Lindsay Roberts is the owner and director of Lexington Dance Factory. Dance has been her life since the age of 3. When she was 7, she asked Santa for a piece of land to build a dane studio on. Santa didn’t come through that year, but this year she is excited to be celebrating her 23rd year of teaching and her 14th year of living her dream and owning LDF! Ms. Lindsay is certified through Dance Masters of America and is an active member of our local chapter. She is married to Brad and they have two children- Sylvie and Silas. Ms. Lindsay is so thankful for her LDF dance family!

Jamie is a Lexington native and began his dance training at a private studio at the age of 10. He was later accepted into the School for Creative and Performing Arts (SCAPA) as a Contemporary Dance major. Throughout middle school and high school he was fortunate to compete for and win several regional titles (Jr, Teen, and Mr. Dance of Ohio) and was crowned “Grand National Champion” through the Dance Masters of America Organization. He was also accepted into the class of 2010 Governor’s School of the Arts program for the discipline of dance. Jamie continued his dance education through college by attending Western Kentucky University as a Dance Major. During his time there, he was accepted into several

summer intensives with companies such as Joffrey Ballet, Nashville Ballet, Dance Theater of Harlem, Inaside Chicago Dance, Visceral Dance Chicago, and Deeply Rooted Dance Theater. After graduating, he began choreographing and teaching in Orlando, FL. While in Florida he earned his certification through Dance Masters of America, and was also given the opportunity to become a judge for Kids Artistic Review. After two years there, he moved back to his Old Kentucky Home where he has continued to grow as a choreographer and teacher. 

Danielle Dunmire, a California native, started her formal dance training as a student in the prestigious Ballet San Jose School under the direction of Donna Delsini and Lise La Cour.  Dani’s love for ballet continued to grow through watching and performing with Ballet San Jose's professional ballet company as well as attending summer intensives around the US including the American Academy of Ballet, Princeton Dance Theater (under the direction of Susan Jaffe), and Alonzo King's Lines Ballet. After performing as the lead in Ballet San Jose School’s production of The Little Mermaid when she was sixteen, Dani became a trainee with the professional company, Ballet San Jose, under the direction of Dennis Nahat.  While there, Ms. Dunmire had the opportunity to perform corps roles in the Nutcracker, Giselle, Firebird, Swan Lake, A Mid Summer Night's Dream and Romeo and Juliet. After graduating from high school, Ms. Dunmire attended The University of California - Irvine where her passion for performing, teaching and entertaining grew. She graduated with a B.F.A. in Dance Performance and a minor in Business Management. Following her diploma, Danielle Dunmire was a guest artist and teacher at many dance studios throughout the San Francisco Bay Area before becoming a dancer on Celebrity Cruises where she performed in production shows, was a magician’s assistant, and led weekly ballroom classes. After her time working on the ship, Dunmire toured with the Utah Ballroom Dance Company as the dance captain where she performed and taught across the United States. Dunmire ventured into the competitive ballroom scene, winning many competitions in the Theater Arts/Cabaret ballroom category. Danielle Dunmire now lives in Lexington, Kentucky where she continues to dance, perform and teach within the commercial and concert dance world as well as owns First Dance Lexington.   You can also find Danielle Dunmire coaching the Frederick Douglass High School as well as teaching group fitness classes around Lexington, KY.

Grace Lyon is a recent graduate of the University of Kentucky recieving a Bachelor’s degree in Dance and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. A native of Georgetown, Kentucky, Lyon has danced at various dance institutions throughout the United States since the age of 2. Previous credits include: Steps on Broadway, Broadway Dance Center NYC on scholarship, Dancewerks Chicago, Dance Masters of America Summer Programs, BASE Dance Studio London, The Michael Thomas Dance Center, United Talent Dance, and Barbara Ann’s School of Dance. Lyon has apprenticed with Platinum Dance Convention, led Dancewerks as their Chicago National Student of Distinction, and was admitted into the Steps on Broadway Conservatory Program and the Commercial School of Dance. In 2017, Lyon won the state title and represented Kentucky as Miss Dance of the Bluegrass. Through this, she competed at the Dance Masters of America Competition in New Orleans, Louisiana. Lyon has also been featured in Dance Spirit Magazines for her work and training in musical theatre performance.
Lyon has consistently trained in ballet, tap, jazz, modern, contemporary, musical theatre, lyrical, and hip-hop. Her collegiate studies have focused on modern pursuits with additional technique, history, creative theory, performance, and elective credits.
As an individual with an authentic passion for service, Lyon has volunteered for 10 years with the Central Kentucky non-profit, A Chance to Dance. Founded by her sister, Jenna Lyon Ward, A Chance to Dance offers dance classes to students of all ages with varying special needs and has reached more than 50 students since its founding. Lyon is now a full-time teacher at A Chance to Dance, in addition to teaching and choreographing at Lexington Dance Factory in Lexington, KY.
Lyon attended John Cabot University in Rome, Italy during the Spring of 2022 to study Art History and Business Administration. She hopes to explore dance study opportunities abroad in the future.

