Sophia Lucia
Sophia Lucia, Dance Prodigy, Guinness World Record Holder, YouTube Sensation, Entrepreneur, and Educator, loves to dance and strives each day to be the best she can be by pushing her and her students abilities to the limit.
Sophia started dancing at the young age of two at San Diego Dance Centre in Poway, CA and is now teaching dance all around the world and is one of the most exciting talents in the industry. She is trained in Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Lyrical, Ballroom, and Contemporary. Sophia moved to Scottsdale, Arizona at the age of twelve to train with Master Ballet Academy and later danced with the Phoenix Ballet. A year later, Sophia and her dance partner, Jack Beckham, took home the Gold Medal at Varna IBC representing the USA. Being the youngest to compete at Varna IBC, she was awarded with a Special Bounty Partnership Award. Sophia and her partner went on and received a Silver and Gold Medal at YAGP nationals in New York City. She then made her acting debut in Hallmark’s “A Nutcracker Christmas,” portraying a young ballerina with aspirations to become a prima ballerina. During her time filming, she continued to train and dance with the National Ballet of Canada. Since her young success in the Ballet industry, she’s had the honor to perform worldwide representing the USA as a Gold Medalist.
Sophia’s focus and determination has lead her to excel in her career. She set the Official Guinness World Record of 55 Consecutive Pirouettes at just ten years old. Sophia has a partnership with Capezio and created her own shoe called Turning Pointe 55 by Sophia Lucia that is sold worldwide. She has earned several National Champion Dance Titles, such as The Dance Awards’s Best Dancer, Varna IBC Gold Medalist. From a young age, she has been featured in numerous television shows such as ‘Dancing with the Stars,’ ‘So You Think You Can Dance,’ Disney’s hit show ‘Shake it Up,’ ‘X-Factor,’ Nickelodeon’s ‘Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn’ and ‘America’s Got Talent,’ plus several talk shows like ‘The Ellen Show’ and ‘The Ricki Lake Show,’ to name a few. She made her film debut in 2010 as child star icon, Shirley Temple in the Fox Legacy Movie “The Shirley Temple Story” and her acting debut in Hallmark’s “A Nutcracker Christmas.” During her time filming, she continued to train and dance with the National Ballet of Canada.
Sophia’s ability to not only captivate an audience with her artistry, but inspire others with her teaching style is truly profound. She has formed a passion for teaching and has been all over the country working for dance conventions, such as; Art of Movement, KAR Conventions, Break the Floor and is currently on tour with Intrigue Dance Convention. Sophia strives to be the best role model and teacher she can be for her students, and is a fantastic mentor. Her performances have catapulted her to internet stardom and taken her across the world to do what she loves most, dance.
Joey Matt
Joey was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta and has been dancing and performing since the age of 7. After competing as a child, his passion led him to audition and make it to the top sixteen on the first season of ‘So You Think You Can Dance Canada.’ He has since been apart of assisting both the Canadian and American ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ television series. When moving to Vancouver, BC he joined a dance company titled ‘Modus Operandi’ to further explore the technique and foundations of modern and contemporary dance. While living there he also worked as a dancer/ actor on the CW series ‘Hellcats’ and NBC’s ‘Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.’ Joey has performed in Industrial Trade shows and Galas such as Bell Mobility, Telus, CN Railway, and Toyota. Other credits include performing alongside Sarah Mclachlan, K’naan, Carly Rae Jepsen, Mariana’s Trench, Ciara, Tyga, and Nelly. In 2015 Joey toured Switzerland with a show called ‘Art on Ice’ where he backup danced for Nelly Furtado, Tom O’dell, Jessie J, and the Jacksons. He has had the recent pleasure of appearing on HBO’s ‘The Last of Us’ and is currently a member of ‘Joe Ink’ and ‘O2 The Dance Company’ whilst guest teaching across Canada.
Emma Lund
Emma Lund is a distinguished dance artist, choreographer, educator, and adjudicator based in Calgary, Alberta. Renowned for her ability to cultivate technical excellence in competitive dancers, Emma has become a highly sought-after educator and creative force throughout Western Canada.
With a diverse and extensive background in ballet, jazz, tap, contemporary, and hip-hop, Emma brings both versatility and depth to her work. Her passion for contemporary dance led her to pursue post-secondary training at The Conteur Academy in Toronto, under the direction of Eryn Waltman. There, she honed her craft with a strong emphasis on technical refinement and compositional development, which shaped her unique artistic voice and teaching philosophy.
Emma is recognized for her ability to inspire and connect with dancers of all ages and skill levels. Her teaching challenges young artists to think critically, move intentionally, and explore their creative potential—fostering not only technical growth but artistic maturity. Her choreographic work has earned her multiple awards, reflecting her innovative approach and talent for bringing out the best in her dancers.
Some of her professional credits include performances at The JUNO Awards (Alessia Cara), The Capezio A.C.E. Awards (Los Angeles), with o2 Dance Company (Calgary), and on Locke & Key (Netflix). Her choreography has also been featured by the Calgary Outriders (CFL cheer team) and Hermès.
Char Lowe
Charlotte is a Calgary-based dancer, teacher, and choreographer with over 20 years of experience in the dance industry. During her early years, she trained intensively in styles including jazz, tap, ballet, RAD ballet, lyrical, contemporary, and hip-hop. While dancing, Charlotte was awarded multiple scholarships and unique awards for her skills in tap and hip hop; she even performed as a soloist at a world-wide competition in Boston, MA.
