Meet Our Dance and Aerial Instructors in Montrose

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Etienne Tolno grew up in Guinea, West Africa, where he began studying drum and dance as a teenager and went on to perform professionally with companies including Sole Africa, Kissidugu Ensemble, and Merveilles De Guinea. He comes from a family of master musicians — his brother, Gabriel “Fara” Tolno, founded the Kissidugu Foundation of Music, Dance, and Education, where Etienne is a longtime teacher and leader. Since arriving in the U.S. in 2019, Etienne has taught and performed nationwide and, for the last five years, has resided in Montrose with his wife and children. Etienne offers many programs and workshops all throughout Colorado with both adults and children. Etienne is known for his warm, joyful energy. He uses drum and dance as a vehicle to build confidence and creativity in his students — building connection to self and community is the focus of his musical offerings.

Amelia has been a performer with Weehawken since she was three years old. She has been involved in the dance program for most of her life and has also participated in Weehawken’s musical theater program. She began her dance training in ballet and jazz before discovering her passion for hip hop. Amelia has assisted dance classes for several years and has co-taught hip hop workshops for students of all ages. In 2026, she completed The Comix Method Teacher Certification, a nationally recognized professional development program focused on authentic Hip Hop and street dance education, including the history, culture, and teaching methodology behind styles such as Hip Hop, Breaking, Popping, and Locking.

Outside the studio, Amelia enjoys musical theater, visual arts, and performing in community productions throughout Ouray County. She also loves spending time with her puppy and playing Dungeons & Dragons with friends. Above all, Amelia strives to create a positive, encouraging environment where every student feels welcome, supported, and inspired to discover the joy of dance.

Angela began dancing at the age of four and has been part of the Weehawken Dance community since she was six. What started as a love for ballet quickly grew into a passion for multiple styles, including hip hop and jazz. Over the years, Angela has become a valued assistant in the classroom, supporting many pre- and primary ballet classes as well as beginning hip hop. Her patience, kindness, and enthusiasm make her a wonderful role model for younger dancers.

Outside of dance, Angela enjoys spending time in the kitchen baking, relaxing with a good Netflix show, and being with friends. She also loves family camping trips, adventures at Lake Powell, and traveling to cheer on her brothers at soccer games.

Heather Johnson is originally from Maryland, where her love for dance began at a young age by creating dances with friends and putting on performances for family members. In high school, she danced on both the dance company and drill team, performing in a variety of styles while focusing primarily on hip hop. She later attended James Madison University, where she danced and choreographed for the Madison Dance Club.

Heather has continued sharing her passion for dance through teaching and coaching. She has led after-school dance clubs for elementary students and coached a middle school hip hop dance team, helping young dancers build confidence, teamwork, and performance skills in a positive and encouraging environment.

In 2019, Heather moved to Colorado with her husband, where they have since started a family and are raising their two children. Alongside her work in dance, Heather has been an educator for the past 13 years and currently teaches 3rd grade. She is passionate about helping students grow both academically and personally while creating a classroom environment built on hard work, fun, and goal-oriented learning.

Mason has been helping move sets and working backstage with Weehawken Dance for the past nine years. He’s been dancing for three years, with hip-hop being his favorite style of dance. He has also partnered onstage since he started dancing.

Outside of dance, Mason works at his local grocery store and is a magician who has performed for sold-out theaters all over the state. He also loves skiing, Pop-Tarts, and traveling the country. More than anything, he’s determined to have a good time, and make sure everyone is having fun.

Emily Unverferth has been dancing with Weehawken Dance for over ten years, focusing primarily on ballet and jazz. She has trained at the prestigious Joffrey Ballet Summer Intensive in New York City and will continue her studies at Joffrey Ballet in Boulder in the summer of 2025.

A 15-year-old high school sophomore, Emily has a passion for working with young dancers and loves inspiring the next generation at Weehawken. She has spent the past year assisting Miss Tajiana in ballet and jazz classes, as well as supporting Miss Alex in an intro-level circus class.

Outside the studio, Emily is an avid skier, mountain biker, and traveler. She skis in Telluride during the winter, bikes all summer, and has visited an impressive 43 states so far—hoping to check off all 50 before she graduates!

Ashlin Mitchum brings over a decade of dance experience to her role as an instructor at Weehawken Creative Arts. Trained in jazz, hip-hop, ballet, and lyrical, she has built a strong foundation in both technique and performance through her years at Weehawken.

Whether it’s the rhythm of hip-hop or the elegance of ballet, Ashlin believes in making dance fun and accessible for every child. With a focus on building confidence, coordination, and a love for the art form, she is excited to guide young dancers on their journey.

