Meet the Team

Natalie Hall

PGCE BA (Hons) RAD RTS

Founder and Director

Natalie is a RAD Registered Teacher entitling her to deliver their world renowned syllabi and enter children for their examinations.

Natalie enjoyed working as a dancer, vocalist and actress for several years before qualifying as a teacher. She used her job as a performer as an exciting way to travel the world and experience a variety of cultures and languages.

Natalie has a (BA Hons) in Performing Arts and gained a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) for Dance Teaching at The Royal Academy of Dance, as well as attaining Qualified Teacher Status. This enables her to teach in a variety of educational institutions delivering GCSE and A-Level Dance and BTEC First/National Diploma in Dance and Performing Arts.

After several years leading a dance department in secondary education, Natalie decided to use her experience to set up Fireflies Dance, which has been running successfully since 2010.

Natalie is a serial fundraiser for children and young people’s charities through events such as The Virgin London Marathon, which she ran in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2021 for London Youth, the NSPCC, Clic Sargent and The Royal Marsden Charity. She also volunteers for several charities and founded Fireflies Fitness CIC which supports the Cancer Community.

Natalie is mummy to two beautiful, sparky Fireflies, Evie and Gracie, who forever inspire her creative ideas!

Poppy Barnes

MFA BA (Hons) RAD RTS LRAD

Ballet Teacher and Co-Director for Fireflies CIC

Originally from Northumberland, Poppy started her Classical Ballet training at a young age, studying all RAD graded and vocational exams up to Advanced 2 level. She continued her training at the Royal Academy of Dance on the Ballet Education Degree programme in London. This gave her the opportunity to train in a wide variety of teaching settings, including with multiple private ballet schools, and professional community platforms. Alongside this, Poppy achieved the Licentiate of the RAD qualification with distinction, providing her with detailed knowledge of the RAD syllabi and ballet teaching. She has continued her studies, gaining a MFA in Dance and Embodied Practice at the University of Roehampton in 2023.

Poppy works as a freelance Dance Artist and Teacher in London, joining Fireflies Dance in 2019. She has had the pleasure of working with organisations including One Dance UK, New Adventures (Overture Cohort), Amici Dance Theatre Company and Create (arts charity).

Pearl Okada

BA (Hons)

Ballet Teacher

Pearl trained at Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance in London, where she graduated with a BA (Hons) in Ballet and Contemporary Dance in 2021. During her studies she had the opportunity to work with Connor Scott and Monique Jonas for Rambert School’s Next Generation performance which was performed at The Linbury Theatre, Royal Opera House. Pearl also worked with the BBC and Rambert on the TV Advertisement for The Tokyo Olympic Games 2020. Since graduating, she has had the opportunity to work with Jamie Carter and Jacqueline Back for Capital Ballet. Pearl made her professional debut in The Snowman in 2021 and she has been working with them for the last two years.

Pearl is passionate about teaching children and she has experience teaching classic ballet, contemporary dance, repertoire and improvisation. Pearl started teaching at Fireflies Dance in 2022 and is hugely grateful to be a part of the team!

Missy Fowler

Street Dance and Nursery Ballet Teacher

Missy started dancing at the age of nine, studying ballet, jazz, commercial, hip hop, musical theatre, tap and modern. She found a love for contemporary dance in particular.

Missy is currently training at London Studio Centre, with a focus on contemporary dance. She has previously trained at ArtsEd in London, and with Rambert on their prevocational programme.

Missy has worked with Fireflies as an assistant for nursery ballet since 2019, and has been a regular cover teacher for street dance for the past two years. Missy loves fireflies and is so happy to be apart of the teaching team!

Crystal Chau

BA (Hons)

Ballet Teacher

Crystal is a passionate dancer, having discovered her love for the art at the tender age of seven. Her journey has taken her from Hong Kong to the UK, where she pursued her dream of becoming a dancer. She honed her skills at the Alkins School of Dance in the Midlands, studying ballet, contemporary, tap, jazz, and musical theatre.

Crystal's dedication to the art led her to specialise in ballet education. She completed her BA (Hons) degree at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dance, where she developed a strong belief in the importance of safe practice and up-to-date knowledge.

As a dance teacher, Crystal strives to be an inspiration to her students, the next generation of dancers. With her infectious positivity, she creates a welcoming and inclusive environment in her classroom. She understands that everyone dances for a unique reason, and she ensures that all students are respected and celebrated.

Mary Anthony

School Assistant

Mary met Natalie through Zumba classes and she has been assisting Natalie with the day-to-day running of our classes ever since! From the beginning in 2010, Mary has been a key part of the Fireflies team. You will always see her friendly face on Saturdays at the school.

Josephine Smith

Co-Director of Fireflies CIC

Josephine spent the early years of her career in the entertainments business as a Dancer, Singer and Actress. She worked in Musical Theatre, TV and Film touring the UK, Europe and America.

As well as a passion to perform, Josephine has a huge passion to help people.

She has over twenty years experience working as a mentor for young people within a variety of establishments including traditional school and performing arts settings.

She has also worked closely with the parents and carers of these young people and delivered workshops on how to develop a healthy mindset and reach one’s full potential.

Josephine was the Creative Arts Director of the Caius House Charity in Battersea, London for two years helping young people develop their talents while providing a safe space for them to escape the challenges of their day to day life.

Josephine has been affiliated the YMCA since 2018 as a Family Support Mentor, Program Developer and Workshop Leader.

She has training in Trauma Informed Care, Suicide Prevention, Mindfulness, Meditation, Stress Based Reduction, Counselling Skills, and Anger Management.

Josephine now offers a ‘Bespoke Mentoring’ service through her own company PLATTFORM. It incorporates both traditional and holistic methods of support, as well as tapping into her creative arts background, depending on needs of the individual or group requiring support.