meet our staff

Studio Owner

Dance Team Director

Jazz & Contemporary Program Director
Jazz 3 & 5, Contemporary 1, Ballet/Tap, Pre-Ballet, Hip Hop/Acro 5-6, Hip Hop 6-8, 

Musical Theater 1 & 2

Jenna (she/her) has been dancing for 35 years and teaching for 25. She began dancing and competing in Redlands, California and moved to Seattle in 1998. She completed her BFA in Dance at Cornish College of the Arts in 2007. She's danced with many award winning teachers and choreographers in the Los Angeles and Seattle areas, and has been teaching and choreographing in Seattle for more than 20 years. She started teaching at RDC in 2006 and took over as owner in 2012.

Assistant Studio Director

 Tap & Ballet Program Director
Pre-Ballet, Ballet/Tap combo, Hip Hop/Acro, Ballet 1 & 2, Tap 1-4, Jazz 1, Contemporary 4 

Cristen Klaja (she/her) grew up dancing at her local studio in Vancouver, Washington, where as a teen she trained and began working as an instructor.  She moved to Seattle to attend the University of Washington and continued teaching at studios in the area. She graduated from UW with a BA in Dance in 2002.  In the years since, her life has been filled with dance, both in the classroom and the stage, family, and adventure. Cristen has been teaching at RDC since 2013.

Teacher

Hip Hop Program Director
Hip Hop 1, 2, 3 & 4, Hip Hop Team Director

California native Markeith Wiley (they/them) is a multi-dimensional art maker, who creates out of necessity. Their vast movement vocabulary spans a lifetime of influences from break dancing to musical theater & all in between. Markeith is also a curator, sound designer, DJ Dark_Wiley & a community activist. Wiley has been an arts educator in Seattle since 2009 teaching at Rainier Dance Center  as the director of hip hop/street styles dance, choreographing with Seattle Children’s Theatre & teaching at Markeith's alma mater Cornish College of the Arts.

Markeith has performed, collaborated or created work with Kitten N Lou, Dani Tirrell, On the Boards, the CD Forum, Velocity, Gibney Dance (NYC), Cal State San Luis Obispo & many others.

Teacher

 Pre-Ballet, Ballet/Tap combo, Contemporary 2, 2/3 and 3, Jazz 4 and Adult Tap 1 

Sarah Alaways (she/her), MA Dance Performance, studied at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London and has been teaching dance for 17 years. She has performed with Etude Ensemble (Irvine), Ad Deum II (Houston), Revolve (Houston), LEON Contemporary (Houston), and Transitions (UK) Dance Companies. Most recently, she performed in Velocity’s Bridge Project, Full Tilt 2019 (Phi Voba) and The Three Yells’ “A Crack in the Noise.” Her work has been performed in Project Dance (New York), ISAS Arts Festival (Houston), Tacchi-Morris Arts Centre (UK), Full Tilt 2019 (Seattle), Converge at the UHeights (Seattle), and 12 Minutes Max @ BASE (Seattle). Sarah also served as a board member for Dance Educators Association of Washington. She is thankful to be a part of the RDC family!

 Teacher

Ballet/Contemporary 3 & 4

Robbi Moore (they/them), from Hamden, CT, began dancing at New England Ballet and continued at Dee Dee’s Dance Center and New Haven Ballet. They are an alumnus of Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts, the Ailey Summer Intensive, Cunningham Trust Workshop, Jacob’s Pillow’s Commercial Dance Program, and the Complexions Intensive. They went to Mexico with JUNTOS Collective, and taught with Notes in Motion, Arthur Aviles Typical Theatre, and JD/dansfolk. Robbi graduated magna cum laude from the Ailey/Fordham BFA Program and has danced with Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre, The Steps Repertory Ensemble, AATMA Performing Arts, Whidbey Island Dance Theatre, Tacoma Urban Performing Arts Center, Karin Stevens Dance, the Guild Dance Company, Kinesis Project Dance Theater, The Gray, PRICEArts, Coriolis Dance, Khambatta Dance Company, and Spectrum Dance Theater.    

