Every Child Deserves To Learn The Art Of Dance
Ali Perzel Peters is the Owner, Director, and Founder of Branches of Dance. With over 17 years of teaching experience and more than 28 years of dancing, Ali has a passion for working with children, helping them discover their talents, express their emotions, and encouraging them to work hard in a loving environment. She has trained dancers both for fun and for careers, assisting students with college applications, auditions, and supporting them through their journeys.
Ali's extensive training includes Ballet, Pointe, Jazz, Lyrical, Modern, Hip-Hop, and Partnering. She has studied with Master Class teachers in Dance, Acting, and Musical Theater. In 2006, Ali was awarded a scholarship to attend the National Master Class Workshop in all styles of dance. She has won numerous 1st place and platinum awards at regional and national competitions and received a Choreography award at the 2012 Nex-Star Competition.
Ali has performed at many events, including Off Broadway in NYC with the Beginnings Workshop, and has judged and assisted in casting for professional dance teams and companies. She has trained dancers to perform on cruises and in various performances, and to prepare them for competitions. Ali has also choreographed for church musicals, Christmas productions, and the Harrisburg Heat Professional Dance Team. She continues her education annually by taking classes with top choreographers to bring the most current dance instruction to her students.
Salem loves to share her passion for dance at B.O.D. by working as a dance instructor. When she is not at the studio, she works full-time with Tuscano Agency as their Marketing Promotions Coordinator. And, when she isn't working, she likes to cook with her husband, take walks on Penn Avenue, and buy her black cat Mabel sweaters. Throughout Salem's 21 years of dancing, she has always enjoyed watching and encouraging others to grow as dancers and people. During the past eight years as a teacher, she has wanted to make sure her students feel important and know they are capable of anything they set their minds to. Furthering her education in dance, Salem takes courses focused on pointe shoe readiness. In addition, she takes dance classes. She graduated from Kutztown University and earned her B.F.A. in Communication Design with a concentration in Advertising Design. While in college, she choreographed and performed with Performing Dance Portmanteau, Kutztown University's Dance Company, from 2015 to 2019. She was a very active member of the executive board and became president in her senior year. In addition, she taught dance camps during the summers and was a part of the Reading Royals Ice Angels Dance Team from 2019 to 2020. She has dance training in ballet, pointe, lyrical, tap, jazz, and modern and is always eager to further develop her knowledge in all styles.
Maliya has been dancing for over 14 years. Maliya student taught under Ms. Ali for 4 years. She enjoys working with children and sharing her passion, which is dancing. Maliya is currently going to RACC. She hopes to continue and receive a degree in dance. Maliya has attended multiple dance competitions both regionally and nationally. She enjoyed performing in local community events, and The Nutcracker remixed. Recently, Maliya has choreographed Reading Area Community College's first ever all campus musical.
Miss Cheyanne graduated from Muhlenberg College with a BA in Dance and Theatre, receiving the Elizabeth A. Carlson Memorial Award for Creative Leadership in Dance. She was honored to attend the American College Dance Association annual conference for three years as an extension of her choreographic and performance education. Cheyanne currently teaches dance, theatre, and yoga throughout Eastern Pennsylvania, and continues to further her training through the National Dance Educators Association, and the Yoga Alliance. She is a 200hr Certified Yoga Teacher with additional training in pranayama, and trauma informed practices. She certified as a Fine Arts Club teacher in 2023. Miss Cheyanne has choreographed Seussical Jr. and The Little Mermaid Jr. at EPAC(2021,2022), and Oley Valley High School’s The Wizard of Oz (2023). In February 2023, she was a dance competition judge in Allentown, PA. Cheyanne’s experience also includes performing at The Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre, The Fulton Opera House, American Music Theatre, Muhlenberg College, and with Muhlenberg’s Summer Music Theatre professional company. She has worked in house and production management, arts administration, directing, special education, wellness, and STEM programming. Throughout her training and experience, her ultimate passion has been supporting students, asking them to work hard, be kind, ask questions, and know they are capable of amazing things.
Casey has been cheerleading since she was able to walk. It’s a passion of hers that she has found. Cheerleading teaches amazing life skills and friendships that last forever. Casey has coached middle school, high school, and competitive cheer. Her former competitive team reached 3rd in the nation at the D2 Summit. She was so excited to help people attain there goals with hard work and dedication. Casey hopes to instill passion and confidence through all choreography being taught while having fun along the way. In her free time she enjoys going to concerts, doing yoga and furthering her education. You’ll find Casey at B.O.D. teaching our new cheer/acro, advanced level acro, and conditioning classes.
Amber is a professional actress, singer and dancer. She holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Point Park University. Amber has performed at numerous regional theatres, theme parks, cruise ships and national tours. She is the resident choreographer at The Pines Dinner Theatre in Allentown, Pennsylvania. She has Directed and Choreographed musicals and show choirs at Kutztown and Tulpehocken High Schools. Amber has been teaching and inspiring students for 25 years in the styles of tap, ballet, jazz and musical theatre. Amber believes that dance is a universal language for anyone to express themselves and is excited to be teaching at B.O.D.
Kristin graduated from Elizabethtown College in 2013 with a degree in social work. She was a stay at home mom for almost six years before joining the Branches of Dance admin team in 2023. She started out as our customer service coordinator and is now our office manager. Kristin helps to keep things running smoothly behind the scenes. If you have a question, she probably has the answer, and if she doesn’t, she will definitely be the one to find it for you.
Kindness- We treat others with compassion and respect. We lead from the heart and are empathetic and understanding towards others and actively seek out ways to help and support those around us. By promoting kindness, we create a more positive and supportive environment for everyone.
Inclusion- We Emphasize Diversity and inclusivity. This ensures that everyone feels welcomed and valued within our studio. By embracing inclusion, we can create a community where every dancer is a part of the B.O.D. family.
Community- We work together towards shared goals. This involves building strong friendships and connections with others while working together towards goals. By Fostering a strong sense of community, we can create a studio that enables us to achieve great things.
Growth- We acknowledge this is essential for each dancer's development. We Consistently Learn And Improve, and seek out new opportunities and challenges that push us outside of our comfort zones. By welcoming growth, we can achieve our full potential and become the best possible versions of ourselves.
Achievement- We Recognize The importance of setting and achieving goals. This Involves working hard and persevering through challenges to accomplish our objectives and to reach our full potential. By supporting achievement, we can inspire ourselves and others to strive for excellence and achieve great things.
Ali Perzel-Peters
Director
From tots to teens and all points in between, our dancing students range in age from 3 to 18. Most are located directly in Reading but some even travel from nearby towns to experience the many advantages that our teachers bring to the table.
While we enjoy teaching kids of all ages both the basics and finer points of ballet, jazz, and acrobatics, our primary activities center on children between 3 and 7. By teaching proper techniques at an early age, we're able to build the all-important foundation from which all further dance learning will spring.
There may be other dance studios in the greater Reading area, but Branches of Dance provides an excellent option for a number of reasons:
Our dance classes are designed to be accessible, beneficial, and, above all, fun for your child. Sign up with Branches of Dance and you'll quickly understand what we mean by, “Rooted in passion, growing our dreams.”
