Kaleidoscope Dance is one of the leading dance institutions in the Chicagoland area. At our school, we aim to create a home away from home, where children feel empowered and excited to build their skills.
About
Discover Kaleidoscope Dance
About Kaleidoscope Dance
A top Chicagoland dance studio located at the crossroads of the Skokie and Evanston communities, Kaleidoscope Dance offers classes for dancers of all ages and abilities in Ballet, Jazz, Hip-Hop, Tap, Contemporary, Lyrical, and Musical Theater.
With a warm community atmosphere and small class sizes, our school is able to give each student personal attention so they can progress at a faster pace. We encourage quality dance technique and self-discipline while fostering a love of movement and self-expression.
Understanding that some children have their hearts set on a career in the spotlight, while others simply want to have fun, we offer a range of classes for all ages and abilities. Enroll your child and watch them grow their confidence, make new friends and experience the joy of dance.
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Weekly Classes
Every Dancer's Journey Is Unique
At Kaleidoscope Dance, every dancer’s journey is unique, and we’re here to guide them every step of the way. Our programs are designed to inspire a lifelong love of dance, whether you’re taking your very first class, exploring new styles for fun and enrichment, or training at an advanced level to perform and compete.
From our EXPLORE path for dancers of all ages and abilities, to our EVOLVE path for dedicated, advanced dancers, we offer classes and performance opportunities that help every student grow in skill, confidence, and creativity.
Dance Is the Hidden Language of the Soul
Our Values
The Benefits of a Dance Education
Schools have shifted heavily toward common core subjects, like reading and math, and often leave out the arts. Although some believe art education is a luxury, its simple, creative activities are essential building blocks of child development. Learning to be creative and using their imagination is extremely important for children as they grow up.
Children who participate in the arts experience benefits such as:
The Kaleidoscope Difference
Kaleidoscope Dance was created with family and professionalism in mind. Our mission is to provide:
Our Teachers
The Kaleidoscope team of dance instructors all have degrees in dance as well as professional experience and focus on getting to know your child as an individual.
Heather Jackson
Owner, Kaleidoscope Dance Ensemble Artistic Director
Heather has been instructing and choreographing professionally for over 20 years, with an emphasis on children’s dance. Heather received her formal dance training from Claudette Soltis (former dancer of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo) of the Joliet Ballet Society. The Ballet Society gave her the opportunity to work with many other ballet greats such as Irina Kolpakova of the American Ballet Theatre and Dace Dindonis, formerly of the Indianapolis Ballet. She is a graduate of Millikin University and holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts Performance degree in Dance & Musical Theatre. She is the former Director of Dance at the Mayer Kaplan JCC in Skokie. Heather also established the Kaleidoscope Dance Ensemble in the Northshore area in 2001, for which she is the Artistic Director. Heather teaches all forms of dance and several classes at the studio. Heather’s choreography credits include Kaleidoscope Dance Ensemble, West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof, Annie, Yours Anne, Sound of Music, Elixir of Love, Amahl and the Night Visitors, and several works with Millikin University Dance Ensemble. She has also danced with the Indianapolis Ballet Theatre and performed with Chicago’s Timestep Players Children’s Theatre. Performance credits include Steppin’ Out, Pippin, Bye Bye Birdie, Guys and Dolls, Bartered Bride, Little Shop of Horrors and Millikin Dance Ensemble.
April Torneby
Kaleidoscope Dance Ensemble Assistant Artistic Director
April is a graduate of Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Dance with a focus on choreography. Her studies also include anatomy, kinesiology, ballet, modern, jazz, teaching methodologies and music theory to name a few. While at Cornish, April has had the opportunity to perform in works by Wade Madsen, Deborah Wolf, Alex Little, and Nancy Cranbourne. As well, April has choreographed for several shows including the Cornish BFA Concert, New Moves, Terpsichore’s Landing, and 3rdshift Dance. April has performed with AEON Contemporary Dance and 3rd Shift Dance in Seattle, WA.April has been teaching and choreographing for competitive dance studios in the pacific north west for six years and is excited to continue sharing her passion for dance in Chicago, IL. April fuses her love of movement, music, athleticism, and individual creativity into all of her classes.
Gabriela Ortiz
Kaleidoscope Krew Artistic Director
Gabriela Ortiz is excited to be a part of the Kaleidoscope team. She gradated from Columbia College Chicago with double major in Dance and Performing Arts Management. Gabriela has performed at Carnival Chicago, opened for Beyonce’s dancers at the Shrine, choreographed and danced in a national ad campaign for formidable entities, danced with several Chicago companies, including Desuaño, and currently enjoys choreographing for Chicago-based shows and dance companies. She has performed works by Pam McNeil, Trae Turner, Sofia Perez, Kris Bellive, Denita Inez, Ginger Jensen and international choreographer Xu Chung. She greatly enjoys sharing her love of dance while instilling self-confidence in all her dance classes.
