Mz. Liz

Liz Kelley started dancing at the age of 3 in Kansas City, and went on to dance with Gene Kelly in Hollywood. At the age of 7, her professional career began. Before she was 17, she had worked with Ethel Merman, Carol Channing, Dom DeLouise, John Davidson, Charlton Heston, and Arthur Godfrey.

The youngest member of the Corps De Ballet at Starlight Theatre, she received a scholarship to the Harkness Ballet Company in New York City. Liz devoted herself to ballet, jazz, and modern dance with Harding Dorn and Tatiana Dokoudovska at U.M.K.C., and studied tap with Jimmy Defore.

At age 17, she moved West and realized her dream: she performed three solos with her idol, Gene Kelly, in his Las Vegas show. This caught the eye of the producer of the Dean Martin Show, who hired her for his singing and dancing entourage, the Golddiggers. Besides performing on his show, the group toured the world and had their own television series. Miss Kelley worked with Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr., Charles Nelson Riley, Goldie Hawn, Vincent Price, Jimmy Stewart, TinaTurner, Sonny and Cher, Barbara Streisand, Ernest Borgnine, Jimmy Durante and other stars.

Entertaining the troops with Bob Hope in Vietnam at Haunakah and Christmastime, 1970, was a deeply moving experience for Liz: Hollywood is not reality ... it's good insofar as it's for others.

While touring and performing, she trained under several teachers in the U.S. and Europe: among those renowned choreographers were Tommy Tune, Jo Jo Smith, Jamie Rogers, Ed Kerrigan, Jonathan Lucas, Joe Tremaine and Mia Michaels. She started her own teaching career in Los Angeles in 1974 and, four years later, returned to Kansas City to teach at the Westport Ballet Company, American Dance Center and the Jewish Community Center.

In 1984, Mz. Liz opened Dance Studio 1 – Liz Kelley , a home to thousands of young women ... those who aspire to a career, and those who want to be part of the family of dance.

Jill Trozzolo

Jill Trozzolo has been tapping her toes since she was born. When Liz Kelley opened Dance Studio-1 in 1984, Jill was one of Liz’s first students.

It’s been more than 20 years since she started dancing with Liz Kelley, and she loves it as much as she did the first day she put on her dance shoes. Jill studied tap, jazz and ballet through high school. After graduating from St. Teresa’s Academy, Jill attended Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, where she was a Benedictine Ravens dance team member.

She began assisting Liz in 1995, and became a teacher-choreographer in 2000. Jill has had the privilege to study under many professional (world famous) dancers including Joe Tremaine, Mia Michaels, Dan Karaty and Doug Caldwell.

Jill lives in the Waldo area, and when she not dancing she is busy working for a local integrated marketing communications agency.

JoAnna Van Draska

JoAnna Van Draska has been dancing at Dance Studio 1 since 1985. She began assisting Mz. Liz in 1994. Miss JoAnna continued to teach for Mz. Liz until 1999, when she graduated from Notre Dame de Sion High School.

JoAnna attended Kansas State University for four years and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education. Once she finished college, she returned to Kansas City to reside, and to once again join the family at Dance Studio 1.

Currently, Miss JoAnna teaches fifth grade at Brookridge Elementary and continues to be an instructor at Dance Studio 1.

Miss Kristen

Miss Kristen started dancing at the age of 3. She started at Dance Studio I - Liz Kelley in 1987. She has studied several different styles of dance throughout the years with Liz and other world known professional dancers. Tap, Jazz, and Hip-Hop are her specialties. In 1995 she began assisting Liz, and by 1997 she began teaching and choreographing her own classes.

While attending Blue Valley North, she was a member of the North Stars Dance team. Miss Kristen choreographed several routines for the squad and taught Little Stars dance clinics. After graduating from Blue Valley North HS in 2000, she went on to complete her Associates in Liberal Arts.

Throughout the last few years, she has expanded her teaching career to the competitive world of dance. She organized 3 competitive squads that range from ages 6 to 18. She provided dance camps for two of those squads, which include her own array of music and choreography. Her squads won 1st place in Regional and National competitions in several different states, two of which won the Grand Champion award in the Junior and Senior divisions. She is also a choreographer and dance camp coach at several different high schools and colleges.

Besides having a passion for dance, she has become proficient in the corporate world. She is employed at Sprint Nextel. She is working in the Finance Organization supporting Real Estate applications.

Gaby Lucas

Gaby Munoz-Lucas was born and raised in Coatzacoalcos, Mexico. She later traveled to Wichita to pursue her degree in Theatre and Dance at Wichita State University. While at WSU, Gaby was given the opportunity to perform and choreograph for different dance companies across the country including MADN and ACDF. The “American Dance Festival” honored Miss Gaby with the “Excellence in Choreography Award” by the Theatre Department for her choreography in the musical “Personals”.

