Our Staff

Professionally serving our customers in a friendly, relaxed atmosphere is our #1 goal!

  • Owner

    Edwina began her dance education at age two, eventually becoming a dance teacher at age 16, under the direction of her mother and dance teacher, Shirley McPhail. After studying dance and piano at Sullins College in Bristol, VA for one year, where she first experienced modern dance, she transferred to The University of Texas in 1975. Since UT did not offer a dance education program, Edwina took a degree in physical education. Post-graduation, she opened a Shirley McPhail School of Dance location on 183, and the rest is history!

    In 1976, Edwina took her ballet examination for the Texas Association Teachers of Dancing. She switched gears and studied tap in the 1980-90s in Austin, Los Angeles, and New York. She is now a tap examiner for TATD and has assisted Jackie Troup Miller in the writing of the TATD exam book: Tips on Tap.

    Edwina and her mother Shirley shared studio management duties together for 18 years before her untimely passing in 1997. She now shares these duties with her younger daughter, Kristin Smith. Larry, Edwina’s father, is still her business partner and #1 fan. Her Bonus Mom, Judy, runs the Cotillion program and is Marketing Director at SMSD.

  • Manager

    Born and raised in rural Arkansas, Sarah began her career in retail management working for a fashion boutique in her home town. During this time, her love for fashion and customer relations flourished. Always desiring to move to a bigger city, Sarah moved to Austin in 2015. There, she accepted a position as bridal stylist for the largest bridal store in Austin. For many years, she worked closely with hundreds of clients styling and fitting gowns. In 2017, Sarah married her husband, James, who she first met on a Caribbean cruise. Soon after, they moved to Houston and welcomed their daughter, Aubrey, into the world.

    Sarah recently moved back to Austin with her family and is thrilled to be back in her favorite city. She loves to spend most of her time with her family, but also enjoys reading, hiking, and baking in her spare time.

  • Sales Associate

    Sofia is from Franklin, Tennessee and moved to Utah in 2018 to study dance at Brigham Young University. She graduated in April 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in dance education (K-12), and she is excited to continue her teaching career here in Austin and share what she has learned through her years of studying dance. She specializes in teaching tap, jazz, and contemporary.


    With 21 years of dance experience under her belt—including competition dance, college dance, and teaching—she has been able to focus on her choreographic style and has had the opportunity to create pieces for the BYU Senior Showcase, Kinnect Dance Company, and DancEnsemble Company. Sofia has also been a member of the Rhythm Nation Tap Company since 2019 and has been part of multiple shows including: “Soundsations” and “A Very Jazzy Nutcracker.” Her opportunities and experiences have allowed her passion for teaching dance to grow stronger and she strives to improve every day!

  • Sales Associate

    Danielle has been happily tip tapping her toes since she was 3 years old. Born and raised in Midland, TX, her dancing instruction began at Bingham Dance under Joy and Julie Swift where she stayed for almost 8 years. After taking several years off, she once again found her love of dancing and performing with a local community theater group, Pickwick Performers.

    After graduating high school, Danielle attended Southwestern University in Georgetown, where she continued to study musical theater. Her time at the university took her to New York City where she had the opportunity to intern with an off-Broadway theater company, The New Group. While there, she continued to fall more in love with the theater, so much that she moved back to the big city after graduating with a BFA in Musical Theater. She was able to take part in a small production of Sweeney Todd during her time there as a performer in the ensemble. However, the native Texan she is, she found herself back in Austin where she has been for the past 13 years.

    Danielle is extremely grateful to have found the Dancer’s Den and be given the opportunity to share her love of dance.