Nina hails from Washington D.C. She is a competitor, performer, and teacher of Lindy Hop and is a founding member of Silver
Shadows. As a competitor she can lay claim to many national Lindy Hop titles from some of the most prestigious swing dancing
competitions in the world including the North Atlantic Dance Championships, the American Lindy Hop Championships, Hellzapoppin',
and the Ultimate Lindy Hop Showdown. Performance credits include television appearances on PBS; Apollo Theatre; Lincoln Center
and concert performances with the Brian Setzer Orchestra and Aretha Franklin.
Carla Heiney
Carla currently teaches, choreographs, judges, competes, & social dances all over the world & feels very fortunate to be able
to do what she loves most. Competing is fun for Carla and a great way to push her limits, but her real passion is teaching
dance and social dancing. As a teacher, she has a down to earth approach, but still takes learning seriously and focuses
heavily on quality of movement, partner connection, musicality, and most importantly, enjoying the dance!
Among many of her titles, Carla is a 2006 US Open Showcase Champion, 2007 National Jitterbug Champion, & 2007 American Lindy
Hop Champion. She has also won the Lindy Showcase division in 2001, 2002, 2004 and the US Open Strictly Lindy division in
2003. She is a 4 time American Lindy Hop Champion and the 2005 World Lindy Hop Champion in the Improvisational division. She has
worked with great artists such as Aretha Franklin, Jeff Tyzik, B.B. King, Erich Kunzel, Nell Carter, and Rita Moreno. She has
had the wonderful opportunity to dance at prestigious places such Carnegie Hall & the Kennedy Center as well. She has appeared
on ABC's revival of the TV show "Dance Fever" in 2003 and was a featured dancer using Motion Capture technology in the 2004
Feature Film "The Polar Express" in 2004. Carla will also be featured in the upcoming 2008 movie "Love and Dancing."
Mike Faltesek
Mike Faltesek brings to the dance floor an incredibly diverse social and performance dance talent that includes not only
Lindy Hop but also Cakewalk, Black Bottom, Traditional Jazz, Tap, Charleston, Breakaway, Balboa, Big Apple, Blues and many other
Authentic Jazz dances.
Mike has been dancing for almost a decade, in that time he has traveled to instruct, compete, and perform internationally.
From Harlem to Los Angeles and all throughout Europe, Mike is well known for his charismatic personality, approachability, and
passion for the essence of Authentic Jazz dance and music. He possesses an enthusiastic ability to convey ideas and movements
explicitly, making him a popular instructor wherever he goes. He teaches workshops internationally, each time leaving a lasting
impression on his students.
Mikey Pedroza
Mikey Pedroza has been dancing and performing for the past 10 years. The majority of those years have been dedicated to the
understanding and preservation of classic American dances known to the masses as Swing Dancing. These Swing Dances include:
Charleston, Lindy Hop, Balboa, Shag, and Traditional Blues. Along with the classic solo jazz dance and shake blues dances. His
love of the dance comes from every part of it: the music, the style, the movement, the people, the history, and the way they
all come together in the dance.
He has competed in and won many national level competitions in such places as: Los Angeles, Cleveland, Nashville, Seattle,
Denver, Hawaii, Minneapolis, New York, Stamford, Phoenix, and Washington DC.
