Dance has been Melissa’s favorite language for as long as she can remember. In the early eighties, she learned her first dance moves by copying and performing music video choreography in the living room, and before long she found the courage to audition for her elementary school’s adaptation of The Nutcracker. She was cast as the Sugar Plum Fairy, the production’s lead dance role. That experience sparked a lasting love of dance, and she soon enrolled in formal classes and eventually joined a local competitive dance team.
Her love of dance continued long after her competition and performance days ended, and in 2001 she began teaching students of all ages across the Portland area, where she continues to teach today. Over the past 25 years, she has coached middle and high school dance teams, taught recreational and competitive studio dance, dance-based group exercise classes, and led in-school and after-school dance programs throughout the Portland area.
As a young student, Melissa had the chance to attend Oregon Ballet Theatre performances on school field trips. Those shows were her first opportunity to see a professional production and made the arts feel more within reach. Today, she loves passing that on as an OBT Teaching Artist, helping students discover the art of movement and tap into their creativity through in-school residencies across our community.
