Levi & Kati Hime — Owners/Directors/Instructors
As long time residents of Laramie, Levi & Kati are passionate about seeing the Laramie Dance & Arts Center continue to provide affordable, top notch dance instruction. Kati began with Robyn Guice Dance Studio of Laramie in 1984, studying tap & jazz and teaching, serving on LHS Plainsman Cheer throughout high school. Levi was a Plainsman swimmer and proficient gymnast. The Himes are long-time Laramie residents and Class of 1997 LHS Alums, UW Cheerleaders and UW graduates (Kati Health Sciences 2001, Levi Geology & Geophysics 2002); Kati received her degree in Sonography from LCCC in 2003 and was a student rep to the LCCC Board. Levi & Kati have volunteered with youth for decades: from coaching the Laramie Plainsman cheer squad to chairing the Wyoming Junior Miss program to serving on the boards of the Laramie Children’s Museum and Laramie Coop Preschool and Indian Paintbrush Elementary PTA to local and state leadership with Wyoming Job’s Daughters. Kati served as President of UW Women’s Club, Levi served as Worshipful Master of Laramie Lodge #3 as well as on the Wyoming Board of Professional Geologists; he was its chair from 2020-2022. In 2016, Levi was named a 20 Under 40 by the Laramie Young Professionals Organization & Laramie Boomerang; in 2014, Kati was named a 20 Under 40 by the Wyoming Business Report. Levi & Kati are the founders & owners of Wyoming Weddings Magazine, Wyoming Lifestyle Magazine and Wyoming Woman & Family Magazine, giving them many opportunities to connect with the arts in Wyoming. They organize bridal expos in Laramie, Cheyenne, Casper, Fremont and Sweetwater Counties year round as part of their publishing company. The Himes also operate House of Pounce bounce houses out of the Laramie Dance & Arts Center. Seeing a need in Laramie and Wyoming as a whole, Levi & Kati opened LKH & Company Dance Retail in 2016, selling dance wear & gear, gymnastics and figure skating gear. Levi is trained as a Pointe Fitter, traveling the state and Rapid City, working with hundreds of dancers over the years and earning the trust of many pointe teachers, including those who are former professional dancers. Kati enjoys working with all ages fitting apparel and shoes, especially endorsing her lifelong love of tap. In late 2019, LKH & Company grew to include LKH Bridal & Formal, which is adding a Casper branch in 2023! The Himes continue to pursue their professional careers — Levi is the Manager, Senior Geologist and GIS Specialist at Weston Groundwater Engineering in Laramie where he began in 2002; Kati is an Obstetrical Sonographer at Laramie Physician Women & Wellness Clinic (since 2012) and in 2022, began conducting second level and fetal echo ultrasounds with Dr. Jessica Poulin of Critical Perinatal Solutions of Laramie. Kati is also a Vascular Sonographer at Vein Treatment Center in Cheyenne with Dr. Lawrence O’Holleran, where she has been since 2006.
Laramie Dance & Arts Center has evolved and grown as the Himes see needs in the community, and as individuals approach the Himes with fun & unique ideas that incorporate well into the community. It has been a joy to watch their children, Autumn & Vaughn, grow in the arts through the center. Autumn graduated from LHS in 2021, and Vaughn is a senior in 2023 — he achieved his First Dan Black Belt in Taekwondo in April 2023! The Himes also love connecting with the kids & parents in our community! Kati teaches Predance/Baby Ballet, tap, and the Mommy & Me classes, and “Mr. Levi” has become a regular second teacher in Predance and loves getting down and frog hopping with the kiddos after a long day at the office. 🙂 Levi & Kati nurture a long-term passion for the arts and their hometown of Laramie, and are very proud of the community that has been building at LD&A since 2014!
Jordyn Brummond — Ballet, Pointe, Lyrical, Contemporary, Modern
Jordyn is a Laramie native, growing up in Laramie Dance Center and studying with the University of Wyoming’s dance program. She has participated in the Snowy Range Summer Dance Festival as well as many productions of UW and LDC through the years, and works tirelessly year-round, volunteering her time with our Laramie Valley Dancers program as well as various performance opps. Jordyn has prepared three original, full length ballets performed by the Laramie Valley Dancers at LD&A Center: The Wood Fairy Ballet (2015), The Stone Flower Ballet (2016), The Buried Moon Ballet (2017) and Hades & Persephone (2019). Her tasks including story line, character and plot development, audition orchestration & selections, original choreography, and the instructing and rehearsal time designed to compile the production. It was an impressive, multi-month process. Her mother, Beth Brummond, is an incredible costume creator & seamstress, and together the two donated hundreds of hours creating beautiful, original costumes our dancers were blessed to wear. Jordyn is also one of our teachers who takes time to mentor our dancers, reaching many on a level that combines personal growth + dance. We appreciate Jordyn’s leadership and talent so much, and joke about her growing ‘cult following’ that she has among dancers at LD&A!
