About Us
Above all else, DanceMania is a family. This is very important to us. We were started by a Mom with her daughters, and if all of our staff and students weren't family to begin with - they are now. We would love to have you join us and welcome you to our wonderful studio.
Ms. Lea Willis
Lea is the Artistic Director and Co-Founder of DanceMania. She received a Master of Fine Arts in dance from FSU, has 28 years of teaching experience, and is a member of the Florida Dance Association. Lea is also the founder and director of "ON THE MOVE" Dance Company. Lea has recently received an award for the hardest working teacher at one of the local dance competition. It is well-deserved!
Ms. 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 a very impressive resume of performance history and scholarship awards. After teaching in New York for many years, she moved back to Jacksonville to be closer to her family at DanceMania.
Ms. Danielle Ramey
Danielle is a graduate of FSCJ and UNF with a dance minor and was a
student of Miss Lea's for many years. She was a member of DanceWorks, a performer in the First Coast Nutcracker, and was a member of the "ON THE MOVE" Dance Company. She has worked with many prominent dance instructors and choreographers, including Dulce Anaya, Rosemary Fletcher and Rhonda Stampalia. She has been teaching Ballet, Lyrical, Hip-Hop and Student Choreography classes at DanceMania, as well as choreographing for the company.
Ms. Kristen Scandurra
Kristen has been dancing at DanceMania for 15 years. She was a member of the "On The Move" Dance Company for 9 years. She teaches Hip-Hop, as well as Tap and Ballet in our After School program, and choreographs for our company. She is a graduate of FSCJ and was actively involved in their Dance Department. She is currently pursuing a degree from the University of Florida in Education Sciences.
Ms. Charlotte Williams
Charlotte is our Line Dancing coach at DanceMania! The Line Dancers have won many awards around the area including the Senior Olympics! She has been with us for a long time and we are so thrilled to have her continue at our studio for more than 20 years! Line Dancing is a wonderful way to keep moving for dancers of all ages. Stop in and check out a class on Thursday nights!
Ms. Betty Willis
If you come by our After School Program, you will frequently hear the students chanting "Ms. Betty Is The Best!" She is the owner of DanceMania. Ms. Betty works at the desk, assists with our After School Program, and even dances in the recital every year. We all love her, and we would not be here without her.
Ms. Carmel VanHeusen
Ms. Carmel is our early childhood education specialist. She knows everything there is to know about our After School Program, and runs Studio B perfectly 5 days a week. She is such a valuable part of DanceMania and we are so lucky to have her working with us each day.