Now Offering Military Discount!
7980 Mainland Drive, San Antonio, Texas 78250, United States
Our Family of Instructors
Gwen Melo: Owner/Instructor
Gwen Melo, a San Antonio native, began dancing at the age of three and has been teaching dance for over twenty-five years. Gwen studied dance at Texas Woman’s University. Her training included classical ballet, modern dance, jazz, and tap. While at TWU, Gwen performed in many dance productions and was a member of the TWU Folk Dance Company. After college Gwen continued her dance education with Ballet Austin. Gwen began teaching for Jo Ann Neal Dance Studio in 1993 and is now the owner of DISA. As a member of the Texas Association Teachers of Dancing Inc. (TATD) since 2005, with a certification in ballet, Gwen is very passionate about developmentally appropriate teaching practices for young children. She continues to advance her dance education by attending master classes and dance conventions.
Lynn Aragon: Office Manager
Lynn Aragon has been working in an office setting for over 25 years. She was employed by Sony Semiconductor Company for 18 years as an Administrative Assistant working for the Vice President. She also worked for Urban Ministries as a Customer Service Representative. She has now been employed with Jo Ann Neal Dance Studio since 2012 as the office manager. Her daughters Sarah and Murcadez have enjoyed attending classes at Jo Ann Neal Dance Studio since the age of 3 for approximately 15-20 years.
Vanessa Murtaza: Instructor
Vanessa Murtaza danced for 29 years, taught for 13 years and was blessed to perform throughout Texas, California and the Caribbean. She is trained in classical ballet, jazz and contemporary. After dancing with Ballet El Paso and VIVA! El Paso, she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance from West Texas A&M University in 2003 where she performed with the Lone Star Ballet and the WTAMU dance ensemble. She then danced and taught in California, and then became a featured soloist with Carnival Cruise Lines. She is now in San Antonio where she and her husband are the proud parents to 3 girls, ages 8 years old, 2 years old and 9 months old. She loves dancing but is enjoying raising her babies, spending time with her family, playing at the park and for the first time in a long time, eating whatever she wants.
Hallie Odom: Instructor
Hallie began dancing when she was 2 at a small studio in Conroe, Tx. She learned many different types of dance, such as; classical ballet, pointe, jazz, tap, lyrical/contemporary, hip-hop, and Pilates. She was also on the studios competition team for 10 years. At 16, she began studying the art of yoga. Hallie graduate from Texas State with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Studies in 2011. There, she studied many different types of modern dance, mainly Erick Hawkins technique. After graduating, she earned her 200 hr. yoga certification in January 2013 at the Yoga Institute in Houston. She has also been hula hoop dancing for many years. Since graduating, she has taught many different types of dance to people of all ages. She truly enjoys what she does and couldn’t see herself doing anything else.
Wendy Andrews: Instructor
Wendy has been dancing since the age of six and has loved dance for as long as she can remember. She has been formally trained in hip hop, jazz, modern and Hawaiian, and loves any and ALL styles of dance. Wendy has taught everything from contemporary jazz to adult fitness classes. She loves working with kids and bringing the joy of dance to children of all ages. She has been choreographing and teaching hip hop for 11 years and is so excited to be a part of the DISA family! Wendy feels blessed to be able to do what she loves and share her passion for dance with others.