Lonna Albert: Principal, Coach, Choreographer

For Lonna Albert, South Coast Freestyle is her PASSION!

South Coast Freesytle's great success is attributable to Lonna Albert's love for dance, her students, and their families. She has been the owner, coach, director, and lead choreographer for South Coast Freestyle since it’s inception seven years ago.  Lonna has been active in the world of competitive dance for two decades. Her knowledge and wisdom is the foundation for SCF’s continual growth. With a continual and steady rate of nearly 100 students every competition year, Lonna has proved that South Coast Freestyle is a permanent contender in the competitive dance world.

South Coast Freestyle has received countless awards and accolades not only for their teams and program, but also recognitions and honors awarded specifically to the owner, Lonna Albert. Her teams’ National Titles are too numerous to list.  South Coast Freestyle has also received dozens of Costume Awards, Innovative Choreography awards, and Technical Excellence Awards. Lonna is most proud, however, of her program’s prestigious “Sportsmanship Awards” received each consecutive year from 2001 through 2007. And finally, Lonna Albert has received a “Coach of the Year” nomination featured in “Dance Magazine” in 2006, a “Coach of the Year” Nomination at “Dance Worlds” in 2008, and felt honored to win the “Coach of the Year Award” at the “California State Competition” in 2007. 

In addition to all her success with South Coast Freestyle, Lonna has outsourced her technical and choreographical expertise to professional dance programs throughout the country.  These programs include, but are not limited to:

• Mater Dei High School, Santa Ana, California
• Olympus High School, Holladay, Utah
• Aliso Niguel High School Varsity and JV Song, Aliso Niguel, California
• El Toro High School Varsity and JV song, El Toro, California
• Cal State University Long Beach’s Dance Team, Long Beach, California

Every year she looks forward to dominating the competitive dance arenas in both the Studio and All-Star divisions. Her studio in Mission Viejo also supports many of the high schools in the surrounding areas with private, and group training. Lonna has worked extremely hard to make sure her staff is the best in the nation, and her coaches and class instructors are a reflection of her expertise.

Lonna also enjoys being contracted to judge national and state dance competitions. She was invited to attend the USASF Worlds Rules and Regulations conference in 2007 and was very proud to have the first USASF World Jazz bid to Nationals in 2007.

Her coaching has reached dancers from all over the United States from the early elementary ages all the way through to the collegiate level. Lonna has created a program that not only teaches amazing technique, innovative routines, and dominates all other programs in artistic insight, but a program that truly cares about the lives of the students. It is her goal to not only teach dance, but to raise a higher moral standard for all young people today.

South Coast Freestyle is a program built on Lonna’s vision of family unity, a subject close to her heart. Lonna declares her greatest achievements are her two daughters Joyce and Jan, who are leaders in both the dance and professional community, as well as accomplished additions to the South Coast Freestyle Staff. Throughout her journey in the world of dance, Lonna has maintained one credo: Confidence, Professionalism and Style. Not only is this mantra used as a corner stone for South Coast Freestyle’s core philosophy, it describes owner Lonna Albert to perfection.

I CAN TURN A SOCCER PLAYER INTO A DANCER IN JUST WEEKS.

A former principal dancer with National Bucharest Opera of Romania, Miss Viorica has been featured in a variety of roles from classical ballets including Don Quixote, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, La Fille Mal Gardee, Giselle, Les Sylphide and Sleeping Beauty, as well as numerous contemporary works done by Anna Sokolov, Alexa Mezincescu, Oleg Danovsky, Amato Checiulescu and Ion Tugearu.

Miss Viorica is a graduate of the State Academy of Ballet of Romania where she was trained in a comprehensive ballet program. After touring extensively throughout Europe, Miss Viorica relocated to California where she began extending her career into choreography, staging, teaching and coaching.  Miss Viorica strives to offer students the highest quality of ballet instruction. Under her guidance, her students have been awarded scholarships at world renowned training programs such as National Ballet School of Canada, the Kirov Ballet School in Washington DC, American Ballet Theatre, Boston Ballet and the San Francisco Ballet.

As Stella Dance Company’s residential Choreographer since 1990, Ms. Viorica has created seven full-length productions including Alice and Wonderland, Mary Poppins, A Christmas Carol, Open Audition, as well as numerous other works, including Black and White in 1994 to celebrate the opening of Hoag Hospital’s Cancer Research Center.  She received the special award of Outstanding Choreographer at the prestigious Grand Prix Ballet Competition in 2000 in Long Beach and at the Festival of Dance in Laguna Beach in 2003.

Her goal is to promote, preserve and de-mystify the art of dancing in the community, to provide a training ground for aspiring professional dancers, and to be a resource for education and entertainment in Orange County.

