MISS AFTON

  • Miss Afton is the proud owner of Fusion Dance & Performing Arts, established in 1999 (formally Attitudes Dance by Aimee), as well as the director of Fusion’s Dance Company. While attending college at the University of Iowa, she obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance, and was a four-year member (and Senior captain) of the nationally ranked Iowa Dance Team. Throughout her 20+ year career as a dance instructor, she has worked for the Universal Dance Association, coached various area high school teams, and has spent 16+ years choreographing and cleaning dances for teams and soloists across the state of Iowa. In 2011, prior to returning to the Cedar Valley, Afton was working as a professional dancer for the Denver Nuggets NBA team, and a fitness instructor in the Denver Metro area. When the opportunity was presented to own a dance studio, she did not want to pass up the chance to share her love, creativity, and knowledge of dance with her hometown. Fusion Dance & Performing Arts serves more than 400 families in the Cedar Valley, and Miss Afton is thrilled to provide the best experience for all.

MISS JAY

  • Miss Jay grew up in Dunkerton and started her dance journey at Attitudes Dance by Aimee when she was three. As the studio changed ownership and became Fusion, Miss Jay began assisting at the age of 13 and after graduating she stepped up into the role of instructor. You may also see her behind the desk in the office or running around the studio! Miss Jay graduated from UNI with a major in English teaching and is now an English teacher at Dike-New Hartford High School. She loves sharing her love for teaching and dance with her Fusion Fam!

MISS MIRANDA

  • Miss Miranda grew up in Cedar Rapids and began teaching at MOvMNT Dance Company, where she trained in dance and found her love for the art. She moved to Cedar Falls to attend the University of Northern Iowa and major in Public Relations. While attending college, she taught for Prestige Dance Studio. Miranda then joined the Fusion Family in 2018. This year will mark her 11th year as a dance teacher, her 6th year with Fusion! She teaches Hip Hop, Jazz, Pom, Yoga, and various Adult Classes. You’ll also catch her as one of our Innovate Soul Directors and as a Coach for Waterloo West High School Dance Team! Miranda is excited to watch our Fusion students continue to grow, both as dancers and as good humans! 

MISS JENSEN

  •  Miss Jensen grew up here in Waterloo and began dancing at the age of 8. She began her studies in downtown Waterloo at Attitudes Dance by Aimee which then turned into Fusion! She was on the Waterloo West High’s dance team and was captain her senior year. Recently in May 2021, she graduated with her Bachelors in Arts in Dance! She also obtained her Hatha Yoga certification during her time in college!

MISS MYA

  •  Miss Mya is from Waterloo, Iowa and is now attending the University of Northern Iowa to study Marketing. She started dancing at Fusion when she was nine years old and later joined the Innovative Soul Dance Company. Miss Mya was on the competitive team until she graduated in 2022 and started teaching at Fusion. She loves dancing and getting to work with the dancers at Fusion! Some of her closest friends were made through dancing at the studio, and she is so excited to be back as an instructor and office staff member.

MISS DEBRA

  • Miss Debra grew up in Kansas and began dancing at the age of three. She has trained in all styles of dance. Debra continued with dance in college and attained a BFA in Dance from Wichita State University. While at WSU she was a member of the Wichita State University Dance Ensemble.  She served as vice president of the Mid-American Dance Theatre that helped students produce independent dance concerts. In addition, she was part of Wichita’s traveling company the Wichita Contemporary Dance Theatre.  Debra has danced with several professional and semi-professional dance companies, and has also performed in several productions of the Nutcracker, including a principle role.  In 2004 Debra danced with the Houston Metropolitan Dance Company, which is an outlet for diverse professional dancers proficient in multiple disciplines. From 2005-2007 she was a member of an independent dance collective that performed throughout the Cedar Valley. During her more than 30 years of dance experience, she has completed dance intensives with David Parsons, Denise Veil, Robert Battle, Gus Giordano, Dianne Walker, and many others. Debra has been teaching and choreographing for more than 20 years working with more than seven studios across the Mid-west and Texas.  She has also choreographed musicals and pieces for universities, high schools, community theatres, and dance competitions. She choreographed “Kiss Me Kate”, “The Music Man” and “White Christmas” for CFCT and “Pal Joey” for Wartburg College. She also served as the coach for the Waterloo West Dance Team from 2013-2016. Debra is also a Co-director for Fusion’s competitive dance team Innovative Soul. She is thrilled to continue sharing her passion for dance with the students of Fusion Dance and Performing Arts.

