Staff BiographiesVanessa Madrid- Dance Specialist & Administrative/Executive Assistant
Vanessa Madrid grew up tap dancing at the age of three in Pueblo, Colorado, for thirteen years. She has always loved the rhythm and expression of dance and was able to express that through tapping, as well as becoming a high school cheerleader at Pueblo South. Vanessa is very excited about her brand new introduction into the ballroom world, and plans on using her communications degree from Colorado State University-Pueblo towards introducing people to their best quality of life through dance and Arthur Murray!::br:
Laura Cotton-Supervisor
With her B.A. in Elementary Education from Arizona State University, Laura is able to combine her degree and her passion for music, dance, and fitness through teaching ballroom dancing at Arthur Murray. She is also known for getting students in-shape through the successful Core Rhythms cardio workout program. Laura was ranked second Top Specialist in Arthur Murray’s Tournament of Champions in 2010 and ranked second Top Supervisor in the 2011 International Dance Festival. She was recognized in Arthur Murray’s Global Teaching Challenge in 2009 and 2010, through the use of diverse teaching methods and motivation among her students. With her professional partner, Nick Manzo, Laura currently holds the title of Arthur Murray Rising Star Smooth Champion, Washington National Dance-O-Rama Open Professional Smooth Champion, and is a consistent Open Professional Smooth finalist. Laura hopes to help change more lives through the art of dance, like it has changed hers.
Denise Prado-Dance Specialist Denise Prado started dancing ballet, jazz, and tap at the age of 3 and performed until the age of 13. For a short while she decided to try sports such as volleyball and softball. At the age of 17 she rediscovered her love of dance when shesigned up for her first ballroom lesson. From there she competed at a high level in the Pr-Am division in all four styles. Some of her accomplishments include U.S. 9-Dance Champion, Ohio Star Ball’s Best of the Best Champion, and U.S.Pro-Am Rising Star Champion in Rhythm and Smooth. Some of her coaches include Tony Dovolani and Louie Van Amstel of Dancing With the Stars, and Toni Redpath of So You Think You Can Dance. Her Journey as an instructor is just beginning and she is so excited to share her love and passion for the exquisite art of dance. Denise has been ranked as one of the top Arthur Murray specialist in the world!
Tony Lomeli -Dance Specialist Tony Lomeli has had a passion for dancing, music, and fitness for several years. As a personal trainer and dance instructor, Tony enjoys improving people’s self body image and helping them achieve their personal dance goals. Not ony is Tony veered as a top specialist in our industry, but he is currently ranked in the top 20 specialists in the world!
Bonnie Yuen – Instructor
Bonnie Yuen is our studio’s female instructor. She is currently competing in American Rhythm and was a finalist in the Arthur Murray Future Champions division. With 9 years of dance studies and experiences, she is very knowledgeable in a wide variety of dances, including: jazz, lyrical, modern, choreography, hip hop/break dancing, and more. Bonnie danced for the 2007-2008 WNBA Phoenix Mercury Hip Hop Squad and the 2008 season of AFL Rattlers Sidewinders dance team. She was also involved in local dance crews, Epik Dance Co. and Female Prophecy, and performed and competed all over the valley. Bonnie has been teaching since she was 17 years o ld, and is wonderful with students of all ages! She is very passionate about changing lives through the art of dance. One day, she hopes to open YOUR eyes to the beautiful world of dance!Nick Manzo- Instructor
Nick Manzo began teaching with Arthur Murray in 2008, and has quickly became one of Arthur Murray’s top instructors! Through hard work and dedication, Nick has received top instructor awards in 2009 and 2010. Nick was also given the 2009 Top Twenty Specialist Award and a 2009 Star Performance Award. Nick has also had students finish 1st place, 2nd place, and 3rd place in Associate Bronze all-around competitions and also had a student receive a Top Newcomer Award. Nick’s personal dancing has also escaladed quickly with his partner Laura Cotton. In 2009, they won the Future Champions Smooth at the Unique Dance-O-Rama Championships. In 2010, Nick and Laura became open finalists at Hula-Rama, Boston Dance-O-Rama, and the Northstar Dance-O-Rama. In October 2010, Nick and Laura became Arthur Murray’s Rising Star Champions and Open finalists. One month later, they won their first Open competition.Candee Martinez-James Co-Owner/Franchisee
Candee Martinez-James has been dancing several forms of dancing in many theaters and venues since she was a young
child. Candee comes from a family of all types of performing artist, so you could say she grew up in the business of performing arts! From ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, choreography, to swing, latin and country western. Candee continued her love of dancing with Arthur Murray Dance Studio in 2001. Before opening the Arrowhead Arthur Murray School of Dancing, she has worked her way up from being a top female instructor to a top female executive. To this day, Candee is still achieving several Top Executive awards in the Arthur Murray Organization, and is recognized and respected as one of the Top Franchisees*.-Candee*s students have won many awards, such as:
1st Place Top Routine
Finalist in all divisions
Top Student Awards
-Candee has also won many honors in the Arthur Murray Industry, such as:
Top Female Instructor 2002, 2003, 2004
Top Executive Awards 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
Finalist in American Rhythm
Finalist in International Latin
Mychael James Co-Owner/Franchisee
Mychael James grew up in the Ballroom Dance World. At age 9 he began dancing and training with a Romanian Dance Champion, Henia Lynn. At a young age he trained with top dancers such as, Ron Montez and Jenell Maranto. He began teaching at age 17 and found the love of improving peoples lives through dancing. At age 20, he began at Arthur Murray, where he won multiple Top Teacher and Top Executive awards. Below are some of the dance, teaching and
studio honors Mychael has received from 1999- Present Day.-Eight Time 1st Place Top Teacher
-Six Time Top Executive
-American Smooth Pro/AM Scholarship Champion
-American Rhythm Professional Finalist
-International Standard Pro/AM Finalist
-International/Latin Professional Finalist
