Happy Spring Rae Studios Family!
Let's give a warm welcome to our new instructors joining us for our 2021 Season 2 roster. We have some new instructors joining us for the first time as well as our veteran instructors returning for another season. As some may know, most of our teachers have been with us for many years. A few of our local teachers have moved to other cities and are continuing to teach with us virtually due to the pandemic. Other instructors are continuing to expand in their art/field of wellness like opening up new brick and mortars, expanding their teaching careers, or venturing into other lifestyles. Either way, we are always so excited to watch our teachers in every venture of their lives.
As we've recently reopened our doors to in-studio classes, we've opened instructor auditions looking for more local teachers available for live classes. Here's our first round of local instructors.
We are so thankful for every instructor who've dedicated their time, energy to share their wellness education and artistry over the past 10 years. Let's continue to show our support to our teachers by giving them some extra attention. Try out a class, share an IG story, bring a friend and be prepared to MOVE YOUR BODY. Dance and Fitness for all.
Welcome 2021 Season 2 teachers ❤️
Get the full schedule and sign up today: RSVP TODAY
Katherine Skinner
Contemporary [Int/Adv]
Wednesdays 7:30pm PT HybridKatherine Skinner is a contemporary dancer, teacher, and choreographer. An SF native, she recently received her BA in dance in New York. She’s worked with the American Dance Festival, Mark Morris Dance Group and for many more companies on both coasts. She is so happy to be back and sharing her love of movement with all of you!
Mariel Aquino
Intermediate Choreography
Wednesdays 7:30pm PT Hybrid (starting 5/19)Mariel is a Chicago-born 23-year-old that has loved dancing and expression her whole life. She got her start experimenting with choreography with friends in high school, then went on to dance competitive hip hop at Cal. Finding great joy in creating and communicating with groups, she went on to choreograph for various competition and exhibition teams in the Berkeley Dance Community. She's been active in the Chicago and Berkeley hip hop dance scenes and trains in LA when able. In terms of choreography, Mariel draws inspiration from commercial and lyrical hip hop, as well as R&B and 90s grooves. Outside of this, she is currently training in ballet to push her artistic discipline, technique, and athleticism. Ultimately, she aims to offer a class that is not only great exercise, but a safe space to practice creative expression, making mistakes, and enjoying the process!
Heather Mullowney
Dancehall Grooves
Thursdays 12:00pm PT LivestreamHeather has been completely in love with movement her whole life. She began swimming at age three and dancing shortly after. During her adolescence and through college, she swam and played Water Polo competitively. After a couple years in college, she began to yearn for a new form of movement. She began to practice yoga and pilates and shortly after completed a 200-hour yoga teacher training at the Mount Madonna Center. Since then, she has continued to devote herself to her practice and has developed her skills as a teacher. She has been teaching yoga and pilates full time in the Bay Area for over two years. Additionally, she recently received a bachelor's degree from the University of San Francisco, majoring in Kinesiology and minoring in dance. As a dancer and performance artist, Heather loves to infuse dance techniques into her pilates classes. She aims to guide her students to form a strong connection with their bodies and inner landscape. Her classes are lighthearted, creative and extremely alignment conscious.
Korea Venters
Intermediate Hip Hop
Thursdays 6:30pm PT HybridOriginally from Oakland, California says her love for dance started in middle school while attending Oakland School for the Arts. Korea Venters graduated from the University of San Francisco, majoring in Performing Arts and Social Justice, with a concentration in Dance. She is a current dance instructor at K Star Productions, Rae Studios, & Shawl-Anderson Dance Center. As a current member of both Rae Agency Dance Company and See Through Soul Dance Company, she hopes to continue using her art as a platform for community healing and outreach. She has performed at many festivals including Art & Soul Festival, Black Choreographers Festival, Broad Statements Dance Festival, SF international Hip Hop Festival, and Versa-Style LA Hip Hop Dance Festival.
Jordan Singletary
Heels (Month of May)
Fridays 6:30pm PT HybridJordan Singletary is a powerhouse of versatility and passion. After high school, she spent 4 years on NBA’s Phoenix Suns pro dance team and WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury Hip Hop Squad. The experience allowed her to travel overseas, choreograph routines, and host live game entertainment. She proceeded to acquire her 200 hr yoga certification and dove deeply into the philosophies and benefits of yoga. She now teaches dance and yoga classes in the Bay Area. She blends her background of dance and yoga into artfully articulated classes. In any style class, students will expect to be challenged in a safe, supportive, and uplifting environment. Guiding others on how to get out of their heads, and into their bodies.
