Learn from the best
Danielle D'Anna, Owner
Danielle D'Anna began her dance training at the age of two and a half with MaryLou Peters. Her dance background includes student and proficiency in Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Pointe, Hip-Hop, Break Dancing, Lyrical, Laban, Choreography, Modern/Contemporary, Dance Team/Poms, and Musical Theatre. She has been teaching and choreographing for more than 25 years all over the East Coast. She has danced on the University of Maryland Dance team and with artists such as Jermaine Dupri, Little Bow Wow, Christina Millan, and Da Brat. She has taken and continues to take Master Workshop Classes from the greats such as Savion Glover, Mia Michaels, Tap Dog Company Members, Rennie Harris, Rhonda Miller, Sheila Barker, Sean Curran, Greg Russell, Luam, Jared Grimes and many more to stay on top of her game! Dancers trained in her classes learn PROPER technique, utilize their creativity and develop excellence in a rigorous but fun-filled experience from a teacher who truly LOVES children! Ms. D'Anna holds a Bachelor of Arts in Dance from the University of Maryland as well as a Master's Equivalency from Trinity College in Education.
Joelle Solar, Teacher
Joelle Solar has been teaching alongside Ms. D'Anna for over 20 years. She helps to manage, teach, mix music, and create at the studio. Currently, she teaches dance in the county and completed her BA in Dance from the University of MD, College Park. Miss Solar is working on her Masters in administration for 2026. Miss Joelle began dance training at the age of 8 and continued through her high school and college years. She has studied Ballet, Pointe, Tap, Jazz, Hip-hop, Lyrical, Laban, Modern/Contemporary, Choreography, Break Dancing, and Salsa. Joelle is known for her willingness to help her students succeed!
Tia Johnson, Teacher
Tia Johnson began her dance journey early on at the age of 3 at Peters' Studio of Dance which became DDC. She has studied multiple genres of dance ranging from Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Pointe, Hip-Hop, Modern, Lyrical, & Contemporary Dance. She also has danced for Future Shock and the Dynamic Dance Team in the Washington D.C. area as well as our own DDC Elite Company Team. Tia teaches many of our classes at DDC from the Mom's Hip Hop class to our Boy's Hip Hop, and our combo classes for all ages. She also choreographs and co-teaches with Ms. D'Anna our competition teams. At DDC she is known for her creative ideas in choreography, her musicality, and her love of dance!
Celeste Puente, Teacher
We’re thrilled to welcome back our very own Celeste Puente! ¡Sí, ella habla español! 🇪🇸💃Miss Celeste is super excited to return to D’Anna Dance Center — this time as a teacher! Celeste began dancing at DDC in 2007 and graduated in 2017. In her own words:
“Ms. D’Anna made me fall in love with dance, and I’m beyond happy to be welcomed back as a teacher. I hope I can help my students fall in love with dance too!”
After graduating from DDC, Celeste continued her education at UMBC with a BA in Psychology and a Masters in Social Work from UMBSSW. Miss Celeste will be teaching on Thursday evenings, and you’ll likely see her around the studio on other days as well.
Please join us in giving her a warm welcome back to the DDC family! 💜