Laura Wade has been Rehearsal Director and/or Company Ballet Teacher for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Visceral Dance Chicago, Giordano Dance Chicago, River North Dance Chicago, Chicago Repertory Ballet, and Inaside Chicago Dance. All of which took her on tours of the US, Germany, Austria, Russia, Scotland, and England. She is currently on faculty at Visceral Dance Center.  She has taught at the Lou Conte Dance Studio, Ruth Page Center, Northwestern University, Roosevelt University, Barat College, Stephens College (MO), University of Wisconsin-Madison, Essex Dance Theatre (England), MoMing Dance and Arts Center and many others.

As a performer, she long danced the Coffee duet and Cantiniere Doll in Ruth Page’s The Nutcracker, at Arie Crown Theatre, under the direction of Larry Long; and performed both ballet and modern works with David Dorfman, Scott Putman, The Moose Project, Ballet Espanol of Louisville, Robin Lakes/Rough Dance, Ballet Chicago, and Ballet Theatre of Chicago. 

Ms Wade was the Artistic Director of AKASHA Dance Company for 9 years. The company commissioned original works from leading artists- Claire Bataille (Hubbard Street), Martin Kravitz (Batsheva), Austin Hartel (Pilobolus), Nora Reynolds (Lubovitch), Ginger Farley (Hubbard Street), Poonie Dodson and many others. Early innovators in dance outreach, the company performed and taught for over 100,000 students throughout the Midwest. 

Growing up in Toledo, OH, she began her training with Velta Cernonok. As a member of the Toledo Ballet, under the direction of Marie Vogt, she danced many featured roles in ballets including Les Patineurs, Old King Cole, and The Nutcracker. 

Her training continued at Indiana University, where she received a Bachelor’s degree in Dance Education and performed works by Nicolas Beriosov, Marina Svetlova, Colin Russell, and Anna Paskevska. Other important influences have been Warren Conover, Nana Shineflug, Dan Wagoner, Maya Plisetskaya, Patricia Neary, and Bella Lewitzky.