Our Staff

Miss Emily started dancing at The Children’s Ballet where she studied ballet and pointe under Deni Jacks, Robyn Wenrich, Edward Moffat, and Heidi Eads Jones. During her study at The Children’s Ballet, she discovered her love of teaching by working as a teaching assistant and student teacher.

Her choreographic works have been awarded and featured: “Forever Night” received an Allen Choreography Award, “Compter Sur” was presented at the American College Dance Festival in 2014, and “Lux et Gravitas,” “This Tea/This Chair/This Place,” “Civil Blood, Sweet Sorrow,” and “Amber Waves” were performed at Indy Fringe 2016-2019. Emily was a member of Phoenix Rising Dance Company in 2016-17. She co-founded Crossroads Dance Indy in 2015 and served as a company member and choreographer until 2020. She is currently a company artist with Ballet INitiative. She has served as the Artistic Director of The Children’s Ballet since 2015.

Emily is certified in Progressing Ballet Technique junior, senior, and advanced programs and is a member of the National Dance Education Organization. She shares her passion for dance, storytelling, and the arts through dancing, choreographing, and teaching.

Vanessa began her dance training in 2007 at The Children’s Ballet in Danville, Indiana. Here she received training in ballet, pointe, and modern. While there, she was a student teacher, and choreographed for the end of the year shows. This inspired her to continue her dance journey by attending Anderson University after her high school graduation. Her technique expanded to include tap, jazz, dance composition, and improvisation.

While at Anderson, she participated in numerous shows and worked with fantastic teachers like Christine Thacker, Debra Silveus, Doug King, and more. She also had the opportunity to dance with Gregory Hancock Dance Theater in the premiere of EXODUS and danced as an intern in their production of Violin Under the Bed. She graduated in December 2019 with a Bachelors of Arts in Dance Business.

​Ms. Hearn holds a BA (magna cum laude) in Dance from the International University of San Diego, CA. Her dance training began with Gail Grant and continued at Indiana University, Bloomington receiving a scholarship under the direction of Nicolas Beriozoff. She also studied with such notables as Rosella Hightower and Jose Ferran in Cannes, France; Christine Du Boulay and Richard Ellis in Chicago.

Lise has danced with the Feld Ballet NY, Colorado Ballet, Dayton Ballet, Nevada Dance Theatre, and Ruth Page Ballet. Some of her leading roles occurred in such favorite ballets as Raymonda, Don Quixote, Swan Lake, Coppelia, Sleeping Beauty, Graduation Ball, Petrouchka, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Serenade, Giselle, Nutcracker, Sacre du Printemps, Carmina Burana and Pas de Quatre. She also can be seen in the television production of Die Fliedermaus, directed by Larry Long.

Lise received a series of scholarships for Performance and for the Teachings of the Russian Syllabus from the International Ballet Seminar. She has given Master Classes for several teacher organizations; Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ; St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, IN; and Regis-Loretto Heights College, Denver, CO. Before arriving in Indianapolis, she was on faculty, teaching ballet and character, at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas and was the certified Pilates Instructor of Rehabilitation for Cirque du Soleil.

Kristina Smrekar has been a lifelong dancer, beginning at the age of 3 at a small studio in her hometown. With a desire to further her training, in 2007, she began dancing at Indiana Ballet Theatre under the instruction of Gloria Tuohy, Amanda Tuohy, Kristy Victor, and Wendy Holland. Kristina studied classical ballet, pointe, modern, jazz, acting, and tap intensely.

She attended the Chicago National Association of Dance Masters summer intensive in addition to those offered by Indiana Ballet Theatre, providing diversity in her training. Kristina was a substitute teacher for the studio during high school which allowed her to discover her passion of sharing dance with children. She was also given numerous opportunities to perform in ballets such as the Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Coppelia, and Swan Lake, as well as modern shows, outreach performances, and galas.

While attending Indiana University, Kristina continued to advance her ballet training through classes with the Jacob’s School of Music plus modern, jazz, and aerial silk classes. Additionally, she was a member of Windfall Dancers, a modern dance company that performs and offers children’s outreach programs within the community. Here, she further developed her love of choreographing, performing, and working with children.

Our Board of Directors includes individuals with a passion for the arts and experience in business development and arts organizations. Our board helps us navigate the challenges and opportunities of growth while remaining true to our mission.

• Lauren Thomas
• Julie Wilmot
• Tierney Dininger
• Ian Hays
• Hannah Schoening
• Kelli Bowman
• Abby Greci
• John Hillman
• Heather Hillman
• Angie Montgomery
• Carrie Miller
• Julia Wilson