Our Mission:
A Dance Studio Rooted in Purpose
Achieving our mission starts by finding alignment in a culture where everyone feels safe to be themselves. We are committed to building and fostering an environment where everyone will be honored, nurtured, and enabled to thrive through movement.
We’re here to create community—and dance magic.
Meet Libby Welch
Artistic Director
Founder of Movement Haven and longtime professional performer, Libby Welch has spent her career on stage, in the studio, and in the classroom.
Libby holds a B.A. in Dance from Elon University and has taught, performed, and choreographed across the country, from San Francisco to New York City. She’s a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association and has appeared in major productions such as Singin' in the Rain, Oh My Godmother!, and performances at Tap City, Tap Extravaganza in New York City with Germaine Salsberg's company, Les Femmes.
But more than anything, Libby is a teacher.
She built Movement Haven to be a place where every dancer feels like they belong—where they can be challenged without pressure and celebrated without comparison. Her leadership style is equal parts grounded and inspired, combining professional excellence with empathy and trust.
When you walk into Movement Haven, you’ll feel what makes it different. That’s Libby’s vision at work.
The Movement Haven Faculty
Our team consists of professional dancers and educators who model what it means to lead with integrity, artistry, and care.
Madelyn Biro
Faculty
Madelyn is originally from Dayton, Ohio and she began dancing at the age of three at Dayton Dance Conservatory, where she studied ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, and modern. During her time in Dayton, she trained with various Dayton Contemporary Dance Company members, performed with the first season of Dayton Dance Conservatory pre-professional company, danced competitively, attended conventions, and trained at surrounding ballet programs including Dayton Ballet. Madelyn attended The Ohio State University and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. During her time at Ohio State, Madelyn studied the dance minor program focusing on improv and contemporary classes. Over the past decade, Madelyn has taught and choreographed for multiple studios around central Ohio. She has developed a passion for combining dance and strength training while exploring options to further her education in this avenue. In addition to teaching, Madelyn works full-time as a Certified Neurophysiological Monitoring technician during the day providing care to patients who undergo various surgeries. Madelyn is excited to continue teaching and share her positive energy with her students at Movement Haven!
Abby Lenhard
Faculty
Abby is originally from Rochester, New York, where she began dancing at the age of 3 at Fitzsimmons Dance Factory. She danced competitively through the age of 18 in tap, jazz, ballet, contemporary, lyrical, and hip hop. Throughout her experience, she has had the opportunity to learn and work closely with many well-recognized dance artists, including Michael Keefe and Chantel Aguirre. She has also been assisting and teaching for nearly 10 years.
Currently, Abby is a senior nursing major with a minor in dance at The Ohio State University. While at Ohio State, she has been actively involved in Buckeyes on Tap, the university’s only student-run tap dance organization. She has served as performance co-chair, vice president, and this year, she is excited to serve as organization president.
After joining Movement Haven as a front desk concierge last year, she is so excited to step into the studio and teach Children's Division classes this year! She is passionate about creating a welcoming and encouraging environment where dancers can build confidence, develop their skills, and grow their love for movement. She can't wait to dance with you all!
Cooper Verona
Faculty
Cooper recently retired after three seasons with BalletMet. Previously, he danced with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre for eleven seasons. He is originally from Connecticut and received his early training from David Lawrence and Wendy Fish-Lawrence at Connecticut Concert Ballet. He received further training from Ethan Stiefel at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and Claudio Muñoz and Andrew Murphy at Houston Ballet’s Ben Stevenson Academy.
