Teri has been a director and teacher of HeartBeat Dance Academy since 2002.  Prior to this, Teri taught at various local dance studios, including Shely Pack Dancers and Millbrae Dance Academy.  She has been active in the community, choreographing for many schools and summer programs.  Teri began her training in the bay area at the age of 9, studying under Benny Smith and many local dance studios and teachers.  Teri is a member of and certified dance instructor through Dance Masters Association.  Teaching and coaching dancers of all ages is her passion.  Teri is proud to watch the growth and development of her dancers and studio.

Mollie has been performing and competing many different genres of dance in the Bay Area for over 15 years. She received great training from many instructors in the Peninsula and was given the opportunity to perform in many musicals, festivals, and professional sports games. Mollie began choreographing at the age of 16 for her high school dance team as well as teaching the first Hip Hop classes here at HeartBeat Dance Academy. She attended Sonoma State University to pursue a Business Degree and participated in a nationally ranked collegiate team, which gave her the opportunity to perform and compete around the nation. During this time, she continued to choreograph competition routines at HeartBeat and also founded one of the first high school dance teams in Sonoma County. After receiving her degree, Mollie now works at HeartBeat Dance Academy full-time, working as the Competition Co-Director, and still pursuing her passion of choreography through competition and classes.

Allison’s love for dance began when she was 6 years old, after taking her very first jazz class at HeartBeat with Director Teri Nash. In third grade, she started on HeartBeat’s first competition team and competed in several different styles up until her high school graduation. During her many years at HeartBeat she trained in lyrical, jazz, ballet, and tap and developed a passion for lyrical and contemporary.   

Her love for dancing quickly turned into a love for teaching dance as she began choreographing competition routines for HeartBeat during her four years at college. She has since graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and Sociology. She also took many ballet, modern, and jazz classes as well as theatre and lighting production through the School of Music and Dance at UO. 

Allison will be teaching conditioning and a few different levels of lyrical, as well as continuing to choreograph for the competition team. She is very excited to be teaching and is looking forward to watching dancers’ abilities grow and their passions flourish. HeartBeat has been her home since 2004 and she wants to continue to foster a positive and rewarding dance environment that she was lucky enough to receive.

Megan Lysgaard began to dance at the age of three at Menlo Park Academy of Dance where she trained under Director Sarah-Jane Measor in the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) technique. While studying at MPAOD, Ms. Lysgaard also had the privilege of studying with Leyla Boissonnade, Nona Ybarra, & Anthony LoCascio. Ms. Lysgaard participated on the competition team & won national competitions all over the country & was featured on numerous occasions on national television for winning “Best Overall” in her category at the International Dance Challenge (IDC). Ms. Lysgaard continued her dance career at San José State University where she obtained a degree in the Bachelor of Arts from the School of Music and Dance, in which her focus was Jazz & Modern. Ms. Lysgaard has performed in many fall & spring concerts, in addition to being involved with the advanced performing company, University Dance Theater, under the direction of Gary Masters. Since completing her studies, Ms. Lysgaard has choreographed pieces in collaboration with many artists, such as Jay Ruland, Sarah Lysgaard, and John Robert Peck. In addition to collaborations, Ms. Lysgaard has expanded her repertoire by attending historical dance workshops and progressing ballet techniques. Currently, Ms. Lysgaard is the Ballet Director at HeartBeat Dance Academy under Director Teri Nash. Her goal is to continue to create and collaborate with all styles of artists to help build a better world.

Dara Takemori, a Bay Area native, has been teaching dance for 13 years and competitive tap for 10 years. Her competitive solos, duets/trios, and groups have won top awards at the regional and national levels; her success includes a Petite Miss Dance of America finalist in 2013. While tap dance is her passion, Dara is also trained in ballet, jazz, lyrical, pointe, and hip hop. Most of her dance training took place at Schumacher’s School of Dance in South San Francisco under the direction of Dolly Schumacher James, Julie Wroten, Wendy James, and Maribel Lavin. Dara has also continued to train with talented Bay Area choreographers such as Ayako Takahashi, Berle Davis, and Bob Macke. The highlight of Dara’s professional career was performing as a backup dancer to Jackie Chan and Superstars in Concert held at the Grand Garden Arena at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. She was also invited to join Cirque Du Soleil at the age of 15. Dara is a graduate of San Jose State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Advertising and a minor in Psychology. Dara is very excited to join the talented teachers at Heartbeat Dance Academy!

