Our Staff
Heather Baile (owner)
Heather is originally from Durham, NC where she began dancing at 2 years old and until she graduated high school with Nina Wheeler of Nina's School of Dance. Heather attended East Carolina
University from Fall 2005 to Spring 2008 and graduated in 3 years. In 2008, she earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree Cum Laude in Dance Performance, with a concentration in jazz, at East Carolina
University. While attending ECU, she studied under Tommi Galaska, Elie Lazar (from the Joffrey Ballet), Joseph Carow, Patti Weeks, Roger Belman, Timour Bourtansenkov (Carolina Ballet principal), and
world renowned Galina Panova. Heather performed in the mainstage production; Dance 2006, Dance 2007, & Dance 2008. Heather has also had the opportunity to perform in "Sharing the Legacy" in New
York, at the American College Dance Festival in Ohio and Florida, and perform as a Miss North Carolina Pageant dancer for 4 years. Heather has taught ballet, pointe, jazz, tap and
contemporary for every age, for many years. She has taught at private studios in Durham, Wake Forest, Morehead City, Beaufort and Jacksonville. Heather has been
teaching at Swansboro Dance Studio since 2009, where she was the lead dance instructor and manager. She is so excited about her new role as owner of Swansboro Dance Studio & Emerald Isle Dance
Studio! Heather possesses a true passion for teaching dance where she loves encouraging, inspiring and watching dancers grow into the best version of themselves.
Heather lives in Swansboro with her husband, her 2 sons and daughter!
Kailee Felix
Kailee grew up in Swansboro, NC getting her start to dance at Swansboro Dance Studio. In 2011 She performed with the children’s cast of Carolina Ballet for their productions of Cinderella, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and La Sylphide. She then joined Gelsey Kirkland Academy in New York City continuing her training with their pre-professional program from 2015-2018. After she graduated in 2015 she joined Festival Ballet Providence in Providence, Rhode Island where she danced as a company member for 6 seasons. This fall she will join the staff at Swansboro Dance Studio and is very excited to teach at her home studio.
Erin
Jennifer Young- Golden
Ms. Golden is
a native of Williamsburg, VA. She began her studies under the tutelage of Sandra Balestracci and continued her education taking master classes with Eleanor D’Antuano, Adrienne Dellas-Thornton,
Desmond Richardson, and many others. In 2002, she won a Special Award for Artistry from the judges of the Youth American Grand Prix in New York City. She has won 1st place at the Regional Competition
for Youth American Grand Prix in the classical ballet category. She has studied on full scholarship at the American Ballet Theatre’s Summer Intensive in New York City and at the Charlotte Ballet
(formerly North Carolina Dance Theatre’s) Summer Intensive, where she was invited to stay as a Company Apprentice under Patricia McBride, Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux, and Mark Diamond. She has been the
featured guest artist as “The Sugar Plum Fairy” in the Nutcracker for the Community Alliance for the Performing Arts. Ms. Golden went on to show her versatility as a Musical Theatre dancer in
“American Jukebox,” “Kinetix,” and “Holiday in Roma” for Busch Gardens. She was a dance instructor for Eastern Virginia School for the Performing Arts, VA, Triple Threat Dance Studio, FL, Dance
Movement Academy, HI, Beaufort Academy of Dance, SC, Ijima Ballet School in Okinawa, Japan, MCCS dance program at Kadena Youth Center in Okinawa, Japan, and MCCS dance program in Iwakuni, Japan. She
has taught the Vaganova based classical ballet method along with a variety of other dance styles successfully teaching ages three through adulthood. Ms. Golden has also choreographed contemporary
dance solo pieces for students entering and winning prizes at the Youth American Grand Prix & has guest taught at studios in Hawaii, Virginia, and the
Carolinas.
Ms. Golden
earned her Bachelor’s in Business Administration degree and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) degree from the University of Maryland Global Campus, and has worked in the finance industry for
over a decade. She attributes her success in the business world to the hard work and dedication she learned from ballet and performing. She has been married to her Active Duty Marine for 17 years,
and together they have two daughters, who mean the world to them.
Through the
discipline of classical ballet, she hopes students will discover profound joy in movement, all while consistently challenging and strengthening their minds and
bodies.
Charlotte Karcher
Charlotte has been dancing for 17+ years, where she began dancing at Ann Arbor Dance Classics at the age of 3. Charlotte is trained in the areas of ballet, tap and jazz. While growing up, Charlotte competed in jazz and tap dance competitions. After high school graduation, she attended Siena Heights University where she was a member of their nationally ranked dance team. At Siena Heights University, Charlotte was a double major in the areas of Elementary Education and Special Education. Charlotte is currently a 3rd grade teacher at White Oak Elementary.
Amber Rademacher -
I am a dedicated dance teacher with five years of experience at Esprit de la Dance in Sunnyvale, California. As a mother of four, I bring patience, creativity, and passion to my teaching. I love the art of dance and the joy of watching students grow—seeing them start a season as beginners and finish with the confidence to perform a full routine is one of my greatest rewards.
Madison Smith
Miss. Madi is orginially from Swansboro, NC. She has been dancing since she was 4 years old under the direction of Heather Baile at Swansboro Dance Studio. In 2020-2021, Madi studied at
UNC Greensboro as a BFA Dance Choreography and Performance major. She is now studying at Coastal Carolina Community College in Jacksonville. Madi loves sharing her passion for dance to
her home studio!
Colleen White
Colleen White was born and raised right here at Swansboro Dance Studio. She began taking classes with Ms. Christy at age 3 and studied ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary, and hip hop until she graduated high school. She was a member of the Elon University dance team until she came home to attend Coastal and taught classes at SDS. She then attended UNC-Charlotte where she earned her Bachelors degree in Elementary Education. She taught at a dance studio in Charlotte before having her first daughter and then she moved back to Swansboro. During that time, she also was a Kindergarten teacher for 5 years. Since 2020, Ms. Colleen has been teaching again at Swansboro Dance Studio where her two little girls now attend, as well. Ms. Colleen just became certified in AcroDance Preschool and is excited to be teaching acro to our littlest dancers next year!
Christy Crosswell Williams
Christy opened Swansboro Dance Studio in1982. Ms. Williams studied and taught ballet, pointe and tap for more than 23 years. She has a bachelor of arts degree in English from East Carolina
University and is a certified teacher. While at ECU, she studied dance under the world renowned Mavis Ray and Pat Pertallion, former head of the ECU dance department. Christy's legacy will
carry on through every student past and present.
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