Our Faculty

Kelly Peters is a Ballroom Dance Instructor and Choreographer who began her love of dance at the age of 2 and joined the competitive line by age 7.  In her early years she competed with the Summit Dance Shoppe in Minneapolis, Minnesota in Ballet, Jazz, Lyrical, Tap, and Musical Theater.  Her family moved west when she was a teen and Kelly continued to find success winning awards and competing as an independent dancer throughout Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia.  After high school she went on to tour professionally with musical theater and children’s theater companies where she traveled and performed across the United States, Canada, Dubai, and Europe.  After 3 years of touring, Kelly decided to stay more stationary and followed in her mother’s footsteps to pursue a career in ballroom dancing with Arthur Murray Dance Studios.  She has worked, competed, and trained students and professionals in multiple studios along with managing one of the top 5 Arthur Murray studios worldwide.  Kelly has also partnered with Special Olympics Washington and The Alzheimer’s Association developing dance and instructor training to promote inclusivity through the power of dance.  

Mackenzie Parfitt has such a love for dance! Following her mothers footsteps who attended Cornish, she found her home at Turning Pointe at the age of 4. She was a member of Trilogy Dance Company until graduation and spent those years as part of the company traveling and competing, winning numerous scholarships and performing as a dancer of the year finalist with New York City Dance Alliance. She has choreographed and set pieces for Trilogy, Footlights Dance Studio, IGNITE, and previously was the assistant coach for Roosevelt High School in Seattle, choreographing their hip hop and running a contemporary team. She has trained in Jazz, Lyrical, ballet and hip hop and believes that dance gave her the ability to express herself without words and taught her the true meaning of commitment and self discipline. She loves sharing her experiences and passion with other dancers! Dance was always Mackenzie’s first love, until recently when she had her son Luxson. Aside from dance, she loves to be a mama, spend time outside, good music and watching life through her sons eyes.

Kirsten Barron Kinney graduated cum laude from the University of California, Irvine in 1997 where she earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Choreography and in Dance Performance. While attending UCI, she was a member of Donald McKayle’s modern company Etude Ensemble, Fresno Ballet under the direction of Donald Bradburn, and has returned to UCI as a guest choreographer for Bare Bones Dance Theatre in 2007, and as a guest performer for the Donald McKayle’s Tribute in 2009.

Kirsten moved to Seattle where she has enjoyed her focus on dance education, became a certified Pilates instructor, and freelanced as a dancer and choreographer over the last 25 years. Kirsten has directed youth programs, worked with many local and national dance schools and organizations such as the Gotta Dance, Westlake Dance Center, Cornish Summer Prep Program, Dance Masters of America, and has been involved in many of Seattle Theatre Group’s Education and Community Engagement. Kirsten performed as well as choreographed for the band, Queensrÿche in their cabaret-style rock concert, En L’air Dance, and Westlake Dance Center’s Sign of the Times. Kirsten is a former coach for the Shorecrest Hip Hop Team, and co-produced SC Hip Hop presents Physical Poetry with her husband, Rex Kinney.

Kirsten became involved with Seattle Theatre Group about 15 years ago as a teaching artist for STG’s DANCE This Intensive. Since then, she has been a part of the faculty for the DANCE This Camp, the finale choreographer for DANCE This Performance, DANCE This at Folklife, Finale choreographer and featured choreographer for Global Party, and the rehearsal director for the commission of Donald McKayle’s piece Shaker Life from Songs of the Disinherited (1972). She loves her role as teaching artist for Dance for PD® which she joined in 2018, and looks forward upcoming programs with STG.

Kirsten takes a holistic approach to dance education and is passionate about teaching dancers to understand dance technique, body mechanics, dance history while embracing their own artistry. She uses improvisation, choreography, a variety of somatic practices, and relies on dance as a common denominator for bringing people together. Kirsten loves to remain a student always…she is inspired by all kinds of dance from all cultures, from her students of all ages and abilities, and loves sharing her experience and knowledge about the art of dance with others.

Bri Wilson was raised in a small northern Michigan town, where she started dancing at age seven. She earned her BFA in Dance from the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA Program at Dominican University of California, and supplemented her collegiate training with intensives at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Movement Invention Project. She moved to Seattle in September 2018. Since then, she has worked with Elia Mrak, The Three Yells, Beth Terwilleger + The Gray, and Marlo Martin + badmarmarDANCE. She has presented her own work at 12 Minutes Max, Full Tilt Dance Festival, and LAUNCH, and has choreographed on both Kaleidoscope Dance Company, a youth modern dance collective, and thePROGRAM, eXit SPACE’s pre-professional training program. In 2019, she was certified in brain-compatible dance education at the Creative Dance Center in Seattle, and in 2022 graduated from the Teaching Artist Training Lab offered by ArtsWA. Her classes are places for movers of all ages and abilities to explore their creativity, connect with their peers, and feel at home in their bodies.