Meet Our Staff Family

Amy Houston

Amy Houston is the founder and proud owner of Turning Pointe Dance Studio. At the young age of nine, Amy set her sights on becoming the owner of a dance studio. After years of training and performance, her dream became a reality in May of 2005. She brings a well rounded background of training, performance, teaching and business to her role as teacher and owner.

Amy began her dance training with the Metrocrest Civic Ballet and played the role of "Clara" in The Nutcracker for two years. Amy has performed as a featured dancer in productions of South Pacific, Guys and Dolls and The Music Man. She served as the Artistic Director of a performing troupe in Austin while pursuing a B.A. in Theatre and Dance with a concentration in Business at The University of Texas. She has been teaching dance to students of all ages for the last sixteen years.

Since opening Turning Pointe, her students have had the privilege of performing at the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic Pre-Game and Half-Time shows, Six Flags Over Texas, The Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, Disneyland and California Adventure in California to name a few. Her dancers have received first place honors at regional competitions and represent the studio with talent and class in performances throughout the community.

Amy’s warmth and joy add tenderness to her teaching style which makes her students feel loved and empowered to achieve their goals. She hopes to inspire her students who have been an inspiration to her every day.

Alexis Davis

Turning Pointe is blessed to have had Alexis Davis on staff since 2009. Those that know her have never seen her without a smile. Her laughter and positive attitude are infectious which is what makes her such a joy to be around and such a sought after instructor. Students feel welcomed and encouraged in her classes, as she knows just how to lift their spirits.

A graduate of Texas A&M University with a degree in Education, Alexis holds a Secondary Teaching Certificate to teach at the middle and high school levels in Texas, Maryland and North Carolina. She served as the Assistant Director at the Dance Centre in College Station for five years. She later went on to become the Dance Director for the Panache Color Guard at Havelock High School in North Carolina for four years.

Alexis has a varied background of training in ballet, pointe, tap and jazz. She has performed at numerous recitals, competitions, workshops and festivals including the Houston International Dance Festival. One of her most memorable roles was en pointe as "Ursula," the sea witch in a production of The Little Mermaid.

Alexis has the ability to teach dancers of all ages from our tiny dancers to our adults. This season she is focusing on the ballet technique of our Dance Company to ensure our students are mastering proper alignment and placement. She also enjoys teaching our adult students and loves to teach the latest aerobic workout class called Tone & Sculpt. Whether you have danced for years or have always wanted to take a dance class, Alexis will make you feel right at home.

Alaina Wray

Alaina Wray holds a dance education degree at Texas Women’s University, and began dancing at Bay Area Christian Performing Art Center in the Houston area. With BACPAC she was involved in a company that did outreach in local apartments and churches. After staying with BACPAC for 11 years, Alaina was involved in drill team at Dickinson High School. Alaina held officer positions on the Dickinson Diamonds drill team including Lieutenant and Colonel.

Since graduating from High School, Alaina has continued work in the drill team world through choreography for teams in both DFW and Houston Area school districts. In the summer she is employed with Crowd Pleasers Dance Company. Alaina has also presented choreography through Texas Women’s dance productions.

Miss Alaina is simply a joy to be around. Her talent is evident and her teaching style blends structure and discipline with fun and excitement. We all adore her and know how blessed we are to have her on staff.

Rachel Birdett

Rachel Birdett has served as teacher and Dance Company choreographer since 2016.  She encourages her students to push themselves and builds strong, confident dancers. Her choreography is layered, soulful and entertaining.

Miss Rachel is an awesome team member and Turning Pointe is blessed to have her on staff!

Miss Rachel is a graduate of the University of North Texas with a B.A. in Dance and Social Sciences and a minor in education. She started training at a young age and it was clear that she had fallen in love with dance. She participated in her high school's drill team where she served as lieutenant her junior year and captain her senior year. Through her drill team experience, she was able to perform in New York City on top of the Statue of Liberty and in Disney World with Disney cast members and dancers. Her love of the stage also led her to perform as a singer and dancer in musicals such as Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dream Coat, Thoroughly Modern Millie and Suessical.

