Our Faculty

Our professional, motivating instructors will challenge each student to reach their personal potential by leveraging their vast experiences and extensive credentials.

Meet The Team

Chelsea Robinson

Director/Owner

Chelsea is the proud Owner and Director at Positive Dance Experience. As a Dance and Fitness instructor for over 15 years, Chelsea enthusiastically shares her passion for all aspects of the performing arts with her students and fellow colleagues.    Chelsea has a love for learning. She is a graduate from Randolph Academy for the Performing Arts, where she received a Triple Threat Diploma. After performing herself from Stage, to Film and TV, Chelsea followed her love for dance and completed several dance education certifications and is a fully certified ADAPT Jazz & Tap Instructor, Acrobatique & Acrobatic Arts Certified Instructor, Alixa Flexibility Certified Instructor, and has obtained her STOTT Pilates and Body Harmonics Mat Pilates Certifications. Chelsea is also a Certified Barre Fitness instructor with certifications from "Barreworks Toronto" and "Principal Barre" created by the National Ballet of Canada’s Principal Dancer, Heather Ogden. In her time as a professional dance instructor Chelsea has taught at numerous dance studios including I’ve Got Rhythm, Randolph Academy, Russian Classical Ballet, The Dance Institute, The Granite Club, and most notably served as Lead Dance Instructor at The Toronto Cricket Club for over a decade. One of Chelsea's fondest teaching memories was travelling to Amman, Jordan to teach Musical Theatre and Dance to students at Stardust Academy including a member of the royal family.   Chelsea aims to help clients with confidence, skill, and hopes to aid in the experience of finding joy in dance. Chelsea strives to provide a safe and nurturing environment where like minded dancers and instructors can foster new friendships and be a part of a united community. Chelsea works with the Recreational Dancer to the Highest Competitive Dancer to the Pre Professional artist assisting them in their personal journey to success.

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Amanda Davis

Lead Dance Instructor

Amanda Davis is a Dance Instructor at Positive Dance Experience. A Toronto based dancer, choreographer, and educator with a BFA in Theatre Performance Dance from Ryerson University (2010).

Amanda has performed in works choreographed by Alias Dance Project, Valerie Calam (Company Vice Versa), Hanna Kent (skindiversdancecompany), James Kudelka, Julia Aplin, William Yong, Lauren Cook, Troy Feldman, Hanna Kiel, Francesca Chudnoff, Emmanuel Jouthe, Laida Aldaz Arrietea, MonstaPop and Christianne Ullmark. She has performed in the 17th Internationales Solo-Tanz-Theatre Festival in Stuttgart Germany, The Toronto Fringe Festival, Fashion Arts Toronto, MOonhORsE Dance Theatre’s Dance and Design Project, CONTACT|THIS IS AN EXPERIMENT, Toronto’s Animating Historic Spaces, Pulse Ontario Dance Conference, Toronto’s SummerWorks Performance Festival, Dance: made in Canada/fait au Canada, Fringe North International Theatre Festival, and Citadel Dance Mix 2019.

Amanda has delivered dance classes, workshops, and professional development seminars in Toronto for over 10 years to dancers of all ages, as well as educators across many platforms. She has worked closely with The Royal Conservatory of Music as an artist educator and consultant in curriculum development, as rehearsal director for young dancers in Ballet Jorgen Canada’s “The Nutcracker,” and choreographed for Alias Dance Project’s youth company Pivotal Motion Dance Theatre.

Amanda has taught in a variety of dance programs, schools and studio environments including The Dance Institute, Wishing Well Montessori School, Harmony School of Dance and Music, The Cornerstone Studio, Propel Dance Centre, The Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club and Kick Start Arts Society.

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Melissa Morris

Instructor

Melissa Morris is an actor, singer, musician, musical director, multi-instrumentalist, composer, playwright, and educator. She is a graduate of both the Music and Drama departments at Queen’s, and also attended Australian National University. Melissa’s career has taken her across Canada and the Caribbean, where she has had the pleasure of working at Chemainus Theatre, Theatre Orangeville, Port Hope Festival Theatre, Thousand Islands Playhouse, Stirling Theatre, Upper Canada Playhouse, Orillia Opera House, Seven Tyrants Theatre, Theatre 20, Theatre Collingwood, and Theatre Kingston. She was Resident Musical Director and Composer at St Lawrence Shakespeare Festival for 9 seasons, and has musical directed many other shows at different companies in Canada. Melissa was a composer of Evil Dead the Musical, which ran Off-Broadway and in Las Vegas, and which continues to run internationally. She has sound designed multiple shows and has also composed music for film. She has taught Musical Theatre at both Queen’s University and St. Lawrence College. She teaches privately as well as in several Arts schools in the GTA.

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Ruby Kawam

Instructor

Ruby Kawam has been sharing her love of dance with her students for the past 4 years and genuinely strives to help each of her students grow as a dancer and have fun!

After dancing competitively for over 11 years, Ruby has trained in many different genres such as ballet, jazz, acro, tap and hip hop. Her talents have won her many awards and titles. Ruby is a certified Acrobatic Arts instructor as well as a BATD Ballet & Tap Teaching Member.

Outside of her teaching, Ruby is studying at Ryerson University to graduate from their highly sought after Engineering program.

Ruby looks forward to sharing her passion for dance with all of the students at PDE in the Acro Dance Program

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Luke Opdahl

Instructor

Luke is a triple threat performer and dance educator originally from the prairies of Saskatchewan. He is a graduate of the Randolph College for the Performing Arts. He grew up as a competitive dancer in Saskatoon where he also received his Canadian Dance Teachers Association Advanced Tap exam as well as his Royal Academy of Dance Advanced 2 Ballet Exam. He has also worked on the creative side choreographing and directing shows. He also works as a guest teacher and workshop instructor for studios across the country and is a proud member of the Quick Ball Change Roster.

He has worked for many Theatres across Canada including Drayton Entertainment (Elf, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Beauty and the Beast, The Drowsy Chaperone, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin: The Panto, Anne of Green Gables), Stage West Calgary (Priscilla Queen of the Desert) Theatre Aquarius (Elf the Musical), Harold Green Jewish Theatre/danCap (The Jazz Singer), Capitol Theatre (Beauty and The Beast), Breakaway Entertainment/NextStage Festival (Anatomy of a Dancer) Theatre St. Johns (Mary Poppins)

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Alicia Osagie

Instructor

Alicia took her first dance class at 4 years old has been in love with it ever since. After ending her competitive dance journey, she enrolled as a student at Randolph Kids Performing Arts. Alicia was enrolled in Triple Threat, Jazz, Ballet, assisted junior classes, and was a member of the Randolph Dance Crew. She recently graduated from the University of Waterloo where she studied science while continuing her passion by taking advanced level dance classes with her fellow multi-talented peers.

Alicia is back in Toronto and thrilled to teach young students who are discovering dance and themselves through movement. She looks forward to creating a positive and encouraging environment in class.

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Sarah Jean Hodkinson

Instructor

Sarah Jean Hodkinson is a Toronto based Actor/Dance Instructor with over 20 years of experience working in theatre, TV & Film.

She obtains her Intermediate In the Royal Academy of Dance and is highly trained in Cecchetti method, Jazz, Music Theatre, Contemporary and Hip Hop.
Sarah teaches all over the GTA at studios and schools from babies to adults.

A graduated from The Randolph College of the Performing Arts she has also produced short films of her own that have been screened across Canada and has acted in Principal roles featured in “Canada Shorts” and the Oscar qualifying “HollyShorts” in LA.
Sarah is passionate about connecting with people and creating safe spaces to express and grow in the arts.

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