Ms. Shay was born and raised in Bethesda, MD and started gymnastics at 3 years old. She was a member of the University of Kentucky Gymnastics Team from 2011-2015. She then went in to complete her masters degree in teaching from Eastern Kentucky University. She is now an elementary school teacher in Lexington. Ms. Shay will be going into her 7th season teaching acro at LDF. She is grateful to have the opportunity to help dancers reach their goals in acro. Ms. Shay loves her LDF family! 

Ms. Kiara has been dancing since the age of 3. She went to SCAPA as a contemporary dance major, was on the Lafayette High School dance team, was a company member at LDF, and was a captain of the EKU dance team. She has been teaching dance at LDF for 11 years. Ms. Kiara received her Bachelors and Master of Arts in Education from Eastern Kentucky University. Currently, she is one of the head coaches of the EKU dance team and is a school counselor at a local elementary school. She loves spending time with her friends and family, binge watching old movies and tv series, and cheering on the EKU colonels at football and basketball games. She loves working at LDF and sharing her passion for dance with her students. 

Ms. Holly started gymnastics when she was 3 years old. She was a member of the University of Kentucky gymnastics team from 2010-2014. She graduated with her bachelors degree of communications in 2014. Holly began teaching acro at LDF in 2013. She has loved working with kids and teaching them the fun of acro since she started at LDF! She now has 3 kids of her own that I’m sure you will see running around the studio! She is grateful to work with such awesome and talented dancers/tumblers! 

Ms. Melanie Biggs was born and raised in Northeastern Kentucky and now resides in Lexington, KY. She has a BA in Communications and Psychology with a minor in Elementary Education from George Mason University. She has been dancing since age 4 and studied at Tammy Jo’s Studio, in Greenup, Ky, under the teaching of Ms. Leah Copley Summers & Tammy Jo Edge. Melanie is a former competitive and

performing dancer with a variety of experiences, including both individual and team exposures. Her High School Dance Team – Greenup Co. – won the Nationals Dance Team Title in 1992. Ms. Melanie previously taught at LDF and sadly, due to health concerns, was unable to continue teaching full time as

of 2017. In 2019 and 2020, she taught dance at a local homeschool coop to a smaller group of students. Melanie is a mom of 3 – Isaac, Eric and Lauren. Ms. Melanie is the director of Stretch, Strengthen & Plie – SS&P – virtual and in person conditioning for dancers to help increase and maintain flexibility and strength, refine technique and skills, and build

confidence in young dancers. SS&P also hosts an annual spring Dance Festival & Competition in Lexington, KY. Ms. Melanie is elated to be back at LDF teaching ballet!

Ms. Abby is a recent Graduate from the University of Kentucky. She received her bachelor’s in Social Work and is working toward her Master’s in Social Work. Ms Abby has been dancing since she was 4 years old and has been a dancer at LDF since it opened. She danced on a competition team at LDF for 8 years and had the honor to compete in many regional and national competitions through LDF’s competition team. Notably, she competed in the Dance Masters of America solo title competition and won the title of Miss Dance of the Bluegrass 2019. She has also danced many roles in LDF’s ballet academy performances like: Clara, Dew Drop, Snow Queen, and two years as the Sugarplum Fairy. This will be Ms Abby’s 5th year teaching at LDF and she is so excited to share her love for dance with her students.

