Faculty
Michelle Carbery, Owner/Director/Instructor
Michelle founded For the Love of It in the Beach 26 years ago and has since taught thousands of students in the community and cherished every moment. A passionate and caring teacher, Michelle is dedicated to instilling a love of dance in all her students. She teaches Ballet, Jazz, Contemporary and also choreographs extensively for the Momentum Dance Competitive Company, where her work has won numerous awards. Additionally, Michelle teaches Musical Theatre and leads various classes for younger students. With her professional choreographic experience and her many years of teaching, she offers a wealth of knowledge and skill to her students. As the director, she oversees all aspects of the studio's operations.
Michelle received her dance training at several prestigious Ballet and Contemporary schools, including the Lois Smith School of Dance, George Brown School of Dance, the National Ballet School, the School of the Toronto Dance Theatre and London Contemporary (UK). Her professional credits as a dancer and Musical Theatre performer include the mega-musicals Beauty and the Beast at the Princess of Wales theatre in Toronto, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat (with Donny Osmond), Little Shop of Horrors and Cabaret. Michelle has also danced for recording artists M2M, Nelly Furtado and Jon Secada. Her TV and film credits include the show Wind at My Back and the films Superstar and Glitter starring Mariah Carey as well as several commercials.
Michelle has also professionally choreographed many Musical productions, including The Buddy Holly Story, Blue Suede Shoes, Spell Song, Once Upon A Mattress, Little Shop of Horrors, You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and Midsummer. She worked as an assistant choreographer for the closing ceremonies of the PanAm games in Toronto.
Kiana (Kiki) Smith, Instructor
Originally from Nanaimo, British Columbia, Kiana is a versatile dancer trained in Ballet, Tap, Hip Hop, Musical Theatre, Jazz and Acro. Kiana is a graduate of the Musical Theatre program at Randolph Academy.
Kiana's impressive performance career includes touring with Youtube sensation Lilly Singh, and dancing with Rihanna, Drake and Machel Montana. In addition to stage performances, she has also appeared in numerous movies and TV shows for Nickelodeon, Netflix and Disney.
In addition to her performance career, Kiki is a seasoned teacher with over a decade of teaching experience. She has taught in cities across Canada from coast to coast and has served as a judge of multiple dance and competitions.
Julie Kresta-Hay, Instructor
Julie is one of our primary instructors at For the Love of It. Julie teaches Ballet, Jazz, Musical Theatre and many programs for our younger students. Julie is a long time and beloved faculty member who has been teaching at For the Love of It for over two decades! She brings her professional dance training and performance experience to her students.
Julie has extensive training from Canada’s most renowned Ballet schools: Quinte Ballet School, The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, The National Ballet School, Lois Smith School of Dance, and is a graduate of the school of Toronto Dance Theatre.
As a professional dancer, Julie performed with The Ballet Jorgen Dance Company. Her many other credentials include performances on CBC`s Road to Avonlea tv show, the film Superstar, as well as TV commercials.
Stephani Tyler, Instructor
Stephani specializes as our Acrobatics and Tap instructor. She also teaches Jazz, Musical Theatre and many programs for our younger students. A seasoned instructor, Stephani has been teaching at For the Love of It for over a decade.
She is a graduate of the George Brown College Dance program. As a professional dancer she has performed extensively in Toronto and on many cruise ships.