Youth Dance Instructor Charged With Molestation
by Chris Peterson
When I saw the news that a now-former dance instructor had been charged with lewd molestation, it hit hard for me as someone who has trusted an arts program with their child. According to arrest documents, 29-year-old Samuel Nicholas Neas was accused of engaging in a sexual relationship with a minor female student. The investigation began after Theatre Arts Tulsa contacted the victim’s parents about concerns involving Neas and their daughter.
After the parents read text messages between them, which referenced a romantic relationship and past sexual activity, they contacted police. When officers visited Neas’ home on October 24, he admitted to kissing the victim multiple times and was later arrested for lewd or indecent proposals to a child. Police obtained a search warrant for his phone to review additional messages.
Before anything else, I hope the young woman at the center of this case is surrounded by care and support. She did nothing wrong, and she deserves the full weight of compassion, privacy, and healing. I can only hope her community rallies around her.
For those in the dance community, the name Sam Neas wasn’t unknown. He performed in various productions, including the television show Angie Tribeca. His résumé included teaching at world-renowned studios in New York such as the Broadway Dance Center and choreographing for professional companies like Affinity Dance Company. By all accounts, he had built a reputation as a talented, respected educator with a passion for mentoring young dancers.
That background only makes this case more unsettling. When someone with professional standing and influence crosses the line with a student, it challenges the very trust that keeps arts education alive.
In a statement responding to the arrest, Theatre Arts Tulsa wrote, “Our hearts are so heavy over the recent news involving a former instructor. When concerns about this instructor’s behavior were brought to our attention, we took immediate action and contacted the authorities and terminated his employment. All of the allegations of wrongdoing took place outside of the studio. The safety, trust, and well-being of our students and families mean everything to us, and we are fully cooperating with law enforcement in their investigation.”
It’s a careful and empathetic statement, and I believe the company means it. Still, it leaves me wondering about what steps existed before those concerns reached a breaking point. How were those “concerns” first identified? What patterns, if any, were noticed? Were there protocols for monitoring adult-minor communication, especially when instructors were texting students privately? And perhaps the most difficult question: if all of the alleged incidents took place outside of the studio, how did the relationship develop closely enough for that to happen?
Even if no physical misconduct occurred on studio grounds, the access clearly originated there. That access is what matters. It’s what makes this a story not just about one person, but about how easily mentorship can blur into something dangerous when boundaries aren’t firmly drawn and enforced.
Theatre and dance programs often describe themselves as families. That language is loving and well-intentioned, but it can also create an environment where boundaries feel looser than they should. Adults in these spaces hold immense influence, and that influence can easily become inappropriate if left unmonitored. A private rehearsal. A text exchange outside class hours. A drive home. Each may seem harmless in isolation, but together they create conditions that allow boundary violations to occur quietly, gradually, and undetected.
Samuel Nicholas Neas
It’s not enough for an organization to say, “It didn’t happen here.” The building isn’t the issue. The structure around how adults interact with minors is. The relationship between instructor and student is formed under the organization’s name. So even when misconduct happens elsewhere, it still points back to how access and trust were managed.
This should be a moment of deep reflection, not just for Theatre Arts Tulsa, but for every arts organization that works with minors. What policies govern adult-student contact outside class? Are there written rules about texting, social media communication, or one-on-one meetings? Are parents routinely informed and copied on communications? Are instructors trained not only in technique, but in recognizing and maintaining professional boundaries?
Because this is bigger than one case or one company. The arts world depends on closeness—on mentorship, on shared vulnerability, on creative trust. But trust cannot exist without structure. It must be earned, guarded, and reaffirmed through policy, not assumption.
When young performers step into a studio, they deserve to know they’re in a space designed for their growth, not one where access can be abused. Theatre and dance change lives every day. It’s time we make sure that change always comes from inspiration, never harm.