Ms. Taylor was born and raised in Richmond, Kentucky, where as a child she fell in love with competitive studio dance and school dance team. At her home studio, she was trained in ballet, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, hip hop, and acro. At 14, she began assisting in the younger dancers’ classes at her studio and choreographing, and eventually became a teacher there. In addition to teaching at her studio, she began doing choreography for local school teams, and later accepted the coaching position at Clark Moores Middle School, where she coached and choreographed for 8 years. During that time, she attended the University of Kentucky and received a her Bachelors in Middle Level Education. She now resides in Lexington, KY and is a 6th grade teacher and the head dance team coach at Edythe J. Hayes Middle School. In her 12 years coaching middle school dance team, she has won 9 state championships, placed in the top 5 at the UDA National Dance Team Championship multiple times, and won numerous choreography awards. Ms. Taylor is so excited to be back in the studio dance world and working with the LDF dancers.

Ms. Nancy began her dance career in Frankfort, KY; dancing for 13 years at Capital City Dance Studio.  While at CCDS Nancy was chosen to assist with the younger classes.  While she would have loved to have returned there to teach as an adult; life took her to Lexington, KY where she resides and has found her new dance home at LDF!  Nancy is in her eighth year at LDF teaching ballet, tap, jazz and acro.  She is certified in Ballet and Jazz through Dance Masters of America and is an active member of our local chapter. She loves seeing her tiny dancers fall in love with dance for the first time! Nancy is married to Clay and has two sons Cody and Drake, and a daughter Victoria who dances on one of our LDF competition teams. Family keeps her busy but in her free time she loves pool time, Disney and all things UK!  Nancy loves her LDF family and is grateful for the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of all these sweet dancers.

Ms. Lauren has been a dance teacher at Lexington Dance Factory since 2017. She is from Lexington and got her Bachelor of Science degree in 2020 from the University of Kentucky College of Health Sciences with a minor in Dance. She received her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from the University of Kentucky in 2024. Lauren began dancing at age 3 and danced with LDF all the way through high school. Her favorite role she performed was as Clara in LDF’s first production of the Nutcracker. She became a certified teacher in Ballet and Jazz through Dance Masters of America in 2020. She is looking forward to staying in Lexington to work as a pediatric physical therapist and still being part of the LDF family.

Ms. Katelin has been dancing since she was 2 years old. She started dancing for a competitive team at the age of 7. She went to SCAPA as a ballet major until 8th grade and continued dancing through high school at her home dance studio. She attended Western Kentucky University where she got her bachelor's degree in elementary education. Ms. Katelin is the dance team coach at Frederick Douglass High School and loves seeing some of her dancers at the studio. This is her 3rd year teaching dance at LDF, and she is so excited to share her love for dance with her preschool classes. 

Melissa Shearer Goble was born and raised in Lexington Kentucky.  As a child she was a dancer, gymnast, and cheerleader.  After high school graduation she attended the University of the Arts in Philadelphia Pennsylvania where she pursued a degree in dance (specializing in ballet).  When she left the University of the Arts she signed a contract with Charleston Ballet Theatre and moved to South Carolina to begin her professional career.  After some time with the ballet company, Melissa took a break from dance and returned to her home state where she got married and had children.  After a short hiatus, Mrs. Goble returned to the stage and danced briefly with Kentucky Ballet Theatre.  She also went back to school and earned a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Kentucky University.  In the early 2000’s Melissa moved to South Florida with her husband and children.  There she continued her performance career and began teaching classes in dance studios and gymnastics gyms all over the area.  She danced with various modern dance, entertainment, and cirque companies throughout South Florida and danced in ‘Go Diego Go’, a Nickelodeon production at Miami Metrozoo with Advanced Productions and Entertainment.  Mrs. Goble has traveled throughout the U.S., Japan, and Brazil dancing with cirque companies from the Miami area.  In 2010, Melissa opened her own dance studio, Florida Artistic Ballet Academy, and dance entertainment company, Dance Mystique, where she served as the company’s primary choreographer and also worked as a dancer and aerialist.  She continued to dance professionally until 2013 and has worked teaching multiple disciplines of dance, gymnastics, acrobatics and aerial silks throughout various studios and gyms in Florida and Kentucky for over twenty years now. She has relocated back to Kentucky and is excited to be joining Lexington Dance Factory.  

