Our Teachers!
Kelsey Jamieson Ruth - Co-Owner
Kelsey Jamieson Ruth teaches a wide variety of dance styles. She’s received training in lyrical, hip hop, acting, voice, ballet, yoga, musical theatre, jazz, tap, and modern. Kelsey began dancing at age three and her dance repertoire has been expanding ever since. She spent many happy years of her childhood performing with a competitive tap team. She participated in all of her high school plays and has been to Lincoln, Nebraska’s International Thespian Festival three times! Her favorite role was Lorraine Sheldon in “The Man Who Came to Dinner”. She continued to study acting and dance at the University of Washington where she jumped at the opportunity to study abroad in Italy. She graduated summa cum laude, earning a minor in Dance and a degree in Psychology. Her tap classes incorporate elements of rhythm and Broadway styles of tap and her jazz classes cover the spectrum from Broadway to lyrical. She discovered a passion for choreography at a young age and still gets excited to create new pieces for recital season. She has always loved kids but enjoys getting in some “grown-up time” with her adult classes as well. Kelsey believes in encouraging versatility and hopes to foster a unique style and wide appreciation of the arts in each of her students. She’s learned a lot from the six studios she has been teaching at, but is excited to finally be able to concentrate her energy on one place. She’s married to her high school sweetheart and together they are kept busy raising their two kids.
Brittany Jamieson Pulliam - Co-Owner
Brittany Jamieson Pulliam has been dancing since she was three and now teaches ballet, tap, jazz, pointe, lyrical, and musical theatre. Additionally, she is trained in flamenco, modern, acting, voice, and character dance and loves to incorporate pieces of all of those styles into her choreography. She holds a degree in zoology with a focus on anatomy and physiology and a minor in dance from the University of Washington, where she graduated magna cum laude. She loves bringing that combination of art and science together in her teaching style. Before turning to teaching full time, she performed professionally in musicals all over Seattle and the country. Some favorite roles include Ruth in “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”, and Flossie in “On the Town”, both at the 5th Avenue Theatre, and Maggie in “Brigadoon” at the Village Theatre. Brittany has been fortunate enough to work with some of the leading choreographers and directors in the nation and loves sharing what she has learned from them with her students. Through teaching, she hopes to inspire and prepare the next generation of performers, whether they are in a school talent show or on Broadway. Brittany and her husband enjoy traveling to far-off places, reading, walking their dog, and keeping up with their daughter, Maggie.
Kathy
Kaitlyn
Kaitlyn
Kathy Tassielli is certified with the National Academy of Sports Medicine as a Personal Trainer and Golf Fitness Specialist. She also holds certifications as a Level II TRX Trainer, Indoor Cycling Instructor, PiYo Instructor and is the creator of Barre Attitude classes. Whether she is Personal Training or Instructing a Group Fitness class, Kathy is fulfilling her passion to inspire others to experience the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. Kathy recognizes that every client requires a specific training program based on their lifestyle, injuries and goals. Whether you are bettering your overall health, improving your fitness, or enhancing your performance for a specific sport, Kathy will design a program that is result driven. Clients who are committed and have a consistent daily desire to improve will have the opportunity to meet and even exceed their goals. Motivation is key to your success and with Kathy’s enthusiasm, passion and knowledge, you will be driven to make positive, lasting lifestyle changes. 1% Better Every Day! Kathy teaches Barre Attitude at Cascade Dance three days a week.
Kaitlyn
Kaitlyn
Kaitlyn
Kaitlyn Serpa was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. Her dance training began when she was 3 years old and she trained at two different studios until she attended college in Ballet, Jazz, Lyrical, Contemporary and Hip Hop. Kaitlyn holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Arizona and a Master’s in Education from Grand Canyon University. As Kaitlyn moved on to university, she continued to take recreational dance classes through college and then decided to become more serious with her training again at the age of 25. Since Kaitlyn has moved to Washington, she has danced on lyrical, contemporary, and hiphop companies. She also performs at Disney parks with Jodi’s dance expression bi-annually and continues to have a love for performance dance. Kaitlyn has been teaching Ballet since October of 2023 and is so excited to continue her dance teaching career! When Kaitlyn isn’t dancing you can find her walking her chihuahuas and planning her next Disney vacation!
Allison
Kaitlyn
Allison
Allison’s adoration for dance began under the tutelage of Highland Dance Academy and along the way, discovered a home within jazz and tap through Cascade Dance Academy’s program. Her career began at twelve years old as a ballet TA and she acted as an Assistant Choreographer for ballet productions of Cinderella and Alice In Wonderland while continuing to teach independent ballet, tap, and jazz classes at Highland Dance Academy. She holds a BFA in Dance from Cornish College of the Arts with extensive technical training in contemporary, R.A.D. ballet, and vernacular jazz techniques from world-renowned professors such as Patricia Hon, Wade Madsen, and Deborah Wolf. During this time, she performed with
Michele Miller and Laura Smyth while training in stage management and lighting design. After college, Allison taught with Revolution Dance Factory and Issaquah Dance Theatre before returning to Cascade Dance.
