Tributes have been paid to a much loved Swansea dance teacher who has passed away. Danielle Dee Stephens, known to many as Dani, owned the Swansea-based Dani Dee School of Dance, which has been running for over 20 years. She died on Friday September 30 at the age of 47, after teaching thousands of pupils throughout her career as a dance teacher.
Born and raised in Swansea, Dani's career as a teacher saw her set up her own dance school, teaching hundreds of pupils at a time, and taking home trophies from dance competitions across the country. Dani started dancing at the age of four at the city's Grand Theatre, where she trained in ballet, tap, modern and jazz dance. Performing in numerous pantomimes and shows at the theatre as a child and teenager, she then joined the West Glamorgan Dance Company before gaining a BTEC in Performing Arts at Gorseinon College and her BA degree at the London Contemporary Dance School.
During her career as a dancer, Dani lived in London for five years and made appearances both on stage and on television, as well as being a member of the Wildcats cheerleaders for the London Towers Basketball Team. She also went on to choreograph and perform at a top hotel in Hong Kong.