Ms. Cassidy is currently studying at Eastern Kentucky University with a major in Sport Management and a minor is Business. She is also a captain member of the EKU Dance Team. In addition to working at LDF, Ms. Cassidy is also a staff member for the Universal Dance Association. Beginning at an early age, Cassidy has had the pleasure of attending and competing in various dance competitions and conventions. Cassidy started her dance career at Studio 19 Dance Complex in Cranberry Township, PA at the age of 4. While on the competition team, Cassidy had the privilege to train in ballet, jazz, tap, contemporary, hip hop, and acro. Upon moving to Maryland at 10 years old, Cassidy studied at CityDance Conservatory and 24/7 Dance Studio. She was a member of 24/7 Dance Studio’s SRC PRIDE Company. Cassidy was also on her high school’s Varsity Pom team for 3 years before graduating in 2021. This is Ms. Cassidy’s 2nd year teaching at LDF and she is so excited to continue to share her love for dance and acro with all LDF dancers!

Ms. Conley is from Knoxville, Tennessee. She was a competitive gymnast for 13 years and spent the last years of her career coaching lower level competitive gymnast. When she is home you will find her coaching the girls at Gymtek Academy or working at NHC Fort Sanders. She now attends the Univeristy of Kentucky, majoring in Human Health Sciences and minoring in Nutrition. Her goal over the next years in school is to graduate with a Doctorate in Physical Therapy. Ms. Conley has always loved to tumble, jump, turn, and leap. Floor was her favorite event to perform and watch. She is looking forward to meeting all the girls and teaching acro skills!!!!

Ms. Madi was raised in Naperville, IL. She started dancing for a competitive team at the age of 10. She took all styles from ballet to hip hop but hip hop became her favorite style. She joined her high school dance team where she took a captain position and head choreography spot. She attended the University of Kentucky where she got her degree in elementary education. Currently she is teaching 5th grade here in Lexington! This is Ms. Madi’s third year with LDF and she is extremely excited to be a part of the family! 

Lily is currently a freshman, studying at the University of Kentucky with a major in Kinesiology. She is also on the University of Kentucky Dance Team this season. Lily has danced at Lexington Dance Factory for 7 years, as well as training and performing in the pre-professional ballet academy with LDF. She performed the role of Clara in last year’s Nutcracker. Lily is so excited to return to LDF to work with young students while sharing her love for dance!

Mara Farris Babb, a Lexington, Kentucky native, began her dance training at the age of 3 and never looked back. She graduated from Western Kentucky University with a Bachelor of Arts in Dance and a minor in Performing Arts Administration. While at Western Mara performed extensively with the WKU Dance Company; regionally at Jazz Dance World Congress and American College Dance Festival and internationally in Istanbul, Turkey and Civitavecchia and Tolfa, Italy. Upon graduation she was accepted into the Master of Fine Arts Program at Oklahoma City University. While in Oklahoma, she taught at the Community Dance Center, as well as, taught and judged for Dance Masters of Oklahoma. Mara moved back to her Old Kentucky Home in 2011 and became a company member with Movement Continuum for eight seasons, was a teacher, choreographer, and the assistant dance company manager at Town and Village School of Dance for eleven years and was a part-time dance instructor for the University of Kentucky Department of Theatre and Dance from 2014-2016. She remains an avid volunteer for The Lexington Theatre Company and Distinguished Young Women of Kentucky. Mara currently resides in Lexington, KY where she works at UK HealthCare. Yet her biggest accomplishments are her son and daughter, Colton, and Jessa. She is excited to join the LDF family.

Elvira Dale studied at the Perm Ballet Academy in Russia where she obtained her diploma of professional ballet.  She specializes in the Vaganova method of ballet technique, which is the main method in the world of classical ballet.  She was subsequently employed by the Donetsk Theater of Opera and Ballet in Ukraine.  For ten years, Elvira was a soloist dancer and has danced parts in "Swan Lake", "Nutcracker", "Sleeping Beauty", "Giselle", "Don Quixote", ect.  She has toured all over the former USSR and USA.  Elvira was one of Lexington Ballet Company's principle dancers and choreographer for the Ballet Under the Stars Pre-Show.  She's excited to now be a part of the LDF family teaching!