RDA STAFF

Carol Ann Maggiotto

Owner, Artistic Director

Carol Ann holds a BA from Southern Methodist University, MA from TWU, and has over 40 years of teaching experience. Carol Ann began her dance training at Ballet Academy of Tyler. She was an Apache Belle and show choir member at Tyler Junior College. After moving to Dallas and graduating from SMU, she continued her studio dance training with ballet from Joyce Seabourne-Bader, jazz with Lyndette Bader and tap with Terry Wolter and Buster Cooper. Carol Ann’s love of musical theatre came from working with NYC choreographers Utah Ground and Al Gilliam at TJC. The highlight was dancing and singing back up to Sandy Duncan for an ABC movie of the week. She has served as Dance Captain in numerous musicals in the Dallas area, with her favorite roles being Dream Laurie from Oklahoma and Louise from Carousel. She studied with legends Joe Tremaine, Gus Giordano, David Howard, and Mia Michaels. She danced professionally with the Kesheth Company and the Pieces Ensemble.

Carol Ann is a member of the Dallas Dance Council, Dance Studio Owners Association, and Dallas Dance Network. Carol Ann gave back to the community by serving as Chair of Rowlett's Arts and Humanities Commission for 7 years, Community Entertainment Coordinator for Rowlett’s Pecan Fest and Festival of Freedom for 5 years. Even though being diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2016, Carol Ann continues to stay on top of the latest dance trends by attending multiple dance conventions every year. “My job is to make sure our students have strong technical roots and then give them the wings to soar to their dreams. I love that no matter how far they go in those pursuits and achievements, when in tow,n they always come home to take class.”

Kyra McCarty

Assistant Studio Director

Company Director

Kyra is the Assistant Studio Director and Competition Company Director for RDA. She is a May 2010 graduate of the Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham, Alabama, where she received her diploma with a concentration in dance. In May 2014, she graduated from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, with dual degrees in Dance (BFA) and Mathematics (BS).

Throughout her dance career, she has received scholarships to train with Tremaine Dance Convention, Hubbard Street Dance (Lou Conte Dance Studio), Bates Dance Festival, and Dallas Black Dance Theatre. Additionally, she has had the opportunity to train at various summer and winter intensives, including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, International Ballet Competition, Ballet West, Ballet Memphis, and the International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD).

Ms. McCarty has numerous years of teaching experience with Dallas Black Dance Academy, Oxford Ballet School, and the Deborah Kaye School of Dance, both in Oxford, Mississippi. She loves working with and inspiring students by nurturing their passions and helping them reach their full potential.

Caitlyn Steele

Instructor

Caitlyn comes to us from California, where she grew up as a studio competitive dancer. She studied on scholarship with both the Rockettes
Summer Intensive and the Joffrey Ballet Summer Intensive. She was then admitted into and graduated from the Joffrey Ballet Professional Training Program. Caitlyn danced professionally with the Ballet North Texas. Her favorite roles in the Nutcracker are the Spanish Lead and the Arabian Pas. Her favorite role outside of the Nutcracker is the Fairy of Temperance from
Sleeping Beauty.

Caitlyn’s sweet and fun demeanor makes her a popular teacher choice. Caitlyn works as a Nanny during the daytime.

Michelle Moyo

Instructor

Michelle was the Team Captain for the Award Winning Royse City High School Golden Debs for 2 years, a Division I Soloist, and a TDEA All-State Dancer in 2020. She received her B.S. in Psychology from TWU. She was a Semi-Finalist in the Dallas Cowboys Rhythm & Blues Choreography Competition and was a guest hip hop teacher at Acrotex Gymnastics in Austin, TX.

Michelle has had the opportunity to dance with and learn from many top dancers and teachers from around the world! She has danced with Fikshun (from NBC’s World of Dance), Teddy Forance (a Co-Founder of CLI Studios who has performed with numerous top musical artists such as Madonna and Janet Jackson, and also performed at the Oscars, Emmys, Dancing with the stars, Ellen, Good Morning America, and with Cirque Du Soleil), Angel Roberts (a Nationally recognized choreographer, dancer, teacher, and award-winning costume designer), Hayley Mac Cooper, Gev Manoukian, Mary Ann Lamb, and several other professional dancers, teachers, and choreographers such as Octavia Ellison, Terrill Mitchell, and Harry Feril.

As a teacher, Michelle brings joy, artistic expression and energy wherever she dances, and is well known for her crazy facials and love for Hip Hop dance.

Kristal Torres

Instructor

Kristal is a former dancer for Walt Disney World. She performed in famous shows such as the Festival of the Lion King at Animal Kingdom, The Disney Channel Rocks Show, and Monster U at Hollywood Studios.

Kristal found dance at the age of 9. She continued to study dance and attended DuPont Manual Youth Performing Arts High School, while dancing with the Louisville Ballet Civic Company throughout her high school career. Shortly thereafter after Kristal attended Marymount Manhattan College to study Fine Arts.

