Amelie Lavoie
Amelie Lavoie is a professional dancer born and raised in Vancouver, Canada. At the moment she began dancing she fell in love with the free-spirited art form & has been training extensively in a wide range of styles for what has basically been her lifetime.
Amelie has carved out a dynamic professional dance career placing her in high demand within the entertainment industry, performing in various professional shows and teaching workshops. Highlighted credits include NBC’s Zoeys Extraordinary Playlist, Nickelodeon, National Geographic: Valley of the Boom, Dana Foglia Dance: Experience, 2010 Winter Paralympics, BC Marketers, CFL Half Time, CBC Olympic Emblem Ceremony, BC Lions Half-Time show, Fusion Dance Company, Pacific National Exhibition (PNE), and BodyRock champion’s TWFRSVN (TwoFourSeven) Company. Performing with artists such as Fefe Dobson, Victoria Duffield & Shairah & The Free Agents. Patrick Roberge Productions (PRP) not only has given her performance opportunities but allowed her to collaborate with choreographer Jocelyn Peden in the creative process of many shows. Amelie has worked alongside several very respectable choreographers from Vancouver, L.A and New York, including; Mandy Moore, Kelly Konno, Megan Lawson, Devin Jamieson, & Jillian Meyers.
Amelie just can’t get enough of dance, so when she can’t perform or take a class she’s sharing her passion and exercising her creativity in choreography by teaching it! For the past fifteen years, Amelie has been teaching around the Lower Mainland and Sea to Sky. She aspires to pass on everything that has stuck with her over her years of training and believes there is always room to grow in dance which is what makes it so interesting.
"Our bodies were made to move"
Chelsea Friedman
Growing up Chelsea trained and studied both Russian and RAD ballet. After graduating from the Regional Arts Program at Mayfield Secondary School she moved to Vancouver to attend the University of British Columbia and was accepted into Harbour Dance Centre’s Intensive Training Program (ITP). She trained and worked with Moe Brody for a number of years in Vancouver before moving to Squamish to pursue a career in forestry. Within her first year of moving to Squamish she was scouted by Vanessa Young to work as Luminesque Dance's first Squamish instructor for their heels training program. Over the past three years, she has shifted her focus to heels dance and heels technique. Chelsea continues to lead the Squamish program for Luminesque as an instructor and choreographer and continues to train and teach jazz, jazz technique, and contemporary.
"Teaching for ALGN will allow me to create more opportunities for dancers to train in the sea to sky. It is a privilege to be a part of Whistler’s growing arts scene and participate in the creation of a brand new studio."
Adele Celustkova
Adele is a Europe-raised, Whistler-based dance artist with over 15 years of experience. She specializes in All-Style Street Dance fundamentals and choreography as well as Jazz / Contemporary fusion. She has attended and conducted various workshops, dance
seminars, camps, and competitions all over Europe and the USA. In 2010 Adele attended a summer dance internship at Millennium Dance Complex in Los Angeles, California where she studied with top industry professionals. As a World and European champion in Street Dance choreography, Adele comes from a highly competitive background where she was
awarded multiple national winning titles over the years. She is also a co-author and dance performer of the audiovisual theatrical dance project - Mighty Imagination (2007). She has been teaching kids, teens and adults, not only for preparation for championships and competitions but also to understand the importance of movement itself and everything that comes with it. In addition to her freelance work, Adele studied Physical Education (Kinesiology) and Sport Management at Palacky University in the Czech Republic, she is a Licensed Swim Instructor, Licensed Lifeguard, and Deep Tissue and Sports Massage Therapist.
“ Dance is the hidden language of the soul.” ~ Martha Graham
Arden Thorne
Arden grew up on Vancouver Island where she started dancing at the age of 4, studying a variety of genres including ballet, contemporary, jazz, lyrical, musical theater and hip hop. Arden expanded her training outside of her home studio where she trained in multiple youth pre-professional companies, as well as travelling across North America to perform, train and compete.
Upon high school graduation, Arden continued studying dance as a member of Intensive Training Program (ITP) at Harbour Dance Centre in Vancouver. ITP allowed Arden to push her training to a new level, as well as perform in a variety of professional shows. Arden then transitioned her focus to obtaining her BBA, and began instructing dance in North Vancouver. Now, with over 7 years of instructing experience and a teaching certification in Acrobatic Arts, Arden has found her true passion in sharing her love for Dance with others.
Cara Lee
Cara Lee began her professional career travelling the world as a performer with Carnival Cruise Lines. From there, she focused on keeping all doors open and seeking every opportunity in the entertainment industry, and seamlessly moved into the world of acting. She landed principal roles on Nickelodeon’s Rags, and CW’s Hellcats. She can also be seen on Disney’s Descendants, Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist, The X-Files, Witches of East End, Sucker Punch, Percy Jackson, Freaky Friday, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and many more films, TV series and music videos. Cara Lee got to be part of the choreography team on Apple TV+ series See for both Season 1 and 2 staring Jason Mamoa. She was also selected to be part of the choreography team for The Official 48th UAE National Day Ceremony, traveling to Abu Dhabi for a couple months.
