Karley Childress (professional name KayceeCole) is originally from Memphis, TN where she began her dance journey at the age of three. During her dance training she has studied ballet, tap, jazz, acrobatics and hip hop. After graduating High School, Karley decided to continue her dance training at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts where she earned her BFA in contemporary dance in 2024. Through her studies at UNCSA she was exposed to several techniques including: Counter-Technique,

Horton, Cunningham, Limón, and West- African. Here she has performed works by Rena Butler, Jim Vincent, Ashley Lindsey, Dwana Smallwood, Gina Patterson, Amyia Burrell, Anthony Lee Bryant, Andrew Harper, and José Limón. Karley has attended summer programs such as Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet and Dance Theatre of Harlem. Since graduating, Karley has been selected as 1 of the 8 choreographers for the 2024 Ann & Weston Hicks Choreography Fellowship Program at Jacob’s Pillow and was also 1 of the 5 choreographers chosen for the Joffrey Ballet's Winning Works. This summer, Karley will be joining Ballet Memphis as a professional mentor and choreographer for the Beyond Technique Advanced Intensive.