Aaron has been dancing since the age of 10 years old. He explored the styles of tutting, c-walking, and b-boying. At the age of 13, he was inspired by Keone Madrid and his style of choreography and shifted his focus from freestyling to choreographing. In his high school years, he led afterschool dance practices for upcoming rally events. In his years at Skyline College, he trained in the styles of ballet, jazz, lyrical, modern, and contemporary whilst keeping up with his own hip hop training. He has trained with 3 different dance teams: the Skyline College Hip Hop Dance Team, Folau House (formerly known as The Office), and Samahang Modern (a UCLA dance team). He still trains his movement and knowledge in the various styles of hip hop and hopes to spread his knowledge with his community.

Sierra Don is a choreographer, dancer, and educator established in San Francisco and emerging in Los Angeles. Sierra’s choreography infuses Acrobatics, Contemporary, and Modern while her teaching practices focus on athletic conditioning, collaborative creation, grounding work, and artist agency. Her training began as a gymnast shifting into musical theatre then developing in dance with a Modern floorwork focus. Recipient of the Teaching Assistant Award, She earned her MFA in Choreography and Teaching Pedagogy at Mills College in Oakland, CA, previously earning her Bachelor’s in Theatre Arts - Dance with a minor in Child Development at California State University, Fresno. While a company member of CSUF’s Contemporary Dance Ensemble, Sierra performed under Michael Nickerson-Rossi, Seda Aybay, and Rogelio Lopez, among others. Sierra’s choreography was chosen to represent Mills College and as an adjudicator with CSU, Fresno at the American College Dance Festival. While at Mills, Sierra performed works by internationally renowned choreographers Jose Limon, Kara Davis, and many more. After earning her degree she went on to obtain a professional training certificate as an apprentice in the Limon Dance Co. ProLaunch program. Sierra has trained with Robert Moses’ Kin, James Wilton, Trisha Brown Co., CONTRA TIEMPO, and more. Sierra gained 3+ years of training in Afro Latin technique, Orisha Dances/Maracatu, Salsa, Samba, CoCo, and Forro during her time with Movement Exchange in Rio De Janeiro and the Futuro program with CONTRA TIEMPO. After graduating she became a professor of Jazz and Contemporary dance at the Hussian College of Commercial Arts, Site Director at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA), and Lead Contemporary Floorwork Instructor for Principal Creative and Performing Arts. 

JanJan (any pronouns) is a movement artist, born and raised in the Bay Area. They’ve been training in various styles, including ballet, jazz, hip hop, contemporary, lyrical, and more for over 10 years. Their love of teaching started when they used to do club swimming and would teach the younger students as a side job. Their number one priority will always be creating a safe and fun space, allowing dancers to not be afraid of trying new things, and ensuring that dancers have support to be/find themselves in the studio.

JanJan started their dance journey at the age of 6. They’ve taught and trained all over the Bay Area and have also been a part of many professional opportunities like music videos, modeling, performing, and much more. Along with dancing, you might also know JanJan from their online content on several social media platforms and their writing as an author. They can’t wait to see all of you grow!

Jillian Couch has had a passion for dance since she started ballet at 3 years old. She was trained in classical ballet for 14 years, as well as jazz, lyrical, hip hop, contemporary, and west african dance. Jillian is a student of Michael Lowe, Sarah Measor, Pope-Flynn, Lauren Mindel, and Deborah Stevens-Sterling. She started performing with Dancers Repertory Theater when she was 9 and continued to perform with her high school dance team as a captain and choreographer till she graduated on to Saint Mary's College Dance Company. Jillian is pursuing her love of
dance and medicine through her education in hopes of becoming a Somatic Dance Therapist.

Bio Coming Soon!

Camilla was born and raised in Sweden, where she started to dance and tumble at age 5. She was a competitive gymnast for 6 years in rhythmic gymnastics. At a young age, she started a junior cheerleader squad for C4 Lions in her home town Kristianstad, in 1993 they won Nationals in Stockholm. During her high school years, she began teaching gymnastics and studying under Tex Holmgren (a local legend in gymnastics). Camilla fell in love with performing arts early and has taken part in dance productions, shows, and plays throughout her school years. Camilla graduated from Malmo University in Sweden with a Bachelor’s degree in social and work science, oriented towards human resources, organization, and learning development. She and her husband moved to the USA, Belmont in 2011, where they live with their 2 daughters. She loves to be part of the HBDA family where she teaches in a field that she is passionate about.