Charlotte now shares her passion and educates dancers across Western Canada. She is recognized by her high-energy, groovy classes that inspire dancers of all ages—from beginner, intermediate, advanced and even professional crews. She draws inspiration and skills from training sessions with notable educators like Roberta Bierman, Shandon Perez, Rob Rich, Alexander Chung, Charmaine Baquiran, and Edgar Reyes. You can find Miss Char as guest faculty at local conventions, hosting workshops and drop-in classes for all ages and levels, and pushing young dancers' skills in intensive competitive programs.
Charlotte has been recognized for her creative choreography, earning special awards, top scores, and invitations to provincial championships. She has set and collaborated on routines for dance crews that are performed for ~15,000 fans. She continues to grow as an artist, training with educators from Los Angeles, Toronto, and Vancouver, while performing professionally with the NLL Calgary Roughnecks Drill Crew Dance Team, as well as illFX Event Entertainment at events like the new BMO Centre 2024 Grand Opening, The SPECTRA Show, Bridal Expo/Wedding Fair, and more!
Whether you're stepping into one of her classes or watching from the audience, Miss Char brings the same energy: fun, commanding, and full of groove.
Anna Steele
Anna started dancing at the age of 3 and has fallen in love with it ever since. She grew up dancing competitively in all styles, including Jazz, Ballet, Lyrical, Modern/Contemporary, Hip Hop, Tap, Pointe, and Acro, graduating from Airborne Dance Centre in 2018. She loves to bring her own style and knowledge forward as she shares her love and passion for dance with all her students.
Anna currently performs with the Roughnecks Drill Crew dance team as well as the Stampeders Outriders cheerleaders, and has choreographed for both. She also performed with the Jonas Brothers at the 2024 Grey Cup Halftime Show. Anna teaches and choreographs at multiple studios in Calgary, striving to keep up with her own training as she continues to pursue a career in dance.
Nia Hoffmann
Nia grew up dancing at Elite Dance Academy here in Calgary, Alberta. She started off in Ballet but as her love for dance grew, she branched out into all other styles including Jazz, Lyrical, Modern, Hip Hop and Tap. She competed for many years and spent two years in the Young Canadians of the Calgary Stampede where she danced and sang. Over the course of her childhood, she spent time in all areas of the performing arts by also participating in acting lessons, performing
in plays with local theatre, and taking piano and voice lessons from the ages of five-18.
Currently, Nia is attending school part-time studying early learning and child studies. She also continues to pursue her love of dance by performing with the Calgary Roughnecks Drill Crew, the Rhinestone Cowgirls and the Calgary Stampeders Outriders.
Nia loves to further her professional development and is constantly learning. She has completed year one of the ADAPT teacher training school, as well as modules 1 and 2 of Acrobatic Arts.
Claudia Sanchez
Claudia Sánchez Alvaré was born in Havana, Cuba, and began her ballet journey at the age of 7. Her talent and dedication quickly stood out, earning her a place at the prestigious Cuban National Ballet School (ENA), where she trained for eight years. Graduating as both a ballet dancer and teacher, Claudia's classical ballet foundation was strong and well-rounded. In 2007, Claudia joined the Ballet Nacional de Cuba, where she spent seven years dancing as a professional ballet dancer. Her impressive repertoire with the National Ballet of Cuba includes iconic works such as Giselle, Don Quixote, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, and Theme and Variations, among many others, showcasing her versatility and artistry on stage.
In 2014, Claudia moved to Canada, where she continued her professional dance career with both the Victoria Ballet and the Alberta Ballet. However, after retiring from performing, Claudia found her next passion in teaching. She dedicated over five years of her career to teaching at the Alberta Ballet School, working with dancers of all levels. She also collaborated with the YYC Dance Project, where she was in charge of their ballet training and played a crucial role in preparing dancers for competitions such as the Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP), the Ballet World Competition, and prestigious school auditions, including those for the Juilliard School, the Royal Ballet School, and the Opéra de Paris School. Claudia's teaching excellence was recognized when she received three Best Teacher awards at the 4th World Ballet Art Competition Grand Prix Semi-Finals in Calgary and Finals in Niagara Falls, both in 2007.
When the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the dance community, Claudia saw an opportunity to support dancers worldwide and launched "Learning Ballet with Claudia." This platform offers one-on-one ballet coaching, focusing on improving technique, preparing for competitions, auditions, and exams. Claudia continues to inspire dancers of all ages and levels, offering both online and in-person master classes to help them reach their full potential. Recently, Claudia introduced a new resource for dancers—a Dance Journal, available at City Dancewear, Amazon and her website Learning Ballet with Claudia. The journal helps dancers track their progress, set goals, and record corrections and feedback from teachers.
One of Claudia's proudest accomplishments as a teacher is seeing her students succeed. Notably, one of her students received a scholarship to the prestigious Juilliard School in New York, and another was awarded a scholarship to the American Ballet Theatre School. She is also honored to have been one of the teachers of Tate McRae, a renowned dancer and artist, further affirming her legacy in the dance world.
Today, Claudia remains passionately committed to her mission of helping dancers improve and achieve their dreams, fueled by her love for ballet and teaching.