At UNT, she choreographed and performed with a student-run hip hop team. After she graduated, she was hired by Dallas ISD to start a dance program at Seagoville High School. Miss Rachel gladly served as the cheerleading coach whom she led to win Most Improved at their camp the following year.

Later in her teaching career, she transferred to Benjamin Franklin Middle School where she was asked to carry on the legacy of the amazing drill team that had started there. She took the Falconettes to Nationals where they won 1st runner-up and scored the highest in their category.

Alexandria Lemus

Alexandria Lemus is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of the University of North Texas and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance with a double minor in Chemistry and Biology. During her time at UNT, Alexandria performed in dance department dance concerts and was a member of the North Texas Dancers dance team. She enjoyed performing at football and basketball games as well as a special event performance on a Carnival Cruise.

Alexandria’s love of dance began at a young age when she first took ballet, tap, and jazz at a local Christian dance studio. Her love of dance continued as she pursued training throughout middle school and high school. Miss Alex is a proud Creekview Cheval alum where she served in leadership positions including sophomore representative, social officer, and senior lieutenant. Alexandria has continued work in the drill team world through choreographing for teams in the DFW area school districts.

As a performer, she has won many awards including “Outstanding in Dance,” “Best in Category,” and “Grand Champion.” Miss Alex brings an exciting energy and style to her choreography and we are looking forward to another great season with her on staff!

Shannon Elkins

Shannon Elkins is passionate about dance, education and learning! She graduated in December of 2017 from The University of North Texas with a Bachelor of Science in Integrative Studies focused in business, journalism and communications, as well as a minor in Marketing. Some of her proud academic accomplishments include making the dean’s and president’s list while graduating as a member of the marketing honors society, Mu Kappa Tau.

She has strong roots in Flower Mound. She joined Turning Pointe as a dancer when she was 17 and was a part of the original Dance Company. As a member of the Turning Pointe Dance Company she performed at Walt Disney World and Holiday in the Park at Six Flags Over Texas. She was a member of the Flower Mound High School Rosette’s Drill Team where she got to experience marching in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade her senior year.

After high school, Shannon cheered for two years in the NAHL for the Texas Tornado as a member of the Siren Dancers. She is currently a member of the USA Cheerleaders which is a group of dedicated and patriotic women with unwavering respect for our military, the flag and our country. She brings a gentle and kind teaching style to her classes and we are blessed to have her on staff for her second season at Turning Pointe.

Lauren Boyes

Lauren Boyes is thankful and blessed to be a part of the Turning Pointe Dance Family again this season! Miss Lauren is in her senior year at Texas Woman’s University pursuing a degree in Dance with an emphasis in Education. 

Her dance journey began at age of 4 in the Houston area. Her training led her to be a proud member of the Dawson Diamonds Dance Team at Glenda Dawson High School in Pearland, Texas all four years. While on the team, she achieved numerous accomplishments including being voted Social Officer three years in a row, named a Top 25 Social Officer for SMA Dance for two years, being awarded the All Star Dancer title for three years in a row at SMA Dance and being voted Most Dedicated by her team Senior year.

She is currently a member of the National Ranking Pioneer Pride Competitive Dance Team and will be performing at NDA Nationals in Florida! Miss Lauren brings a kind, gentle style with an excitement to share her love of dance with our kiddos. We are thrilled to add Miss Lauren to our incredible teaching staff this season!

Kristen Holderbaum

Kristen Holderbaum joined the Turning Pointe staff in 2019. After 20 years of training in ballet and jazz, Kristen graduated from the University of North Texas with a Bachelor of Arts and a Major in Dance. Kristen’s professional performance credits include dancing in rock concerts, runway shows, a music video and numerous half-time shows for the NBA and Major League Soccer, however her greatest passion is creating choreography. She’s had the great privilege of choreographing for Music Theatre of Denton, FC Dallas Dancers, Stevenson University Dance Team, high school drill teams, and many competitive dance teams over her 18 years of teaching.

Outside of the studio, Kristen is also an Executive Assistant of over 12 years, currently supporting leaders in the IT industry.