Ali Grossman — Adult Jazz, Ballet, Pointe, Modern, Contemporary
Ali received early training at Jordan College Academy of Dance at Butler University, then graduated from the University of Arizona with a BFA and has danced professionally. Her training has included Bill T. Jones, Elliot Feld, Merrill Ashley, Gus Giordano, Frank Hatchett, and Jacques D’Amboise. A video producer by day at UW, Ali continues to hone her dance skills as she travels internationally, including Puerto Vallarta and Vienna. Ali volunteers with Albany County Democrats and Laramie Main Street, and fosters dogs for Black Dog Animal Rescue (where she introduced the Himes to their smart little Perry the Wonder Pup!) She teaches ballet and jazz from beginning to advanced levels and creates beautiful, thoughtful choreography.
Lydia Allen — Ballet, Pointe, Jazz, Modern, Contemporary
Lydia Allen began her dance training at the age of 3. She quickly found Canyon Concert Ballet in her home state of Colorado where she trained until the age of 17. Her training was extensive in lyrical, contemporary, jazz, character dance, ballet and pointe. During her time at CCB she was a member of the Youth Ensemble which performed and competed at a multitude of competitions every year including NYCDA, Co.Dance, Encore, and Legacy Dance Championships. Throughout her years at CCB she also had the pleasure of performing in many works including The Nutcracker, Alice in Wonderland, and Cinderella. At the age of 16 she spent a summer training at Next Generation Ballet in Tampa, FL at the Patel Conservatory under director Peter Stark where she got to work with many talented instructors and dancers including Lia and Jeffrey Cirio. She then spent a year at Studio West in Colorado before she graduated high school and went to college. Lydia has her Bachelors of Science in Kinesiology from California Baptist University. Lydia relocated to Temple, Texas where she coached multiple USASF All Star Teams at Pivot Performance Arts for two years. Following her heart back home to Laramie she can’t wait to continue her dance career in an instructional role with and is so excited to get to know all of the dancers and see them grow!
Laura Baker — Belly Dance
Laura hails from the Boulder, Colorado dance community; formerly in the dance troupe of Gunbarrel Naval Gazers. While in the dance troupe, Laura performed at street fairs, the Boulder Outdoor Theater, and the astrological temple. Laura began her dance career when trying to find a fun way to lose baby weight and get back in shape. She studied Middle Eastern Dance under Taya Matoy for several years and then was asked to teach at ESC for the Arts in Boulder. While belly dance is not Laura’s day job, she often wishes it could be. She finds the creative outlet wonderful and often says when teaching ‘…Belly Dance is great because you get cool dress up costumes, giggle a lot, and get great abs to boot.’ Come join Laura’s class and learn to shimmy and giggle at the same time. Perfect for young and old, Middle Eastern Dance is designed for the woman’s form. We greatly appreciate Laura’s time & dedication to helping with choreography & preparations for the annual Mountain Women Belly Dance Hafla and other performance opportunities throughout the year in Laramie!
Rachel Evenson — Jazz, Hip Hop, Ballet, Modern, Tumbling
Hi all! My name is Rachel Evenson. I danced competitively for 17 years and have been teaching for 3. I am a 2x UDA All-American dancer and am trained in the following styles: Jazz, Hip-Hop, Lyrical, Contemporary, Musical-Theater, Ballet, and Tumbling. I am currently on the UW cheer team here in Laramie and am excited to start teaching dance again! (We’re so excited to have Rachel join us from 307 Dance Academy in Casper, one of our wonderful friend studios in Wyoming!)
Emma Telgenhoff — Cheer & Tumbling
Hi, everybody! My name is Emma. I grew up in Denver, Colorado as a competitive dancer. I danced for twelve years before switching over to cheerleading in high school. I went on to cheer all four years of my undergrad with the UW Spirit Squad. I also was the assistant dance coach at Laramie High School for four years. I am currently getting my Masters of Social Work at UW!
