Virtual Dance Workshops

This staff member started dancing at the age of 3 in Southern California at Black Mountain Ballet Academy, where she trained in multiple levels of the Checchetti Ballet System. For 10 years ballet was her 1st love and at the age of 13 she began to train in other styles of dance such as Hip Hop, Lyrical, Jazz, Modern and Contemporary. In High School she was a member of her nationally ranked competition dance team for all four years and captain for two. She took 2nd Runner Up at U.S.A.'s own Solo Campion Finals. She currently teaches and choreographs across California and is an adjudicator for various dance competitions. She most recently was invited to Mexico City to adjudicate for ONP México’s Nationals. This staff member has trained under some of the best including Liz Imperio, Tina Landon, Kayla Kalbfleish, Keone Madrid and many more. She was a member of the dance company Unity Dance Ensemble, directed by Tessandra Chavez, for 6 Years performing throughout Southern California. Autumn has been one of Kids Artistic Revues Dance Stars of Tomorrow and and was named by Joe Loera and KAR TV as one of the US’s up and coming dancers. She has had the opportunity to dance along side the Martha Graham Dance Company in performing the works ‘Panarama’ and ‘American Document. She earned a BS in Apparel Design and Production from Cal State Northridge, and now currently combines her passions of design and dance.

David began his dance career in high school where he trained in ballet, jazz, lyrical, contemporary and hip hop. He instantly found a natural ability in movement and technique and his love and passion for dance immensely grew. While on his high school dance team, David won several solo titles, as well as placing in the Top 5 at USA nationals his senior year as a soloist. David graduated college in the Spring of 2015 with his associates degree in fine arts. David was able to present his choreography in multiple dance concerts. He received the Merit Award for Contemporary dance in the Spring of 2014. David has performed at the Walt Disney World’s number one rated show on property, The Festival of The Lion King. He has also most recently performed at the annual Out and Equal Summit at the Swan and Dolphin Resort. David is currently teaching master classes and choreographing for dance studios throughout the U.S. His pieces have won several choreography awards as well as national titles. David enjoys working with dancers of all ages and sharing his love and knowledge of dance.

Jia Huang graduated from The University of California Irvine with a BA in dance. UCI is also joined one of Southern California most cutting edge hip hop teams, Kaba Modern, which she directed in 2003-2005. In 2007-2008 she appeared on television shows such as Dirty Dancing and America’s Best Dance Crew. She spent 2009 on The Circus Tour Starring Britney Spears as one for four female principle dancers. She was a founding member, choreographer and dancer for the professional Contemporary Jazz company RhetOracle, Mischief Makers and KM Legacy. She has been a dancer in multiple music videos, award shows including the VMAs, commercials and most recently choreographed a promo video for the 2017 Grammies. This is her 10th year on dance staff for the United Spirit Association and has been awarded Rookie of the Year, Hardest working, MVP for 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016 and the Leadership Award for 2018. She is a seasoned judge, having judged competitions such as World of Dance, USA High School Dance Nationals, UDA College Dance Nationals, Japan Dance Nationals and Dance Worlds. She is also a faculty member at the prestigious Orange County School of the Arts, but spends most of her time teaching and choreography for high school teams and studios in California. She has taught master classes in places such as Canada, Australia, Norway, China, Mexico, Japan and continues to teach all over the US.

Raul has many years of dance experience in a variety of styles. His versatility as a teacher has given him the opportunity to teach all over the country and internationally in Mexico, London and Switzerland. Raul's professional credits include being a featured dancer and choreographer for Sea World San Diego, Royal Caribbean cruise lines, television work in Mexico, the San Diego Ballet and Culture Shock San Diego and Los Angeles. He currently resides in San Diego where he coaches a 15 time national champion high school dance team, and is faculty at many colleges in the area. Raul also spends much of his free time teaching dance to underprivileged youth throughout San Diego. He is so excited to be spending another summer with the USA!!

This staff member roots from Torrance, CA, where she started training in the styles of ballet, jazz and tap. She fell in love with the discipline and artistry of ballet and joined a local ballet company at the age of 7. In high school, she also joined the high school dance team to compete nationally and became one of the captains her last year. Saaya’s world completely opened up when she stepped into UC Irvine campus and was introduced to the collegiate dance scene ranging from different street styles and choreography. She was excited to take the knowledge she learned from that community and moved on to being an Artistic Coach for a high school hip hop team, guiding the team to national titles. She’s also been a long-year board member for Culture Shock Los Angeles, a non-profit hip hop organization that focuses on dance education, professional entertainment, and community empowerment, and have helped direct and choreograph for several shows. She is so excited to be entering her third year as a USA member! Please welcome, Saaya!

Savannah Hooks has been dancing since the age of 3 and is classically trained in the Cecchetti Ballet System. She has a passion for all styles of dance with extensive training in many which include: contemporary, jazz, ballet, lyrical, hip-hop, modern, and Irish dance. She has danced for a number of dance companies and crews including Unity Dance Ensemble, founded by Tessandra Chavez under the direction of Tarua Hall and Theo Ivey; High Profile Dance Crew, which resides in Las Vegas; and Establish Your Empire, founded by Gigi Torres. She graduated from CSUN magna Cum Laude obtaining a Mathematics degree where she received the F. Lynwood Wren Award. As an educator, Savannah has taught classes all over the country working as a Master Teacher, Choreographer and Coach. She has been a member of the dance staff for the United Spirit Association for 10 years where she was awarded M.V.P. for 2015, 2017 & 2018, and the Unity Award for 2019. Savannah loves to create and has always had an absolute passion for choreography. She has been setting pieces on dancers from a very young age, and has choreographed countless award winning, and national title winning routines through multiple venues. She also values the importance of forever being a student, and invests into furthering her education at all times. She has assisted and/or trained under many great dance artists such as Dee Caspary, Tessandra Chavez, Tarua Hall, Liz Imperio, Kayla Kalbfleisch, Keone Madrid, Gigi Torres, and many more. Conclusively Savannah loves teaching and inspiring others through dance and plans on doing just that for the rest of her life.

Born and raised in San Diego, California, She fell in love with dancing at 4 years old. Growing up, She trained in jazz, lyrical, ballet, tap, hip-hop, contemporary, tumbling and danced competitively through high school. At the age of 8, dance provided her the opportunity in the entertainment industry booking jobs for networks like Netflix, Lifetime, and Brat the Youtube Channel. Currently, she resides on the professional hip hop team Choreo Cookies. This is her 3rd year as an instructor for USA and has been awarded Rookie of the year. She is very excited to continue her journey with USA and can’t wait to make more connections with dancers through choreographing and teaching!

Stay tuned for additional workshops and instructors...