Lakewood Dance Academy Instructors

Julie Anderson is the owner of Lakewood Dance Academy in Lakewood Colorado; an inclusive community promoting a concept-based approach to classical dance training. For over twenty years Julie has had the great honor of sharing her love for dance with students of all ages.

Julie is a certified instructor of Bill Evans Method of Teaching Modern Dance and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Dance Education from the University of Idaho, under the direction of Gregory Halloran. Julie completed coursework in Brain-Compatible Dance Education and BrainDance, created by Anne Greene Gilbert.  Julie is also an instructor for the Education and Community Engagement program at Colorado Ballet and a lead instructor for "Be Beautiful, Be Yourself," a specially designed series of ballet classes for children who experience Down syndrome. 

Julie performs with Maedee Dupre and Dancers and she was a company member for Louder Than Words Dancetheatre for six wonderful years and has performed in many project-based works including Boulder Fringe Festival and Projekt Move. She continues to collaborate with fellow teaching artists and supports all dancers in their endeavors to tell stories and create connections through movement. 

Alison, a native of Illinois, moved to northern Colorado in 2013. She began her dance training at Dance Arts Studio, Inc. in Springfield, Illinois under the direction of Grace Luttrell Nanavati. In 2004 she joined the Springfield Ballet Company, performing in various main stage productions and training with professionals from the Carolina Ballet Theatre, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Broadway Theatre Project, among others.

Alison graduated with a BFA in Dance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in May 2013. During her time at Dance at Illinois, Alison had the privilege of training under numerous renowned faculty and guest artists. She also took the time to experience dance outreach in the community, to engage in student groups focused on supporting the arts on campus, and to familiarize herself with the administrative aspects of the Dance Department. Alison was also selected to participate in the Mark Morris Dance Group Shadow Program in 2011. She attended the Brooklyn summer intensive fully funded in 2011 and 2012, as well as participated in the company’s university residency outreach projects.

Alison joined Lakewood Dance Academy in 2015 and directs the ballet program and Nutcracker productions.

Aria Faddis grew up in Boise, Idaho, and moved to Colorado in 2017. She began dancing at age twelve and has since discovered how much she loves to share her love of dance with children. Aria has a BFA in Dance with an emphasis in teaching from The University of Montana where she studied under Michelle Antonioli, Nicole Bradley Browning, and Heidi Jones Eggert. She spent one season dancing with Off Center Dance Company before relocating to Colorado where she teaches at studios across the Denver Metro area. When she is not working at the studio, Aria works as an administrator for Great Work Montessori School. 

Jamie Carr is a performer, choreographer, teacher, and action photographer. With a strong background in classical ballet, Jamie graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Dance from California State University Long Beach, an Associate’s Degree in Photography, and is a nationally certified teacher from the American Ballet Theatre. 

Jamie has been selected to train and perform nationally and internationally with several high-profile artists. Jamie has performed with and managed several contemporary companies and is currently a dancer with the T2 Dance Company. Additionally, she is a ballet and jazz teacher and Senior Ensemble advisor at Lakewood Dance Academy.

Lauren Grant grew up in Lakewood and danced for 20 years, training in several forms of concert dance. She worked in special education for 10 years until having children of her own who now dance at LDA. Lauren specializes in working with children with many different abilities, and believes dance is for everyone. Her hope is that parents who may not have considered a dance class for their child feel welcomed and supported in LDA's Adaptive Dance Program. 

Charlise has studied ballet, tap, jazz, modern, and contemporary dance at Lakewood Dance Academy for the past 7 years. She has worked as an assistant teacher for over two years and taught for several seasons of summer dance camps. Charlise is senior member of the LDA Ensemble, and part of our administrative team. She's currently a Junior at Green Mountain HS.

Robert has always been a very athletic person throughout high school and beyond. Robert began his ballet career with the pre-professional company, Maine State Ballet, dancing as a soloist from 2014-2019. Robert graduated in 2021 from Dean College with a Bachelor’s in Dance. He is currently a company member of Ballet Ariel. Robert is eager to continue pursuing his passion for dance and teaching in the Denver metro area!