Sarah Bell

Sarah started dancing at the tender age of three and hasn’t stopped since! She studied dance at school and college and completed a degree in dance at Bretton Hall Arts and Education College.  After completing her degree, Sarah went on to diverse performance contracts for numerous companies in the UK and abroad in contemporary, commercial and cabaret styles. She also gained Arts council funding to tour her own work.

She began teaching in 2012 for Stagecoach in Dulwich and shortly after started teaching and choreographing in schools and community settings around the UK.  In 2015 she started her role as Rutland Dance Coach teaching in the Rutland schools on behalf of Rutland School Sports Partnership and RYDA was born soon after.

Through this role she plays a major part in Spotlight Dance Festival, now in it’s 16th year with partner Chris Thomas which has given hundreds of young people and adults from Rutland the opportunity to dance in a professional theatre venue. Sarah has been resident choreographer for the last 5 years at Uppingham School choreographing full productions of ‘Grease’, ‘Legally Blonde’, ‘Oliver’ and ‘Working The Musical’ as well as assisting with drama and physical theatre productions.

She continues to teach and choreograph in many settings and can occasionally be seen head and shoulders above the rest, stilt walking!  Sarah is a passionate teacher, choreographer and event organiser and very proud of Rutland Youth Dance Academy.

Demi

Demi specialises in Dancehall and Commercial but also teaches Afrobeats, Contemporary and Jazz. Alongside teaching at RYDA Demi works as a Dance Lecturer at Leicester College, a choreographer at The Curve and runs her own dance company D.D.A.

She started her dance training at 16 at Leicester College, and went on to study for a Degree in Dance.  Demi has danced for numerous dance companies. She travelled to France for 6 months to perform in Normandy and worked in Spain as a choreographer on creating a short musical. She has also choreographed and performed in music videos for upcoming artists.

Demi says the best thing about her job is I get to constantly meet new people and discover their ways of moving.

Laura

I’m from a small mining town of Nuncargate and moved to Leicester to study a degree in dance at Demontford University in 2015.

I’ve performed and danced my whole life and I will continue until I physically can’t! Since being diagnosed with Dyslexia, dance has helped me explore a different world of education and creativity and I love passing on this passion.

I cant wait to dance with the RYDA gang!

Ally

Ally is a professional singer/songwriter and musical theatre performer. She trained for 4 years at the Midlands Academy of Dance and Drama in Musical Theatre and is now studying a Masters in Songwriting with Bath Spa University.

Ally has lots of experience in various aspects of the performing arts industry with performing in professional theatre productions, gigging to large crowds (notably with Christopher Madin’s “Strictly 80’s” band at V Fest), stage managing a London theatre-in-education tour (The Sun Shines For Everyone) and writing two original musicals with original music, one of which was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Currently you will find Ally writing songs/collaborating with artists all over the world and teaching musical theatre & singing to an array of people! Ally’s top tip when it comes to starting with us at RYDA is leave all your inhibitions at the door and have fun!

Danielle

Danielle started her training at Dixon Woods School of Dance in Leicestershire and then went off to do professional training in Musical Theatre at The Guildford School of Acting in 2009.

Theatre credits include; Cathy in The Last Five Years (stream theatre), Maria in The Sound of Music (KW Productions), Wednesday in The Addams Family, The Bakers Wife in into the woods (KW Productions) Martha in Spring Awakening (Guildford Ivy Arts Centre), Havana Dancer and dance captain in Guys and Dolls (Guildford Ivy Arts Centre).

Danielle is passionate about teaching dance, musical theatre and circus skills in Leicestershire and Rutland. She is delighted to be working with RYDA teaching both street and contemporary dance and hopes to help young dancers develop their own artistic flair and encourage their own choreography skills.