Leigh Durian
Leigh grew up in Iowa City, Iowa where she began her dance training at Nolte Academy under Leslie Nolte and Grace Snider. In 2021, she graduated from the University of Iowa with a BA in Dance and a minor in Physical Activity and Nutrition Sciences. At Iowa, she had the opportunity to work and train with world renowned choreographers such as George de la Peña, Stephanie Miracle, Christopher Rasheem-McMillian, and Eloy Barragán. Leigh relocated to Chicago last year to begin her professional dance career and is looking forward to her second year with Kaleidoscope!
Molly Gemerchak
Molly Gemerchak (she/her) started dancing at age three and hasn’t stopped! Between dancing professionally, teaching pilates, and inspiring students Molly is always moving. Starting at Illinois Ballet Theater (Susan Snider) she left home to seriously peruse dance at 16, attending North Carolina School of the Arts (Ethan Stiefel) and Interlochen Arts Academy (Cameron Baesden). In 2016, she received her BFA in Dance from the University of Cincinnati, graduating cum laude. Gemerchak’s professional career began in Boston where she danced for BoSoma Dance Company (Katherine Hooper), City Ballet Boston (Tony Williams), and SundanceX (David Sun). In 2018, she returned to the Midwest to make Chicago her home, where she now teaches at Kaleidoscope Dance, NorthWest Ballet Academy, and Logan Square Pilates. Gemerchak is a proud company dancer with Chicago Repertory Ballet where she still dances professionally.
Megan Hosp
Megan Hosp is a graduate of Point Park University, with a BFA in Ballet and minor in Psychology. Megan grew up in Chicago, IL, and began dancing at the age of three through the Chicago Park District. Megan performed in her first professional production of The Nutcracker in 2005. In 2008, Megan began dancing at Legere Dance Center in River Forest, IL, taking classes in ballet, jazz, modern, and tap. Megan also attended Joffrey Ballet’s Summer Dance Lab and Junior Intensive and Ballet Chicago Summer and Advanced Intensive’s learning repertoire from Daniel Duell, Ted Seymour, Paul Boos, and Matthew Renko. During her summers at Ballet Chicago, Megan performed repertoire from Concerto Barocco, Serenade, Who Cares?, Walpurgisnacht, Stars and Stripes, and Swan Lake at the Athenaeum Theater. While studying at Point Park, Megan has had the opportunity to perform in works by George Balanchine, Anabelle Lopez Ochoa, Daniel Karasik, and Jay Kirk, as well as the ballets La Bayadere, Paquita, and Sleeping Beauty performing challenging variations. Megan also served as Dance Club President for two years at Point Park, putting together the annual Dance Club Showcase and Dance Club Banquet whilst working closely with the Dance Department chair.
Ashley Hogue
Ashley Hogue is a classically trained ballet dancer who began dancing semi-professionally at the age of 13 and is schooled primarily in the Cecchetti method. She has over 10 years of teaching experience in the Chicagoland area. During her performing career, Ms. Hogue trained extensively with the Boston Ballet and performed as a Principal Dancer with Ballet Arkansas. One of her most notable career achievements was winning the National Society of Arts and Letters Ballet Competition for her performances from Swan Lake and Le Corsaire. She is certified by the American Ballet Theatre to teach the National Training Curriculum, an internationally recognized system of teaching developed for ballet instructors to give age-appropriate training to pre-professional and recreational students alike.
Haley Krause
Haley Krause is a Chicago-based dancer, choreographer, and youth dance instructor. Her choreographic debut, They Were Wrong, was chosen to represent Evanston Township High School at the Illinois High School Association Dance Festival in 2018, followed by her work Somebody To You in 2019. She trained at Visceral Dance Chicago under Nick Pupillo before expanding her training at to include modern, house, and Umfundailai at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she earned her B.F.A. in Dance and a minor in Media in 2024. Krause has performed in works by Dr. Kemal Nance, Anna Sapozhnikov, Laura Chiaramonte, Bevara Anderson, Jakki Kalogridis, and Sojung Lim. She plans to continue dancing professionally and cultivating her artistic voice through choreography and videography.
Tatum Lang
Tatum Lang began dancing at the age of three in the small town of Waconia, Minnesota. Throughout her teen years, Tatum attended summer intensive programs, including Joffrey Ballet School NYC, School of Ballet Arizona, and Kansas City Ballet School. Tatum graduated from the University of Iowa in 2021 with a BFA in Dance and a Certificate in Arts Entrepreneurship. During her time at UI, she worked with reputable choreographers including: Shannon Alvis, Christopher Rasheem-McMillan, Eloy Barragan, Britt Juleen, and Armando Duarte. While at UI, she performed in the Iowa Dance Festival, the Harvest Contemporary Dance Festival in Chicago, and at Hollins University for Eloy Barragan’s Master’s Thesis “Ashes in the Air.” One of the highlights of her college career includes working closely with Shannon Alvis as a soloist in her work The Love of Souls in 2018. Following graduation, she promptly moved to Chicago to further pursue her love of dance. She danced as an ensemble member of Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre for the 2022-2023 season, where she trained with, and performed works by Shannon Alvis, Katlin Bourgeois, and Monique Haley. In addition, she also freelances around the Chicago area. With over 7 years of teaching experience, Tatum is so grateful for the role dance plays in her life and finds joy in sharing her knowledge and love of dance through finding connection with her students. She strives to create a healthy and fun classroom environment where students can be their genuine selves as they pursue excellence in dance.
