A graduate of the University of the Arts with a B.F.A. in Dance, Miss Karen has performed extensively throughout her career. These performances include many Atlantic City Casinos, the Famous Palumbo’s in Philadelphia, performing in a TV commercial for Power 99, and gracing the field of the Vet as an Eagles Cheerleader. One of her most memorable experiences was performing at the World Trade Center. With more than thirty years of teaching experience, she will be teaching children’s work, tap/jazz combo classes and Jazz classes. Miss Karen also enjoys assisting in the direction of the Competition teams and takes pride in their award winning routines! In addition to teaching, Karen is excited to be entering her 28th year as artistic director. Throughout her years as Director, Miss Karen is proud of the many studio awards Accent has received. These include, outstanding technique, choreography, entertainment and overall high scores!

Alayna Mae Watkins (she/her) is a dancer from Hereford, Pennsylvania and is a 2025 graduate from Shenandoah University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts and minor in Business Administration. She started dancing at Studios on Main when she was 12 years old where she trained in jazz, modern, pointe, acro, hip hop, ballet, contemporary, tap, and musical theater. During her time at SU, Alayna had the opportunity to travel to Greece where she performed in many villages on a Global Experiential Learning trip led by faculty and chair, Maurice Fraga. Alayna has also had the opportunity to perform works by faculty members Tiffanie Carson, Daniel Padierna, Dr. Ting Yu Chen, Lindsay Browning, and Erica Helm. As well as guest artists such as Mike Esperanza and Danielle Sten-Guillermo.

Professionally, Alayna has worked as a dancer at Kings Dominion (2023 and 2025) and Dorney Park (2019 and 2022). She also has experience teaching and choreographing at her home studio. As well, through the company Art in Motion, she led and choreographed a show for a dance camp.

Miss Dawn has been teaching at Accent School of Dance for 21 years and is grateful to be able to be a part of the Accent Family for so long. Miss Dawn is the director of the Studio Dance Academy and a dance teacher at William Allen High School in Allentown, PA. She also serves as the Assistant Director and Choreographer for the high school’s musical productions. She began her dance training at age 7 and grew up as a competitive dancer in various genres and styles. Blanco attended Temple University and Kutztown University. She holds a K–12 teaching certification in the state of Pennsylvania and a Dance Masters of America Certification in Ballet, Jazz and Modern Instruction. Miss Dawn has an expansive background teaching at studios, colleges and universities throughout Pennsylvania. She has also spent several years as the director of a large dance studio in downtown Allentown. Miss Dawn has dedicated much of her career to teaching and inspiring students in underserved communities. Because of the impact she has had, Blanco was a guest on The Queen Latifah Show and had a feature story on PBS. She has won several awards in recognition of her creative choreography, choreographing for nationally competitive dance ensembles, soloists and high school dance teams. Many of her former students have gone on to dance professionally on Broadway, The VMA Awards, NY Fashion Week, and Cruise lines and some are teaching at distinguished studios and universities, including Millennium Dance Complex in Vegas. Blanco’s passion in life is inspiring students and paving a path for them to pursue their dreams.

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Miss Lea began dancing at Accent at the age of 3. She is now returning to Accent as an instructor for her 11th season! She is excited to be leading the Acrobatic and Irish program. She is excited to make the classes a fun and an enjoyable environment for all! Lea attended LCCC with a concentration in early childhood education. She is also a past dancer and choreographer for Dorney Park and a past competitive choreographer for Pocono Academy of Dance. She works at White’s Machine Inc.

Noelle graduated from DeSales University with a BA in Dance in 2018. She began dancing at the age 2 and has never stopped since! Her passion encouraged her to pursue dance in college where she concentrated in Ballet and Modern. She was in pieces choreographed by Joshua L Peugh, Paul Occampo, Sarah Carlson, Robert Colby Damon, Julia Mayo and other various choreographers. Since graduating she has been a teacher at Encore Dance Center in Lancaster, PA where she taught various styles including contemporary, jazz, tap, ballet, hip hop, and preschool level classes. She was also the coach of Lancaster Catholic’s Dance Team and choreographed musicals for Lancaster Catholic, her favorites being Once on this Island and Anastasia. Since 2018 she has been a part of emme dance collective, a contemporary modern company based out of Lancaster.

