Studio J Dance Co

Ms. Marla is the Owner and Director of Studio J Dance Co.  She and her daughter Jessica teamed up to open the studio in 2004 to provide a quality, friendly, family atmosphere, which welcomes the recreational and competitive dancer.  She is the ‘business’ side of the duo and brings 25 plus years of business experience to the studio along with over 30 years of dance experience with her 3 daughters.  Her previous business experience includes accounting, account management, customer service and business development.  She has also been a judge for various college, high school and junior high dance teams as well as numerous high school talent shows. Her business experience as well as her many years of working with dance studios gives her a great understanding of what it takes to direct a fair, organized & professional dance business.  Studio J Dance Co has been recognized as one of the top studios in the United States with the FDC organization.  Ms Marla is the mother of 5 children and very proud grandmother of 2. 

_Mr. Aaron started his dance career at 20 years of age (late bloomer)  at the legendary Charmaine's dance studio. There, he took several master classes from Madame Krossovska, a renowned russian ballet mistress, to the iconic Luigi, one of the pioneers of jazz dance. From there he began taking classes at The Turning Pointe, A Center For The Performing Arts.  At The Turning Pointe, he participated in several  studio master classes as well as dance conventions including Jump, Nuvo, LA Dance Magic, LADance Force, Tremaine, where he won year long and single convention scholarships. At West Coast Dance Explosion, he was fortunate enough to win Mr Dance Explosion Runner Up. During his training at The Turning Pointe.. he traveled to Los Angeles for several summers of intensives at such studios as The Millenium Dance Complex, The Performing Arts Center (PAC) and on scholarship at The Edge Performing Arts Center.  At these facilities he studied under such names as Doug Caldwell, Brian Friedman, Mia Michaels, Shane Sparks, and Wade Robson.  Also, I studied in New York at Broadway Dance center and Steps On Broadway for several summers. During these summers he began teaching. Mr. Aaron has been blessed in his teaching career to work with many talented dancers, and win many awards including choreographer of the year from Star Systems Dance Competition.  He is grateful for everyday that he can share dance with the world !

_Ms. Melissa has been teaching at Studio J for seven years. She began her training at Allard Academy Dance where she competed with the Allard All Stars and won several top scoring awards in ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical and acrobatics. At fourteen, Melissa decided she wanted to focus on ballet and began studying at Rochester School of Dance under the direction of Cornelia Sampson. The following year, Melissa auditioned for the Michigan Ballet Theater and performed in several ballets including the Nutcracker Suite, Sleeping Beauty, and Les Syllphides. After high school Melissa attended Western Michigan University receiving her bachelors of Arts and Science in education. While studying at WMU, Melissa performed with Kalamazoo Ballet Company and Ballet Arts Ensemble. She has attended summer ballet programs with professional companies such as the former Cleveland San Jose Ballet Company and has attended several master classes. At the master classes she had the opportunity to train under Michael Anderson, Susan Hawkins, Gladisa Guadalupe, and Michael Hicks.She continues to take ballet classes, always looking to perfect her technique to bring back new ideas to Studio J. Currently, Melissa is finishing her Master of Arts in Teaching specializing in k-12 reading literacy.

Brenna started her dancing career at the young age of three. She trained at multiple studios in the area eventually finding her way to Studio J. She developed a passion and drive for the art resulting in many awards and accomplishments. While dancing at Studio J, Brenna has attended many dance competitions and conventions including; Showbiz, Applause, Kids Artistic Revue, Thunderstruck, Hall of Fame, Rising Star, Odyssey, and Flow 40. Brenna has been honored with multiple top five placements for her solos, duets, and group performances. In 2007, Brenna was named and won the titles of; Miss Dance for Kids Artistic Revue, Odyssey, UDA Great Lakes Innovational, NDA Motor City Championship and Ameridance. Brenna has been awarded multiple scholarships to Break the Floor, Shake the Floor, KAR Kids New York, and much more. In the summer of 2009 Brenna traveled to Los Angeles to train with top choreographers in the industry. While there she worked with Mia Michaels, Tyce Diorio, Brain Friedman, Shane Sparks, Wade Robson, Dee Caspary, and Laurie-Ann Gibson (Choreographer for Lady GaGa). Brenna has also studied with Sonya Tayeh while training in the Detroit area. In high school, Brenna was on dance team all four years and attended UDA camp with Studio J’s senior all-star team. Brenna currently is a senior at Oakland University where she is pursuing a degree in Elementary Education. She will graduate with a double major in Language Arts and Social Studies and a minor in Dance. While studying both Modern and Ballet at Oakland, Brenna had the opportunity to participate in a pre-professional dance company “Oakland Dance Theatre.” Brenna has taken many classes in improvisation and choreography and has had the opportunity to train under Ali Woerner (former Rockette), Greg Patterson, and Laurie Eisenhower (Eisenhower Dance Ensemble). A side from dance, Brenna finds joy competing in the Miss America Organization. Brenna currently holds the title of Miss Saginaw County and is the former Miss St. Clair Shores. Brenna will compete this coming June for the title of Miss Michigan. Brenna has choreographed for local and state titleholders within the Miss America Organization. She has also choreographed for Dr. Pepper/Snapple tailgating events hosted throughout the state. Brenna is very excited to be teaching at the same studio where she trained, she loves sharing her talents with her students.

Marissa starting dancing at Studio J in 2005. Her early years of dance training began at Artistic Dance Company and at age 11 transferred to Studio J. With her teammates and the help from the staff at Studio J they won several top scoring awards in lyrical, jazz, tap, hip hop, and ballet. At the age of 12 Marissa competed and was awarded Runner Up Miss. Dance for Sophisticated Productions. Marissa was also a part of the Dakota Varsity Dance Team, and was honored the position of captain her senior year. Her team competed every year in Disney World at the UDA Nationals, placing third in the nation in large varsity pom in 2011. She has trained and attended several master classes and conventions working with Albert Cattafi, Mario Velez, and Grant Chenok. After graduating high school Marissa now studies at Oakland University and has joined the Oakland University Athletics Dance Team. Marissa plans on pursing a career in Health Sciences.