Destiny Devoted Dance

Meleka R. Simon

Owner & Artistic Director

Meleka Simon has been a dance educator for 21 years. She has studied the dance styles of ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary, modern, musical theater, and praise dance. She's a graduate of the University of North Texas where she earned a BA in Psychology and Child Development. After college, she was asked to be member of the Dallas Dance Company where she danced and choreographed for 5 seasons. Meleka has had the privilege to train under some of the industries top professionals. She has won numerous scholarships which gave her the opportunity to train in Vegas with Thunderstruck, in LA at the Edge Performing Arts Center, and in New York at Broadway Dance Center and Steps. Her training gave her the tools necessary to develop her teaching and choreography skills. Over the years, Meleka has sang background and danced back-up for recording artists, as well as choreographed and danced in award shows, festivals, music videos, and commercials. While teaching and training dancers all over North America she has won numerous choreography awards. Her dancers have won awards for technique, showmanship, artistry, and some have gone on to have professional dance careers.

Meleka currently choreographs and judges for area highschool dance teams and is a judge for Crowd Pleasers.

Meleka is also a certified Barre Body® instructor and Teacher trainer. She is proud to bring Barre Body® to the North Texas area and have DDD serve as a training facility for individuals interested in certification. Meleka looks forward to Destiny Devoted Dance serving Plano and the surrounding areas with quality dance education.

Leon Simon, Jr.

Business Manager

Leon Simon is the husband of Meleka Simon and the business manager for Destiny Devoted Dance and Project:3D. He graduated from New Orleans University with a BA in Business Administration . He has over 13 years of business management experience and currently works at Bank of America in mortgage servicing. He is happy to serve the clients of Destiny Devoted Dance, the community of Plano, and surrounding areas.

Cathy Jordan

Financial Coordinator

Derrick Redmond

Hip Hop Instructor

Derrick Redmon has been dancing all of his life even though he did not start formal training until the age 9. After 5 years of intense training in all areas of dance as well as acting and gymnastics, he took a break from it all to focus more on school sports especially football... but he could not stay away too long. He found dance again later in college where he was “RAIDER RED” the Texas Tech University Mascot, an instructor for Universal Cheerleader Association camps, as well as the Coach and Choreographer for the award winning Texas Tech Pom Squad. Since graduation from Texas Tech his dance career has developed. His credits include performing with Grammy award winning group Destiny’s Child during the 2004 Dallas Cowboys Visa Thanksgiving Day halftime show, principal dancer on the Tuaca Body Art Ball national tour, and televised halftime performance during the MLS Soccer Championship just to name a few. He was also Assistant Choreographer for the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders 2007 halftime show featuring Grammy winner Kelly Clarkson and a 11-time Monsters of Hip Hop scholarship recipient. Derrick continues to train with top choreographers in L.A., New York, Chicago, Dallas, and across the country and enjoys teaching and sharing his knowledge with all.

Nicole Primerano

Dance Instructor

Is a senior at the University of North Texas where she is studying Early Childhood Education with all level Special Education. Nicole has been dancing since the age of 3 years old and competed in dance for 8 years. She was a 4 year member of the McKinney North High School Drill Team where she was Junior Lieutenant in 2011 and Captain in 2012. In 2012 she served as student dance teacher at McKinney North High School. Nicole was a member of Dallas Dance Company from 2014-2016. She enjoys teaching at Destiny Devoted Dance and is so excited for another year!

Niyi Obioha

Ballet Director

Omoniyi began training at Pofahl Studios in Gainesville, FL studying extensively in ballet, jazz, and hip-hop. In 2002 the school presented her with a scholarship which she received for the following 4 years thereafter. Also in 2002 she was apart of the Corp de Ballet of Dance Alive National Ballet where she performed in works such as Firebird, Carmen and Nutcracker. She’s trained at multiple intensives including Santa Fe Dance Intensive (FL), The Ailey School (NY), Columbia City Jazz (SC), South Carolina Dance Conservatory (SC), Complexions Contemporary Ballet (NY) and Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane (NY). She’s had the opportunity to train with teachers such as Merrill Ashley, Finis Jhung, Desmond Richardson, and Jason Parsons, as well as perform works choreographed and set by Christopher Huggins, Bruce Woods and Milton Myers, just to name a few. She began her professional career in Columbia, SC at the University of SC where she made history by being one of the first dancers outside of the MGDC to perform Martha Graham’s “Sketches from Chronicle” in it’s entirety. A documentary of her work on the project aired May 2008. She’s an alumnus of Florida International University where she received her B.A. in Dance Education. She’s a former company member of Vibrations Dance Company (SC), Dallas Black Dance Theatre (TX) and Larrwell Productions (TX) as a Friends of Tyme dancer performing in different commercial and industrial productions. Omoniyi is an American Ballet Theatre (ABT) Certified Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Preliminary through level three. She has taught ballet, jazz, modern and hip-hop for years at different studios, art academies and churches throughout Miami, FL, Gainesville, FL and Dallas, TX. Omoniyi is very involved in the community as an individual and as a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She is excited to bring her expertise to DDD and work with all of our dancers.

Leslie Hatchard