Happy Feet Co-Director

Years at Happy Feet: 26

Favorite Tap Dancers: Gene Kelly and Eleanor Powell

Caitlin is the co- director of Happy Feet Dance School in Mill Valley, Ca. She has worked alongside her mother, Cece Bechelli, director of Happy Feet for six years. However, Caitlin grew up dancing at Happy Feet from the time she was two until she graduated from high school.

Caitlin graduated from UCLA in 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in World Arts and Cultures/ Dance. During her time in the UCLA dance department, Caitlin was selected as a student choreographer and presented several original pieces of work for UCLA dance productions. Additionally Caitlin choreographed an original tap piece for her Senior Honor’s Project which highlighted her collaboration with live musicians, fellow tap dancers and a unique narrative inspired by Gene Kelly’s newspaper dance in Summer Stock. While living in Los Angeles Caitlin studied with Lynn Dally, founder of the Jazz Tap Ensemble, as well as with other incredible tap dancers such as Steve Zee, Sarah Reich, and Chloe Arnold. She was a member of Sarah Reich’s tap company, Tap Con Sabor, and performed with the company in the greater Los Angeles area.

In addition to her administrative position at Happy Feet, Caitlin is a valued and beloved member of the Happy Feet teaching staff where she imparts her own love of and passion for dance to all of her students. Caitlin teaches tap, jazz, and ballet to students of all ages and ability levels and she currently teaches one of the most advanced teen tap classes at Happy Feet. Working in the community of Mill Valley, Caitlin has choreographed three musicals for the 142 Throckmorton Theater’s youth program, Throckmorton Youth Performers. Caitlin also performs professionally as a tap dancer throughout the Bay Area. Recent performances have included her role as a featured soloist for a Friday night jazz concert at the De Young Museum in San Francisco, a collaboration/concert with the College of Marin Jazz Band and her most recent gig was a performance with New York based tapper, Andrew Nemr and his company members, at a TED Talk event in Carmel, Ca. Caitlin is the founding director of a professional tap ensemble entitled Take Five.