Kristen Darby                                                                                                                                                                                                                     This year, Kristen celebrates 30 years of experience teaching dance. She received her bachelor of fine arts in dance from Cornish College of the Arts and has studied with distinguished instructors at renowned professional dance companies including San Francisco Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet. Kristen is a certified teacher with New York City Dance Alliance and received London Royal Academy of Dance, Senior Grade Honors. In addition to teaching at The Ballet Studio in Seattle and Olympic Ballet in Edmonds, Kristen established and directed Children's Dance Academy, Creative Arts, and Music, in Monroe, Washington and Zen Wellness in Edmonds, Washington. She is also a certified Yoga Therapist working specifically in the field of Yoga and Osteoporosis. 

Renzo Acosta started his dance training in Hawai’i with various studios. He received a full merit scholarship with Ballet Hawai’i where he received most of his ballet training and went on to perform with local dance groups such as Tau Dance Treater, Iona Dance Company, and Onium Dance Project. He received his BA in Dance from University of Hawai’i at Manoa where he was featured in works by Erik Stern and Joe Goode Performance Group. He has been teaching ballet since 2017 and is excited to be joining Northwest Dance Collaborative.

Kristin Lewis - Bio and Photo will be here soon

 Ben Verdier                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Originally from the Boston area, pianist Ben Verdier lives in Seattle where he adores playing live music for ballet classes. From modern swing in the Czech Republic to salsa in Alaska, he has toured all over the world. Also an accomplished bassist, Ben performs regularly in the Pacific Northwest.