Areli Carreon
Industry Choreography
Fridays 7:50pm PT HybridAreli is a seasoned athletic veteran with a professional dance background. Over the course of her career, she has worked with organizations such as Gymnastics Beat, Groove Move Kids, Teach For America, NFL and NBA Dance Teams, DIAKADI, and StretchLab. Carreon Strong is her personal athletic fitness brand, encouraging dancers to embody a growth mindset. Areli's goal is for dancers to leave classes feeling lighter, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. She believes dance is a theatrical opportunity to healthfully express emotion. Through goal-oriented mind and body conditioning, intentional movement, and purpose-driven power exercises, Areli will lead you OUT of the inaction that breeds doubt and into a peak zone of energetic performance!
Hector Intricate Ascencio
Tutting
Saturdays 12:00pm PT HybridHector "Intricate" Ascencio is from Hayward, CA. He's a Tutting/T.U.R.F. Dancer and has been training in both styles for over 13 years. He's a 2 time World of Dance Champion and Semi-Finalist for Fusion Concept (France). Over the years, he's experienced and worked with many artists such as G-Eazy, Kendrick Lamar, and Troyboi. Overall, his main goal as a dancer is to make dance their full-time career and become a studio owner to give back to dance.
Vanessa Wilkins
Bounce Bach - Cardio Step
Mondays 6:30pm PT HybridAs an industry vet, fitness leader, and mentor, I have found that health and wellness are more than sexy buns and biceps (although these are great bi-products). True health and wellness are reflected when we are living optimally. Strength and endurance are just the beginning. Quality of life is the goal!
I am not your everyday coach. With a clear in your face "tell-it like- it- is" approach, I keep it real.
For those who become part of my Power Posse, you will receive fitness tips and links to classes, events, and workshops to get you stronger, lean, pain free, and healthy.
for those that "get it" and know that sometimes we just need a dose of positivity or silliness to keep us inspired, I have included ways for us to connect. Join me for heartfelt talks and shenanigans on our Podcast, or flip through pages of Erica Magazine to get a dose of inspiration.
Kimaya Rane
Bollywood Fusion Choreo
Mondays 6:30pm PT Hybrid
Beg/Int Hip Hop
Mondays 7:30pm PT HybridYou will always find Kimaya dancing whether in class or at her work. A Seattle native, she grew up dancing all different styles including Bollywood and Kathak. She continued dancing
recreationally as part of her college hip-hop team and began teaching when she moved to SF. Her absolute favorite thing about teaching has been creating Bollywood Fusion choreography
that melts hip-hop movements with Bollywood flair to bring her favorite aspects of the two
together. She likes to make her choreography fun and intricate but also accessible so that
everyone can have fun in class!
Mariah Shipp
Int/Adv Heels
Mondays 7:30pm PT HybridMariah was born in Philadelphia where she found a passion for dance at the age of 3; Moved to Cali at 7 years young and at 17, she took a more serious dance route at San Jose City College and Purdance Studio. She’s been teaching heels for 1.5 years and dancing in them for 2.5 years. After finishing some years of technique/choreography classes & performances, she left college and became a signed dancer with Rae Agency in SF. Her dance background is in Jazz/HipHop. Also has danced as a back up dancer in a few music videos by Artists from and out of the Bay Area. She is mostly and still currently being trained by LA Choreographer BrinnNicole. Her offer to you all in these group privates include focus on Basics, Strength In Heels, Musicality, Lines, and Stamina.
Ariel Krizack
Intermediate Hip Hop
Tuesdays 7:30pm PT HybridAriel is a Bay Area native and has been moving and grooving since a very young age. She was a gymnast until the age of 11 and began dancing consistently a couple of years later. She holds a B.A. in Performing Arts and Social Justice with a Dance concentration from the University of San Francisco and a M.Ed. in Community Arts from Lesley University. She has worked with students ranging from 18 months to 80 years old, and in settings such as public and private schools, women’s centers, and dance and fitness studios.
Ariel works as a personal trainer and is committed to helping others feel strong, powerful, and pain free. She is also a teaching artist and has had the opportunity to teach Hip Hop and Creative Movement dance classes in many Bay Area public schools and pre-schools.
She has trained in styles such as Hip Hop, Modern, Ballet, West African, Salsa, and Contact Improvisation, but her heart is and always will be with Hip Hop dance, the first style she started training in. In Ariel’s classes, you will be challenged to contrast strength with lightness and to explore both intricate and explosive movements that make up her choreography. Let’s get it!
Cyrus Abu-saba
Yin Yoga
Wednesdays 7:30am PTCyrus Abusaba is a multi-faceted artist and yoga teacher based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Introduced to the practice at a young age, his classes draw from a wide range of styles, and with a diverse background in outdoor recreation and combat sports, they are both appealing to a high-level athlete, and accessible to a first-time yogi. Accompanied by intentionally curated playlists featuring original compositions, organic sounds, and live music, as well as a respect for silence, Cyrus’s teaching style and sequencing are both energizing and grounding. All classes are intended to both fire up and restore the body in a space where the student has agency to choose their own practice.
PS. We're open for in-studio classes! Check out our hybrid schedule + join us in person.
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More info: raestudios-sf.com
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