Dizz has been dancing for 10 years, with the last 9 spent training and performing with Weehawken Dance. While his primary style is hip hop, he’s also partnered with ballerinas in various performances, showcasing his versatility. Since 2019, Dizz has assisted younger hip hop classes, co-taught community sessions, and now leads his own classes. He’s passionate about welcoming new dancers into the studio—especially encouraging boys to explore hip hop.

Outside the studio, Dizz plays soccer for his high school, earning Best Defense his freshman year and making Varsity his sophomore year. He also spent two years in marching and concert band, sharpening his musicality, rhythm, and overall performance skills. Recently, he has started learning to cut music and edit videos to support his choreography and classwork.

Katy just finished up her freshman year at the University of Colorado, Boulder and is soon transferring to Colorado Mesa to pursue nursing. She has been dancing with Weehawken since she was 3 years old. Her first memory of dancing at Weehawken is at a mermaid princess dance camp in Ouray. Over the years, some of the roles Katy has danced include a blueberry, a bon bon, an elephant, a towns person, a party girl, Toto, Tweedle Dee, a hobo, a train kid, and Clara. More recently, Katy danced the roles of Cinderella, Sugar Plum Fairy, Spanish Chocolate and Captain Hook. Each role was an incredible learning opportunity and allowed her to grow her love for ballet, jazz, and hop hop. In 2019, Katy passed her primary Imperial Classical Ballet (ITSD) exam. Katy has attended Joffrey Ballet Summer intensives in Colorado for three summers, and attended the Joffrey Ballet Pre-Professional Jazz and Contemporary intensive in New York City in 2023.

Katy finds great joy working with young dancers and is so excited to teach and pass on her love of dance! Katy hopes to study medicine and continue to dance in college.

Natalie Griffith was born and raised in Montrose, Colorado. She started dancing at age four and has been dancing ever since! She had the privilege of being a student at Weehawken, where her love and passion for dance grew under the guidance of Pang and Natasha. She had the opportunity to begin assistant teaching when she was 15 and started teaching her own classes at 18.

She is currently a senior at Colorado Mesa University where she is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Dance. During her time at CMU, she has had the chance to grow in her own technical abilities and perform pieces by wonderful guest artists such as Bill Evans and Jenny Miller as well as performing in faculty and student works. She has also had the chance to grow in her choreographic skills, as she has set two pieces in the spring dance concert in both 2025 and 2026. Her academic journey has made her more passionate about teaching her students anatomy and somatics to help them become more knowledgeable and embodied movers.

Natalie has trained in many styles, including ballet/pointe, tap, jazz, modern/contemporary, lyrical, acro, and more! In 2023, she had the opportunity to assistant teach for Heather Rizzo in Mass, where her love for teaching acro began. Outside of dance, Natalie is also a gymnastics teacher, which has given her the opportunity to learn how to safely teach students acro skills, progressions, and tricks. She is a USAG certified coach and holds an active first aid/CPR certification.

Lindsay grew up in suburban Detroit, Michigan, and fell in love with dance at an early age. She began dancing at the age of nine at Miss Kimberly’s School of Dance before continuing her training at Deborah’s Stage Door Dance Center, where she studied jazz, tap, ballet, and lyrical. She competed at national competitions and conventions in Florida and Myrtle Beach. She also performed and competed with her high school dance team, served as captain, and helped make dance an elective at her high school, teaching and choreographing performances. After high school, she was offered a full dance scholarship to Marygrove College in Detroit, but chose to work and save for her move to Los Angeles to pursue professional dance.

In 2000, Lindsay moved to LA and was represented by MSA Dance Agency. She was a magician’s assistant/dancer on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship, appeared in music videos and commercials and performed in various shows and events in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. She continued her training at The Edge Performing Arts Center in Hollywood and Hama’s Dance in Studio City.
Lindsay then discovered a passion for teaching dance and worked with elementary-aged kids in after-school programs across LA. She was also an assistant dance teacher at Beverly Hills High School for a brief period. Lindsay trained with Jennifer Nairn-Smith, an original Fosse dancer, learning the iconic style and performing with a dance group.

After realizing she wanted a new creative outlet, Lindsay shifted her focus to interior design. She graduated from Santa Monica College in 2008 with a degree in Interior Architectural Design and worked with top designers in Los Angeles, including the renowned Kelly Wearstler. While building her design career, she continued her fitness journey with ballet, pilates, and barre classes.

Lindsay met her husband, Wayne Comstock, in LA, got married in 2008, had two beautiful children, and moved to Colorado in 2018. She now works as a Realtor® and enjoys camping, traveling, interior decorating, and spending time with her family and dog.

Lindsay is thrilled to be back in the dance studio and part of Weehawken. She loves sharing her passion for dance, helping students grow in skill and confidence, and creating a fun, encouraging environment where dancers can express themselves and develop a lifelong love of dance.

