STAFF
Hallie Rainwater (Owner/Director)
Maggie Dethrow
(Modern, Body Toning)
Emma Gysbers (Jazz, Lyrical, Leaps/Turns)
Emily Lower (Musical Theatre, Lyrical)
Destiney Lockhart (Hip Hop)
Hallie McCoy (Kinderdance)
Molly Myers (Pilates, Creative Movement, Twinkle Toes)
Abigail Rainwater (Seasonal Instructor: Contemporary/Lyrical, Leaps/Turns, Jazz)
Sophie Richardson (Contemporary, Dance Team Prep)
Marie Robertson (Tap)
Leslie Blake Walker (Guest Instructor: Tap, Musical Theatre, Jazz)
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Hallie grew up in St. Louis where she began dancing at the age of
five. She joined the Dancearts faculty in 1992, became the Director of children’s programming in 2003 and added the title of Competition Director in 2019. She recently stepped into the owner/director position in June of 2023. Hallie has performed in and choreographed for various professional regional theatres. Some of her favorite productions include Chicago, Cabaret, 42 nd Street, Crazy For You, The Music Man, Anything Goes and Kiss Me Kate. Locally, Hallie has choreographed for The Arrow Rock Lyceum Theater, TRYPS Children’s Theater, and most recently she choreographed Merry Ole’ Missouri for Show Me Theatricals. Hallie has also worked in the Columbia Public Schools for twenty years having taught English, and Arts Integration and is currently teaching Puppetry, Musical Theater Production, and Dance at Jefferson Middle School. Maggie started dancing at the age of six at the Dorothy B. Gladding School of Dance in Newport, Rhode Island. She attended Stephens College to study dance with Harriette Ann Gray, John Marshall, Rebecca Harris, Amanda Kreglow, Fred Matthews, and others. She graduated in 1973 with a B.F.A. in Dance, joining the dance faculty at Stephens immediately afterwards teaching Modern technique, as well as some tap, jazz, and East Indian classes. She taught and performed at Stephens Perry/Mansfield in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. She also toured with the Harriette Ann Gray Company from 1972-1976 and taught/choreographed for the Stephens Summer Institute until 2018. She is certified with A.F.A.A. (Aerobic and Fitness Association of America) as of 1996. Maggie joined the Dancearts staff in 1985, teaching Modern technique and choreographing for recitals and competition. She currently teaches three levels of Modern technique as well as Body Toning classes.
Emma began dancing at age eight and earned many scholarships/awards during her five years on the Dancearts competition team. Her most notable dance accomplishments include modeling in a photoshoot for the September 2021 cover of Como Magazine, dancing in a professional music video for the January Lanterns, and winning a choreography award from Edge Dance competition. Currently, Emma is a student at Mizzou studying health sciences to become a pediatric occupational therapist. Joining the DanceArts staff in 2021 has allowed Emma to stay connected with the DanceArts family and fulfill her love of teaching. Emily grew up dancing in St. Joseph, MO at The Dance Arts Center under Marla Heeler, training in ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical and musical theater. She was also involved in community and high school theater productions, where she was able to perform in and choreograph for wonderful shows like Big Fish and Anything Goes. She graduated from the University of Missouri with degrees in Economics, Statistics, and Political Science and is currently working as a data analyst for political and nonprofit fundraising. She started dancing again after college in St. Louis, taking classes from Resilience Dance Company and St. Louis Dance Theatre, and is now excited to be teaching students at Dancearts while continuing to train.
Destiney received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance at Stephens College in 2016. Destiney has always had a passion for dance and its underlining fundamentals. The love for dance has grown so much, it allows her to teach all she has learned from numerous dance artists/choreographers and teachers over the years. She studied various styles such as Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern, HipHop, Contemporary, Lyrical and many more. Using these skills has allowed her to be a continuous dance teacher and choreographer for Dancearts of Columbia and an instructor for (UDA) Universal Dance Association.
Hallie is twenty-four years old and a third grade teacher for Columbia Public Schools. She graduated from Columbia College in 2022 with Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Elementary Education. She has been part of the Dancearts family since 2012. Her dance teaching career began in 2016 at Dancearts and she is still happy to be part of the team. Prior to teaching, Hallie’s active dancing career lasted 16 years. She enjoys teaching Creative Movement and Kinderdance. Her wish is that dance can always be in her life in some fashion, and Dancearts allows that wish to come true.
Molly is a Columbia native and took ballet for many years as a young child. She has a passion and interest in early childhood education and wellness. Molly has a BS from University of Missouri in Human Development and Family Studies with an emphasis in Early Childhood Education and Child Life. She is also certified in Pilates and Pure Barre. Throughout the years she has taught pre-school, worked as a Child Life Specialist, held a fundraising position for Children’s Miracle Network, taught as a Pure Barre Instructor, and held a position as a Family Enrichment Specialist. Currently, Molly operates her own Pilates LLC. Becoming an instructor at Dancearts in 2023 was the perfect opportunity for Molly to blend her early childhood background with her health and wellness focus. Teaching Twinkle Toes and Creative movement is a delight.
Abby grew up as a student at Dancearts, beginning at age three, and was a member of the Dancearts Competition Team from 2015-2021. Since her first season choreographing for Dancearts in 2022, she has received multiple choreography awards at various regional competitions and has choreographed over twenty pieces for the team. She has also performed with numerous theaters throughout Missouri, including the Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre, Gateway Center for Performing Arts, and TRYPS Institute at Stephens College. Abby is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre with a Minor in Dance at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA, with a graduation date of May 2025.
Sophie Richardson is from Lee’s Summit, Missouri where she danced competitively since the age of 5. Graduating from Lee’s Summit North High School in 2022, Sophie was a four-year member of the Northern Stars Dance Team and served as captain her senior year. In 2022, Sophie earned the title of Missouri Dance Team Association first place senior soloist. She moved on to be a member of the Mizzou Golden Girls Dance Team for two years. Sophie is excited to share her love of dance and be a part of the dance community in Columbia.
Marie graduated Stephens College with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance. She was a member of the Stephens College dance faculty for eight years and toured with the "Mid-America" and "Harriette Ann Gray" Dance Companies. She returned to Columbia in the early 80's to begin teaching at Dancearts. She became part owner in the early 90's and became the main owner in 2000 along with her co-owners Maggie Dethrow and Marisa Robertson. She teaches tap and choreographs award-winning numbers for the competition team. Her incredible tap teaching skills has earned her the title of the "Tap Queen!"
Leslie is a New York City based actress, dancer, singer, and educator. As a performer, she most notably made her Broadway debut in Funny Girl starring Lea Michele, dancing in the ensemble and understudying the role of Emma. With Funny Girl, Leslie made several television appearances including Good Morning America, the 96th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and the 76th annual Tony Awards. As an educator, Leslie has toured the country as a dance competition judge for Kids Artistic Review, has led countless Broadway style masterclasses, and has taught at many acclaimed studios including Peridance in NYC. Leslie is a fierce mental health advocate and believes in the power of giving back. She has been part of numerous charity events benefitting Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS, and has personally raised thousands of dollars going towards those in need all around the world. On a typical day, you can find Leslie listening to her vinyl collection, planning gatherings for all of her loved ones, or finding ways to incorporate Ghostbusters quotes into every conversation. Full resume can be found on her website leslieblakewalker.com, and you can find her on Instagram @LeslieBlakeWalker.
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