Today we’d like to introduce you to Shelley O’Donnell and Bianca Rebello.
Hi Shelley and Bianca, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hello! Thank you for taking the time to read through our journey and thought process behind starting Integrity Dance Arts. We are Bianca Rebello and Shelley O’Donnell and we are the Co-Owners of our dance studio! Integrity is a word that can be used in all aspects of life. It is “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.” The word Integrity and its meaning is a big reason why we wanted to start a dance business. We both have been down numerous roads in the arts. For decades, we have both trained, studied and taught dance while building strong relationships with wonderful artists along the way.
Our dance educators and mentors instilled so much knowledge and skills in us that we felt the urge to give back to our students and our community. We want to build a place for dancers to come train, as well as to have the opportunity to develop into artists. A place viewed as their second home where everything we do is always led by Integrity. Building dancers to have a strong work ethic and loving hearts. To be confident in themselves to know that they can achieve any of their dreams! Integrity Dance Arts was created to foster growth from the youngest of dancers all the way up to seniors. Moving into a realm with a company that performs, gives back to our community, and competes at the highest levels, pushing training to an upper echelon while having opportunities to learn from master artists throughout the area.
We also proudly house practices for professional dancers from Full Circle Dance (a contemporary company in North Texas) under the direction of Artistic Director Tiffanee Arnold. For more information about Full Circle Dance we encourage supporters to visit their website at https://www.fullcircledance-northtexas.org. As stated in the beginning, giving back to our community, mentors and the next generation of children is extremely important to us and we vow to ourselves, our families and loved ones that we will always strive to achieve it with Integrity.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
We decided to open up the business in the early stages of the pandemic. This circumstance presented challenges in both business and personal lives. Both of us were jobless and Bianca had also just given birth to a baby girl before deciding to open up the studio. So that was obviously a difficult decision, but we had a lot of support from family and friends. And it turns out that, because we started small, time was on our side. It was probably easier for a small business like us to separate kids and teachers in small classes to maintain a safe environment for everyone. As the restrictions started getting lifted, we were able to grow accordingly. We are very proud of “surviving” our first year during a pandemic and our hearts go out to all business owners who went through the same. We certainly learned a lot during our first year and we hope to continue growing over the coming years, exercising the same morals and values that carried us to this point. We love our students and will always strive to help them accomplish their dreams, but most importantly, we are not afraid to fail and I think that is what will ultimately set us apart.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Our mission at Integrity Dance Arts is to provide students of all levels with more than just dance classes, but a unique experience in which the student can grow both mentally and physically as a dancer. Our highly trained and certified dance educators have a wealth of experience in teaching and performing various styles and disciplines. We pride ourselves with offering recreational, competitive and professional level classes to the community. We offer classes for ages two through adult.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up Bianca was extremely introverted. She moved around a lot so with that came lots of changes in friendships and schools. It wasn’t until middle school and high school when she was involved in drill team where she really started to find an outlet and passion for dance. No matter where she was in life, she knew that she wanted dance to be part of it. It became her way of expression and no matter what was going on in her life at the time she knew she could speak and express what she wanted to convey through dance. She built a lot of connections and mentorships throughout the way and for that she is forever grateful. Shelley has always been driven and involved in many different activities as she was growing up. She kept very busy with competitive gymnastics until she became more interested in dance and which was something that has always filled her soul. She continued to follow her passion for dance in high school and college and appreciates all of the people that have supported her in this journey.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@integritydancearts.com
- Website: https://www.integritydancearts.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/integrityda/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/INTEGRITYDA/
Image Credits
Ashley Pease Photography