Mr. Verona has been featured as Hilarion in Terrence S Orr’s Giselle, Rothbart in Swan Lake, Tybalt in Derek Deane’s Romeo and Juliette, Dracula in Ben Stevenson’s Dracula, Bernardo in Jerome Robbins’ West Side Story Suite, Mad Hatter in Derek Deane’s Alice in Wonderland, Jay Gatsby in Jorden Morris’ The Great Gatsby, Carabosse in Sleeping Beauty, and Cavalier in Terrence S. Orr’s The Nutcracker. He has also been featured in William Forsythe’s In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated, Jerome Robbins’ In the Night, Dwight Rhoden’s Ave Maria, and Julia Adam’s Ketubah. Other memorable performances include Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room, Jiří Kylián’s Petite Mort and Sechs Tanze, James Kudelka’s The Man in Black, Kyle Abraham’s Quiet Dance, and Mark Morris’ Maelstrom, Drink To Me Only With Thine Eyes, and Sandpaper Ballet. Verona also has a passion for choreography.
He has been commissioned by Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre to create brood, Walking With, Gravitational Embrace and Thick White Sheets. He has also created works for Point Park University, Chamber Dance Project, PearlARTS Festival, Carnegie Mellon Center for the Arts in Society and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s School. Mr. Verona is excited to continue his career with BalletMet as Academy faculty in addition to teaching ballet and contemporary at Movement Haven.
Kendra Haughey
Welcome Desk Concierge
Kendra has been dancing for over 16 years, and is going into her junior year at The Ohio State University. Kendra is an executive board member of Buckeyes on Tap at Ohio State, a student-run tap dance organization, and a dance minor. Originally from New Jersey, she competed and trained for many years in tap, jazz, ballet, lyrical, musical theatre, and contemporary. Throughout her dance career, she has competed at regional, national, and international stages, as well as received feedback from world-renowned judges and esteemed awards at the most competitive levels. She taught and choreographed for her home studio in recreational tap and competitive tap solos. As a Welcome Desk Concierge at Movement Haven, she is excited share her love of dance through studio support, upholding a positive spirit, and providing all the tools for students and families to thrive. Kendra is looking forward to this next step in her dance journey!
Sophie Miklosovic
Faculty
Sophie Miklosovic, Michigan native, is currently a Company Artist with BalletMet. Her pre-professional training was under Magaly Suarez, The Art of Classical Ballet, Pompano Beach, FL. Her early ballet training was developed in Michigan by Valentina Barsukova,
Valentina’s Ballet and Meg Paul, Complexions Ballet Associate Artistic Director. Her early contemporary training was with Liz Schmidt-Mazurkiewicz, Spotlight Dance Works. Since joining BalletMet in 2017, at age 17, she has performed leading roles in Swan Lake,
Cinderella, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, Giselle, Don Quixote, among others. She has also performed works by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Edwaard Liang, David Nixon, Christopher Wheeldon, Justin Peck, Twyla Tharp, Gustavo Ramirez Sansano, Ulysses Dove,
Amy Siewert, Andrea Schermoly, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Alexander Ekman. As a professional guest artist, she has performed principal roles from Swan Lake, La Bayadere, Don Quixote, Le
Corsaire, Flames of Paris, The Nutcracker.
Her awards include the Gold Medal at the World Ballet Competition in Orlando, the Morning Star Foundation Award at the Beijing IBC in China, 1st Place, Gold Medal at the Cuban IBC & festival in Havana, she also received the Director’s Legacy Award at the Universal Ballet Competition and was a Top 3 Scholarship winner, at the National Society of Arts & Letters, En
Pointe Classical Ballet Competition. In 2019, Sophie was named as one of Dance Magazine’s Top 25 to Watch.
Taylor Walker
Faculty
Taylor is originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where she started dancing at the age of 2 at the Abby Lee Dance Company. She joined the competition team at age 6, competing in tap, jazz, ballet, lyrical, contemporary, and hip hop. She's danced with Dance Expressions By Erica, Ohio University Dance Team, and competed at NDA in Orlando, Florida. Taylor taught for her previous studios in Pittsburgh and began her career in Columbus as the head coach of the Liberty High School Dance Team.
What Makes a Dance Instructor Different at Movement Haven?
Our instructors are:
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Professionally trained educators with national and international experience
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Committed to creating emotionally safe, body-positive environments
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Passionate about the whole dancer, not just their technique
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Equipped to teach, inspire, and support each individual’s growth