Miss Stephanie returns for her 5th year on our Accent staff after serving as a 7 year veteran and 4 year captain of the Philadelphia Eagles Cheerleading squad from 2009- 2016. Prior to her time cheering on her favorite team in the NFL, Stephanie graduated from Drexel University with her Bachelors of Science Degree in Design and Merchandising and a minor in both Business and Dance. While at Drexel, Stephanie was a 4 year member and captain of Drexel’s Division 1 Dance Team and a member of the Drexel Dance Ensemble. After earning her undergraduate degree Stephanie then went on to attend Philadelphia University where she earned her MBA and had the opportunity to study abroad in India. Stephanie currently works full-time as a Senior Project Manager for Lehigh Valley Health Network. Stephanie has been trained in the areas of tap, jazz, ballet, hip-hop, modern, lyrical, and theatre and is very excited to bring her passion for dance back into the studio as a member of the Accent teaching staff.

Cassandra Lee started her dance journey at Accent when she was nine years old and was on the competition team for 7 years. She graduated from Parkland High School in 2023 and was captain of the Parkland Dance Team. She is currently a third year at Northeastern University in Boston studying pharmacy with a minor in business administration. On campus, she is president of Kinematix Dance Troupe which is Northeastern’s premiere hip hop dance team. This upcoming fall, she is hosting the annual 16th showcase, FUNK’tion XVI, where teams from all over the north east and California come to share their love for dance. She is also part of Kappa Phi Lambda (an Asian interest sorority) and Phi Lambda Sigma (a pharmacy honor society). She is super excited to come to Accent to teach and choreograph!

Miss Brittany has been part of the Accent Family since the age of three, when she began dancing under the guidance of Miss Karen. In 2007, she proudly joined the faculty and has been inspiring students ever since. She earned her B.F.A. in Dance from Temple University, where she performed in numerous productions throughout the Philadelphia area alongside students and faculty.

Miss Brittany’s experience includes coaching the Parkland Middle School Dance Team and choreographing for both the Parkland High School Varsity and JV Dance Teams. She has also choreographed for the William Allen Dance Academy.

A lifelong learner, Miss Brittany continues to refine her skills through workshops, classes, and conventions. She holds teaching certifications in Jazz and Modern from Dance Masters of America, and her choreography has received recognition at both regional and national competitions.

In addition to teaching and choreographing, she has recently begun a new chapter as a dance competition judge. As a proud recipient of the 2023 Georgia Deane Memorial Scholarship, Miss Brittany is excited to teach Combo classes,  Hip-Hop, Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Lyrical and Contemporary classes, as well as to choreograph for Accent’s competition teams.

Miss Brenna is excited to be entering her 10th season at Accent! Miss Brenna earned her Bachelor’s Degrees in Dance and Communications from Cedar Crest College in 2013. While in college, she studied Tap, Jazz, Ballet, and Modern. She was a member of both the Cedar Crest College Dance Company and The Monarch Dance Company. Miss Brenna also performed in several Musical Productions at Cedar Crest including the role of Velma Kelly in Chicago the Musical and Violet Newstead in 9 to 5! In her free time, Miss Brenna enjoys taking yoga classes and spending time with her family. Miss Brenna's passion for dance is fulfilled every week by teaching tap to all of the amazing students at Accent and choreographing for the Tap Ensemble teams.

Emilia is a working professional dancer based in the Lehigh Valley. Her foundational training began at the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts and has since continued dance training with Contemporary and Commercial Dance Companies such as EMOTIONS and BRICKHOUSE XPRO. She has additionally trained under the mentorship of Teddy Forance, Martha Nichols and Riley Watts of the CLI Conservatory. She has worked with numerous working choreographers in the professional dance industry such as Miguel Zárate, Robbie Blue and Sabina Lundgren. Emilia’s teaching philosophy is rooted in building confidence in oneself through dedicated training and precision. She believes in discipline to the craft while also making the hard work fun. She can’t wait to teach our students to love ballet as much as she does. Remember: we float through adagio and take flight in allegro!

Maddy Slick began dancing at the age of 3, right here at Accent! Maddy graduated from Penn State University in 2020 with a degree in public relations and Spanish. During her time at Penn State, she performed with both the Whiplash Hip Hop Dance Team and Orchesis Dance company. The highlight of her college dance experience was performing in front of 15,000 as a part of the Penn State Dance Marathon. Maddy has trained in the areas of tap, jazz, ballet, hip-hop, contemporary, and lyrical. She is also a Barre3 Lehigh Valley instructor and is looking forward to her 4th season as a member of the Accent teaching staff! This year Miss Maddy is looking forward to sharing her love of hip-hop and jazz. You can also catch her subbing and teaching various guest classes throughout the year.