MS. TRU

  • Destiny (Tru) Cyrus was born and raised in Chicago. Tru co-founded DVK Dance Team at Wartburg College and started her teaching career at Dance Wave Dance studio in Waverly. Tru broke into Community theatre choreographing 2 UNI theatre productions: Dream with me & Blood at the Root, 3 Waterloo Community Playhouse Theatre productions: Footloose, Shrek, & Saturday Night Fever & The Hunchback of Notre Dame with Cedar Falls Community Theatre. Tru is currently assistant director of Rebel City Dance Organization, based in Des Moines (Waterloo chapter coming soon). Tru is a Hawkeye College graduate of the Physical Therapy Assistant (PTA) program. She’s a proud pup mom & independent business owner who loves teaching competitive hip hop & Hip Hop Fit for our Fusion Fam. 

MISS RACHEL

  • Miss Rachel grew up in Cedar Falls and began dancing at age 4. She started dancing at Fusion in high school, and has studied ballet, tap, pointe, jazz, modern, hip hop, pom, and musical theatre. Rachel danced on the Cedar Falls Dance Team all 4 years of high school, serving as a captain her senior year. She had roles in The Nutcracker with the Minnesota Ballet for many years, from childhood and into her teenage years. She has done summer ballet intensives with the Minnesota Dance Theater in Minneapolis, and has had experience in a number of local musicals and theater productions, often serving as a dance captain and assisting with choreography. Now, Miss Rachel is a student at UNI studying Movement and Exercise Science, as well as Spanish, and hopes to continue to work in the dance and fitness field after graduation. She continues her dance education with the Orchesis Dance Company at UNI, and has choreographed for wedding parties and musicals, including “Frozen Jr.”

MISS CALANEY

  • Miss Calaney is from Waterloo, Iowa and is currently studying English Teaching at the University of Northern Iowa. She began dancing at Attitudes by Aimee at the age of two and continued at Fusion Dance & Performing Arts. For seven years, she danced with the Innovative Soul Competitive Dance team at Fusion and also participated in the Waterloo West High Dance Team for three years. Miss Calaney started her teaching journey as an assistant teacher at the age of twelve and began teaching at fifteen. This year marks her fifth year as a teacher at the studio. She has a passion for teaching jazz and hip-hop classes and she thoroughly enjoys guiding her students and observing their progress throughout the years. Alongside her love for teaching, she enjoys traveling and exploring new cultures. 

MISS LEXIE

  • Miss Lexie began her ballet training at Kate Carol & Company Dance in Iowa City, Iowa. She attended this studio from elementary through high school along with summer intensives at Joffrey Ballet School (NYC) and Hubbard Street Dance (Chicago). Lexie attended the University of Iowa, where she taught at the University of Iowa Youth Ballet and completed a research practicum in dance history with Rebekah J. Kowal. Lexie has since taught at Nashville Ballet, Texas Ballet Theater, and Kansas City Ballet. She is excited to be back in Iowa and teaching at Fusion!

MISS CELESTE

  • Miss Celeste has grown up in the Cedar Valley, taking her first dance class at the age of 3 years old. She danced at studios within the Cedar Valley and was a member of the Cedar Falls Dance Team until she graduated high school in 2013. Celeste has had a passion and love for dance since she began, which led her to major in dance at Cottey College in Nevada, Missouri. She received her Associate of Arts Degree specializing in dance in 2015, and moved back to the Cedar Valley. Celeste started teaching dance in 2013, while in college, and knew she wanted to continue when she moved back. Throughout her years of teaching dance, she has worked with students from the ages of 3 to 18 years old teaching all different styles such as: ballet, pointe, lyrical, hip hop, tap, jazz, and pom. Celeste has also had the opportunity to participate In adult dance teams like the Cedar Valley Court Kings, and Iowa Woo, which has allowed her to continue working on her personal skills and allowed her to continue dancing. Miss Celeste’s personal favorite style of dance is lyrical or jazz. Celeste is so excited to continue to share her love and passion for dance with all of you at Fusion Dance & Performing Arts!