Cara Lee was one of two Canadians chosen from the very first Canada-wide auditions to perform at the famous Moulin Rouge in Paris, France. She was thrilled for the opportunity to be trained in the famous French Cancan and live in such a city of culture. She describes The Moulin Rouge as ‘an experience of a lifetime’.
She shines when she gets to share her passion with others, whether it be teaching, adjudicating or choreographing across Canada.
"The world of performance represents living life to the fullest and never cutting yourself short"
Katherine Robidoux
Katherine started her dance journey in her Jolly Jumper. At the age of three, she began her formal training in ballet, contemporary, jazz, and modern styles. Moving around often, she has had the chance to train in Canada, Turkey, Japan and Norway. In 2015, Katherine moved to Vancouver to pursue her Bachelor of Arts at the University of British Columbia, and at the same time took up full-time ballet training in Pacific DanceArts' half-day program. Katherine has since had the opportunity to work with several dance artists and groups across the Lower Mainland, Montreal, and Toronto, including Canada's Ballet Jörgen, and teach in studios across Ontario and BC.
Katherine finds both her home and her wings in the dance studio, and loves sharing movement with her community. She is excited to see the arts community grow in Whistler, and to be part of the ALGN team.
Maddie Kinghorn
At the age of three, Maddie was introduced to her first dance class at Steps Dance Centre in Trail BC and has loved it ever since. She danced on the competition team through high school training in Ballet, Modern, Contemporary, Tap, Jazz, Lyrical, Hip Hop, and Acro. Steps presented her with many opportunities to travel out of her small town and experience what the dance world has to offer. After attending Arts Umbrellas’ International Summer Intensive, Maddie soon realized that her true passion for dance lay in Contemporary and Modern Improvisation and Choreography. For the next few years until grad, she spent many extra hours creating her own movement and teaching her creations at her studio. After High School, she moved to Montreal to attend Concordia’s Contemporary Dance and Choreography Program. After her first year ended from injury and Covid, she decided to take a break from regular classes but continued to improvise and choreograph in whatever space possible. Maddie is excited to share all of her ideas and creations and connect with people through dance.
Andrea Valovičová
Andrea was born in Slovakia and moved to Canada in 2014. Since then, she became a popular dance fitness instructor throughout Metro Vancouver and is now living in Whistler.
She began dancing from a young age and explored a variety of dance styles and fitness classes. When she realized that the Latin rhythms are the closest to her heart she became a dance fitness instructor and has been leading classes since 2011.
On the stage is where she feels the happiest, sharing her passion for dance and fitness with her participants, making sure every class is easy for everyone to follow and that everyone has tons of fun while “working out”. Andrea likes to combine it all into one class - latin rhythms, afro-dance, pop music, dancehall, fitness and other genres, so you feel like traveling through the world at her class.
Her smile and energy are so contagious that you forget about the everyday life and will leave her class smiling from ear to ear.
Karley Gill
Karley Gill is a professional dancer currently located in Vancouver, Canada. Karley started her movement journey at the young age of 4, on Vancouver Island, training in numerous styles including RAD Ballet, Jazz and Tap. She continues to expand her education in many styles, while sharing her passion along the way. Karley has had an incredible journey in the dance industry performing, choreographing, working with up-coming artists, and working in film and television. Karley was able to blend her love for travel and dance for numerous years by teaching across seas and performing with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line.
Karley currently finds her movement fulfillment by teaching all folks, from beginner to professional. She is currently the Company Director at Luminesque Dance and loves watching the growth and personal artistry that comes inside and outside of the studio. She has found a love for teaching heels by empowering all folks to move from within.
She loves meeting and expanding her community and is very excited to do so in Whistler.
Chloe Scott
Swinging kilts, rhythmic music, and sword dances captured the attention of Chloe Scott at the age of five, and she began her Highland Dance career in Brackendale, BC, with the Angus MacKenzie Highland Dancers. Growing up as a competitive highland dancer, Chloe has been privileged to dance around the world, including across Canada, the USA, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Germany, and Russia. A member of the Vancouver School of Highland Dance (VSHD) since 2014, Chloe has been part of competitive and performance teams including the International Tattoo Highland Dancers (Moscow, 2017 and Berlin, 2019) and the Stag and Thistle Highland Dancers (Belfast, 2019).
Earning her teaching credential under the Scottish Dance Teachers Alliance, Chloe has taught under the mentorship of VSHD’s Kate McRae. Following three years of teaching at Squamish Dance Centre, Chloe moved abroad to complete her Masters of Science in London, UK, including a summer term at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. The global pandemic brought her home to Whistler, where she now works remotely in marine research and conservation.
When not tapping her toes under her desk, Chloe can be found skiing, going for cold dips at Alta Lake, hiking or in a spin class. Thrilled to be joining the ALGN team, Chloe looks forward to introducing (or reintroducing) the incredible discipline of Scottish Highland Dance to the Whistler arts community.
SDTA Associate Member
Hailey Smith
Hailey Smith bio soon to come!