Lea Waide, General Manager
Lea Waide was born in West Point, Miss., to Jim and Jacque Waide. Her mom owned the Dancers’ Studio, where Lea began dancing at age 3. Her father is renowned civil rights attorney Jim Waide of Tupelo. Her mother, Jacque Hillman, is a professional journalist and art jewelry designer for Reconfigured. Her stepfather Jesse Hillman works in Internet security for the State of Tennessee.

Lea moved to Somerville, Tenn., where she continued her dance and acrobatic training at the Karen Thorpe School of Dance, Memphis Classical Ballet, and the Mid South Academy of Performing Arts. She was a UCA All-Star cheerleader, ran track and played volleyball during her junior high and high school years at Fayette Academy. Graduating as an honor student, she left for the University of Tennessee Knoxville where she pledged Kappa Delta and joined the nationally ranked UT Dance Team.
After spending 3 years at UT, Lea moved to Las Vegas to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. She auditioned with Dick Foster Productions for the show "Imagine," which was featured at the Luxor Hotel and Casino and landed a job as a dancer, acrobat, and performer of Spanish Web, a Cirque Du Soleil style specialty act.

Meanwhile, she graduated from the University of Nevada Las Vegas with a B.S. in Marketing. She began competing in fitness and after winning state titles, she won the Fitness USA, qualifying her for professional status. Along the way, Lea, who is already a licensed dance instructor, attended the USA International Stunt School and received her certification.

Beginning a career in special events was a natural fit given her entertainment and marketing background. While in L.A., she worked on special events at Hollywood celebrity hotspot Lucky Strike, such as the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Celebrity Rock ‘n Bowl and the Marcus Allen Celebrity Invitational. And she most recently worked with TMG Productions on the “Best of Nevada Real Estate Awards,” hosted by actor Mario Lopez.

Now Lea is excited to bring her talents to North Mississippi, the MudCats and the community. She continues to compete as a professional fitness competitor and hopes to share her knowledge of living fit with all those who aspire to a healthier lifestyle.