Miss Gaby moved to Kansas City in 1999, and since then has performed with City in Motion Dance Theatre, AHA Dance Theatre and Young Audiences. She has also performed at Theatre for Young America, Coterie Theatre, Chameleon Theatre and Missouri Repertory Theatre. Gaby is a fulltime mom to two-year-old Anna Maria and the current resident choreographer for “The Best Network” and “The Jellybean Conspiracy Project”. This company travels to high schools in the bi-state area of Kansas and Missouri, to offer a message of kindness and respect to all children with and without disabilities.

Sara Peppes

Sara Peppes has been dancing since she was 3 years old and after 18 years, continues to be a part of the Dance Studio 1 family.

Sara is fortunate to be able to say she learned from the best, as her dance training is attributed to Mz. Liz. Sara began assisting Liz in 2003. After graduating from Shawnee Mission East, she took a year off to get acclimated to college life at KU, and came back to once again assist and teach in 2005.

Sara has recently graduated from KU, where she was a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority. She has moved back into Leawood with her new dog Kona, a Cane Corso. When she is not at the dance studio, Sara works full time at Peppes Dental as the new marketing coordinator.

Whitney Klug

Whitney Klug started taking dance class at the age of 4, and became a member of the Dance Studio 1 family in 1988. Miss Whitney began assisting Mz. Liz’s dance classes in 1999, and was captain of the Synergy Dance Company in 2001 and 2002. After graduating from Shawnee Mission East, she continued dancing, assisting and teaching at Dance Studio 1 for another year in preparation for her audition for the dance program at Oklahoma City University.

Whitney was a Dance Performance major at Oklahoma City University, where she studied under the direction of Jo Rowan and Robert Reed. She was a member of the American Spirit Dance Company, and performed at various locations throughout the city. She has attended numerous dance conventions, and has spent the summer taking classes from renowned choreographers at the Edge Studio in Los Angeles, California.

She went on to graduate from The University of Kansas Medical Center with a Bachelor of Science degree in Health Information Management. When she’s not dancing she is working to further her career at Lockton Companies, LLC in the Health and Welfare Practice.

Cyndi James

Cyndi James grew up in Washington, DC where she started taking classical ballet classes at the Washington School of Ballet at age 7. She continued pursuing ballet seriously throughouther school years and graduated from the Academy of the Washington Ballet. During this time she had the privilege of dancing with companies such as the NYC Ballet and the American Ballet Theater at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.

After graduating, Cyndi attended The Boston Conservatory of Music, where she continued studying dance, but also found a love of acting and musical theatre. She eventually moved to New York City where she apprenticed with the Joffrey II Ballet and made a living doing TV commercials and children’s theatre!

Cyndi has lived somewhat a gypsy life and has lived in Australia, France, Southern California and Colorado. She has worked in fitness and nutrition and is now a nutritional consultant and “Mom on a mission” helping families understand the importance of good nutrition and helping families to get healthier. She is happily settled in Overland Park with husband, Paul and two active boys ages 11 and 14.

She is so excited to, once again, be involved in the dance world and to make a return to her true passion, teaching ballet !!

Molly Fox

Molly Fox is originally from Chicago, IL and is currently attending the University of Kansas. She is majoring in dance and history. She received most of her training from the Dance Academy of Libertyville then continued to study at the Lincolnshire Academy of Dance and Lou Conte. She has studied under professionals from Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Gus Giordano, Joffrey Ballet Chicago, Houston Ballet, and various other companies and professionals. She has had extensive training in ballet, jazz, and modern. Fox is a current member of the University Dance Company at KU. She loves being apart of the Liz Kelley family and urges everyone to come try her class!

Jessie Gilday

Jessie began dancing at Dance Studio 1 in 1992 and continued through her senior year in high school when she graduated from Blue Valley North in 2006. She could not give up those dancing shoes and continued dancing at the University of Kansas where she received her Minor in Dance. Jessie also had the honor and privilege of representing Kansas City and the NFL as a Kansas City Chief’s Cheerleader for the 2008-2009 season. She was also an Ambassador for the Chief’s Cheerleaders and dealt with Public Relations. Jessie was also a Big Sis to the Junior Chiefs Cheerleaders and loved every second of it. She had the time of her life and could not have done it if it wasn’t for Liz Kelley and the Dance Studio 1 Staff!

Jessie began assisting Liz in 2008. She is currently teaching hip hop, contemporary and lyrical and assisting in tap and jazz. She hopes the girls are having as much fun as she is and thanks the parents for letting her teach their children! Jessie is continuing her education and looking forward to beginning school in January 2010 at Research College of Nursing.

Rachel Loss

Bio coming soon!