About me

Welcome! My name is Michelle Kilgus and I am the Owner and Director of AYO Dance Studio. Everyone’s first question is always “What’s your dance background?” So let me go WAAAY back. My Mother is Cyndy Keith, aka “Piddle” among her Forever Alumni, she was a member of the 33rd Line of World Famous Kilgore College Rangerettes, she danced in the Macy’s Day Parade, choreographed for drill teams and cheer teams, and after college she moved back to our tiny hometown and opened her own studio. Shortly after that I was born, and like most studio owners kids I spent the next ten years in the studio, dancing.

While my talent for singing took precedence during my teen years, dance remained a part of my life through my school’s exclusive performance choral group which I was a part of for three years. College life at Texas A&M had me taking two step and swing classes and “practicing” those moves at Hurricane Harry’s every weekend.

Fast forward to 2014 when my then three year old son asked to take a dance class because he loved to twirl to house music. After a few weeks watching, alone at the back of a classroom full of girls, he finally joined in during tap and he’s been dancing ever since. Little brothers have naturally followed in his footsteps and of course their Grandmother is over the moon about that.

My sons have been active in the competition dance world since 2017. The boys were a part of several amazing teams in the Greater Austin Area, however when Covid hit and their team and studio dissolved unexpectedly we made the decision to take some time off of team and regroup. During the pandemic the boys attended core classes in person, and did online conventions, privates and Zoom classes with everyone and anyone, because we wanted to see the dance community survive in the midst of uncertainty. The following year we commuted for dance classes all over Central Texas trying to find a homebase studio and possibly a team. As a result of so much networking we made many friends in the dance world, and I learned a lot about how to help my sons continue dancing after “team” days were over. It was during this time that I was encouraged, supported and advised, by master instructors, studio owners and my sweet dance Mama friends to open my own establishment and well, it just made sense.

Our studio is small, but full of love. We are a place to share not only our knowledge of dance, but also our experiences within the industry. We want to see our students make a career out of their passion for dance, if that is their goal; and we intend to work on their behalf and see it through with them until they accomplish that dream. When our students graduate high school they become mentors in our eyes and they will always have a place of recognition within our studio, as such we continue to support them and their endeavors in whatever ways we can.

We cater to homeschool students via Zoom classes, because we are homeschoolers ourselves, and understand the importance of being able to learn skills during the day, when most studios are not open. We also accept children with learning disabilities and special needs, because we believe that every child deserves to learn how to dance.

AYO Dance Studio has an exclusive competitive dance team, it is by invitation only. We compete in all major dance convention/competitions. If you are interested in auditioning for Team AYO, please reach out via the form page to inquire about an in person interview.

I am an open book, if there’s anything I didn’t touch on here, please email me or call. I would love to talk to you.