Faculty
Lea Willis - Director
Lea is the co-owner and Artistic Director of DanceMania. She has studied at Univeristy of North Carolina School of the Arts, received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Jacksonville University, and a Master of Fine Arts in dance from FSU. She has performed in several outdoor dramas including "Unto These Hills" and "The Lost Colony", and has been an instructor at several area schools. With over 30 years of teaching experience, Lea is also the founder and director of "On The Move" Dance Company and creator of our After School Program as well as River City Science Academy's Dance Club.
Shawn Schaefer
Shawn received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from North Carolina School of the Arts, where she was featured in several productions. She has danced with several renowned dance companies including Larry Richardson Modern Dance Company (NYC), and Bella Lewitsky Modern Dance Company (LA). She has a very impressive resume of performance history and scholarship awards. After teaching and dancing in New York for many years, she moved back to Jacksonville and teaches at DanceMania. Shawn remains an active participant in the local dance community.
Danielle Ramey
Danielle is a graduate of FSCJ and UNF with a dance minor and was a
student of Ms. Lea's for many years. She has worked with many prominent dance instructors and choreographers, including Dulce Anaya, Rosemary Fletcher and Rhonda Stampalia. She has taught Ballet, Lyrical, Hip-Hop and Student Choreography classes at DanceMania, as well as choreographing for the company.
Kristen Scandurra
Kristen has been dancing at DanceMania for 17 years and was a member of the "On The Move" Dance Company for 9 years. She is a graduate of FSCJ and was actively involved in their Dance Department, and of University of Florida with a B.A. in Education. She works with local dance company Three Hearts Dance as a dancer and member of their production team. She has taught Ballet, Tap, Lyrical, Jazz/Hip Hop, choreographs for the 'On The Move' Company, and works at the front desk.
Charlotte Williams
Charlotte is our Line Dancing instructor; She has been with DanceMania for many years and we are so thrilled to have her on our faculty! Line Dancing is a wonderful way to keep moving for dancers of all ages. Stop in and check out a class on Thursday nights!
Betty Willis
Betty is one of the owners of DanceMania; A retired licensed and registered nutritionist, she loves to share her skills with the children attending the After School Program. Her extensive education includes a Master of Business Administration, and Master of Public Health (Nutrition).
Carmel VanHeusen
With a background in early childhood development and experience teaching children of various ages, Carmel is one of the founders of DanceMania and one of the teachers for our After School Program. We are lucky to have her working with us.
Jasmine Williams
Jasmine was a student at DanceMania for several years. She worked at a preschool for three years while becoming a certified childhood development associate. Jasmine has been working and volunteering with children for most of her life. After previously assisting with line dancing classes, Jasmine is so happy to be joining our team as an instructor.