Alex began her dance training at the age of 8 in Modesto, CA and has been persistently studying all forms of dance since. In 2007, she became captain of STRUT Dance Team, a nationally ranked championship team. She and her team Instructor - traveled all over California and Las Vegas earning 1st place at dance nationals for four consecutive years. In 2011, STRUT qualified for USASF Dance Worlds and took 4th place representing the USA in Orlando, FL. Alexandria earned a B.S. Health Science from DePaul University Chicago, and was an active member of the DePaul University Dance Team for 2 years. While in Chicago, Alexandria choreographed performances featured at a Chicago Bulls Game as well as Madison Square Garden in New York. Alexandria currently works in pediatric research at Stanford University, and enjoys writing and dancing in her free time.

Clarissa K. Ko is a spirited dance educator and choreographer who encourages supportive and reflective dance spaces for all ages. She grew up training in RAD and CSTD ballet syllabus and modern/contemporary technique. She has had the honor of being mentored in somatic principles as a young dancer by Ms. Juna Koo and later as a teacher and professional dancer by, master teacher, Ms. Augusta Moore. Clarissa received her BA in Performing Arts and Social Justice from the University of San Francisco and her MSEd in Learning Design and Technology from Purdue University and is a certified Progressing Ballet Technique teacher. In addition to teaching somatic-based ballet and contemporary technique at dance studios she has also worked on curriculum integration in K-8 schools. In recent years she has danced with Lizz Roman and Dancers, Pete Litwinowicz, and 13th Floor Dance Theater in dance films and site-specific work. Through her dance company, Five Feet Dance, Clarissa has presented work at CounterPulse, SAFEhouse for the Arts, Little Boxes Theater, and the Asian Art Museum.

As early as he can remember, Jeric was born a performer, dancing with and for groups of people at the age of 5. While participating in his school’s dance productions, he picked up on various dance styles such as Hip Hop, West African, Belly, Ballet, Contemporary, and more. With almost a decade of teaching experience, he has taught at several dance studios, high schools, and college programs. Outside of school, Jeric has trained with multiple dance teams, has had the opportunity of auditioning for America’s Got Talent with Str8jacket and choreographing for Filipino celebrities. Jeric is a former team captain and choreographer for a couple dance companies and has competed at numerous dance competitions. Dance constantly gives Jeric the motivation and purpose to work towards bettering himself and his community. Jeric believes anyone can positively benefit from dance by working hard, embracing self discipline, developing confidence, trusting the journey, and thus reaping the reward of self discovery.

Serena began dancing in Cupertino, California at age six studying jazz, tap, hip hop, ballet, and lyrical. She started dancing competitively by the age of eight and continued through college, taking classes in Los Angeles, New York, and Paris. Serena has danced for semi pro teams and had the opportunity to perform in Los Angeles, including Disneyland’s California Adventures, Las Vegas, and Orlando. She started working for Heartbeat Dance Academy in 2015.

Fabiana Santiago began her dance training at the Judith Svalander School of Ballet in Crystal Lake, Illinois. She then attended Butler University on talent scholarship and graduated with her bachelor’s degree in dance performance in the spring of 2016. She spent summers training with the Boston Ballet, Ajkun Ballet Theater, Alonzo King Lines Ballet, Post:ballet as well as the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in New York City — where she was awarded a full scholarship to attend the academy for 2 weeks in Moscow, Russia. Fabiana then returned to the Bolshoi Ballet Academy for the remainder of her sophomore year joining the international graduating course and performing lead character roles on both the new and historical stages of the Bolshoi Theater. 

In the fall of 2017, she began her dancing career with Menlowe Ballet where she performed soloist and ensemble roles. She was also given the opportunity to choreograph a section in artistic director and choreographer Micheal Lowe’s, “Kimono Wednesdays” for the company’s 2019 spring season. Fabiana has guested with Sierra Nevada Ballet, toured with Zikr Dance Ensemble and currently freelances for various companies / independent choreographers throughout the Bay Area. Alongside her dancing career, she instructs ballet and contemporary dance along with choreographing for competitions. Fabiana loves sharing her passion with the world and looks forward to continue her mentorship for future generations to come. 

Claire Schick, originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, will graduate with her BFA in Dance and BA in Psychology with a minor in English from the University of Michigan in December 2024. After achieving national rankings in competitive gymnastics, Claire began her serious dance training at the age of 14 with Alonzo King Lines Ballet. Most recently Claire performed for the second time with Vim Vigor Dance Company in November. While attending the University of Michigan she has performed in repertory by Shannon Gillen and Rosanna Tavarez, studied in Spain with Marcat Dance Company, and performed at B-12 in Berlin with Laja Field. Additionally Claire has attended programs with BodyTraffic, Jacob Jonas the Company, Diavolo, and North West Dance Project. 

Bio Coming Soon!

Bio Coming Soon!

Bio Coming Soon!