Katelin Madsen (Irish Director)
Katelin started Allegro Dance Studio as a way to bring a positive, fun, and affordable Irish Dance option to Cache Valley. Katelin has been Irish Dancing for 20 years. She performed, contributed choreography, and helped to direct in the production of Celtic Night for the full 10 years that it ran at Ellen Eccles Theater. She has performed on countless stages across Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming and attended a Master Class taught by the Riverdance star, Jean Butler. She started teaching Irish Dance to young children when she was 14 years old, and has since taught students throughout the years from the ages of 3 up to 65. She earned her Bachelors Degree at USU in Secondary Education (Biological Science) and taught 7th grade science for one year before becoming a stay at home mom. She enjoys spending time with students of all ages and helping them learn, grow, and become self-confident. She currently lives with her husband and 3 young kids in Franklin, ID. Her favorite things include spending time outdoors with her family, reading a good book, and getting a full night of uninterrupted sleep.
Allison Lefler (Ballet Director)
Allison has been dancing since a very young age. Growing up in southern Arizona she was trained in ballet, tap, jazz, & dabbled in ballroom in college. She graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education from UVU and taught 1st grade for four years before having children of her own. Her father was the high school drama teacher and from a young age Allison has been performing on stages and training in different styles of dance. Allison loves dance and the joy it brings. It has been a joy to combine her love of teaching with dance as she works with the students at Allegro. Allison believes that dance is a way to build confidence in individuals and is an outlet for creativity and self expression. Her classes focus on basic ballet techniques with a whole lot of props and fun added in.
Sadie Willey (Irish Instructor)
Sadie began Irish step-dancing in 2004 at the age of seven with the INISHFRE Dance Studio - under the tutelage of Julie Zufelt. She was a member of the Junior and then Senior Companies. She continued to keep her feet moving while going to Utah State University and graduated with her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drawing and Painting. She works full-time as a free lance artist. Her favorite hobbies are dancing, reading, cross-stitching, anything Disney, and traveling. She is thrilled to be dancing (and teaching) with Katelin again. Both of them are passionate about keeping traditional Irish dancing alive and thriving in the next generation of dancers.
Rachel Fillingim (Ballet Instructor)
Rachel began training in ballet at the age of 5 with the Ogden Ballet West Academy. At 9 she joined Imagine Ballet Theatre under the direction of Raymond Van Mason, (former principal with Ballet West,) where she performed in various roles in many ballets over 7 years with the company. Some of her favorites included Snow Queen in The Nutcracker, Tigerlily in Alice: Adventures in Wonderland, and the Cat in Peter and the Wolf. During those 7 years she also attended 4-week summer intensives with IBT and Ballet West Academy where she studied ballet, jazz, hip hop, character, flamenco, Irish, African, and choreography with notable teachers from around the world. At 16 she competed at the Youth American Grand Prix in Denver, Colorado in both ballet and contemporary. During high school she interned and attended Creative Arts Academy where she substituted and assisted in teaching ballet to ages 3-14. She also substituted for Weber State University and was a guest artist for their ACDA competition.
Now, she lives with her husband in Logan where she loves to perform in musicals within Cache Valley’s theater community. Teaching ballet for Allegro is her dream job and Rachel works hard to merge fun and technique to ensure each dancer enjoys their time with her.
Now, she lives with her husband in Logan where she loves to perform in musicals within Cache Valley’s theater community. Teaching ballet for Allegro is her dream job and Rachel works hard to merge fun and technique to ensure each dancer enjoys their time with her.
Erin Willford (Irish Instructor)
Erin is currently an art & design student at USU hoping to go into graphic design. Since the age of 10 she competed in Irish dance across the western US, qualified for nationals and made it into the open championship level. She was a member of the Hibernian Arts Reparatory Performers. One of her favorite performances was dancing with the Nashville Celts band on their Christmas tour in Park City. Besides Irish dance, she was a part of her high school ballroom team.
Schelby Jackson (Irish Instructor)
Schelby started doing competitive Irish Dancing when she was in 5th grade at her local dance studio in Redlands, California. With her studio, she has traveled all over the United States and the Netherlands, where she competed in the Worlds Championships. She was part of a 4-hand team that competed at Worlds and performed in shows throughout Southern California during their March show season. She also grew up doing theatre through middle and high school, where she stage managed and created costuming and lighting designs for the stage. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education at USU, and is very excited to continue working with children.
Ella Gilbert (Ballet Instructor)
Ella began dancing at the age of 3 at C&C Ballet Academy in South Jordan Utah. She has trained in many styles such as jazz, lyrical, contemporary, and modern, but her favorite remains ballet. Ella has had the amazing opportunity to perform in The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, and The 4 Sea Interludes with South Pointe Ballet. She was also selected as a dancer for the 2018 Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert with guest artists Sutton Foster and Hugh Bonneville. Outside of dance, Ella loves school, hiking, reading, and getting to know new people! She can’t wait to begin teaching at Allegro Dance Studio this fall.
Sara Marshall (Ballet/Tap Instructor)
