of 3, she found her love for dance at Dance Xtreme in Killeen (previously known as Lisa’s Dance Studio). While always wanting to put on tap shoes and any sparkly jazz costume, Indey quickly learned that her dance interest was in hip-hop and could easily express her art through anything hip-hop centered.
At the age of 12, Indey continued her dance career at Element Dance Studio as well as participating on the Union Grove Golden Belles Dance Team throughout middle school. At the age of 14, Indey made the Harker Heights Crimson Belles and focused solely on drill team dance. This is where the world of dance began to really broaden as she attended multiple dance conventions, competitions, and expanded on other genres of dance such as kick, contemporary, Broadway Jazz, and lyrical. Holding officer positions for three out of the four years she was on the team, Indey branched out and choreographed multiple competition dances for the team, the officers, and her own solos. Along with multiple awards, in 2011 Indey won 4th place at the HTE Nationals’ competition in Grapevine, Texas for her hip-hop solo.
After graduating high school, Indey continued her dance career as she moved off to Texas State University in San Marcos, where she became a part of the biggest dance team in the nation – The Strutters. For two years she danced with her team of over 100 women in various performances across the state, and even performed at Disney World in Paris in the spring of 2015.
In the summer of 2015, Indey lived out her dream when she was chosen to be a part of the San Antonio Spurs Silver Dancers. While hundreds try out each year, only 16 make the team. For the next three seasons, Indey really found her purpose in dance and the ability to really showcase her talents. She was able to participate in performing a dance for Selena Gomez’s ‘Can’t Keep My Hands to Myself’, stage and create dances as well as half time performances for over 20,000 fans each game, and collaborate with various professional dancers weekly. She attended conventions such as All Pro where she took classes from various creative directors and choreographers while engaging with other professional dancers from the NBA and NFL. In Spring 2016, Indey represented the San Antonio Spurs as she was chosen to promote the All-Star games in Vancouver, Canada and perform at multiple events.
Retiring professionally from dance in 2018 and moving back to Central Texas in 2020, Indey still has a love and obsession for dance as she continues to choreograph dances across the state to help students really channel their passion and find their calling in the dance world.
Besides dancing and constantly twirling, Indey also likes to hang out with her family, take adventures with her two golden doodles - Chico and Champ, and her husband Max. She will soon be adding “MAMA” to her resume in November 2023!
A native Texan and highly accomplished dancer, Kayla's passion for dance began at the age of 4 when she was enrolled in Kinderdance and then later featured in the Pflugerville Pflag newspaper.
She continued her training at Tinka's Dance Studio, owned by Tinka Patton, where she was invited to join their Junior Dance Company after just a few months.
Kayla's talent was evident from an early age, and she quickly excelled. Kayla won first place with her company in the Dance Showcase competition and was invited to nationals. Tinka's Dance Studio was renamed Spectrum Dance Studio under the new owner Melissa Harvey. At age 11, she was promoted to Melissa's assistant and moved from the junior dance team to the senior team the following year.
Kayla's dedication led her to Round Rock Repertory Dance Center, where she attended for 7 years to enhance her training. During her time there, she was again invited to join their junior dance company and quickly moved up to the senior company (called Emerge.) She was privileged to have had the opportunity to study the Cecchetti Ballet method under Diedre Russell for several years. Kayla earned Pass Commended during the formal and rigorous exams for grades 1-3 by the Cecchetti Council of America.
Kayla's talent has been recognized with numerous awards and honors over the years, both as part of the Emerge team and in solo performances at dance competitions. She has also been invited to attend many master classes, workshops, and intensive programs across the state, including Ad Deum Dance master classes with the likes of Randall Flynn, Shizu Yasuda, Vincent Hardy, Durrell Comedy, and Steve Rooks, LÉON Dance Arts under the direction of Dorrell Martin, Fuse Dance Company under the direction of Josh Romero, Sam Nelson (featured on the TV series "So You Think You Can Dance"), and the Sam Houston State University Dance Conventions.
Kayla with Emerge Dance Company has also guest-performed multiple times at the Generations Dance Festival produced by LÉON Dance Arts and the Dance 3 Production also produced by LÉON Dance Arts.
Kayla is trained in a variety of dance styles, including ballet, modern, contemporary, lyrical, jazz, and Broadway tap (her favorite). When not training or performing she was/is in the front of the class teaching younger students.
Kayla's dedication, hard work, and passion for dance has made her who she is today. There is nowhere and nothing else that makes her as happy as dancing and being involved with the dancing community. Kayla began interning with Mrs. Heather in February of 2023 and is now her full time assistant.
We are so thrilled to have Kayla as part of our dance family!
Kayla Moss Assistant Teacher
Clara Harper Ballet Instructor/Choreographer
Clara is originally from Louisville, Kentucky. She received her ballet training from the Louisville Ballet School under the direction of Robert Curran. She completed summer courses with the Cincinnati Ballet, Joffrey Chicago, Boston Ballet, and received scholarships to attend the Atlanta Ballet Summer Intensive and National Choreography Intensive. She danced professionally for two seasons with the Louisville Ballet as a trainee and appeared in productions including The Nutcracker, La Bayadère, The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet, and Cinderella. Clara was the head of the ballet program at Kristina's Studio of Dance in Sherman, Texas until she moved to Bell County in July of 2023. She also serves on the panel of judges for Elevation On Tour dance competition. We are so thrilled she has joined our dance family!
Kristen Poage Barre/Dance Fitness
A native of Rockledge Fla, Kristen began dancing at the age of 14 and relocated to Houston, TX at age 16.
During this time, she discovered her love of fitness and creative movement. She continued to dance through her college years and also started to explore Pilates and Barre classes. She instantly fell in love with these formats and quickly obtained certifications in both of these methodologies.
Kristen is an NAFC certified fitness instructor, as well as holding certifications in Barreology, Prima Barre, and Mamalates which focuses on birth recovery. For the last 9 years she has run her own Barre studio in the Houston area.
She strongly believes that fitness should be a place free of judgment and comparison. Instead, she prefers to motivate clients through encouraging words and the assurance that working out is achievable at any fitness level.
Kristen is now a resident of Jarrell, TX with her husband and young daughter and son.
We are excited to bring her encouraging, motivating, and supportive approach to wellness movement to our studio!