FACULTY

Danny Iktomi Bevins is thrilled to be on faculty at the dance studio that helped raise him! After training at Decatur School of Ballet, he received dance and theatre training from Alvin Ailey, Interlochen Center for the Arts, and ultimately graduated Summa Cum Laude from Elon University with a BFA in Music Theater. Danny moved to NYC and began performing around the country at top regional theatres such as The Muny, Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, Music Theatre of Wichita, Papermill Playhouse, Bucks County Playhouse, Barrington Stage Co. and Off Broadway at Out of the Box Theatrics. Danny also performs locally at theaters like City Springs Theatre and the Aurora Theatre. Outside of dance, Danny is an ACE certified strength coach, and specializes in functional movement based training. Danny also made his film debut in #1 global Netflix film, REPTILE, opposite Academy Award winning Benecio Del Toro. Danny continues to work on set as an actor in tv, film, and commercials, and is signed with Houghton Talent and DGRW Agency.

Monica has been dancing for over 25 years, and grew up as a competition dancer in Houston, Texas. She spent nearly a decade in New York City performing professionally and is a proud member of the Actors Equity Association. She has traveled the country performing in Musical Theatre at Paper Mill Playhouse, TUTS, Ivoryton Playhouse, The Elektra and North Carolina Theatre. Now in Atlanta, Monica is a full time performing artist and teacher. Outside of dance, she is also an accomplished film actress, having been in feature films and network television shows, such as The Resident (FOX), MacGyver (CBS). Monica is currently a recurring guest star on Tyler Perry’s Sistas (BET), and is featured on numerous regional and national commercials. Dance is the heartbeat of her career and success, and she looks forward to working with the students of Decatur School of Ballet.

Leslie started her dance training at age six in Marietta and continued her dance studies in Mississippi and with the Joffrey School of Ballet in New York. At age 16 she came to study with Decatur School of Ballet. After graduating from Texas Christian University with a BFA in ballet performance in 1986, she returned to teach with Decatur School of Ballet and to perform with Decatur City Dance. She has studied with notable instructors such as Stanley Zompakos, Terrell Paulk, Delia Stewart, Fernando Schaffenburg, Lisa Fusillo, Meli Kaye, Peter Powlus
and Martha Goodman. In July 2018, Leslie purchased Decatur School of Ballet and became Artistic Director of Decatur City Dance.

Meg is a graduate of the University of Georgia with her B.F.A. in Dance, with a K12 Certification, and a Minor in Anthropology. She began her dance training at age three at Decatur School of Ballet and continued through high school as a member of the Apprentice Ensemble of Decatur City Dance and Decatur School of Ballet’s Rug Cutters. Meg has studied with the Joffrey Ballet School, staibdance, the Governor’s Honors Program, and the American Dance Festival. During her years at UGA, she performed in various faculty and student pieces and was chosen to work with notable guests such as Alexandre Munz and Luis Piedra. She has performed with Danza Universitaria in San Jose, Costa Rica. Meg has worked for the Joffrey Ballet School and currently dances professionally with Kit Modus and AboutFace.

Kyme is a graduate of the acclaimed New York City High School of Performing Arts, and has performed nationally and internationally as a dancer, singer, and actress. Her credits include three Broadway shows and tours of an additional three Broadway shows. As a film and TV actress, Kyme played Rachel Meadows in Spike Lee’s film School Daze, and guest starred on TV shows such as 24, NYPD Blue, Frasier, and many more. Her love of the arts and teaching led her to found a performing arts academy in a charter school in Los Angeles in 2006. Kyme moved to Atlanta in 2012 where she continues to share her passion and passes on the fruits of her experience and success. As Associate Director, Kyme oversees the Junior Rhythm Keepers and the Rhythm Keepers of Decatur City Dance.

Jodie Jernigan (she/her) is an interdisciplinary movement artist based in Atlanta, Georgia. In addition to pursuing freelance performance and creation opportunities, she is a company dancer with Monica Hogan Dance Works and Graham Shelor Dance. She has performed locally at the Modern Atlanta Dance Festival (2023-2025), Inman Park Dance Festival (2023-2025), Fall for Fall Dance Festival (2022-2024), and Decatur School of Ballet’s Meli Kaye Artist in Residency Showing (2023), to name a few. She spent three seasons as a company dancer with Full Radius Dance (2022-2025) and was a company dancer with SOMOS dance company for their second season (2024).

Jodie has presented work at the American College Dance Association Festival (2022), Alabama Dance Festival (2023), Fall for Fall Dance Festival (2024), MixtapeATL Film Festival (2021), and through DanceATL’s AM Collaborative program (2025). Jodie debuted her first self-produced evening-length solo, On Guilt & Clementines, at the Atlanta Fringe Festival (2025) and went on to excerpt and epilogue the work for the Modern Atlanta Dance Festival (2025).

Jodie earned her AA with an emphasis in dance from Florida State College at Jacksonville (2018-2020), where she served as both dancer and company manager for DanceWORKS. She went on the receive her BA in Dance and English from Brenau University (2020-2022), where she founded and directed the university's annual cross-disciplinary Poetry in Motion Film Festival.

She is currently on faculty at Decatur School of Ballet, where she shares her experience, knowledge, and passion with the next generation of artists.

Madeline O’Brien is an interdisciplinary dancer and artist based in Atlanta, Georgia. She holds a BFA in Contemporary Dance with a minor in Arts Entrepreneurship from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Her teaching experience includes leading a professional development trip to Panama with Movement Exchange, serving as adjunct faculty at the Boston Arts Academy, and assistant teaching with United Dance. She also spent two years teaching older adults in assisted living facilities through Abilities Dance Boston.