MISS OLIVIA

  • Miss Liv (Olivia) grew up in the Cedar Valley and started dancing at just two years old. She joined Fusion Dance & Performing Arts in third grade and spent the next ten years on the competition team, dancing through her senior year of high school. Now Liv is back at Fusion teaching both the youngest dancers and the competition teams, bringing the same energy and love of dance she grew up with to a new generation of students. She is currently attending the University of Northern Iowa, studying Business Management, and works as Program Coordinator for the nonprofit Rhythm & Bloom. Liv is excited to share her passion for dance with her students and watch them grow, just as she once did on this same team.

MISS RHEA

  • Rhea is originally from Waverly, Iowa, where she began dancing at the age of five.  At the age of 11, she began competitive dance at her studio, where she was also a teaching assistant for five years. Throughout high school Rhea enjoyed being on the dance team.  She continued that passion in college, dancing for the Central College dance team and earning a National Championship in Pom and a 5th-place national finish in Jazz!  Rhea's favorite styles include Pom, Contemporary, Hip Hop, and Jazz.  Outside of dance, she is a patient care technician at Allen Hospital. Rhea is studying at the University of Northern Iowa and plans to attend Allen College School of Nursing.

MISS ASHLEY

  • She began her dance career at the age of 10 as a background dancer for an up-and-coming vocal artist performing all around the state of Iowa. She was introduced to the style of stepping by a community group called United As One. She has traveled and performed with multiple drill teams at churches, parades, and competitions. Aj performed in Fine Arts Nationals for group and solo Human Videos.

    In high school, Aj was the Show Choir Captain and choreographer for 2 years, Color Guard Captain for 2 years, Dance Team Captain for 3 years, Basketball Cheer Captain for 1 year, and Kickline Captain for 1 year.

    After high school, she worked as a choreographer for high school dance teams and high school show choirs. She has currently been training and performing with some of the top hip hop dancers and choreographers in Iowa at Rebel City since 2017. 

    AJ is excited to now be with Fusion Dance & Performing Arts

MISS HALIE

  • Miss Halie grew up in Anita, IA and started dancing with Villa Dance Company at the age of 5. She has studied ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, pom, modern, and musical theatre. Halie danced all four years on the CAM High School dance team while also being a member of the CAM Cheer Team. Halie moved to the Cedar Valley in 2019 to study at The University of Northern Iowa where she completed her Bachelor of Arts in Textiles and Apparel the Spring of 2023. While at UNI Halie danced 3 1/2 years with the Orchesis Dance Company even choreographing a few pieces. Now Miss Halie participates in community theatre productions with Waterloo Community Playhouse and is returning to school Fall of 2025 to study Digital Mass Media at Hawkeye Community College. Halie is thrilled to join the team here at Fusion.

MISS MADISON

  • Miss Madison grew up in Cedar Falls, IA. She is now attending University of Northern Iowa Studying Early Childhood Education. She began dancing at the age of 2. She competed in competitions from age 13-high school. Her favorite styles of dance are lyrical and tap. Madison also found her passion for teaching dance beginning at age 13 as an assistant instructor. Miss Madison is so excited to return to teaching and share her passion with all of the little ones. 

MISS ELIZABETH

  • Elizabeth Tanner grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and will be joining the team as the new tumbling instructor. She began her journey in dance at a young age but soon found her passion in gymnastics, competing for 12 years starting at just 1½ years old. Following her gymnastics career, Elizabeth spent four years in All Star (competitive) cheerleading and was a member of her high school’s varsity cheer team for three years. She now continues her cheerleading career at the University of Northern Iowa.

    In addition to her own athletic background, Elizabeth brings five years of coaching experience as a gymnastics instructor. She is currently a junior at UNI, studying Biology on the pre-physical therapy track. Elizabeth is excited to share her experience, knowledge, and enthusiasm with students and looks forward to being part of the team.