Miss Jan Albert began her dance career in 6^th grade.  At that time, she performed on the youth team, coached and choreographed by her mother, Lonna Albert.  It was the founding year of the dance program, Magic All-Star dance, and the team swept the NDA nationals that first year. Captivated by the world of dance, Miss Albert continued to study dance with her mother's new dance studio, South Coast Freestyle.  For several years, Miss Albert competed on the top level teams for her age, and won multiple regional and national championships with Lonna Albert as the instructor and choreographer for the teams.  Miss Albert's teams swept the NDA nationals every year.

In her freshman year, Miss Jan Albert successfully competed for a spot on the prestigious Aliso Niguel High School JV Song team.  It was Miss Albert's goal to be coached by Anne Davila, a groundbreaking choreographer in the world of dance.  Her team was thrilled to win multiple championships that year.  In Miss Albert's sophomore year, she was promoted to the Varsity Song Squad, again winning the NDA championship in the variety category. During her sophomore year, Miss Albert began to instruct dancers in private lessons.  She hoped to pass along the intense and fast paced skills that her mother, Lonna Albert, instilled in her dance. 

Miss Albert's dance career returned to South Coast Freestyle for her Junior and Senior year of high school, continuing with Anne Davila as her coach. During this period, she also worked as South Coast Freestyle's warm-up coach, preparing each team before they hit the stage. Participating on the first world team at South Coast Freestyle in 2007, performing a jazz dance to Queen's song, Bohemian Rhapsody, Miss Albert and her Senior Jazz team were honored to receive the bronze metal in Orlando, Florida. 

After graduating from Aliso Niguel High School with honors, Miss Albert was accepted to San Diego State University in 2007 where she worked on her pre-nursing degree. She was accepted into Johns Hopkins School of Nursing in 2010 where she will complete her nursing degree. Miss Albert will continue teaching during holiday breaks. Throughout her college career she has participated on our Pro team and worked as the SCF warm-up coach. She has grown up with a passion for dance and continues to love providing her special instruction to various dancers. She owes all of her dance training to her mother, Lonna Albert, and her long time coach, Anne Davila. Miss Albert will always have a special place in her heart for the comforting blue walls SCF provides, and hopes dancers will appreciate the love, hard work, and compassion this phenomenal program has provided her.

South Coast Freestyle is excited to announce that McKenzie Mitchell is coaching our Tiny Tots.  Ms. Mitchell has had a long and productive career in dance.  She started dancing at the age of five, formally trained in various dance styles including tap, jazz, and ballet.  She also showed promise in gymnastics.  Ms. Mitchell's passion for dance and gymnastics, drew her to the world of cheerleading.  Ms. Mitchell was invited to join the cheerleading team for the Mission Viejo Cowboys, a Pop Warner team. She was on their cheerleading team for four distinguished years.

During Ms. Mitchell's freshman year of high school, her passion for dance continued.  She decided to join the award-winning program of South Coast Freestyle. Being very competitive, her decision to join South Coast Freestyle was based on several facts: 

• South Coast Freestyle's dancers had a solid reputation of making excellant dancers in a very short time;
• It was, and continues to be, a very comprehensive program for the study of dance; 
• SCF encourages the premise that all of their dancers are part of a family.

Ms. Mitchell has excelled at SCF in the study of dance since her beginning on the senior two team: Tokyo drift.  She continues to push herself and works with all of South Coast's incredible coaching staff and instructors. She remains focused on her passion for dance and in her love for South Coast Freestyle.

Currently Ms. Mitchell is a featured danced on the SCF's elite team: the Senior 1 Team.  Last year as well, she was featured on the Senior 1 Team, the World Team, and the Hip Hop team where she was made captain.  She has been instructed by SCF's esteemed choreographer and instructor, Anne Davila.

Ms Mitchell plans to pursue her passion for dance and help others find their passion as well.

South Coast Freestyle is excited to welcome Sarah Housepian (House) as an instructor for our students.  House has been dancing for over 17 years. Her career in dance began at a very early age, first at Saddleback Dance Center and then later, at Suzanne’s Dance Factory.  She studied extensively jazz, tap and ballet.

In high school, House had the honor of being on El Toro High School’s Varsity Song Squad for 4 years.  El Toro’s Song Squad is a prestigious and highly competitive team in the area.  They have won numerous local and national competitions during House’s tenure at El Toro High School.  Her love of competitive dance and the thrill of winning competitions brought her to South Coast Freestyle’s program.

House was a member of South Coast Freestyle’s first world team, performing in the famed Bohemian Rhapsody dance routine, during her senior year in high school. She also was a premiere dancer on South Coast Freestyle’s Pro Team, competing for two years, and again, winning many local and national titles. 

