Dance Fiesta Information

New Mexico Dance Fiesta began in 1989 thanks to Mike Haley, Patti Miller, and Steve Stevens. That means this year we celebrate 31 YEARS!! We are honored that they still attend Dance Fiesta every year! We now also offer Ballroom competition on Friday, and Swing competitions throughout the weekend. We want everyone to have a great time dancing, competing, and spending time with their friends and family! Noelle Linch and Chad Graber were approved by the UCWDC as new event directors for New Mexico Dance Fiesta in January 2019. Chad Graber started dancing his second semester at the University of Texas, as evidenced by his GPA trend. After finishing his studies in Molecular Biology with a focus in Genetics, he moved to the DFW area and began teaching at the Fred Astaire Franchised Studio in Fort Worth in the early 90s. A friend, Gail Kemery, got him to volunteer at the Dallas Dance Festival and he found his home. He has been involved in the Country Western dance community ever since; teaching, coaching, judging and helping wherever and whenever possible. To date, he holds 3 UCWDC World Championships as well as numerous National and Regional titles. He currently resides in Dallas, Texas where he continues to teach and focus on bringing the joy and home that he has found in Country dancing to all he works with. Noelle Linch found dancing in the early 90s, at a much-loved place in Little Rock, Arkansas BJs Star-Studded Honky Tonk. She learned her first steps like many do, on the social dance floor taking free lessons. Noelle quickly joined the dance club and started attending dance competitions to cheer on her friends. Family and career came before her love of dance, and she was never able to pursue competitive dancing; however, she began volunteering at competitions in the late 90s by learning how to work in the scoring systems and other various behind-the-scenes aspects of any dance event. Learning these skills allowed her to travel around the country and make even MORE dance friends (family)! You may recognize her ...