30 Years of Teaching & Still Obsessed With the Moment It Clicks
Michelle Fracchia-West is a master dance teacher, private coach, award-winning choreographer and adjudicator who has spent more than three decades helping dancers understand their technique and discover what they're capable of.
But ask Michelle about what still excites her after all these years?
It's not the trophies, nor the accolades.
It's the moment a dancer looks at her and says:
"OH! I get it!"
The Teacher She Needed When She Was A Dancer
Michelle knew almost as soon as she could walk that she wanted to dance.
Growing up in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, she dreamed of becoming a professional ballerina. By 16, she had completed her Advanced dance examinations across multiple disciplines and trained at some of Canada’s most respected institutions, including Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, Alberta Ballet School and The Banff Centre.
But her path wasn’t always easy.
Multiple injuries interrupted her training, and Michelle was repeatedly told that her body wasn’t right for the career she wanted. Over time, those voices became difficult to ignore, and she began letting go of the dream she’d carried since childhood.
Something unexpected was happening at the same time.
She was becoming a teacher.
Michelle began assisting and teaching at her home studio while she was in high school. While attending university, she began to teach more, with original plans to become a lawyer. What started alongside her own training quickly became the thing she couldn’t imagine giving up.
Teaching gave Michelle an opportunity to offer dancers something she understood deeply: exceptional training, certainly, but also a teacher who could see their potential before they could see it themselves.
A teacher who could challenge them without making them believe they weren’t enough.
A teacher who could say:
“Yes, you can! Now let’s figure out how.”
More than 30 years later, that philosophy still shapes the way Michelle teaches.
Technique matters. Hard work matters. Discipline matters.
But Michelle also knows firsthand how powerful a teacher’s voice can be in a dancer’s life.
She wants hers to be one that makes dancers stronger.
Dance was Michelle’s first love. Teaching gave that love back to her.
Michelle is Qualified in the following training methods:
As a past student of Miss Michelle, I am very grateful for the strong foundation I was given through her training and mentorship. My training has shaped me into the dancer I am, as well as given me a love for ballet through the countless hours spent in the studio together.
~ Maddie Kraft
Michelle has been an absolute game-changer for my daughter’s progress in dance. She is very detail-oriented, warm, energetic, and sincere. My daughter has been able to progress in her technique substantially since she has started working with Michelle. I would strongly recommend her!
~ Lindsay Salloum