DCD Program Course Details

DCD offers courses that run from Monday through Sunday.  Course offers are provided in three session cycles.

· Fall Session: August to December

· Spring Session: January to May

· Summer Session: June to July

Performance Opportunities:

· Nutcracker Production

All students are eligible to audition to perform a role in the Nutcracker with rehearsals starting in September.

· Spring Dance Recital

All students enrolled in dance classes are able to participate in the recital to show off the skills they have mastered during the Spring Session.

Meet Our Teachers

DCD has eight experienced teachers that instruct students in ballet, tap, jazz, liturgical, hip hop and ballroom dancing. The program strives to build character, self-esteem as well as discipline, respect and team spirit in each of the dancers.

Nancy McReynolds (Artistic Director)

• Although a Decatur native and a graduate of Millikin University in the areas of Speech, Theatre, English, and Dance, Mrs. McReynolds received her Master in Theatre Arts at Denver University in Colorado.  Even though she has attended many master classes and training schools, the most notable is her training certification with the Royal Academy of Dance (Based in England) in all grade levels (Pre-Primary through Grade 8) in Fort Wayne, IN and Champaign, IL as well as her training in Evanston, IL at the Gus Giordano Dance Studio.
•        Her performing experiences include high school and college plays, as well as, several Theatre 7 productions.  She performed with the Twin City Ballet Company, USA Ballet, Agape (Christian Dance Company), and Synergy (which were all located in Bloomington, IL at the time).  She also has participated in many dance concerts in Bloomington, IL and Decatur, IL.
•        Her choreographed productions for Theatre 7 include the following:  Quilters, Brigadoon, Annie, Leader of the Pack, Into the Woods, Fiddler on the Roof, and She Loves Me; Richland Community College productions:  Metropolis [Decatur Herald’s Choreographer Award] and Fantstiks; school productions in the area; and many dance concerts throughout the years.  She has co-directed and choreographed several ballets including the Nutcracker Ballet, Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, and Coppelia.
•        Her experience as a director began at Millikin University with Green Pastures and later as an assistant director for several other productions at Millikin which gave her an opportunity to direct and work with professional actors on stage.  In the area of dance, she assisted Alexander Bennett for several years with productions in Bloomingtojn, IL.  One of the highlights of her career include her work as Ballet Mistress for the Scottish American Ballet in Edinburgh, Scotland where she worked with Andre Ustinov, formerly of the Kirov Ballet and Jaroslov Slavicky, Ballet Master of the Prague Opera in Czechoslovakia, in rehearsals, classes, and performances.

Amy Ziettlow

• Amy Ziettlow grew up in Tulsa, OK where she studied with Moscelyne Larkin and the Tulsa Ballet Theater. She was a ballet performance major at the University of Oklahoma and studied with Mary Margaret Holt, Yvonne Chouteau, and Miguel Terekhov. She received the Master of Divinity degree from the University of Chicago, is ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, and currently serves Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Decatur. She is the co-author (with law professor Naomi Cahn) of Homeward Bound: Modern Families, Elder Care, & Loss. She has been dancing with Richland since 2012. 

Chelsea White

• Chelsea is a native of the Decatur area. She attended Taylor University in Upland, IN and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. in Spanish Education. She has taught Spanish at both MacArthur High School and St. Teresa High School. 
• Chelsea has been dancing since childhood, first taking classes at the Decatur YWCA, the YMCA, then Richland Community College, and now Decatur Community Dance—following Nancy McReynolds during each of these transitions. She was a soloist for the Richland Dance Company. She also took ballet, pointe, and partnering classes from Greg Merriman for several years at McLean County Dance Association in Bloomington.
• Chelsea has been in many productions, including Sleeping Beauty, Coppelia, Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, Graduation Ball, The Lion King, Cinderella, Jewels, Romeo and Juliet, and numerous productions of The Nutcracker.  
• Aside from dancing, Chelsea is a a certified personal trainer, runner, and pianist. More importantly, she is wife to Alan, and mother to 3 children. 

Jan Taylor

• Originally from Decatur, I have danced through several cities only to find my way back to my hometown. I went to Saint Teresa High School and was a cheerleader and involved in the Drama Club.   I studied dance at Millikin University under Gary Schull.  I earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Rockford College with an emphasis in Dance.  While in Rockford, I also performed on a Semi-professional dance team called the Rockford Lightning Silverstreaks.  During my junior year of college, I had the opportunity to study dance, music theory, and other general education classes in London, England. 
• Upon my graduation, I studied dance in California at Debbie Allen’s Dance Studio, as well as Debbie Reynolds’ Dance Studio.  After a while I returned to the Midwest where I was a choreographer and model for the Chicago Hair Association Annual Hair Show.  I was on a television show called ATV where I was Crazy Daizy.  I took several classes at Lou Conte Dance Studio and decided it was time for me to start teaching dance again.  I worked in Chicago at a Homework Hangout type of place, helping kids at Lifetime Fitness.  It was then I realized that my calling was to teach dance and love seeing the smiles on my students’ faces. I want to teach everyone I encounter to be the star of their own show, the star of their own life.   

Melissa Girardi

• Melissa started dancing (with what is now Decatur Community Dance!) in 1998. Throughout the years, thanks to wonderful and dedicated teachers, she has fallen in love with the art of dance and started teaching in 2014. Her goal is to encourage that same passion and love for the art that her teachers instilled in her growing up. Melissa graduated from Millikin University in 2013 with a BA in social services and enjoys spending time with her husband, James and their fur baby, Helga. 

Yulia Dichenko and Matthew Heinemann

• Yulia is a social latin dancing instructor, starting January 2024. Full time she is a safety engineer at Primient. She lives in Decatur with her spouse and 2 dogs. She has been ballroom dancing since 2001. She has been a competitive and professional dancer since 2009. She has taught latin dance since 2018. Her background is technical, so feel free to ask her about proper technique.
• Matt is a social Latin dancing instructor, starting January 2024. Full time he is a design engineer at Butler America. He lives in Decatur with his spouse and 2 dogs. He started Latin dancing in 2013. He has taught Latin dancing since 2016. During his classes he encourages participation, so feel free to ask him questions.