Susan is the owner and managing partner of Poppy and Sage Studio. From dance teams in childhood, dance courses in college, to dance and movement in adulthood, Susan has found the unending benefits of dancing through life! Through Poppy and Sage Studio, Susan aims to bring these benefits - building community and friendships, developing strength, grace and flexibility, reducing stress, and overall wellness - to all of our customers! 

Beyond dance, Susan gets joy from helping others achieve their optimal health. As a registered dietitian and doctor of nutritional biology, she provides counseling services through KnowMe Nutrition. Reach out to Susan if you are interested in optimizing your health through movement or nutrition! 

Brianna R Furnish, native of Dallas, Texas, danced alongside her mother as a young child. At age 6, Furnish began formal studies in the Martha Graham modern dance technique, under the instruction of Julliard Graduate, Jerry Bywaters Cochran. At age 13, Furnish was encouraged to begin ballet training as a means for augmenting her chances for a professional modern dance career, and quickly fell in love with ballet. She began training with Denise and Evelyn Brown and a year later, on talent scholarship, with Dallas Ballet’s professional program, under the direction of Royal Danish Ballet‘s Flemming and Vivi Flindt. It was there that she first met and trained with the late great Madame Nathalie Krassovska, former prima ballerina with Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, who became a significant mentor. A year later, Furnish was accepted to the School of American Ballet in New York, where she had the exceptional opportunity to study with Mme. Alexandra Danilova, Suki Shorer, Mme. Antonina Tumkovsky, Andrei Kramerevsky and Stanley Williams. She was then granted admission to the North Carolina School of the Arts, where she studied under the careful attention of former New York City Ballet ballerina, Ms. Melissa Hayden. Furnish performed for ballet companies in Dallas and Tennessee, including Krassovska Ballet Jeunesse and Tennessee Ballet (Memphis), while continuing private instruction with both Mme. Krassovska and the late Robert Scevers (Harkness Ballet). In June of 1997, Furnish founded Ballet Renaissance.

Radoslaw J Kokoszka, born in Wodzislaw Sl., Poland begun his ballet training at age 11 in Bytom, Poland. At age 13, he moved to United States with his family, settling in Hamtramck, MI.  Kokoszka received numerous talent scholarships and trained at a number of prestigious professional ballet schools including: the Harid Conservatory (FLA), Boston Ballet (MA), Kirov Academy (Washington, DC) and completing his ballet training at the renowned School of American Ballet (New York City). Dancing professionally with Carolina Ballet (Raleigh, NC) Cedar Lake Dance Company (NYC) and Suzanne Farrell Ballet (Washington D.C.). Kokoszka had the privilege to dance alongside worlds greatest talent including Mikhail Baryshnikov and has taught ballet to aspiring dancers for over 20 years.

Growing up as a dance studio owner's daughter, Sydney has been immersed in dance from a young age. She has trained in the classical forms of ballet, modern, contemporary, jazz and musical theatre. At seventeen she was casted at Disneyland Resort in California as a dancer. In 2015 her choreography won third place at the International Fringe Festival. After attending Columbia College Chicago as a musical theatre major with a dance minor, Sydney moved to San Diego where she was a full time dance teacher and choreographer for many studios in the county. Some highlights of her choreographer career were artistic directing for GC Dance Company’s Beauty and the Beast, choreographing a number of Nutcrackers for West Coast Dance and a number of musicals at The Spark Creates such as The Adams Family, Matilda, Tuck Everlasting and many more. Today, Sydney is a company dancer with VisKosity Dance Collective.

Sydney’s teaching philosophy is to give every dancer the encouragement and guidance they need to succeed in their goals. Everyone’s dance journey is different and Sydney wants to give her students the space to explore what dance means to them. Whether that’s training for Broadway someday or just landing the perfect pirouette, Sydney will greet each student with joy and understanding.

