Director

Laura began her dance training at the Academy of the Arts under Lori Ladwig in 1995.  She studied ballet, tap and jazz for eight years at the Academy and continued her training at various dance conventions throughout the United States, including MusicWorks and the Tremaine Dance Convention.  Laura has been married to Justin Slager since June 2008 and resides in Cookeville, TN with Justin and their two daughters, Ella and Sophia.   

Assistant Director and Instructor of Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Contemporary and Hip Hop

Kirstin is from Reading, Michigan. She has been teaching dance at Studio 55 since 2016 and is excited to continue! 

Kirstin began dancing at the age of 3. At age 4 she began taking lessons at Studio 55. She studied jazz, tap, ballet, pointe, competitive pom, and hip-hop. In 2015 she became a member of the Jackson Dance Company where she studied ballet, pointe, contemporary, and jazz. She danced competitively and attended several dance conventions, including Dance Makers Inc. and 24Seven Dance.  

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Kirstin studied ballet, jazz, modern, and classical Indian dance, Bharatanatyam under Lindsay Fisher Viatori, Ursula Payne, and Jesse Factor at Slippery Rock University. She is also our yoga teacher! 

When Kirstin is not dancing she enjoys doing yoga, playing with dogs, baking, and hanging out with friends and family!

Office Manager

Erin lives in Horton, MI with her husband Andrew and her daughter, Jordyn and her son Dawson. They love being outside and enjoying God's creation. Erin graduated from Douglas J Aveda Institute in November of 2007 and has worked as a hair stylist and make up artist since then. She is also a Rodan and Fields consultant and homeschools her children - she stays busy!  She also enjoys crafting and sewing and making costumes and head pieces for the studio. Erin is the Office Manager at Studio 55 and loves her job!

Office Assistant and Instructor of Ballet and Contemporary

Sarah is from Pleasant Lake, MI. She graduation from Hillsdale College, where she majored in Economics and minored in Chemisty and Dance. 

Sarah has been dancing for over 15 years. She started dancing competitively at age 5 with the In Motion dance team and at age 12 joined the Jackson Ballet Company, continuing to dance competitvely until age 18. During this time she studied ballet, pointe, jazz, contemporary, tap, salsa, and modern. Sarah was trained in both Vagonova and Cecchetti styles of ballet, and she hasalso studied dance with the Greater Lansing Ballet Company, Ballet Magnificat, and Ballet 5:8. 

Before teaching at Studio 55, Sarah taught and choreographed for 4 years at Academy of the Arts. Sarah was a part of Tower Dancers at Hillsdale College, and continues to choreograph for a variety of events. In her spare time, she enjoys participating in swing and ballroom dancing, bible study and choir.
 

Instructor of Tumbling

Kirk is from Columbus, OH, and a recent graduate of Hillsdale College where he majored in Economics and Mathematics. 

Kirk was a competitive gymnast for over 13 years, but chose to pursue academics over athletics and has yet to regret it! Beginning at the age of 5, Kirk eventually reached the highest level, before collegiate gymnastics, and appeared at three J.O. National championships. Finishing his career at the International Gymnastics Academy, Kirk had phenomenal coaches including DeRon McIntyre, as well as several former Olympians including Casimiro Suarez, Rustam Sharipov, and Dmitry Bilozerchev. Kirk's most accomplished event was the floor exercise.

Before coming to Studio 55, Kirk led his team of young men through basic tumbling and stretching nearly every day for three years, and he loves sharing all of his knowledge with our students. In his free time, Kirk enjoys listening to music, conversing and joking with friends and family.

Instructor of Scottish

Allie (Gibson) Murad is a British Association of Teachers of Dancing (BATD) certified Highland Dance instructor. She has been teaching Highland Dance to students of all ages since 2007 and enjoys focusing not only on competitive dancing but choreography as well. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Exercise and Health Science from Alma College in 2009 and completed a Master of Public Health degree with a focus in Epidemiology from the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in 2011. She operates a traditional Highland Dance studio in East Lansing where she also organizes and runs a large annual competition, the Spartan Tartan Highland Dance Competition. She is an Instructor of Highland Dance at Alma College, where she coordinates the Kiltie Dancers. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband Colin, son Harrison, and their dog and two cats.