Miss Rachael grew up dancing in the Lehigh Valley, competing in regional and national dance competitions. She is a graduate of Temple University, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts. During her time at Temple, Miss Rachael was a Division 1 cheerleader, and competed at the UCA National Cheer Championships in Orlando, FL. Upon Graduation, Miss Rachael returned to the Lehigh Valley to begin her teaching career and is currently working full-time as the Assistant Director of High School Connections at LCCC . Miss Rachael continues her dance education with various professional dance organizations. She has earned her Dance Masters of America teacher training certification in Jazz and Ballet Instruction. Miss Rachael’s choreography has received many high awards and honors, including top scores and specialty recognition. Some notable highlights include New York City Dance Alliance Critics Choice, Top Choreography at True Dance & Dancers Inc., National Invitations, Studio Choreography and Technique awards, just to name a few. This year, Miss Rachael will be teaching Lyrical, Ballet, Pointe, Pre-Pointe, Jazz technique, and Dance Conditioning. She is also choreographing for our competition Senior Jazz, Junior Lyrical, Productions, and various solos and duos. Miss Rachael is very excited to be entering her 20th season at Accent!

Elya Bergstein is a passionate and dedicated dancer with over 17 years of training and performance experience across a wide variety of styles, including ballet, jazz, contemporary, lyrical, tap, modern, hip hop, and acrobatics. She is currently a member of the West Chester University Dance Company, where she performs regularly in faculty and student-choreographed works. Prior to joining the WCU Dance Company, Elya trained and competed with Accent School of Dance for nearly a decade. During that time, she participated in numerous regional and national conventions and competitions, including Artists Simply Human, NYCDA, NUVO, and 24/7, earning multiple scholarships and accolades for her technique, artistry, and performance. Notably, she was awarded college acceptance from Hussian College Los Angeles while attending Artists Simply Human in 2022. In addition to her extensive performance experience, Elya has served as a teacher, choreographer, and mentor to younger dancers. She volunteered over 450 hours as an assistant teacher, worked as a camp instructor, taught workshops, and continues to substitute teach and choreograph. Elya’s training is complemented by masterclasses with leading industry professionals, including the Rockettes in New York City. With a strong technical foundation and a love for storytelling through movement, she brings both skill and expressive depth to every role. Elya continues to grow as both an artist and educator, driven by her commitment to excellence, creativity, and sharing the transformative power of dance.

Julia Ramirez is an emerging dance artist based in Jersey City, NJ. At Rutgers University, she graduated with her Masters in Dance Education and BFA from Rutgers University and was awarded the Margery J. Turner Choreography Award. Her work has been featured in the 2024 All Over Westfest Festival (NYC), MODarts Dance Festival, 2023 92 NY Future Dance Festival (NYC), International Washington Dance Festival (DC), Dumbo Dance Festival (NYC), Kun-Yang Lin’s Performance Series (PHL), Koresh Artist Showcase (PHL), Uptown Rising Performance Series (NYC), Waxworks Festival (NYC) and Rutgers University (NJ). She is currently a performing artist with Dance Visions NY, adjunct professor at Rutgers University, and had the privilege of working for David Dorfman Dance as their Media and Artistic assistant from 20’-23’. Her first evening length work, “Everything, but the Kitchen Sink” premiered at Mignolo Arts June 2024 which was granted by the Director’s Choice Award in the ’23 Spring for Spring festival (NJ) and will be featured in the Emerging Artists Theatre's Fall 2024 Spark Theatre Festival NYC in September 2024. Throughout 2023, she completed a residency through Shared Space at Mark Morris Dance Center in Brooklyn, NY creating Kinematic Indeterminacy. . She is currently a dance educator at Lehigh Valley Charter High School of the Arts, Washington Rock Dance, Mark Morris Dance Center, and Accent School of Dance and guest artist/choreographer in the tristate area.

Miss Erika grew up at Accent, learning from her mom, Miss Karen, and is thrilled to return to the studio as an instructor! She is a 2015 graduate of DeSales University, where she earned her B.A. in Dance. During her time at DeSales, Erika performed in both student and faculty concerts and was selected three times to represent the university at the American College Dance Festival in Wisconsin, New York, and Georgia.

Her performance credits include the Screen Dance Film Festival and several film projects produced by the DeSales Television and Film Department. Erika also spent two summers training at the renowned Trinity Laban Dance Conservatory in London, where she interned with the public relations firm MWW.

A dedicated and passionate learner, Erika continues to expand her training through classes in Los Angeles, New York City, and her favorite—Pineapple Dance Studios in London!