Lauren Fossen — Tap, Ballet, Jazz
Lauren, originally from Lander, moved to Laramie a couple summers ago. She grew up taking and teaching classes ranging from ballet, jazz, tap and modern and as an adult taught Zumba and beginners’ basic Latin ballroom. After a break in teaching as an adult she’s excited to be back in the studio. Lauren also volunteers her time with the worship & music team at Harvest Christian Church in Laramie.
Bailey Payton — Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Tap
Bailey grew up in Colorado Springs, CO where she began dancing at The Dance Center of Colorado Springs at age 3. At age 8, she transferred to Springs City Ballet where she practiced through high school. Here she worked to learn ballet, jazz, modern, lyrical, hip hop, tap and many other styles of dance. She was part of the repertory ballet company performing the traveling show “The Nutcracker Sweet” multiple weekends every winter, a showcase every spring, and participated many years in the Denver Ballet Guild’s Young Dancers Competition. She was part of the senior competitive jazz company that has received state and nationwide awards. She also performed with Moscow Ballet and San Diego Ballet. SCB is also where she first began to teach as an apprentice. Bailey moved to Laramie in 2014 to study English, Communication, and Dance at the University of Wyoming. She was fortunate to study under highly accomplished faculty members and attend dance festivals like American College Dance Association and residencies with renowned dance companies. Being a part of the Theatre and Dance Department gave her the opportunity to grow not only her technical ability in dance, but her own artistic style and creative voice by choreographing many pieces on peers. She has taught at LD&A since 2019, and works to ensure her students learn not only how to be technically good at dance, but how to use it to express themselves. While Bailey has moved on to other adventures back home in Colorado, we’re hopeful to have her visit and teach workshops with us!
Autumn Hime — Ballet, Pointe, Predance, Belly Dance, Jazz, Hip Hop
(Yes, this is a picture of Small Autumn — 11 years old, to be exact — I’m searching for a picture to choose from the hundreds of dance pictures Levi has taken throughout the years…) 😉 Autumn has grown up at Laramie Dance & Arts Center, studying ballet & pointe, modern, contemporary, tap, hip hop and jazz — it was ballet, pointe and belly dance that especially captured Autumn’s heart and led her down many performance paths. She had many senior roles in Jordyn Brummond’s ballets, including the Water Fairy and Hades in the Hades + Persephone Ballet. She has taught many levels and ages, including predance, ballet/jazz 1 and the dance team class (hip hop & jazz). Autumn was a member of the LHS Lightning Dance Team and its captain her senior year. She loved her summers as a docent at the Laramie Plains Museum and earned both her Bronze and Silver medals from the Congressional Award program. She graduated from LHS in 2021 on the Honor Roll and in National Honors Society and has been studying at the University of Wyoming in Physical Education, Kinesiology and Athletic Training. She recently moved to a new adventure in Seattle, Washington, attending the University of Washington – Seattle to continue her adventures. She’s a certified Starbucks Barista and trainer, and makes a mean latte!
Vaughn Hime — Snowy Range Taekwondo — White Belt Taekwondo for Kids (Ages 7+)
(This is a place holder picture of Vaughn while I get a great TKD shot from the hundreds his dad has taken …) 😉 Vaughn began in Snowy Range Taekwondo when Jordan McDill first began the program, as its littlest student at the age of 10 in 2016. Searching for something our son could enjoy, Levi took Vaughn to Mr. McDill’s introductory, all-day event with guests from all over the state. After I hadn’t seen them for some time, I texted Levi to make sure they were okay. “I guess we’re staying for awhile,” Levi replied. “He’s absolutely mesmerized!” They ended up staying the whole day, and Vaughn was hooked. He has journeyed through all the levels of belts, achieving his black belt in April of 2023 in Rock Springs! He began teaching white belts (beginners) when he was just 13 years old, and at 17, has a quiet and steady mannerism in the classroom. Vaughn’s love of sparring introduced him to the world of high school wrestling, and he has enjoyed two busy and productive wrestling seasons at LHS. He also has a serious love of weightlifting and body building, and joins his dad in a love of the weight room, discussing technique and workouts most nights of the week. A member of National Honors Society and on the Honor Roll, Vaughn will be a senior in the fall of 2023, and we’re so excited – even if we’re not quite ready!