Recent Pole Titles:
2013 U.S. National Pole Champion
2013 Pole Art Showcase, Finland
2013 IPDFA Choreographer of the Year Nominee
2013 National Aerial Pole Art, Runner-Up
2013 Intl Pole Championship Semi-Finalist, Singapore
2013 Intl Pole Championship Doubles Finalist, Singapore
2012 USPDF Amateur Champion
2012 Pacific Pole Champion
2012 Intl Pole Masters Dbls Runner-Up
2012 California Pole Dance Championship 3rd Place
2012 California Pole Dance Champsionship "Most Flexible"
USPDF Pro Status
Sergia began dancing and performing at a young age in Classical Ballet, Jazz, Contemporary, and Theater. After receiving scholarships from New York City Dance Alliance and Tremaine Dance Conventions she was accepted for study at the Alvin Ailey School in New York City, where she focused most intently on Martha Graham technique and classical ballet. At 17, she started dancing professionally and choreographing for Interweave Dance Company based out of Boulder, Colorado, and continued to be faculty for the next 5 years.
In 2007, Sergia turned her focus to salsa, latin hustle and partner dance, and began competing professionally in Theater Arts, Hustle, Cabaret, Salsa, Just Hustle, and Triple-Threat Dance Divisions.In her first year of professional competition in hustle and salsa she took home over 10 titles, including 5th place in the On-2 division at the 2007 ESPN World Salsa Competition in Orlando, Florida. In 2008 she relocated to Los Angeles from New York, and days later took 2nd Place in the 2008 Mayan World Salsa Competition. In 2008 she was honored to be a featured artist in Miami City Ballet's tribute to dance legends Augie and Margo Rodriguez. Sergia can be seen as Julianne Hough’s back-up dancer in her fitness video “Just Dance”.
In 2010, Sergia was introduced to Pole Fitness. When she realized the incredible mix of strength and artistry it displayed, she was mesmerized. She got the bug to conquer the challenge. She was inspired to use her dance background in different ways, and taking it to the air was an exciting new frontier. She was determined to share this method of fitness with others. “After years of dancing it took pole fitness for me to not worry about what my body looks like, but appreciate what it will do for me.”
Sergia has a BFA in Drama from Tisch School of the Arts, NYU, where she studied at Stella Adler Studio of Acting, the Experimental Theatre Wing and Musical Theatre at Collaborative Arts Project 21. Her New York Theatre credits are far reaching including working with Broadway director Jerry Zaks in City Center Encores! Bye Bye Birdie, and working with Theatre company the PossEble Theater in Den of Thieves. She has also appeared in numerous national commercials including spots for Verizon, Cascade, Chrysler, and has co-starred in TV shows 3 lbs. and ABC's The Forgotten, as well as acting in the re-ocurring roles "Aurelia" and "Nell" on CBS's Guiding Light. Her recent films include Tony Tango and The Company We Keep. Sergia is an X-pert certified pole instructor, and has a Pilates Mat Certification through Tone Pilates Dance and Yoga Studio. She has a BFA in Drama from Tisch School of the Arts, New York University. In 2011, Sergia realized her dream by opening The Vertitude Dance Studio in Woodland Hills, CA where she works with her pole, dance, choreography, and fitness students every day.
Sergia Louise Anderson
Mary Ashton Kolacinski
Recent Pole Titles:
2013 Pacific Pole Champion
2013 Pole Art Showcase
2013 International Pole Championship semi-finalist
2013 Napa 3rd place
2012 CPDC 2nd place most artistic
2012 N. American Elite Division 2nd place
2012 Napa 3rd place
2011 CPDC 3rd place
2010 Easy Meets West 2nd place
2010 Bipolar 2nd place
Mary Ashton Kolacinski brings a unique sincerity to the stage, enthralling any audience with her seamless strength, fluidity and finesse. She blends contemporary and jazz details into aerial dance for a wholehearted expressiveness and commitment to character unlike any other dancer. Alternately vulnerable and fierce, she tells stories that feel intensely personal and raw. Mary grew up surrounded by the buzz of the competitive dance environment in the Los Angeles area. She flourished in ballet, contemporary, jazz and hip hop for over 15 years. Her passion for the art and ability to thrive under pressure led to her selection as a principal dancer for three separate competition teams. Dance enabled Mary to combine her love for music, movement and performance.
In 2008, a friend suggested that Mary try a pole class. She was hesitant, uncertain how she could translate her classical dance experience. But she found that the vertical apparatus helped her explore a new, unrestricted way of moving. She learned to blend traditional techniques with freestyle, and lift off the floor through aerial dance. Pole became a personal revelation for Mary, and she was compelled to share that experience with other women. For six years, she has taught hundreds of students throughout the Southern California region and helped them break through mental and physical barriers of their own. She currently teaches at Encore Dance Fitness in Santa Clarita and The Vertitude in Canoga Park.
Coming from a competitive dance background, Mary was terrified of turning her newfound passion and personal release into a stressful experience. However, in 2010, she took the leap and entered her first pole competition. She came away with a silver medal and realized that her passion was undiminished. Since that day, Mary has placed in each of the seven competitions she has entered. In 2013, she pushed herself to new levels of creativity and athleticism to become the Pacific Pole Champion. Pole has allowed Mary to do the seemingly impossible.
At 24 years old, Mary is now an X-Pert Certified instructor, performer, choreographer and competitor. She is married, and has two doggies and a pot-belly pig.
