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It’s been an incredible spring dancing season for Arthur Murray Dance, Dayton’s premier adult dance studio. Congratulations to our spring participants and our winners:
BEACH-O-RAMA | CABO | JANUARY 2023
The 2023 Competitive Dance Season started out strong for Team Dayton. Not only did our students perform well on the dance floor, but they had an amazing time enjoying their dance vacations! Our students and their instructors were rock stars as they danced their way through Beach-O-Rama in Cabo:
Amelie Kava – Top Ladies Newcomer (“A” Category)
Liz Sanchez – Top Ladies Newcomer
Fran Duntz – Top Associate Silver Student
TEXAS DANCE-O-RAMA | AUSTIN | FEBRUARY 2023
Arthur Murray dancers took over Austin for the Texas Dance-O-Rama. Our small but powerful team of dancers took the competition by the horns, coming home with 3 top honors:
Walt Hartel – Top Male Associate and 3rd Place All Around
Kathy Hartel – 3rd Place All Around
WORLD DANCE-O-RAMA | NEW ORLEANS | MARCH 2023
Congratulations Dr. Ann Bockrath on her impressive wins at the World Dance-O-Rama in New Orleans. Dancing since winning in the 2019 Dancing with the Stars event with partner and instructor, Craig Johnston, Ann placed 2nd in her All Around and brought home the TOP STUDENT OF 2023 AWARD at the March competition.
The next competition we’re stepping into this Spring is the San Francisco Dance-O-Rama in April. Wishing our team of competitors (Teresa Macalooloy and Charlie Cook) the best of luck!
Overseeing our traveling competitive team are Amanda Horn (Instructor), Craig Johnston (Instructor and Dance Director), and Barbara Haller (co-owner). If you’re interested in the fun and health benefits of a competitive dance vacation, see your instructor today!
Born and raised in Eaton, Ohio with a significant childhood dance background, Amanda Horn also oversees our bridal department and new student department, Amanda began in the food industry as a waitress until Barbara Haller came in one evening and offered her a job on the spot! She has now been teaching new and advanced students since 2015 and has traveled around the world competing with her students. An award-winning dance professional with numerous titles and Mirror Ball Tropies under her belt, Amanda’s favorite part of her career is hearing people say how dancing has changed their lives, as it has certainly changed hers! The recipient of numerous titles and awards, Amanda teaches 28 different styles of partner dancing. Her favorite being country western!
An award-winning dance professional, Craig was born and raised in Scotland, U.K., where he started his dance training at the young age of 7. As a teenager, he was offered a scholarship to London Studio Centre, a top theatre college in London, where he studied for 2 years. His passion for dance then led him to travel extensively around the world, from stage shows to Dance Captain onboard Celebrity Cruises. In 2012, Craig moved to Nashville, TN to continue his dance career based in the USA. Since relocating to the Dayton Area in 2018, Craig has received many top teacher designations and was most recently named to the Arthur Murray International Winner’s Circle in both 2021 and 2022, recognizing him as one of the top three instructors in the Arthur Murray organization worldwide. As the studio Supervisor, Craig was responsible for developing a competitive Dance Team that won 6 Top Studio Awards at Arthur Murray Dance Competitions globally in 2022, while many of the Dayton Students earned the Top Student Award in their respective divisions. Craig was also instrumental in leading the Dayton team of Instructors to win the 2022 International Dance Festival and Grand Championship. A good description of Craig can be characterized in four words: “Passionate, Professional, Fun, and Driven.” As a result of his many accomplishments and continuing success, Craig was promoted to his current position of Assistant Manager.
Recipients of the 2021 and 2022 Best Arthur Murray Studio Award, Barbara Haller and her husband Tim are four-time United States Professional Ballroom Theatrical Arts Champions, with an impressive competitive and performance career. Despite their many awards, Barbara Haller states their greatest pleasure is in seeing how the dance experience at Arthur Murray alters people’s lives in such a positive way. While the Arthur Murray Dance Studios have been operating for 100 years, Tim and Barbara Haller are pleased to note that the Dayton Franchise has been operating continuously since 1946.
Fun and fitness go hand in hand with ballroom dancing in Dayton. If you are interested in the benefits of adult dance lessons in Dayton or competitive amateur dancing, contact us today!
