THE PEOPLE
BEHIND THE MOVEMENT.

Kendal Dockter trained at The Dance Place from ages three through 18. She was a principal dancer in the Pre-Pro Dance Team and became an award-winning choreographer.

Kendal began teaching in 2018 and quickly proved herself to be a creative and inspiring educator. Her classes promote self-empowerment, and Dance Place students love her energy.

Stacey Manzanares has taught Dance Place students for more than two decades, inspiring recreational dancers to love the art while training serious dancers for professional opportunities. For 20 years she has choreographed for Corps De Danse, The Dance Place's competitive team, with work recognized nationally.

Her professional performance career includes work with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in The Nutcracker, where she danced principal roles for several years, along with Dance Detroit/Jacob Lascu, Dayton Ballet, Dreams/Anna Sokolov, Michigan Opera Theatre, Circles/Alana Barter, Easter Seals/Ed Asner and Pat Paulson & Max Davies Dancers.

Jessica Manzanares grew up knowing she wanted to teach at The Dance Place and continue the quality dance education she began receiving at age three. She started her professional teaching and choreography career at 16 and has taught Technique, Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Hip Hop and Lyrical.

Her choreography has earned top awards at dance competitions nationwide, with professional work spanning competitive and recreational dance, industry and video projects, Oakland University's Dance Team and Tinderbox Productions in Detroit.

Jessica also toured with Hall Of Fame Dance Challenge, giving her the opportunity to study talented choreographers from across the United States.

Alex Hlavaty began formal dance training at age six and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance with a minor in Creative Writing from Western Michigan University in 2015. His studies have taken him to New York City with Gibney Dance and Montréal with O Vertigo and Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal.

He joined Eisenhower Dance Detroit and has performed and taught master classes nationally and internationally. Alex joined The Dance Place faculty in 2018 and is also an avid choreographer and writer, with work appearing in festivals, intensives, competitions, Culture Pop in Detroit, the literary journal The Laureate and DancePlug online.

Brianna Purrett graduated from Western Michigan University with a Bachelor of Arts in Dance before continuing her education in New York City at Broadway Dance Center, studying under Heather Rigg and Deborah Y. Wilson.

While in New York, she worked for Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Westwood, New Jersey as a Ballroom instructor and performer before returning to Michigan to teach Ballroom, Ballet, Stretch, Latin and Jazz.

Her choreography and professional dance credits include Palace Events, News Channels 4 & 7, wedding and bridal shows, Detroit Music Hall and national ballroom events. A Dance Place/Corps De Danse alumna, Brianna teaches Preschool, Ballet, Jazz, Technique, Ballroom and Wedding Dance.