House is currently attending California State University, Fullerton, where she is pursuing her degree in dance.  She has been a featured guest instructor at dance camps throughout Southern California.

You can see House on various music videos and on So You Think You Can Dance! She has been formally trained in workshops on dance and the art of teaching by the head director of the prestigious Julliard School of Dance.

We are pleased to announce that House is now teaching our students, at South Coast Freestyle, the movements and flow of contemporary, stylistic jazz.  Our students benefit from House’s formal training as a dancer, but also from her “on-the-job” experience during her competitive dance years. House will be teaching a "Performance Ballet Class "  every Sunday from 10:30am - 12:00pm.

Courtney  Dahl began her dance training at the age of five, and entered the field of competitive dance on the regional and national levels at the age of eight. In addition to training in dance studios, Courtney was a dedicated member of her high school dance team, receiving notable awards throughout her competition career in the categories of chorography and performance. After high school, Courtney continued her passion for dance in college studying jazz, ballet, lyrical, modern, hip-hop, and tap; as well as strength training, kinesiology, yoga, and pilates. In May 2008, Courtney received her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Dance from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. Courtney loves to perform and she is entering her 4th year as a performer at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim.

After teaching with United Spirit Association for four great years, this experience helped her see how much she loved teaching dance. Courtney’s unyielding passion for teaching the art of dance drives her to bring joy to her student’s lives. Her student’s growth and happiness is most important to her. Courtney recently got married to the love of her life Derick Dahl and looks forward to their future together. Courtney is very honored to be a part of the South Coast Freestyle Family.

Mindy Millard Copeland is a soloist and featured member of Rhapsody in Taps where she has performed the choreography of Linda Sohl-Ellison, Gregory Hines, Foster Johnson, Fred Strickler, Sam Weber and Brenda Bufalino. Recently, Mindy appeared in and choreographed for a tap short for Spain's Cuatro network's Extremo Urbano. She appeared in the short film Tap Heat, starring Arthur Duncan and Jason Samuels Smith, where she performed choreography by Danny Daniels. She also danced on the 2003 Jerry Lewis Telethon live national television broadcast in an Emmy-winning tribute to tap dancing where she shared the stage with Fayard Nicholas of the legendary Nicholas Brothers. Mindy has worked with tap masters Sam Weber, Fred Strickler, Linda Sohl-Ellison, Mark Mendonca and Christy Hernandez. She is also the artistic director of Tap Overload, that has featured guest performers such as Dianne Walker, Chance Taylor and Jason Samuels-Smith. Mindy has been teaching tap nationally since 1992 and is a professor of tap dance at Irvine Valley College and Saddleback College.

Go to mindy.allabouttap.com to learn more!
 

Born in Mission Viejo, Michelle Barbee began practicing yoga at the age of 19. Michelle has trained under Shayna Libbie and Jill Kirkwood Harvey. She received her Bachelors of Arts from Cal State Fullerton in June of 1993. After discovering her love of Yoga, Michelle realized the benefits Yoga could bring to her fiends. Michelle has trained intensely for sharing her knowledge as an instructor.

Michelle has a passion for introducing people to yoga. For Michelle, Yoga is about feeling good about yourself. Her focus in to deliver wellness, enhance lives and restore hope and confidence.

Michelle has brought her passion of teaching Yoga at South Coast Freestyle. Attending her class will help the dancer and her parents decompress from life’s hassles. Michelle and Lonna have known each other for many years and have mutual respect for each others talents.

In Michelle’s class you’ll learn everything from basic yoga to stretching, meditation, deep breathing, nutrition, detoxifation, stress relief to mia fascia release. You’ll leave Michelle’s class feeling relaxed and ready for the rest of your day.

As a mother of an eight year old, Michelle understands the balance needed in life. Although Michelle has studied Ashtanga and Iyengar Yoga for many years, her passion is teaching the basics of Yoga to young dancers and their families. Michelle’s class is a great introduction to yoga.

Born in San Francisco, Asuka Elizabeth Kondoh began dancing at the age of ten. She received most of her dance training from the Ming-Hai Wu Academy of Ballet, San Francisco City Ballet School and Crockett-Deane Ballet, the official school of the Sacramento Ballet. She received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of California, Irvine in June of 2007. After discovering her love of Latin Ballroom, she has been training intensively for competitions as well as sharing her knowledge as a teacher. She was the cofounder and Artistic Director of her Latin Ballroom formation team from 2005 until 2007 where she was able to lead her team to Nationals. Her most recent achievement was making it on "So You Think You Can Dance" for Season 5 as one of the Top 20 dancers.