Erin Norton

Ms. Erin joins us this season with the versatility to teach Mommy & Me with fun and creativity all the way to our advanced classes with technique and artistry. Erin Norton grew up in Harlingen, Texas and began her training at Rio Grand Valley Arts Studio. Her second family at her home studio shaped who she became as a person as well as a dancer, and the love and dedication of her teachers encouraged her to pursue a career in dance. Erin graduated from The University of North Texas with a B.A. in Dance in 2018 and also received the 2017-2018 UNT Department of Dance and Theatre’s Outstanding Dance Scholar Award.

Along with studio training in various styles, Erin has had additional professional preparation including: two Ballet Magnificat! Summer Dance Intensives, Colorado Mesa University Dance Intensive, Texas Dance Improvisational Festival, and American College Dance Association. Erin has performed in and choreographed for professional concerts at UNT directed by Shelley Cushman and Mary Lynn Babcock. Erin is continuing her personal practice by performing with a DFW modern dance company, imPULSE Dance Project.

Since beginning her teaching career in 2009, Miss Erin is best known for her attention to detail in technique and outstanding musicality in choreography. Her goal is to provide a safe place for young artists to express themselves as they fall in love with movement. Welcome to Turning Pointe Ms. Erin!

Chamberlyn Ogden

Chamberlyn started her dance training at the age of 3 and started competing at the age of 8. Chamberlyn continued dancing all through high school in Houston at Clear Lake High School, where she was on their dance team, the Clear Lake Flairs, for four years and served as Junior Lieutenant her Junior year and Captain her Senior year. She currently attends Texas Woman’s University and is majoring in Kinesiology and plans to become an Occupational Therapist. Chamberlyn’s favorite dance styles are contemporary, jazz, and hip hop!

“I love working with all ages at Turning Pointe!! I love seeing everyone continue to grow as dancers, whether they are taking their very first dance class or they’ve been dancing for years, it never gets old watching them blossom in whatever style they are working on!”

Rachel Piantanida

Rachel's bio coming soon.

Shelby Davis

Shelby Davis is so excited for her first year of teaching at Turning Pointe Dance Studio. She recently graduated from Marcus High School and is currently taking classes at North Central Texas College.

Shelby started her dance journey at age 2 and enrolled as a student at Turning Pointe Dance Studio in 2005. In 2011, she joined the Dance Company. As a Dance Company member, she has enjoyed the experience of competitions, workshops, and conventions that expanded her love for dance. She also had the opportunity to learn valuable class management, choreography and teaching skills as part of the Future Teachers of Turning Pointe Program. While she has been a leader on our Crystals Dance Company team for the last few years, she is thrilled to transition into the role of instructor.

Lily Fillhart

Lily Fillhart is studying at Texas Woman’s University to pursue a degree in Nursing and a minor in Dance. Some of her academic accomplishments include graduating in the Top Ten of her high school class and receiving several outstanding academic achievements like Honor Roll and participating in National Honors Society.

Her dance career began at the age of 4 at Turning Pointe Dance Studio, where she continued to dance for 14 consecutive years and later joined the Dance Company in 2005. She trained in various styles with Turning Pointe including Ballet, Contemporary, Jazz, Hip Hop, Tap, and Pointe. In high school, she continued to compete with the Turning Pointe Dance Company and received many awards with her teams. She was a part of the Argyle High School Marching Band as a member of the Color Guard where she got to experience performing in the AlamoDome her sophomore year, placing 2nd in the State. She then received the opportunity to perform again at State her Senior year as the Guard Officer, winning 1st in Texas.

She has a true passion and love for dance as an art form and is very excited to continue her dance journey with the studio that first taught her to work hard, believe in herself, and dream big.

Julianna Blan

Bio coming soon.

Antares Ewell

Bio coming soon.

Sydney Lowe

Bio coming soon.

Shere Dyar

Ms. Shere is the smiling face that greets our dance families when they walk in, answers questions, eases minds and makes everyone feel welcome. As an accomplished small business owner herself for over 25 years, she knows what it takes to run a successful company. When she isn't making things run smoothly at the studio, she provides tender loving care and snuggles to the furry pals of Flower Mound and the surrounding areas as beloved petsitter and founder of Pet Savvy. She passed on her entrepreneurial knowledge and ambitions spirit to her daughter, Amy Houston. In her spare time, she enjoys being the best GiGi ever to her grandson. Ms. Shere is a blessing to Turning Pointe and countless others!