Jennifer Kim
Jennifer Kim is an xpert certified instructor for several of the leading Los Angeles pole studios including The Choreography House, Bespun, The Vertitude, & amp; Crunch. She is an X-pole girl and is a principal cast member of Kelly Yvonne's Girl Next Door - A Pole Dance Soirée, and performs for Zen Arts. She can be seen as a featured dancer on Enrique Iglesias "Dirty Dancer" music video and has appeared on TV shows such as "NCIS-LA", "Swing", and the pilot episode of “Legends"
Jennifer has competed in several competitions and has earned her USPDF pro status. She has placed as a runner up in 2012 Pacific Pole Championships and in the 2012 International Pole Masters doubles division with her partner Sergia Louise Anderson. As a dancer, Jennifer is known for her strength and grace. Although Jennifer has expanded her pole repertoire to include contemporary pole movement, she has a strong connection to her sensual classic pole movement roots. Jennifer took her first pole class out of curiosity with no dance, movement, fitness, or gymnastics background. She believes and wants to share the message that pole is accessible to EVERYONE regardless of their background or lack of.
Katherine Voorhees
Katherine has been pole dancing for over 4 years. She started pole with no dance experience and a history of soccer and softball growing up. But once she took her first pole class she fell in love. Since then she has been working toward improving her strength, flexibility, and dance. She has competed in the California Pole Dance Championships the past 2 years and was awarded "Most Flexible" in 2011. She also competed in the Pacific Pole Championship. She now teaches at Encore Dance Fitness and the Vertitude in Southern California.
Steve Gale
Having a background in art and gymnastics, Steve began his career in entertainment at the age of 20. His extensive experience as an acrobatic performer has taken him through long running shows at Disneyland, Six Flags, Harrah's Lake Tahoe and Las Vegas. He has also performed for many corporate clients all over the world including Compaq Computers, the NBA , NHL, and NFL, Acura, SanDisk and the North American International Auto Show to name a few.
In the past few years Steve has also worked on a few television shows including NBC's 'The Cape' and in 2008 NBC's 'Celebrity Circus'. Currently Steve owns and operates Radiant Productions, an acrobatic entertainment company that mainly works in the field of corporate entertainment. Steve also works in the technical side of the industry when he served as Technical Director and performer in a show for Samsung at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. He then brought one of his visions to life with "Cirque De La Mer" at SeaWorld San Diego with Imagination Entertainment. Cirque De La Mer is a water-based acrobatic show he co-created, directed and worked as the project manager on. In this show he brought the 'Zorb' from New Zealand for its first time use in an entertainment based environment. Currently the show has been running since 2001 and looks to close in 2014. Four-Cubed is another creation Steve has developed; it combines his love of Chinese Poles with his relentless creativity and imagination for something unique to inspire an audience. The Four-Cubed apparatus was adopted by Cirque Du Soleil's special event department in 2007.
Steve has said that he works under 'the umbrella of art' in many fields of the acrobatic industry. Over his career, Steve has engaged the job titles of director, choreographer, stunt coordinator, creative consultant, specialty rigger, performer and coach while maintaining it with art as the focal point.
Jacob Kujo Lyons
-Cirque du Soleil Consultant
-Teaches in over 36 countries
Jacob "Kujo" Lyons is a b-boy first. He's been a preeminent figure in the global b-boy/breakdance scene for over 20 years: performing, competing, judging competitions, and teaching in 36 countries on 6 continents. His creative contributions to b-boy culture and movement vocabulary are indisputable and pervasive, and continue to inspire and influence b-boys around the world to this day.Kujo is one of the founding members of Soul Control Crew. Established in late 1995, Soul Control forever changed the way power moves were done in the b-boy world. The vast majority of fundamental air flare combinations were pioneered by members of Soul Control, including Pablo (RIP), Charles, Mega Man, Inferno, Babak, and Kujo as well.
Kujo has been featured in a number of high-profile media projects - he back-flipped into jeans for a Levi's national commercial, was the principal b-boy in Run DMC's music video, "It's Like That," and was featured in the film Step Up 2: The Streets. He can also be seen in the upcoming film, Battle of the Year 3D. Additionally, Kujo is an accomplished circus artist - he excels on aerial straps and Chinese poles, and has performed in numerous shows internationally. He was also hired by Cirque du Soleil, as a consultant for The Beatles: Love in 2004, and again for their upcoming 2013 show.
While completing his degree in Dance Kinesiology at Cal State Northridge, Kujo began to combine his various movement talents - breakdance, modern dance, ballet, acrobatics, and circus - into a dynamic, hybrid method of choreography. This new technique, along with Kujo's global reputation for innovation, attracted some highly talented acrobatic dancers looking for something completely different, and in 2006, Lux Aeterna was born. Lux and Kujo have won multiple awards for their work, including 3 Lester Horton Dance Awards and Choreographer of the Year 2008 from the Beverly Hills Outlook. Lux has since established itself as one of Los Angeles’ premiere dance theater companies, and continues to innovate with its new approach to urban dance & circus theater.
Iris Sparrow has always been fascinated with movement, but she was one of those awkward, clumsy, tomboy kids who idolized dancers and never, ever thought she could become one. But in 2009, Iris found pole, and realized it was a community absolutely full of people with two left feet! But it didn’t matter, because she could learn to fly and roll around on the floor!
When the pole exotic craze arrived, Iris was swept up in the fervor. It became her mission to figure out this floor humping, hair flipping, leg twirling insanity, and learn how to teach it to everyone - not just former rhythmic gymnasts and people with spines made of rubber.
Pole exotic is a delightfully sex positive, body positive style with an emphasis on creativity and sass. It makes everyone look like a badass superhuman, but it’s not magic. Iris specializes in pulling apart the mind-bending combinations of pole exotic into tiny, achievable bits that any pole student can rock.
Iris is an instructor at The Vertitude in Canoga Park, CA. She is XPERT trained for pole instruction and also coaches students for competition.
Iris Sparrow