Dedicated to Hip Hop for the past 10 years, Lucas Vogt loves spreading his passion for dance. He has assisted multiple instructors in hip hop levels 1-6 and has trained to be a hip hop instructor under Miss Val for the past 4 years.

Training hip hop at countless places all over the United States such as the Joffrey Ballet School Summer of Hip Hop and Monsters LA Finale, Lucas has a wealth of knowledge to offer students of all ages. He enjoys doing all styles of hip hop such as popping, breaking, jazz funk, and loves freestyle!

learn more about Lucas & Weehawken Dance

Miss Tajiana fell in love with dance at the age of five while attending Oxford Ballet School in Mississippi, where she trained with Genevieve Fortner. Travel played an important role in her development, allowing her to study with talented instructors and experience a variety of dance styles. While splitting her time between Colorado and Mississippi, she danced for many years at Weehawken with Miss Natasha. She also spent summers training at the Kansas City Ballet.

Miss Tajiana later moved to Florida to continue her pre-professional training at the Northwest Florida Ballet. Now back home in Ouray, she is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Geology and a certification in Geospatial Information Analysis through the University of Florida.

Dance has always been central to Miss Tajiana’s life. She is committed to providing high-quality dance education grounded in strong technique and artistry. Miss Tajiana Rueschhoff is an ABT® Certified Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum. She has additionally completed The Comix Method Teacher Certification, a nationally recognized program focused on authentic hip hop and street dance education.

Rachel Maier was born and raised in central California. She spent her childhood adolescence on the dance floor at Deenies Dance Workshop, dedicating her after school learning to the art of ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical ballet, modern dance, and a few years on pointe. Her dance opportunities included travels around California performing with other dance troupes at places like Disneyland, Magic Mountain, and various local stages. She spent her senior year in high school training under award winning choreographer Susan Palace and Tiffani Powell at Sierra Performing Arts Center, focusing on ballet, jazz, and modern dance.

Rachel attended California State University Channel Islands with every intention of pursuing her love of dance and earning a degree in Performing Arts. She ultimately graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Business. Shortly before graduation, Rachel met her now-husband, who introduced her to the beauty of Colorado.

Since moving to Colorado officially in 2013, Rachel is now a mother of two wonderful children. She had been working freelance as a makeup artist and hair stylist with a focus on bridal work, specializing in retro/pinup looks, and occasionally having opportunities to do SPFX/character makeups. Rachel always knew she would find her way back into the dance studio, a place that always held a special place in her heart. She is thrilled to be working with creative minds in the field of dance once more and looks forward to sharing her love for the arts with Weehawken and the community of Montrose.

Leeann Rackleff began dancing at the age of 6 and loved ballet from the very beginning. She danced through her teen years and into college taking classical ballet, contemporary, and lyrical. She thoroughly enjoyed performing, dancing on pointe, and taking master classes from the Joffrey Ballet. Leeann graduated from Southern Virginia University in 2006 with degrees in nursing and early childhood education.

Dance was put on hold for a while after college while Leeann’s family grew. She married Paul Rackleff and became the mother of three beautiful children.

Since then, Leeann has returned to her first love: ballet. She began assisting Miss Natasha’s classes in 2014 and started teaching her own classes in the fall of 2015. Leeann especially enjoys working with Weehawken’s youngest dancers and teaches Pre and Primary Ballet and Hip Hop in Montrose. In 2019, she became certified in Rhythm Works Integrative Dance, which supports her work with children with special needs and individual learning differences.

Delana Willsie-Poteet was born and raised in Colorado. Her parents surrounded her in a world of music. She started dancing at 6 months old to her Dad playing guitar. By age 8 she was gathering a group of peers together to teach her own choreography at recess.

After graduating high school she was accepted into the Sound of America to train, travel Europe, and sing for audiences in several beautiful cities.

In 2015, she found a love for making people happy and more confident, so she became a licensed Zumba instructor teaching at Gold’s gym. This opened up doors doing aqua salsa at the rec center, and teaching beginner to intermediate Hip Hop at Weehawken. 2017 started a whole new chapter of Hip Hop training under Val Kepler. Delana has been teaching at Weehawken since.

Valerie Shingledecker is from western Pennsylvania. She has taught all levels and styles of hip hop, as well as jazz-pom classes since 2012. Miss Val’s dance background is primarily dance team, performing hip hop, pom, kick-line, & jazz. She danced on her high school and university dance teams, and coached dance team as an adult. She is a certified National Dance Alliance Coach. Teaching authentic, foundational hip hop and history is her passion.

