My name is Mary Beth and I am the owner of Dance Etc. in Kinston, NC where I am also the main teacher. I'm 39 and have been teaching since I was 14 (so I guess 25 years, wow). I teach around 23 classes per week - (I work Mon - Thurs 3:30 - 9:30) in tap, lyrical, pointe, jazz, and acro. With me being the "Jill" of all trades, I get the kids for about an hour per week in the discipline of their choice. So, my performing kids get me for an hour of lyrical and an hour of jazz (required for company). During that hour I have to cover technique as well as choreography for recital and performances. I know it may sound sort of lacking, but we really accomplish quite a lot in a short amount of time. Usually, we do rather well in competition.

I grew up in South Carolina and danced practically my whole life. I wasn't great in school and dancing was what I loved to do, so why not have a career doing something I love? I graduated from Columbia College with a degree in dance with a ballet specialization and a minor in arts management.

My dance teacher in SC was my inspiration to become a teacher. She made dance really fun and made sure if we had the desire to perform, we had the opportunity to perform. I can't tell you how many festivals, fairs, pageants, nursing homes, parades I've performed in. While I may not have had access to the best technique in the world, I had access to the joy of dancing for the pure pleasure of it. That sense of community has stuck with me to this day.

My studio is much more technique oriented than my childhood studio, but I still try to expose my kids to dancing for our community as well as dancing competitively. I feel that sometimes it's important to take a step back and not worry about trying to achieve perfection. To me, it's just as important to have fun and entertain for entertainment's sake.