About Turning Pointe Dance StudioOur MissionTurning Pointe Dance Studio is a dance facility that seeks to create positive activities for youth, develop motor skills, promote physical fitness and encourage social interaction. The focus and intent of Turning Pointe Dance Studio is to provide dancers in the metropolitan area the highest quality of dance training for those students who wish to pursue professional dance careers as well as those who simply want to enjoy dance on a recreational level and receive the benefits of exercising the mind and body. With this mission, Turning Pointe aims to provide each of its students with meaningful and enriching skills and an appreciation for the arts in a friendly and disciplined environment. Our PhilosophyOur philosophy at Turning Pointe Dance Studio is to provide guidance and attention to students of all ages and levels through stability, love, equality, devotion and understanding. TPDS is committed to a strong value system and family atmosphere that has been established in our founding studio for the past 38 years. Our students have fun, feel confident and continue to receive the most complete dance experience in the Eagan area. Our ultimate goal is building students to have strong dance technique, performance abilities, confidence and poise. Turning Pointe Dance Studio offers a variety of dance options for serious dance students, at the preschool, beginner, intermediate and advanced levels providing a complete dance program that is fun, challenging, and rewarding.
 Robert & Gayle Myles (Owners) Gayle and Robert are the proud owners of Turning Pointe Dance Studio and look forward to helping your children grow in the art of dance. Gayle and Robert have been actively involved in the studio for 12+ years and assumed ownership in 2007. They had 2 children go through TPDS and enjoy assisting students and parents growing in the love of dance. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions about the studio.  Brittany Myles Brittany has been dancing for 18 years training and studying all types of dance including jazz, tap, lyrical, contemporary, hip hop, west African, modern, ballet, and Pointe styles. Her first experience with modern dance was in middle school which propelled her to travel to Washington D.C. as a 6th grader where she was chosen to dance at the Kennedy Center of Performing Arts. Brittany attended high school at St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists where she got to work with many different local artists and performers. Her senior year, she had the privilege of going to New York to study at the Alvin Ailey Dance Center. Brittany has been a competitive dancer since the age of nine and loves competitions! Her favorite kind of dance to compete with is tap and jazz, but she is experienced in all types of dance. Brittany has competed at both national and regional competitions. Currently, Brittany is attending the University of Wisconsin-Stout where she is studying Retail Merchandising and Management. Brittany is excited to be choreographing and teaching at Turning Pointe Dance Studio and can’t wait for the year to begin! Read less... Courtney Vanderheyden She grew up dancing at Dyan's World of Dance — which is the founding company of Turning Pointe Dance Studio. During her studio dance years Courtney won many regional and national awards. Courtney was a member of the State winning, Burnsville High School Blazettes Dance team, where she served as team captain her senior year. She directed and held team rehearsals as part of the responsibility of captain for the team, along with choreographing their dances. While in High School she was selected to be a part of the All State Dance Team for Jazz. Upon graduation from high school, she joined TPDS as an instructor. For the past 5 years Courtney has been a part of the Turning Pointe teaching staff. Courtney also is the fall head coach for the Lakeville South Dance Team. For the winter season, she is the Assistant Varsity coach for Henry Sibley Dance Team. Courtney graduated from a local university with a degree in Psychology. She is so excited to be back with these kids and keep pushing them towards their goals. Read less... Deane Tasler Deane’s first love was musical theatre, and he has appeared on the main stage at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatres in Anything Goes; Disney’s Beauty and the Beast; as Bernardo in West Side Story; Singin’ in the Rain; 42nd Street; and Swing. He also had the great pleasure of joining the Metropolitan Ballet’s productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Agnes DeMille’s Rodeo at the Historic State Theatre. He continues in musical theatre as a choreographer/director for Ashland Productions and has choreographed for Maple Grove Senior high, where his work has been recognized at the annual Spotlight Awards.  