Miss Val is also an activist member of the Youth Protection Advocacy in Dance, a group dedicated to ending the exploitation of youth in dance by promoting healthy, age-appropriate movement, clothing, and music. She also teaches teenagers about healthy vs unhealthy relationships as part of the One Love Foundation. Miss Val holds a Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology and works with the elderly on speech, language, and swallowing when she’s not on the dance floor.

Learn more about Valerie & Weehawken Dance

Natasha Pyeatte, Artistic Director of Weehawken Dance

Natasha Pyeatte

Artistic Director & Founder

ABT® Certified Teacher • Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher (NCPT) • 200-Hour Aerial Teacher Training Graduate

natashajeanne@weehawkenarts.org

Natasha Pyeatte has been dedicated to dance her entire life, beginning her training at the age of four. After moving from Los Angeles to Log Hill in 1998, she began teaching in 2001 while continuing her own training and developing a deep understanding of both technical excellence and the artistry of dance.

Specializing in tap, jazz, ballet, pointe, theatre dance, and aerial arts, Natasha has trained and performed with professional, educational, and community-based programs including Colorado Ballet Academy, Frequent Flyers Aerial Dance, Aircat Aerial, Gotta Dance Studio, The Edge, and Colorado Mesa University.

As a performer, Natasha has danced the roles of Snow Queen and Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker with Grand Valley Dance Company. She has also performed with Telluride Repertory Theatre, the Telluride AIDS Benefit, and at the Palm Theatre in Telluride, where she appeared as Spanish Chocolate in The Nutcracker and performed in Appalachian Spring with Valerie Madonia. She toured Mexico with Feet First Dance Ensemble for two consecutive summers.

With more than 20 years of teaching experience, Natasha is committed to providing exceptional training rooted in strong technique, thoughtful progression, injury prevention, and artistic expression. She is an ABT® Certified Teacher, having completed the American Ballet Theatre National Training Curriculum through Level 7. She is also a certified Progressing Ballet Technique instructor for Levels 1 and 2.

Natasha is a Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher with comprehensive Pilates certifications through Balanced Body. Her additional training in Scolio-Pilates further informs her approach to body alignment, conditioning, and injury prevention.

In addition to her work in dance and Pilates, Natasha teaches and directs Weehawken’s growing aerial arts program. She has completed Paper Doll Militia’s comprehensive 200-hour Aerial Teacher Training program, with an emphasis on youth aerial curriculum and program development. Her training includes Level 1 and Level 2 Silks and Level 1 Lyra, with a particular focus on designing safe, developmentally appropriate aerial programming for children and teens. Natasha also maintains current CPR, First Aid, and AED certification through the American Red Cross.

Natasha founded the Weehawken Dance program in Ouray in 2007 with a vision of bringing high-quality dance education to rural communities while fostering connection, collaboration, and artistic excellence. What began as a small local program has grown into a regional program serving students across Ouray, Ridgway, Montrose, and the surrounding communities.

Natasha believes performance is one of the most powerful tools for teaching discipline, teamwork, confidence, and artistry. Rather than centering competition, Weehawken emphasizes strong technical training, creativity, collaboration, and personal growth. Students are encouraged to contribute to something larger than themselves while developing a deep appreciation for the arts and the value of supporting one another.

As the program continues to evolve, Natasha remains committed to creating a place where students of all backgrounds feel welcomed, challenged, supported, and inspired.

Learn More About Natasha and the History of Weehawken Dance

Miss Pang came to Colorado from Chiang Mai, Thailand, where she owned and operated her own ballet school for many years. She was the first dancer from Chiang Mai to pass the Royal Academy of Dance’s Advanced 2 Ballet Examination and was a principal dancer with the Chiang Mai Performing Group.

Miss Pang trained as a ballet teacher in England and recently passed her Fellowship examination through the London-based Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing—the culmination of decades of teaching, training, and dedicated professional development. In addition to ballet, she is qualified in jazz and tap and completed The Comix Method Teacher Certification in 2026, a nationally recognized program focused on authentic hip hop and street dance education. She also holds a degree in Communication Arts from Payap University.

Altogether, Miss Pang has more than 33 years of experience teaching dance across three continents. Anyone who knows Miss Pang knows that her love of dance is matched only by her love of children, and she is proud to be part of the Weehawken team.

Meet Our Teaching Team

Great programs begin with great teachers.

Natasha Pyeatte

Valerie Shingledecker

Pang Cooper

Leeann Rackleff

Rachel Maier

Delana Willsie-Poteet

Tajiana Rueschhoff

Lindsay Comstock

Ashlin Mitchum

Natalie Griffith

Heather Johnson

Etienne Tolno

Amelia Sagal

Connected by a Shared Teaching Philosophy

Find the Right Place to Begin

learn more about Lucas & Weehawken Dance

Learn more about Valerie & Weehawken Dance

Natasha Pyeatte

Learn More About Natasha and the History of Weehawken Dance