Shatto’s School of Dance was opened in 1976, the current owner Ashley Reed took over in 2010 when she was seventeen years old. She took classes at SSD starting at the age of two taking ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop and pointe. Ashley has also taken classes at Richens Timm Academy of Irish Dance in Casper, taken dance classes at Casper College, and attended Dance Teacher Conferences in Arizona. She plans to continue her dance education to ensure her students receive the best training possible.
Ashley teaches every class and has a personal connection with each of her students.
Last year was very difficult with the new COVID regulations we had to follow, I am very thankful to everyone that stuck with me through it.
Now that things are getting back to normal I plan to continue to challenge my dancers and help them achieve the goals they set for themselves in dance.
Shatto’s School of Dance was opened in 1976 by Jan Shatto. She started dance at the age of four in Cheyenne where she grew up, taking lessons at Tolerton School of Ballet (Later known as Tolerton School of Dance)
Jan’s teacher Elizabeth Tolerton came from a family of performers in Germany. She was born in 1922 and she started dancing professionally at four years old. She was one of the youngest dancers to perform en pointe at the age of five. She performed for royalty and dignitaries all over Europe. While in Germany she was also a fashion model and movie actress. There is a whole section in a German Museum dedicated to her.
Jan opened the studio in 1976. She continues to teach her granddaughter’s classes and owns Shatto’s Frontier Drug with her husband Gary.
Amanda Peak, the second owner and one of Jan’s students, took over in 2002. She started dancing when she was four years old at Shatto’s. She took ballet, tap and jazz and attended numerous dance competitions winning many awards. She also attended dance conventions and danced in Disney Land. After moving to Casper in 2005 she continued to teach in Douglas till 2010.