Madeline is passionate about teaching students of all ages at The Decatur School of Ballet, Neighborhood Ballet, and in DeKalb and Atlanta public schools.

Her teaching prioritizes creating safe, supportive spaces where dancers feel empowered to grow and explore. She values curiosity, welcomes questions, and encourages creative experimentation. Her classes are known for being lively, informative, and open-minded, always aiming to deepen both her and her students’ understanding of the art form.

Renee Pauley, Master Teacher, and Owner of ReneePauley4Ballet

I found my passion for ballet as a very young girl. Attending the Atlanta School of Ballet started me on a path of serious training. As a member of the Atlanta Ballet Youth Ensemble, I performed in several productions of the Atlanta Ballet’s The Nutcracker. In my senior year of high school, I attended a summer ballet program at the Royal Academy of Ballet in London, England, and performed at SERBA (Southeast Regional Ballet Association), where I was selected to dance at the Young Choreographer’s Workshop in New York.

After high school, I embarked on my professional career as a scholarship apprentice with the Atlanta Ballet, performing in productions of The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, and Carmen. Following that apprenticeship, I moved to Florida as a soloist with the Northwest Florida Ballet, where I performed in The Nutcracker.

Although an injury curtailed my performing days, it opened a new chapter where I've dedicated myself to teaching ballet and shaping the next generation of dancers. After 25+ years of teaching in and around the metro Atlanta area at several competition and ballet studios, I decided it was time to follow my heart and start ReneePauley4Ballet, where I have the pleasure of going to even more studios as a Master guest teacher, sharing my knowledge and inspiring dancers to grow in technique in a thinking environment across the Southeast and Midwest.

I'm proud to have witnessed my students' achievements. Many have gone on to major in dance at colleges such as Point Park University, Loyola Marymount University, Oklahoma City University, The University of Arizona, and the University of Georgia, to name a few. I have had several dancers go on to perform nationally and internationally with The Royal Ballet in London, England, Moulin Rouge in Paris, France, on Broadway and Off-Broadway shows like Radio City Rockettes, Wicked, 42nd Street, A Chorus Line, as well as touring shows such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Wicked, Fame: The Musical, and dancing in Las Vegas Shows, Gus Giordano Dance Chicago, as professional NFL Cheerleaders, at Disney, and on cruise ships. Some have performed in the Tony Awards, MTV Video Music Awards, Capezio A.E.C. Awards, or even started their very own dance company.

Away from the barre, I cherish moments with my husband, our Cavapoochon CoCo Bean, and our adult children.

Eliza started her dance training at our studio at age four and has been assistant teaching since age nine. She was a member of Decatur City Dance (Junior and Apprentice Ensembles and Junior Rhythm Keepers) and Decatur School of Ballet’s Rug Cutters. Eliza is a graduate of Agnes Scott College and Mercer University’s nursing program. She works as a nurse at The Shepherd Center and she is the director of the Rug Cutters. Eliza is also a member of The Rhythm Keepers.

Jessica began her dance training at the Gainesville School of Ballet at age six. A professional performer with South Carolina Ballet Theatre, she also taught with the Columbia Ballet School before opening her own studio in Lexington, South Carolina. In addition to her classical ballet training, Jessica has performed in musical theater productions. With a BA degree in English and an M.Ed. in elementary education from Columbia College, she taught seventh grade for seven years. Jessica is an associate director of Decatur City Dance.

Heidi started her dance training at age six at Decatur School of Ballet and continued to dance in the company until she graduated from high school. In the summer of 1987, she participated in the Governor's Honors Dance program. She trained as a demonstrator and teacher in younger children's classes at our school. While earning a B.F.A. in Arts Management from Brenau Women's College, Heidi danced with the Gainesville Ballet Company.

Jessica began dancing at age 4, and quickly discovered a passion for tap dance. In high school, she discovered the tap classes at Decatur School of Ballet, where Birda Ringstad gave her a strong foundation in Rhythm Tap, and helped broaden her tap education by introducing her to tap festivals. She has been performing with The Rhythm Keepers, the adult tap company of Decatur City Dance, since 2006, has been choreographing and performing solos and small group acts for special events since 2014, continues to attend tap festivals periodically to continue her tap education, and has been teaching tap to adults since 2016.

Toya started her dance training at age three and came to Decatur School of Ballet at age 13. She has been a company dancer with Decatur City Dance since 1992. She is a graduate of the DeKalb Center for the Performing Arts. In the summer of 1995, she participated in the Governor’s Honors Dance program. Toya trained as a demonstrator, an assistant teacher, and a substitute teacher in younger children’s classes at our school. She has a strong foundation in ballet and has also trained in modern dance, jazz, and tap. Toya is Director of AboutFace, the professional jazz ensemble of Decatur City Dance.

Heather began her dance training at Decatur School of Ballet at age eight and continued her study with the Atlanta Ballet, the Royal Academy of Dance, and the Cleveland Ballet, where she also danced in the company. She also danced professionally with the American Ballet Theatre in New York City from 1988 to 1994, working with such notable artists as Twyla Tharp, Natalia Makarova, Jiri Kylian, and Mark Morris. Heather is also a professional chef and pharmacy technician.

Emma began her dance training at age six in Shanghai and continued her studies after moving to Georgia. From middle school through college, she was a member of competitive dance teams, gaining experience in ballet, classical Chinese dance, and contemporary styles. She also completed Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) vocational exams, which strengthened her classical foundation. While pursuing graduate studies, she choreographed for student dance groups. After earning her Master’s from Emory University and her PhD from Johns Hopkins University, she returned to Atlanta and began taking open classes at Decatur School of Ballet (DSOB). She now teaches adult and teen ballet open classes at DSOB, where she emphasizes strong fundamentals and a supportive learning environment. She is also thrilled to perform with Decatur City Dance.