Lauren Macke
Lauren is excited to bring 8 years of teaching and choreographing to Kaleidoscope dance! Lauren graduated from the University of Iowa with BFA in Dance and a BA in Theatre. At Iowa, she danced and choreographed under the direction of Stephanie Miracle, Eloy Barrigán, Armando Duarte, and George De La Peña. Her studies included Kinesiology, Choreography, Alexander Technique, Cecchetti Ballet, and many more. For the past year, she has been teaching and choreographing in Des Moines, Iowa. She is thrilled to join the Kaleidoscope family!
Marie Ritschard
Marie Ritschard, born in Wiesbaden, Germany, grew up in eleven countries and states as she travelled with her Air Force family. She began her training in England and continued at Montgomery Ballet, Misawa Unique Ballet, Pasadena Dance Theatre, and Dayton Ballet among others. She moved to Indiana to study Dance Pedagogy and Pre-Physical Therapy at Butler University.
After graduating, she danced for two seasons with the Louisville Ballet Studio Company, where she had the opportunity to perform some of her all time favorite roles in Val Caniparoli’s production of The Nutcracker, Balanchine’s Serenade, and Ronald Hynd’s Merry Widow. Marie then danced with Central Illinois Ballet for five seasons, moving up the ranks to Principal Dancer. Some of her favorite roles with the company include Sugar Plum in The Nutcracker, Johanna in Sweeney Todd, and Giselle in Giselle. Alongside her performance career, Marie enjoyed teaching ballet, pointe, variations, and conditioning to students of all ages as well as adults. Marie just moved to Chicago to go back to school for Vascular Ultrasound and is thrilled to continue sharing her love of dance with the students of Kaleidoscope!
After graduating, she danced for two seasons with the Louisville Ballet Studio Company, where she had the opportunity to perform some of her all time favorite roles in Val Caniparoli’s production of The Nutcracker, Balanchine’s Serenade, and Ronald Hynd’s Merry Widow. Marie then danced with Central Illinois Ballet for five seasons, moving up the ranks to Principal Dancer. Some of her favorite roles with the company include Sugar Plum in The Nutcracker, Johanna in Sweeney Todd, and Giselle in Giselle. Alongside her performance career, Marie enjoyed teaching ballet, pointe, variations, and conditioning to students of all ages as well as adults. Marie just moved to Chicago to go back to school for Vascular Ultrasound and is thrilled to continue sharing her love of dance with the students of Kaleidoscope!
Isabella Saldana
Isabella Saldana is a proud Kaleidoscope Dance alum! She was a member of the studio and competition team beginning at age 9. Currently, she is a Chicago-based dancer, choreographer, and educator. She has earned her BFA in Dance while on a Pre-Physical Therapy track at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Isabella has trained in numerous dance styles for 18 years. At UIUC, Isabella has continued to train and choreograph in techniques like modern, Umfundalai, contemporary, and ballroom. She has performed in works by Bevara Anderson, Abby Williams Chin, Anna Rogovoy, Ty Lewis, Hannah Tharp, and Jasmine Chavez. Isabella has worked in collaboration with Dr. Cynthia Oliver, Sojung Lim, as well as other fellow undergraduate students. She recently had her choreographic debut, with her Senior Thesis, “In Your Being.” This piece has been selected to perform later this year at Links Hall, making it her first professional choreographic showing.
Sophia Santore
Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, Sophia has been dancing since the age of 4. In her early set of studio training, she has studied ballet, contemporary, tap, jazz/jazz funk, and hip hop. Her main set of hip hop training began at the age of 13, when she joined Boom Box! Dance Company, a competitive pre-professional teen company led under its founder and artistic director, Trae Turner. It was during her time on the company where she extensively studied all of the foundational styles of hip hop, and served as co-captain throughout the company’s most successful seasons to date. Sophia is currently a member and choreographer for BOOM CRACK! Dance Company and its award-winning family of professional hip hop companies. She teaches beginner, intermediate, and advanced level hip hop classes, as well as intensives and workshops in the Chicagoland area. Sophia’s passion lies within teaching and sharing the knowledge she possesses to her students, in order to make future generations of dancers excel past her and other community leaders.
Abby Widlak
Abby Widlak is thrilled to join the teaching team at Kaleidoscope Dance! Abby recently graduated from the University of Michigan with a BFA in Dance and moved on to be the intern for New Dances 2025. Originally from Grand Rapids, MI, Abby is a performer, teacher, and choreographer. She trained at Rhythm Dance Center before expanding her practice with companies such as Marcat Dance in Seville, Spain, and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. While in school, she taught at Performers Edge Dance Company and performed in Oklahoma! at the Encore Musical Theatre Company.