Happendance Instructors
Patricia Villanueva
graduated from Hope College with a B.A. in Dance. She has been a Lansing area teacher for many years, teaching at Happendance, The Dance Conservatory, and Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. Her choreography has been shown in venues across the state of Michigan, as well as in Chicago, and Martha’s Vineyard. In 2014, Patricia was a finalist for the Maggie Allesee Choreography Award. She has served as Ballet Mistress for the Children’s Ballet Theatre of Michigan, the Junior Division of Greater Lansing Ballet Company, and the Junior Division of Holland Area Youth Ballet. In addition, Patricia was the Artistic Director of Happendance Velocity and Happendance Education Exchange, and was Director of Ballet at Happendance School.
In her former life, she performed with Happendance Professional Company (now Velocity!), Happendance Education Exchange, Greater Lansing Ballet Company, and Aerial Dance Theater. She is now happy to pass the floor burn and blisters on to others and stick to the stressful-but-less-abusive job: Assistant Director with Impulse Student Dance Company.
She lives in Eaton Rapids with her husband, Tony, an ever changing number of daughters, and two cats.
Jennah Quinn Gray
is a graduate of Everett High School where she trained in the Everett Dance Program, as well as at other local dance studios. She has been dancing for twenty-four years, and studied various styles such as ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, modern, contemporary, partnering, and hip hop. Her specialties include contemporary, modern, jazz, lyrical, and hiphop.
Jennah is also a cross-fit enthusiast and has her level one certificate. Her main goal is to not only provide an open space for dancers to learn and grow, but also to engage students with the how and why of what they are learning to do with their bodies—to engage their minds, bodies, and souls as one.
She currently attends LCC for Business and Accounting, and also works in the office at Happendance, gaining experience in finance. Along with being an instructor at Happendance and Danceworks, she is also one of the Assistant Directors of the Happendance Impulse student company. Jennah is also an adjunct employee of the MSU Theatre Department, subbing classes in Jazz and Contemporary.
Rufus Chapell IV
Rufus Chappell IV is a professional dancer and athlete from Farmington Hills, MI. He grew up playing football, soccer, basketball, baseball, track, rowing (crew), swimming, wrestling, fencing, dance and competing in gymnastics all the way through the collegiate level. He went to Liberty University in Virginia and triple majored in International Business, Finance and Economics. Rufus is fluent in English and Spanish and he LOVES to travel! Rufus has dreams of working commercially on dance tv shows and movies, and he would love to enter the high fashion world as a sponsored dance athlete for high fashion brands recognized worldwide such as Hugo Boss, Ralph Lauren and Lacoste to name a few. Last but not least, Rufus loves Jesus and always wants to share His love with others!
Chloe Gonzales
Chloe Gonzales is a Happendance and University of Michigan alum. She has been training in modern and ballet for over 20 years and attended the University of Michigan to pursue a BFA in dance (2017). She is currently a Soloist and Arts Management/Human Resources Coordinator at Suttle Dance (Novi) and a company member of Happendance Velocity (Okemos). In addition, she is a co-director for Impulse, the competition coach at Jackson School of the Arts, and is currently teaching Contemporary and Dance Composition at Happendance and Contemporary, Pointe, and Jazz/Lyrical at JSA. She recently organized and directed “Our Body - Performance as Protest” advocating for reproductive rights in Michigan using the art of dance and involving artists from across mid-Michigan. She is grateful to have had the opportunity to work with notable artists such as Meredith Monk (Quarry, restaged 2017), Richard Alston (Brisk Singing, restaged 2015), Peter Sparling (Vox Femina (Girl Talk), 2014) among others. Chloe enjoys mentoring her students and helping them grow as people while encouraging their self expression as emerging young artists.
Andrew Muylle
is from Lansing and is a graduate of Eastern High School. He grew up as a student at Mark Taylor School of Dance in Lansing. He holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Oakland University. After graduating and spending a summer as a performer at Idlewild, a theme park in the mountains of Pennsylvania, he moved to New York, where he engaged in the musical theatre and dance industries. While living in New York, he appeared in 42nd Street at the Ogunquit Playhouse and as a featured dancer in the televised Make The Season Bright holiday show at the Beacon Theater in Manhattan.
