Strictly Ballroom
Strictly Ballroom
Dance Instructors
Rachel Morris
Manager and Dance Instructor
Rachel Morris "accidentally" fell into the ballroom dance world in 2000. She assumed the studio she was walking into was for small children learning ballet, tap, and jazz. Upon her arrival to be a receptionist, the couple twirling around the dance floor stopped her in her tracks. She didn't know what dance that was...."WALTZ". She immediately turned around to leave and was promptly asked by another instructor to stay. She told Rachel, "Come meet with the owner. We need tall females to teach!" Rachel then started training a week later, learning all aspects of Ballroom Dancing and instantly fell in love with the Art.
She was a captain of her small town dance team in Vian, Oklahoma and instantly grew to love this new genre of dance. It gave her so many aspects to consider of her talent: smooth, swing, rhythm, latin, country western, socializing, etc.
Rachel has been teaching, coaching, and judging dance events for 20+ years. She is currently managing Strictly Ballroom in Tulsa, a studio to which she holds in high regard. She originally managed Strictly Ballroom in her early years as an instructor. She also owned Ballroom Revolution in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, for many years with her long-time friend.
She absolutely loves everything this wonderful art has brought into her own life and others. Through dance she has raised money for many non-profit organizations, including Hospitality House of Tulsa, CASA of Payne County, and San Miguel Schools. She prides herself in the talent and the ability she has teaching to make everyone's life more fulfilled through dance.
Monica Lickona
Monica Lickona proudly hails from Buffalo, NY, and has been dancing for nearly 17 years. Having mastered a variety of different styles, she first got addicted to partner dance through a collage ballroom class at her alma mater, DeSales University. For the last three years, she worked as a full time dancer and teacher with Fred Astaire Dance studios. She has received professional training in ballroom and Latin from the likes of Taliat Tarsinov, Ilya Ifraimov, and former DWTS dancer and dance champion Tony Dovolani. While teaching, she competed all over the country, including Las Vegas and Orlando. She is very grateful for this next chapter of her dance journey in Tulsa, Oklahoma. EVERYone and ANYone can dance, and Monica can't wait to show you how.
Tsutomu "Tom" Teramoto
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Tom Teramoto is from the Japanese mega-city Osaka in Japan. Yet, his passion for ballroom dance has literally taken him around the world. First discovering the modern rhythms of ballroom through the Australian dance troupe Burn the Floor, he later decided to study modern International Latin Dance and Salsa in San Diego under the critically acclaimed dancers Olga Ginsberg, Pepe Alvarez, Christina Santana and Marry Murphy from SYTYCD. He later made the move to Shanghai for academic studies and continued his passion for dance while there.
Tom has been trained in Jazz, Ballet, and International Ballroom Dance in the UK, and later returned to his home country to teach International Latin dance, Jazz, and ZUMBA in Osaka. Throughout this time, Tom has also engaged in competitive dancing and Latin performance.
Tom Teramoto is excited to share his immense passion for dance with the people of Tulsa.