Owner and Director

Corie is a Bay Area native who started taking Ballet and Tap at 3 years old. While she loves dancing, her true passion is teaching. Her competitive dancers have earned numerous Regional and National Titles, including high scores and Dancer of the Year awards. Known for fostering community and self-confidence, her teaching philosophy emphasizes a strong technical foundation, thoughtful training, and a safe, nurturing environment in which children can learn, grow, and thrive.

Corie has a 3 year old son (Callan), a 3 month old daughter (Rylie), and the most supportive husband in the world (Brandon).

Contemporary Teacher

Lynn Brilhante is described as having dynamic, fluid and gutsy dancing and choreography. She brings a fresh and innovative approach to the world of Jazz and shows a unique ability to merge and update various elements, in the process creating her own trademark style. These talents have recently earned her a nomination for the Theatre L.A. Ovation Award for Choreography. Ms. Brilhante has also received the Dance Masters of America Choreographer's Award and the Robbi Award for Choreography. Her success in transferring her love of dance through teaching is evidenced by a flock of loyal students, both in her studio classes in the San Francisco Bay Area and at numerous workshops, master classes and camps throughout the world. Ms. Brilhante boasts a long and impressive resume of choreographic and performance achievements, spanning the diverse media of stage, film, television and video. Her contributions will continue to enrich the dance world.

Hip-Hop Teacher

Alee fell in love with dance at a young age. Her whole family loved to dance, especially her parents. At the age of 15 she joined a dance group in her church and performed at many services. In early 2009 she was introduced to the dance community here in the Bay Area which led her to join a local dance team. In 2011 she auditioned for a professional dance company in San Francisco. She got the opportunity to travel the world and performed in AGT season 7 and other television shows. As time went on and she fell more and more in love with her craft, she decided to start her own dance company with her former teammate and now Fiancé, Stuck Sanders. They are now running POISE’N BRIGADE, a youth team in the Bay, as well as their adult company THE TRIBE.

Jazz, Hip-Hop, Combo, and Acro Teacher

Rachel has been dancing for nearly 20 years. She has trained in a multitude of style including jazz, tap, ballet and contemporary, but considers upbeat styles such as jazz funk and sassy jazz to be her favorites. Rachel was a member of her high school Dance Team, the Lincoln Convertibles and continued her dance journey as a 4 year member of the UC Davis Dance Team. During her years on the team Rachel has gained experience choreographing and performing in numerous Big West Tournaments. In addition to her love of dance, Rachel is a certified Acrobatic Arts instructor who thrives sharing her passion for dance with her students.

Assistant Competition Director

Samantha has been dancing since she was 8 years old and trained at Marti’s Dance Studio for 8 years before continuing her dance journey at RISE Performing Arts Center. She was a member of the competition program at RISE and is now a second year Public Health major at Cal Poly SLO. Samantha favorite styles of dance have always been lyrical and acro, and she has taken classes in a wide variety of styles, including jazz, contemporary, hip hop, and more. She loves watching students succeed in learning new skills and is excited to continue sharing her love of dance.

Acro and Tap & Twirl Teacher

Ellie has been dancing since she was 4 years old and trained at Marti’s Dance Studio for four years before continuing her dance journey at RISE Performing Arts Center. She is a member of the competition program at RISE and is also part of the dance program at Mountain View High School. Ellie’s favorite style of dance has always been lyrical, and she has taken classes in a wide variety of styles, including jazz, contemporary, hip hop, acro, and more. She is passionate about sharing her love of dance and creating a positive, supportive environment for all dancers. Ellie is currently a Junior at Mountain View High School.

Ballet Teacher

Astrid formally began her ballet studies at the Terpsicore Comprehensive Dance School, at the age of 13. At the age of 15, she joined the stable dance corps at the Nuevo Mundo ballet in Caracas. Finishing part of her training at the Ballet Nuevo Mundo, she joined the Teresa Carreño Ballet, dancing various roles in many productions including Coppelia, Don Quixote, The Nutcracker, The Flames of Paris, Spartacus, Paquita, Giselle, The Death of the Swan, and many more.

In 2018 she won the Silver Medal in the fourth division at the Miami International Ballet Competition USA. In 2021 she moved to the United States to continue her career as a dancer and share her experience as a ballet teacher, dancing in different companies in Miami.

Her focus is on being able to share all her experience and learning with all those passionate about the world of ballet.

Ballet Teacher

Xin Xe has been dancing both recreationally and competitively since the age of five. She began her training focused mainly on ballet and Chinese dance, building a foundation heavily focused on technique and acrobatics before joining RISE. As time progressed, she has taken classes in a plenty of styles however, acro, contemporary, lyrical, and jazz are her favorites to perform. Alongside dancing, she has also gained experience training in rhythmic gymnastics for a while, further exposing herself to more movement styles. At the age of 15, she started teaching and has since worked with students aged 6-14.

Lyrical and Tap Teacher

Noa has been dancing since she was 5 and trained at Marti’s Dance Studio for 9 years before continuing her dance journey at RISE Performing Arts Center. She is a member of the competition program at RISE and is also a part of Mountain View High School’s Dance Spectrum. Noa started her dance journey mainly focussed on hip hop, but she slowly shifted to other styles such as tap, lyrical, and acro, which quickly became her favorites. Noa is currently a junior at Mountain View High School. She cannot wait to start classes and share her experience and love of dance with other dancers.

Teaching Assistant

Hi i’m Mary! I’ve been dancing for 11 years, at Marti’s and then Rise. My favorite dance styles are lyrical and jazz but I train in lots of different styles, including tap, hip hop, and more. I love to assist classes for all styles. Im currently a 9th grader at Los Altos High School.

Teaching Assistant

Hi I’m Naama, and I have been dancing for 6 years. I danced at Marti’s Dance Studio for 4 years, and this is now my 3rd year dancing at Rise. I am an 8th grader at Cupertino Middle School and will be attending Homestead High School next year. My favorite dance styles are hip hop and acro, but I have also trained in and enjoy jazz, ballet, tap, contemporary, and lyrical. I love assisting dancers of all ages and enjoy helping with all styles of dance!