While traveling with her family, Kristal began teaching and has taught for over ten years. The majority of her teaching career takes place in the great state of Texas (El Paso & Killeen. She also has had the privilege to teach overseas in Bamberg, Germany. Kristal makes learning techniques fun with her enthusiasm and clear explanations. She brings out and enhances every student’s performance potential.

Hailey Summers

Instructor

Hailey is a freestyle movement artist based in Dallas, TX. She specializes in experimental freestyle, educational programming, event curation, creative direction, and immersive movement experience. Summers is the creator of “Discovery Movement” freestyle education program, “BOILING POINT” experimental freestyle dance event. In the Fall of 2023, she was appointed the creative director for “Battlegrounds DTX” street style organization. She successfully launched “CYPHER DALLAS” street dance education program in partnership with the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture alongside Joel Salazar, providing free and accessible dance education to the Dallas Community.

January 2025, Summers and Trev Stanis launched “Soul Society Collective” hosting monthly dance events such as workshops, dance battles, and showcases. Her most recent creative adventure is the opening of “HYPERCREATIV STUDIOS” movement, design, and visual production loft in Downtown Dallas, curating monthly experiences open to the public. Her purpose is to inspire the young designers of tomorrow to trust in their own creative innovations with limitless courage, curiosity, and compassion.

Martin St. Pierre

Instructor

Martin (Marty) is a dynamic artist whose performances blend elegance, strength, and emotion, captivating audiences with his expressive storytelling and technical prowess. His dance journey began at Elevation Dance Studio, where he discovered his passion for ballet. Further refining his skills, he pursued training in the Colorado Ballet Academy Preprofessional program, studying under esteemed teachers such as Erica Fischbach, Yosvani Ramos, Domenico Luciano Rau, and Maria Mosina.

With a diverse range of experiences, Marty has danced with esteemed companies including State Street Ballet in Santa Barbara, California, and Ballet Papillon in Dallas, Texas. As a guest artist, he has graced stages across the country, delivering memorable performances in productions such as "Ms. Butterfly" with Wonder Bound and various renditions of "The Nutcracker". Marty's repertoire showcases his versatility and range as a dancer, embodying iconic roles such as Nutcracker, Arabian, Drosselmeyer, and Rat King in "The Nutcracker," as well as Hilarion in "Giselle," and various roles in "Sleeping Beauty" and "Wizard of Oz."

Beyond ballet, Marty has cultivated skills in tap dance and modern dance, broadening his artistic expression and enhancing his versatility as a performer. His personal statement reflects his commitment to connecting with audiences and sharing moments of beauty, joy, and inspiration through his performances and choreography.

Brittany Maracalin

Instructor

Brittany has been employed with Richardson ISD as a Kindergarten teacher and is now teaching for RDA. She is a May 2019 graduate from Stephen F. Austin University with a degree in Early Childhood. While at SFA, Brittany performed with the group Dancers Against Cancer Organization. Brittany started dancing at the age of 3. At age 6, she began taking dance classes at Rowlett Dance Academy. During her time at Rowlett Dance Academy, she took several classes in ballet, tap, jazz, and contemporary. She was also a member of the Performance Company. In 2008, she won the Molly Beal Scholarship award at Rowlett Dance Academy. Brittany has compassion for working with students and helping them realize their own potential in reaching their goals.

Alexis Martinez

Instructor

Alexis grew up studying all forms of dance at the Carolyn Earwood School of Dance and The Studio of Sonora. She graduated from the University of Texas
Permian Basin with a degree in education. Following college graduation, she was a Junior High Volleyball Coach and a Coyote Forest School Teacher.

Alexis started our very successful Parents Night Out, Kids Day Off, and Birthday Party programs last Fall. She will be continuing these programs and adding combo and level 1 dance classes to her teaching schedule. Her passion for dance and teaching will encourage even the shyest, most reluctant student.

Surayya Raheem

Instructor

Surayya Raheem is an artist born and raised in Arlington, Texas. She first began her dance experience at St. John Baptist Church, where she ministered as a praise dancer under the group title ‘God’s Angels of Praise.’ Raheem is a graduate from Crowley High School, where she served as a member of the Crowley High School Talonettes as well as the Thespian president of Crowley High School Theater. Here was where she discovered her passions for dance and theater.

In 2023, Raheem obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology with a focus in Exercise Science, alongside a minor in Dance from Texas Woman's University (TWU). While at TWU, she danced with various artists, including Kourtney Surgent, Camila Holman, Asiyah Martin, Sarah Tran, and many others. She was also selected to perform in a work called Smoove, choreographed by Guest Artist Abdel R. Salaam, the founder of Forces of Nature dance company based in Harlem, New York, with rehearsal direction of TWU dance professor Charmain Wells.

Raheem is a self-taught movement artist specializing in freestyling, performance, and self-led storytelling. She currently dances in various art projects across the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and is pursuing certifications such as Pilates and Personal Training to combine her passions for dance and fitness. She aspires to magnify the lens of total body connectivity to help dancers enhance their performance by fully understanding the body itself. Raheem aims to travel and perform internationally in order to spread her love for movement. She strongly believes her work in TranScend Motion is the perfect catalyst to achieve this goal.

