PWDA Welcomes Coach Liv as Competition Director for Its 25th Season

Coach Liv brings extensive experience as both an educator and performer. Originally from Woodbridge, Virginia, she began her dance training at Dance Etc. Music and Arts under Ann Boyle, Analeigh Stamps, Eyan Williams, and Danielle Dufore. Her performance experience includes international appearances in Shanghai, China.

Her choreography has earned recognition through the National Society of Arts and Letters in collaboration with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Coach Liv holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a minor in performing arts from Radford University, as well as a master’s degree in human resources. She is also certified in Progressive Ballet Technique.

Her academic background, leadership experience, and understanding of human development bring an added dimension to her work with young dancers. She understands that coaching a competitive team requires more than creating choreography or preparing students for adjudication. It requires the ability to communicate clearly, develop trust, establish expectations, and help dancers work through challenges with maturity.

“Coach Liv understands that the work we do goes far beyond what happens during a performance,” Kim said. “She is going to strengthen our dancers technically, but she is also going to teach them how to be dependable teammates, how to receive correction, how to persevere when something is difficult, and how to carry themselves with integrity. Those lessons matter in the studio, but they also matter at school, at home, and throughout their lives.”

Coach Liv’s commitment to her own continued education also reflects one of PWDA’s core expectations for its faculty: great teachers never stop learning.

She continues to develop as an artist and educator through biweekly classes with Alvin Ailey and ongoing training through CLI Studios. That dedication allows her to bring current knowledge, new ideas, and an actively evolving perspective into the classroom.

“Experience is important, but so is the willingness to keep growing,” Kim said. “Coach Liv continues to train because she believes her dancers deserve a coach who is still learning, asking questions, and working to become better. That humility and commitment stood out to me.”

As Competition Director, Coach Liv will oversee the development of PWDA’s competitive company dancers, with an emphasis on technical excellence, artistry, accountability, resilience, teamwork, and age-appropriate training.

She will also help shape the long-term direction of the company program as Prince William Dance Academy enters its next chapter.

“Our 25th season is a time to honor everything that has brought us here, but it is also a time to look carefully at what we are building next,” Kim said. “We want to continue giving Nokesville and the surrounding communities a company program that is strong, thoughtful, and worthy of the trust families place in us.”

While competition offers dancers valuable opportunities to perform, receive feedback, and work toward meaningful goals, PWDA does not define success by trophies alone.

The studio’s competitive program is designed to prepare dancers for the stage while also developing the character, discipline, and relationships that will serve them long after their competitive years have ended.

“Of course we want our dancers to perform well,” Kim said. “But the real measure of our work is who they become through the process. Do they show up prepared? Do they support one another? Can they handle disappointment with grace? Can they work hard without losing their kindness? Those are the qualities that make a strong dancer, a strong teammate, and a strong person.”

Coach Liv shares that vision.

As she steps into the Competition Director role, she will work closely with PWDA dancers, teachers, and families to build a company culture in which students are challenged to reach their potential while remaining grounded in teamwork, personal responsibility, and respect for others.

Her arrival also reinforces PWDA’s commitment to investing in the local families who have sustained the studio for nearly 25 years.

“Nokesville has given PWDA a home,” Kim said. “Families from this community and from Bristow, Gainesville, Manassas, Haymarket, and across Prince William County have trusted us with something very important: their children. The best way we can honor that trust is by continuing to invest in exceptional teachers, meaningful opportunities, and a studio culture where every dancer knows they matter.”

As Prince William Dance Academy prepares to celebrate its 25th season, the studio remains committed to the same purpose that has guided it since 2002: providing professional dance education in a place where children are known, families are welcomed, and every dancer has a home.

“We are proud of the history we have built here,” Kim said. “And with Coach Liv joining our team, I am equally excited about where we are going.”

About Coach Liv

Olivia “Coach Liv” Lopez Saxton is the Competition Director at Prince William Dance Academy. She brings more than 15 years of experience in dance education, performance, choreography, and competitive training.

Originally from Woodbridge, Virginia, she trained at Dance Etc. Music and Arts and has performed internationally in Shanghai, China. Her choreography has received recognition through the National Society of Arts and Letters in collaboration with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Coach Liv holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in performing arts from Radford University, a master’s degree in human resources, and a Progressive Ballet Technique certification. She continues her professional training through biweekly classes with Alvin Ailey and continuing education through CLI Studios.