Celina, a Birmingham UK native with Jamaican heritage, is a dynamic dance educator with a passion for fostering wholeness through creative expression. Teaching since the age of 16, Celina values individuals and uses the arts to encourage others to live their lives authentically and fully. She has a special interest in somatic and inclusive practices and aims to apply them to empower her students of all ages. Specialising in Ballroom and Latin dance, Celina’s dance versatility spans multiple genres and international stages, including the USA, UK, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and Spain. She takes pride in being a versatile teaching-artist with high professional standards. With a degree in Music and Professional Practice, Celina remains committed to continual professional development and has acquired teaching diplomas under the International Dance Teachers Association, the National Association of Teachers of Dancing, the Performing Arts Awards and the Wheelchair Dancesport Association UK. Celina’s colourful personality shines through her commitment to bridging creative communities alongside her love for laughter and a proper cup of tea! Celina loves being part of the Accent family and is excited to return for her 3rd season after a well deserved maternity leave.

Miss Kayla began her dance journey training under Miss Dawn Blanco in the Dance Academy at William Allen High School, where she built a strong foundation in technique, performance, and discipline. She is currently a captain of the Creative Reaction Company in Philadelphia and brings five years of teaching experience to her role.

Now in her first year teaching at Accent, Kayla brings passion, intention, and a fresh perspective to every class—encouraging each dancer to discover what is unique and powerful about their own movement. She is dedicated to creating an environment where students feel supported, challenged, and inspired to grow as both dancers and individuals.

Molly O’Reilly is a Lehigh Valley native who received her initial ballet training from Repertory Dance Theater under the direction of Dolly Haltzman and Jennifer Haltzman-Tracy. She went on to receive her BFA in Ballet from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, where she was awarded a four year Patricia Corbett scholarship. After graduation, Molly went on to dance professionally with Kentucky Ballet Theater, The Dayton Ballet and Ballet Theater of Maryland. On returning to the Lehigh Valley she became a guest artist with Repertory Dance Theater and a Principal dancer with the contemporary dance company Artists in Rhythm. Molly has taught for RDT’s Talent Identification Program (TIP), Pennsylvania Youth Theater, William Allen High School, Dance Arts Collaborative and the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts, as well as taught various Master classes throughout the Lehigh Valley Area.

Miss Stacey started her dance training at age four at Accent! She graduated in 2016 from Bucknell University with a B.A. in Sociology with a concentration in Culture, Media, and Leisure Studies and a minor in Dance. During her time at Bucknell, she was an active member of the Theatre & Dance Department, participating in dance productions as a dancer and choreographer as well as assisting in lighting design. She had the opportunity to perform in student and faculty choreographed pieces. She was also selected to perform in guest artist pieces choreographed by artists such as Salim "Slam" Gauwloos, C. Kemal Nance, Tara Madsen Robbins, Nick Ross, and Marie Canal. She was also a member of the Bison Girls Dance Team, where she performed at half-time at the men’s home basketball games and other events on campus. Miss Stacey was also selected to represent Bucknell at the American College Dance Festival at Brockport, NY. In addition to dancing in college, she enjoyed spreading her love of dance through the local community by teaching at a dance studio in her college town, where she taught a variety of classes as well as choreographed for their competition teams. She also participated in local arts outreach events for middle and high school students as a demonstrator for her dance professors. In addition to teaching at Accent, she has been choreographing for the Allentown Central Catholic High School Dance Team for the last 13 years. When she’s not teaching or choreographing, Miss Stacey works in the Office of Admissions at Muhlenberg College as an Associate Director of Admissions. She enjoys continuing her dance education by taking classes in the Lehigh Valley and beyond. She is so excited to be entering her tenth season at Accent!

Rae Holtzman is a passionate and versatile dance artist originally from Allentown, PA. She began her dance training in her hometown and later earned her BFA in Dance from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia in 2021.

Rae has trained extensively under renowned artists such as Shayla-Vie Jenkins, Tommie Waheed Evans, Douglas Becker, Sidra Bell, and JoJo Gomez. Her foundation lies in concert dance on the East Coast, complemented by commercial dance experience gained in Los Angeles, CA. This diverse background has shaped her into a well-rounded performer, equally comfortable on stage, in the studio, or on set. Her professional experience includes performing on major platforms like American Idol, Good Morning America, and ESPN. She began her career as a Philadelphia Eagles cheerleader from 2019 to 2020, where she appeared on sports talk shows, podcasts, and television segments, and was featured in the team’s game day intro video. In addition to performing, Rae is a dedicated educator and industry professional. She serves as a convention teacher, judge, and adjudicator for national dance competitions and conventions, including Industry Dance Challenge and Dancers Inc. Through this work, she shares her expertise and passion with the next generation of dancers across the country.