Jasmine's passion is to move, dance through life and lift up community. Jasmine was always active and grew up dancing ballet, playing tennis, and skiing. Later in life she added yoga, martial arts, and hiking but teaching movement of any sort was never a goal of hers until she found Nia in 2007. Nia has changed her life and still changes it daily. Jasmine's classes are energetic, spirited and welcoming and are designed for all levels.

Jasmine Lok is a licensed Nia Second Degree Black Belt. In addition to her 7 earned Nia Belts, Jasmine has also undergone the following trainings: Embodied Social Justice, Creative Movement for Kids, Nia MoveIT, Nia FreeDance, Nia Moving to Heal, Inner Personal Power Yoga, Taiji Fit, and Ageless Grace. She is a life long learner and consistantly strives to deepen, and enlighten her walk on this planet. "Eighty percent of success is showing up," she gently encourages you to show up!

Maddie Dusel has been dancing in Lyons since she was five. She graduated in 2022 and is now studying at CU Boulder. She is going into her senior year and persuing a degree in dance and media production. Maddie has a passion for sharing the magic of dance and her focus is on contemporary, hip hop and jazz. Maddie has choreographed for a club and participated in multiple dance productions at CU. She has grown up in the Lyons community and is so excited to share the joy of dance!

Wendy began dancing at the age of three in Longmont, CO. Throughout her years of training she has studied jazz, modern, flamenco, ballet, pointe, lyrical and hip hop. For two years Wendy served as captain of her high school dance team while continuing to train at various studios. After spending two years as a dance major at CSU she moved to Denver to pursue a degree in Human Performance and Sport and spent time training in New York City and San Francisco. Since 2005 she has danced with the True II Form hip hop dance company under the direction of Kevin O'Keefe. Wendy's classes emphasize foundational hip hop dance styles including popping, locking and b-boying/b-girling, while incorporating elements from all other dance styles. 

Kshitija C Saturdekar, originally from Mumbai, is a dance educator, artist and choreographer based in Colorado. She received her Bachelors and Masters of Arts in Sociology from the University of Mumbai, and recently received her Master of Fine Arts in Dance with emphasis in Choreography and secondary emphasis in Hip Hop Studies from the University of Colorado Boulder. Prior to that, she spent ten years teaching students of all ages, choreographing for live events and film, and performing with The Terence Lewis Contemporary Dance Company, a reputed dance company in India. Kshitija has worked and trained under Donna Mejia, Helanius J Wilkins, Rennie Harris, Nii Armah Sowah, Terence Lewis and Bertwin Ravi Dsouza. Kshitija has also performed and taught dance in India, Australia, Singapore, Austria, Thailand and USA. During her time at CU Kshitija was also a Graduate Part Time Instructor, a Teaching Assistant and Assistant to the Director of Dance Production for two years which helped her hone her skills in Stage Management, Run Crew and Production Technicalities. Kshitija is passionate about dance education and performance.

Edward Lee is a first-generation Korean-American artist with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance and a Certificate in Hip-hop Studies from the University of Colorado, Boulder. He began dancing in his sophomore year of high school and quickly found a deep passion for street dance, and its powerful means of expression, community building, and cultural preservation. Trained by amazing mentors like Larry Southall and Rennie Harris, Edward’s artistry and teaching is focused in the rich traditions of Hip-Hop, and he is committed to honoring the pioneers who laid the foundation. Through movement, he strives to empower future generations to honor the past while carving their own paths forward.

Jayme Friedman is a Certified Personal Trainer through NASM (National Academy of Sports Medicine), soon to be Sports Nutrition Coach certified, and the Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Lyons Backers Football Program. Jayme is dedicated to helping young athletes (and adults) achieve their fitness goals through targeted training and focusing on strength and wellness. She believes in the power of community and the impact of working together to drive improvement. Known for her motivational coaching style and warm, approachable demeanor, Jayme finds her greatest joy in seeing people not only get fit but also get healthier, exceed their own expectations, and have fun doing so.