Sofia Leal

Instructor

Sofia Leal is a passionate dancer, choreographer, and instructor with a diverse background in performance and competitive dance. A former Varsity Dance Team Captain, she currently choreographs for high school drill teams and NDA competitions across San Antonio and Dallas, Texas.

She studied at the University of North Texas, where she had the opportunity to represent the program at the American College Dance Association (ACDA). Sofia has also danced with Dallas-based hip hop crews UNITY and Choreoblock and was a choreographer and performer with Transcend Motion, a professional contemporary modern company in Dallas. Her training and performance experience span nationally, including New York City, Los Angeles, Florida, and across Texas.

With a strong foundation in technique, artistry, and performance, Sofia brings her love for dance into every class—helping dancers build confidence, refine their skills, and grow both on and off the stage.

J’Maica Frame-Cabell

Instructor

J’Maica Frame-Cabell is a self-taught movement artist who initially gained her dance experience through recreational and street dance in her hometown of Wichita, Kansas. Local recreational community teams, the impact of Hip Hop Culture, MTV, and music videos played a pivotal role in the type of movement J’Maica produces today and her understanding of dance as a spiritual outlet.

In her first two years of higher education at Barton Community College, J’Maica trained relentlessly in Pom, Jazz, Modern, and Contemporary as a member of the Barton Cougar Dance Team and an inaugural member of Barton Dance Theater. After Barton Community College, J’Maica traveled across the states to attend Valdosta State University as a member of the nationally ranked and respected Valdosta State University Red Hots Dance Team in Valdosta, Georgia, and attained a National Championship Title in the DII Hip Hop category at the 2022 NDA National Championship in Daytona Beach, Florida, during her tenure on the team.

Now based in Dallas, Texas, as a member of Beckles Dancing Company and professional performing artist, J'Maica continues to grow her commitment and understanding of dance and her body as a movement artist, educator, and performer.

Margaret (Malgorzata) Kochan

Guest Instructor

Margaret (Malgorzata) has been teaching ballroom dancing since 1991. In Poland, she received her training from the Academy of Physical Education in Krakow and the School of Arts and Culture in Warsaw. In the US, she earned an Advanced Ballroom Teaching Certification from Fred Astaire Dance Studios, Inc. Margaret specializes in all American and International Ballroom styles as well as Argentine Tango, West Coast Swing, Carolina Shag, Country & Western, and Cardio Ballroom.

She continues to refine her dancing and teaching skills, working with world-class performers and coaches, including Michael Mead and Toni Redpath, Jim and Jenell Maranto, Felipe and Carolina Telona, Slawek Sochacki and Marzena Stachura, Tomasz and Izabella Lewandowski, Christy Cote’ and George Garcia, Michael Kiehm and Barry Jones, just to name a few.

Margaret owns the ballroom dance studio and event center in Rockwall named A Dance to Remember.

Nick Leos

Guest Instructor

Tech Director

Nick Leos is a theatre director and choreographer originally from Mesquite, Texas. He recently returned to Dallas from London, where he received an MFA in Theatre Directing from East 15 Acting School, founded by Margaret Walker and based on the work of Joan Littlewood’s famed Theatre Workshop.

DIRECTING: small hours by Lucy Kirkwood and Ed Hime (US Premiere, FIT2019), The Skin of Our Teeth (Mountain View College), Macbeth (Company of Rowlett Performers), Antony & Cleopatra (Stockwell Playhouse, Off-West-End), Free Solo: A New Musical by Jack Godfrey and Celine Snippe (World Premiere, Drayton Arms Theatre, Off-West-End), In the Continuum by Danai Gurira and Nikkole Salter (Bread & Roses Theatre).

CHOREOGRAPHY: The Drowsy Chaperone, Mame, Damn Yankees, The Wedding Singer, Curtains, High School Musical, The Pajama Game, and more. He currently teaches in the theatre departments at Eastfield College and Mountain View College, teaches theatre dance at Rowlett Dance Academy, is a company member of Danielle Georgoiu Dance Group, and runs Leos Ensemble—a theatre group focused on plays with international themes.

Christine Lechuga

Marketing Manager

Christine handles Marketing and Social Media. She comes to RDA with a long background in dance and yoga.

Christine began dancing at the age of five and continued on into college, where she received a BA in Dance and Psychology. Throughout grade school and high school, she was a member of the Robinson Ballet Company, a ballet company in Bangor, Maine, and traveled all over Maine and Canada performing in their annual classic, The Nutcracker.

After graduating from college, she taught dance for many years in Connecticut and then moved to Texas, where she danced with Dallas Dance Company and Mambo Dallas (a salsa dance company).

Erica Green

Office Manager

You can find Erica every evening at Rowlett Dance Academy's front office-answering phone calls, handing out Band-Aids, and making sure dancers and teachers have everything they need to shine. A small-town girl at heart, Erica once dreamed of becoming a lawyer or hosting her own TV cooking show.

After pursuing a law degree, she found the sweet spot between both dreams as the owner of Taste E's Sweets & Treats, where she now spends her days baking up justice in the form of Judge & Jury cakes and cookies.