MISS HARLEY

  • Miss Harley is from Hudson, IA and she started her dancing career when she was just three years old at Attitudes Dance by Aimee, which is now Fusion! She has been active in a variety of dance styles ever since. When she’s not teaching at Fusion, Miss Harley works full time as a Veterinary Technician at Den Herder Veterinary Hospital. In her free time, she loves working out, walking her dogs and spending time with her friends and family. Miss Harley is looking forward to meeting all the new dancers and diving into another great season at Fusion!

MISS MEGAN

  • Miss Megan is from Chariton, Iowa where she grew up dancing at her local studio DXP. There, she immersed herself in various styles, including hip-hop, jazz, lyrical, and contemporary. She was on the Chariton Drill Team for four years and served one year as a captain. Her dedication led to consecutive top-three finishes at the ISDTA solo competition. After graduation, Megan transitioned to assistant coach for her high school drill team while also joining the UNI Dance Team. Over four years with UNIDT, she showcased her talents at both state and national competitions with her team. She's thrilled to join Fusion, eager to connect with her students and provide them with a solid foundation for success in dance!

MISS MIRANDA T

  • Miss Miranda Tall is an Iowa native, mother of 3 boys and 2 girls, raised in Iowa City, Iowa. Miranda began her dance training at the Nolte Academy under the direction of Leslie Nolte and Analia Allegra-Feminias. She enjoyed studying many dance styles, including ballet, modern, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, and tap. While training at the Nolte Academy, she studied the techniques of Graham, Limón, Horton, Taylor and Duncan. Her ballet training was rooted in Balanchine under the direction of Tad and Grace Snider from the Houston Ballet. Miranda also participated in many Nutcracker performances, appearing in the roles of Russian Candy, Marzipan, Arabian and Dew Drop. As a younger dancer, she was also selected to join the Joffrey Ballet in their Nutcracker production. While studying in Iowa City, Miranda was invited to participate in many summer intensives, including the Milwaukee Ballet, Alvin Ailey, Gus Giordano and an Urban Bush Women masterclass. Miranda furthered her dance studies at the University of Utah as a Modern Dance major. She studied under the instruction of Pamela Gerber-Handman, Sharee Lane and Stephen Koester. She performed in the Performance Dance Company of the University of Utah and was selected to take part in choreography by Juan Carlos-Claudio, the Gallim Dance Company/Andrea Miller and Sarah Franco. She also appeared as a choreographer in the University Student Concert. Miss Miranda additionally studied the modern dance gaga technique under the direction of Ron Amit of the Batsheva Dance company. During her years of college, she also studied Exercise Physiology with an emphasis in Kinesiology.  Miranda is excited to join the dance staff at Fusion Dance and Performing Arts. She hopes to share her love of movement and dance with all of you.

MISS CAROLINE

  • Miss Caroline is from Swisher, Iowa where she grew up dancing at Prestige Dance Studio. She started dancing at age three and began competing at age eight. Caroline has been active in many styles of dance: jazz, lyrical, contemporary, ballet, hip hop, and tap. Throughout her 4 years of high school, Caroline danced for the Prairie Varsity Dance Team where she competed in Pom and Jazz. Competing at UDA nationals in high school introduced her to her love of competing at a higher dance team level. She then went on to dance in college at South Dakota State University. She competed in Division 1 Pom, Jazz, and GameDay. Her team was ranked top 10 in each of these routines. Caroline recently graduated from SDSU and is now attending UNI to further her education in graduate school. There she will pursue her second passion - helping others—as she works towards her Master's degree in both clinical and school counseling. She is currently a UDA Staff member and is eager to continue spreading her passion for dance at Fusion. 

MISS ELYSE

  • Miss Elyse grew up in Southern California studying dance since preschool. She rapidly expanded her horizons beyond ballet to jazz, lyrical, contemporary, hip-hop and tap. Elyse joined the varsity dance team her freshman year of high school and earned national recognition
    as both a team member and soloist. While attending Loyola Marymount University for math and electrical engineering, she minored in dance and was an instructor at the dance studio where her journey began. After moving to Iowa, she obtained her MBA to further her career
    aspirations, but couldn’t let her love for dance fade. Elyse is excited to join the Fusion staff to help students develop their technique and creativity while having fun!