~ ABOUT ~
International Dance, LLC. was founded as the School of International Dance by Christina Heimlich in 1962. The school is directed by Elizabeth Hawkins. Assistant director Rebecca Collier and our instructors are Miss Elizabeth, Miss Becca, Miss Sarah, Miss Victoria, Miss Natalie, and Miss Misha.
Within the school we have a group of advanced dancers called "The Christina Heimlich Dancers." They perform and carry on the traditions that uphold the standards of our founder.
We want to take this opportunity to let you know a little more about our program. As a student, your child will learn about pre-ballet or ballet, creative movement as well as international folk and character dance. Some classes also study tap and jazz. Participation in our classes will encourage development of motor coordination skills, balance, partnering, flexibility, strength, concentration, independence, creativity through use of imagination, poise, posture, rhythm, discipline - all while having fun and learning about music and dance.
Elizabeth Hawkins
~ Owner/Director/Instructor ~
Artistic Director Elizabeth Hawkins studied under both Founder Christina Heimlich and former Artistic Director Lisa Filipy for 10 years as an elite Christina Heimlich Dancer. She continued her dancing career at Shenandoah University where she studied under Robyn Schroth and Pamela Saxon and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. She rejoined International Dance in 2012.
"Miss Elizabeth," as her students call her, is an accomplished director, choreographer, and seamstress. In addition she has 25 plus years of working with and inspiring children. Her love of dance, choreography, music and teaching shows in everything she does.
Rebecca Collier
~ Assistant Director/Instructor ~
Becca’s training from ages 12-18 was strictly Vaganova Ballet and Character Dance. At University of Central Oklahoma, Becca studied and taught modern, contemporary, jazz, choreography, and theatre. There, she made it her mission to help dancers become stronger both physically and mentally. She received a BFA in Dance Performance and a minor in theatre arts from UCO in 2015 before venturing off to London, UK where she recently graduated with her MFA in Dance Choreography.
Becca is thrilled to be the Assistant Director at ID LLC and loves teaching at International Dance!
Misha Mlejova
~ Instructor ~
Misha is a professionally and classically trained ballet soloist from the Czech Republic and Slovakia where she shared the stage with Russian stars such as Ilse Liepa, and others. She is a member of the Slovak National Theatre and D.J.K Tyl in Pilsen and has taught Vaganova style ballet since 2009.
She likes musical theatre, jazz, ballet, modern dance and fashion shows but what she really loves is teaching and choreographing children of all ages.
Sarah Brinkmann
~ Instructor ~
Sarah was trained from a young age at Ruth Mitchell’s Georgia Dance Conservatory before continuing her training at the Atlanta Ballet Center for Dance Education. While attending the University of Georgia, she continued her studies in modern dance, ballet, and pointe, graduating in 2012 with a Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Education and a Minor in Spanish.
As a mother of two herself, she has a passion for helping children reach their full potential. She is honored to be uniting her love of dance and her experience in education as a new International Dance teacher.