Annika Laughlin Annika grew up studying dance in Minnesota and New York State. She continued her dance training at Buffalo State College, completing a B.A. in Arts and Letters, focusing her studies on Dance and English. In addition, she has completed a two-year early childhood education program, where she studied the physical, social, mental, and emotional development of young children. Annika worked locally for two years as a company dancer, ballet instructor, and student rehearsal assistant with the Continental Ballet Company in Bloomington, MN before deciding to devote her time to pursuing her teaching interests. Annika adores working with young ballet dancers. As a teacher, she works to provide a strong foundation in classical ballet technique, from which the dancers can continue to progress in their dancing and grow in their personal artistry. Her classes focus on developing coordination, balance, proper alignment, discipline, musicality, and age-appropriate ballet technique, in a supportive and confidence-building environment. Annika is passionate about teaching ballet and is excited to share this passion with Turning Pointe students and their families. Read less... Colton Myles Colton entered the competition dance world at the age of 4. While growing up he has represented Dyan's World of Dance, as well as Turning Pointe, at numerous regional and national competitions. In 2019 he received a B.S. degree in Exercise Science from the University of Sioux Falls in South Dakota. While living in South Dakota he had the opportunity to work with various levels of athletes ranging from elementary to professional. He also gathered experience in group fitness instruction and personal training for the general population. This is Colton's first year back at the studio, and he is excited to offer his unique experience in both dance and strength and conditioning to our dancers!  Whitney Mason Whitney entered the dance world at the young age of 2 and hasn't stopped dancing yet! She grew up dancing and competing with local studios in southern Minnesota and has training in Ballet, Pointe, Lyrical, Jazz, High Kick, Modern, Contemporary and Tap. Whitney danced for the Albert Lea High School dance team and served as a captain and choreographer her senior year. In college she danced for the Augustana College dance team and the Sioux Falls Storm Lightning Girls. Since college she has taught at local studios in southeastern Minnesota and was a head dance team coach for two different high schools. Dance continues to be Whitney's passion and she comes to each class hoping to inspire her dancers and help them strive in each class. Whitney is looking forward to the upcoming season and is excited to see the dancers back in the studio!  Abbey Rose Abbey began her dance journey at the age of 5. She grew up doing competitive dance at Stage Door of Performing Arts and Turning Pointe. Abbey always had an interest in creating choreography, and spent many hours in the studio after class working on new ideas. She joined the Turning Pointe staff in 2016 as a Hip-Hop instructor. Abbey is very involved in the MN dance community by taking classes in the twin cities to further her education in Hip-Hop and Jazz Funk, and has appeared in various videos for local dance and musical artists. She also is an apprentice for Borealis Dance, a modern dance company located in Minneapolis. Abbey is so excited to share her love and knowledge of Hip-Hop with our TPDS dancers!
 Sarah Pelletier Sarah Pelletier enrolled in the Classical Ballet Academy of Minnesota as a level 1 student in 2000 and graduated the Academy at Level 8 in 2008. She has danced in the classics Ballet Minnesota productions of Swan Lake and Giselle, restaged by Cheryl Rist. She has also danced in other original works by Andrew Rist including: 'Black Dog Cafe", 'Nightmare', Sorcerer's Apprentice, 'At The Museum', 'Emperor's New Clothes 'River Songs, and original version of 'Nutcracker. Sarah taught ballet and choreographed original dance at Rain Academy of Dance in Hastings receiving awards for original choreography. She has taught at many studio's across the twin cities. She and her sister Rebecca also choreographed a dance in the original production of Amahl.  Kylie Crawford Kylie Crawford has been involved in dance for over 10 years. She has danced both competitively and in the modern world throughout her career. She has experience teaching at many different studios within the Twin Cities, and is Acrobatic Arts certified. Kylie has taught all styles throughout her career, from ballet to hip hop, as well as all ages, from 18 months - 18 years. Throughout her work, Kylie has grown a passion for teaching young artists the importance of expressing oneself through movement. She takes pride in building the next generation of dancers, and strives to instill a love that will continue with her students well into adulthood. |