With twelve years of teaching experience, her philosophy is dedicated to creating a positive studio environment where students flourish, are nurtured in self-expression, and become passionate artists. Allison strives to cultivate unique artistry and a love for dance within her students.
Erin
Sarah
Allison
Erin McEachran has been teaching ballet and pointe in the Seattle area since 2005. She has taught all ages and adults, coaching and choreographed for private students and rehearsed and staged many ballets for productions. Erin trained at Pacific Northwest Ballet for 14 years on full scholarship and danced professionally for the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, where she had the opportunity to perform in many of the classics and several Balanchine ballets. She enjoys sharing her love of ballet and dance with students and helping them discover how it can enrich their lives no matter where their life takes them. Erin lives in North Bend with her husband and two sons.
Sarah
Sarah
Sarah
Sarah Bordenet is very excited to be teaching at Cascade Dance Academy. She holds a BA in Theatre Arts with a concentration in Musical Theatre (Magna Cum Laude) from Point Park University where she studied to be a "triple threat" in Acting, Singing, and Dancing. She has appeared in productions of Ragtime (PPU), The Skin of Our Teeth (PPU), The Sound of Music (Village Theatre), Annie (Renton Civic Theatre), and is a faculty member at Village Kidstage (Tap and Acting), The Dance School of Everett (Tap), and Issaquah Dance Theatre (Tap, Musical Theatre Dance, and Vocal Ensemble). Sarah is thrilled to be teaching Tap and Vocal Ensemble for Cascade Dance Academy.
Diana
Sarah
Sarah
Diana developed a love for the arts at a young age, fostered by the rich culture and history of ballet and theater in Kiev, Ukraine where they grew up. After moving to Washington, they began ballet training at Cascade Dance Academy. They soon transferred to the International Ballet Academy, later dancing as a company member of the International Ballet Theater. During this time they studied virtually every form of dance, as well as choreography, music theory, and ballet instruction. Their training concluded at Deborah Hadley’s school, where they developed an appreciation for how individual muscles can be controlled to create healthy, expressive movement. Diana continued this study of bodily control and awareness through pilates, yoga, MMA and weight training for several years, and now focuses their dance classes on educating students about working cooperatively with their bodies. Throughout their dance career, Diana performed in a wide range of productions including The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, Coppelia, Dracula, Alice in Wonderland, and the 17th Annual DANCE This Festival. Outside of dance, Diana is a published poet and photographer and holds degrees from the University of Washington in Psychology, Communication, Entrepreneurship and Leadership. They see and create art everywhere they go, and are excited to share this artistry with students around the greater Seattle area.
El
Shandie
Andrea
El Webb- A Detroit native, and accomplished ballet dancer with twenty-plus years of experience, has lived in Seattle for 3 years now. They were inducted into Miami City Ballet’s professional training program at seventeen where they fell in love with the dynamic and musical expression of the Balanchine method.
El began dancing from 2013-2018 for companies such as Charlotte Ballet, Ballet Austin, and Milwaukee Ballet, eventually finding their home at California’s Bay Pointe Ballet. Over their career, El performed in several noteworthy productions such as: Christopher Wheeldon’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Balanchine’s Western Symphony, and playing the role of Mina in Bruce Steivel’s Dracula.
El’s diverse experiences have afforded them a wide understanding of various styles and techniques, including Vaganova and Cecchetti syllabi. Additionally, they have had the opportunity to attend Boston Ballet’s Choreographic summer intensive, learning from and working with resident choreographers such as Yorma Elo, and Helen Pickett. Their teaching approach is about expanding self-expression through dynamic movement and creation, while fostering a positive, encouraging environment that will cultivate bold and confident dancers of all ages and skills.
El is eager to get to know everyone and begin their first season teaching at Cascade Dance Academy!
Andrea
Shandie
Andrea
Andrea Hicks was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. She first discovered her love of dance in high school, by taking Modern Jazz. She had a two-year break from the dance world before picking it back up while going to college at Arizona State. By joining a studio, Andrea was able to further develop as a dancer by including ballet with her training. Although, Andrea did not pursue a career in dance, she has always loved it! Andrea followed another passion in life and received her BFA in Drawing. Currently, she works full time as an artist and is so happy to be a part of the Cascade Dance Academy.
Shandie
Shandie
Shandie
Miss Shandie has been teaching dance for the past 8 years in styles such as jazz, ballet, tap, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary and Bollywood. She has taught all ages from 6 months old to adults, and thrives on watching others use dance as a way to express themselves and to connect with one another. With a bachelors degree in Creative Dance from UW, Shandie knows the importance of combining the foundations of dance with each dancer’s true expression of movement, while maintaining a safe and inviting environment for all. Dancing since she was 11 years old, Shandie has seen how dance teaches more than just how to push the body, it also teaches how to push the mind and how to creatively communicate emotions using both. Miss Shandie can’t wait to get to know her new dancers and to share her love and knowledge she has for all styles of movement!