Teacher

Pre-Ballet, Ballet/Tap

Morgan (she/her) grew up dancing at her local studio in Bend, OR. She continued her dance practice at the University of Idaho where she earned a B.S. in Dance and a B.S. in Exercise Science and Health with a minor in Psychology. Morgan also began her teaching practice while at the University of Idaho. After graduating, Morgan moved to Seattle 2015. Since then, she has taught for private studios, preschool enrichment programs, Seattle Parks and Rec, and other community engagement projects. Morgan is thrilled to be a part of the RDC team! 

Teacher

Acro 1 & 2, Jazz 2

Jilyan (she/her) was born and raised in Massachusetts before moving to West to obtain her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Education from Arizona State University. She has had the opportunity to teach in studios, middle schools, high schools, and day & overnight camps in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Arizona and Washington. Predominately trained in modern and jazz, Jilyan has also studied ballet, tap, and acrobatics. She holds two levels of certification through Acrobatic Arts, a certification through International Dance Teaching Standards, and has completed the Summer Dance Institute for Teachers at the Creative Dance Center, expanding her knowledge of Brain Compatible Dance Education.

Jilyan takes a personal approach to teaching dance. Her focus is on combining proper technique while exploring self-expression, confidence, and personal growth. She is dedicated to educating dancers about all areas of dance including its rich history, kinesiological principles and choreographic methods. More than anything, Jilyan is focused on having fun in the classroom and creating a love for dance and movement.  

Teacher

Ballet 1-4, Pre-Pointe, Pointe

 Sara Caplan (she/her) is a contemporary dancer, choreographer, and teaching artist originally from Dedham, MA. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre: Dance Performance and her Bachelor of Science in Biology from The Pennsylvania State University and her Master of Fine Arts in Dance from SUNY, The College at Brockport. She has performed in works choreographed by Kendra Portier, Laura Petersen, Maura Keefe, and Beth Gill. Sara has taught at The College at Brockport, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, and The Pennsylvania State University teaching modern technique, ballet technique, conditioning and repertory. She has also taught ballet at Kennedy Dance Centre in Bellefonte, PA and Studio G Dance in Pittsburgh, PA to students of all levels aged 12-35. Her most recent teaching position was at Slippery Rock University teaching contemporary modern technique, improvisation, wellness, kinesiology and dance composition for dance majors and minors, as well as Dance: Art and Culture to non-dance majors. She is excited to be joining the RDC community! 

Teacher

Pre-Ballet, Ballet/Tap  5-6

Marika Theofelis (she/her) is a dance educator who specializes in fostering brain development through music and movement. She holds a BA in Dance and Business from the University of Oregon and is certified in Anne Green Gilbert's Brain-Compatible Dance Teaching Method. Marika is in her seventh year implementing this method in the Seattle area with a focus on increasing dance accessibility and exposure in more communities. She has taught in the studio setting, after-school, early-learning and enrichment programs, as well as SPS pre-K classrooms and temporary housing/shelter settings. Marika has a strong passion for exposing more young people, and the adults that care for them, to the social/emotional, physical, and mental benefits of a brain-compatible dance curriculum that provides a safe and fun space to explore through their relationship with themselves and the rest of the world through music and movement.

Office Manager

 TJ (she/her) was born and raised in Seattle and grew up in the Central District. She played basketball at North Seattle Community College and has been reffing basketball for Seattle Parks and Rec for 20 years. TJ is also a published data management researcher. In addition to working, she is an abstract artist and creates contemporary paintings and drawings. TJ loves being around kids of all ages and it is her favorite thing about working at RDC! This is her first year as RDC's office manager.

 Desk Staff

My name is Andrea Barron, to most known as Ongie (she/her). I am known to be a mother to many, yet have 4 children that I am the natural mother to. I grew up in the Central District and as a teenager, managed and choreographed routines for a Lip Sync group called The Spicy Wings. Due to my fondness of music and dance, I was pleased when my daughter Makayla joined the RDC group about 9 years ago and look forward to many more years.