Jared Thompson
Jared Thompson was born and raised in Lansing, Michigan, and began his dance studies at the age of four. Through his 20+ years of dance instruction, he has been trained in a wide variety of styles, ballet, contemporary, jazz, modern, tap, and hip hop. He has danced with Everett High School Dance Company, Happendance Impulse Dance Company, LCC Dance Shows, Happendance Education Exchange, and Release Detriot Dance Company, as well as the Director of Dance Lansing Hip Hop Club and Frxsco Dance Sessions. His choreography has been seen on MTV TRL, Harlem Global Trotters Pregame Show, and The Detriot Pistons Pregame Show. He has taught at various local schools and studios competitively where his choreography gained several top overall and judges awards for his choreography and recreationally just simply teaching the love of dance.
Ginni Specht
Ginni Specht is from Haslett, Michigan and started dancing at the age of 4. She has been teaching dance since the age of 17, and she specializes in tap, acro, jazz, lyrical, hip hop, and musical theatre.
Emily Scott
Emily Scott is a dancer, instructor and choreographer based in Mid-Michigan. Growing up in the Lansing area she as a member of the Children’s Ballet Theater and Happendance 2, now Impulse Student Dance Company. She also performed as a guest performer with the Cincinnati Ballet Company, and the Moscow Ballet.
Emily majored in dance performance at Eastern Michigan University and has had the opportunity to work with many Michigan Dance professionals including Kristi Faulkner, Joori Jung, Joanna McNamara, Sherry Wilkinson, Phil Simmons, Jeremy Blair, and Haleem Rasul. Emily is a popular teacher in and around Mid-Michigan, formerly teaching at Foster Community Center in Lansing and Gardner International Magnet School. Her current teaching posts are Happendance School in Okemos, her alma mater, and Jackson Center for the Arts- Jackson MI. She is also engaged as an Assistant Director for Impulse Student Dance Company, and Directs DANCE Lansing, a summer festival for the entire dance community of Lansing. As a performing artist Emily is a member of Velocity! Concert Dance Company and Education Exchange Company.
Quintas Nelson
Quintas Nelson is an aspiring professional dancer and choreographer. Currently training with the Institute of Dancers Quintas has been mentored by many amazing movers. From world-famous ballroom dancers to exceptionally talented hometown studio teachers. Quintas has been introduced to multiple dance styles. Quintas specializes in Hip Hop, being in and out of studios for the past couple of years while going through high school and college. Quintas has been working with the Institute of Dancers since season six and has plans to stay for the next year before moving on to one of the big cities to work as a professional dancer and choreographer.
Diane Newman
founded Happendance Contemporary Dance Company in 1976 and has served as a performing artist, master instructor, choreographer, artistic director, and executive director at different times during its 40-year history. Always an educator, she contributed her private studio of instruction to the organization in 1993, renaming it Happendance School and developing its multi-year curricula in ballet and modern dance. Diane also co-authored a book on creative dance with veteran Happendancer Beth Post, and Dr. Lynnette Overby, titled Interdisciplinary Learning through Dance: 101 MOVEntures, a book which offers elementary school teachers and dance teaching artists lessons which integrate curricula and movement. Diane is an adjunct professor at Michigan State University where she has been teaching both creative workshop and civic engagement courses since 2008. Diane was honored as a top-ten finalist in 2010 for “Greater Lansing Woman of the Year”; as a featured profile in the November 2014 issue of Dance Teacher, a national magazine; and as Michigan Dance Educator of the Year in both 1981 and 2007. Now semi-retired, Diane loves to read, garden, birdwatch, and travel. She has lived in Lansing’s “Eastside Neighborhood” since 1971 with husband Jesse, and has three grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Glenn Douglas Packard
GLENN DOUGLAS PACKARD is a Emmy Award Nominated Choreographer, dancer, reality television star, recording artist & award winning film maker. He was dubbed by the New York City Times as ’The Dancing Entrepreneur’. In the early 2000’s Glenn was one of the most sought after choreographers in the world, he was trusted by iconic artist like Ricky Martin, Missy Elliot, Pink, Whitney Houston, Usher, Daddy Yankee & Michael Jackson, for their stage shows & music videos, to not only help with Choreography but also creative direction. Glenn has climbed the entertainment ladder now starring, producing and directing television shows & films like VH-1 Brooke Knows Best, E! Men of the Strip & Pitchfork: Every Generation Has It’s Monster. He is now in Michigan as CEO/Founder of Untouchables Entertainment Inc. managing acts like Daisy Dukez, Country Music first girl group and the Dreammaker, as featured on 517 magazine, at the INstitute of Dancers, where he mentors his dance company and Michigan's next dance star.