Our Instructors

Jodie’s childhood revolved around attending classes, competing and performing on stage in a variety of dance styles - ballet, jazz, hip hop, classical, contemporary and character. As a trained and registered school teacher, she has spent the last 25 years running dance programmes in schools and directing and choreographing School Productions, preparing hundreds of children for the stage. Jodie’s love for Latin dance began 23 years ago, when she attended her first Salsa class in Wellington. Over the years she has taught and assisted with Latin dance classes and teams and performed on the stage numerous times. With over 40 years of dance experience, Jodie understands the fundamentals of dance and is passionate about sharing the joy of dance with others.

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Yanita’s love of dance began from a very young age, starting with ballet. After a long hiatus from the dance world, she picked it back up after high school, competing and performing in Hip-hop and Jazz. Following a year studying full-time musical theatre and dance, Yanita discovered Latin dance and has never looked back. Over the past 17 years, Yanita has competed and performed nationally and internationally in both teams and as a dance partnership. She has taught for various schools around New Zealand, including Salsa Con Coco, Viva Latino, and Dance Connexion and has had the privilege of performing on several TV shows. Yanita’s key passion is social dancing and believes everyone should experience the beauty of it at least once in their life!

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Yanita is currently living and teaching Bachata & Salsa in Brisbane.

Originally born in Okinawa, Japan, Ryo's ancestral links to Peru saw him grow up around Salsa dancing at family special occasions.  After studying Japanese business law, Ryo moved to New Zealand in 2020 and began working as a Chef.  Despite his early introduction to Latin dancing, Ryo only started taking classes 3 years ago at Alegria, becoming an instructor in 2023.  His natural rhythm, smooth lead, and warm and approachable demeanor makes Ryo a key part of our teaching team.

Forest started dancing ballet from the early age of three, shortly followed by jazz, contemporary, and competition work.  An assistant ballet teacher for a number of years, she also performed on stage with the RNZB in 2018.  Forest took a break from dancing in 2021, and after wanting to try something new, joined Alegria as a student in 2022.  She instantly fell in love with the dance styles, people and community.  Forest quotes, "Alegria truly ignited my passion for dance again and it has been a beautiful journey full of love, laughter and joy".

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Forest's natural ability and warm, kind nature makes her a valued member of the Alegria teaching team.

Sophie's love for dance began at the age of 6, starting with jazz classes in Perth, Australia.  Sophie first became aware of Latin dance, specifically Salsa, during a trip to Cuba in 2016.  Following this trip, she began attending Salsa, Kizomba and Bachata classes.  After moving to New Zealand in 2018, Sophie continues to be hugely passionate about Latin dance.  She believes one of the greatest things about social dancing is that you can travel nearly anywhere in the world and instantly meet and connect with people.

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Sophie is enthusiastic about supporting the growing New Plymouth dance community and encourages new dancers to get involved.

Kade began his dance journey with Alegria in 2024 and has been hooked ever since!  With over 13 years of classroom teaching experience, he's excited to take on a new challenge - assisting alongside our talented teaching crew.

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Kade is passionate about the vibrant community at Alegria.  For him, it's all about the joy of connecting with others through Latin dance and sharing that joy far and wide.  He can't wait to support others on their own dance journeys.

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With his outgoing personality and ability to connect with others, Kade is a wonderful addition to the Alegria teaching team.

Vicky’s dance journey began with ballet at a young age, instantly falling in love with performing. As a teenager she broadened her training with tap, contemporary, and jazz, eventually completing a Contemporary Dance Diploma in Germany. She later returned to New Zealand, the place she proudly calls home.

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Throughout her dance life, Vicky has taught a variety of dance and exercise classes across all ages, sharing her passion for movement.

While studying physiotherapy she discovered Salsa, and immediately embraced it as a new dance passion, becoming a beginner again. Since then she has also dipped her toes into Bachata, Zouk, and Kizomba. 

After moving to New Plymouth, Vicky is delighted to bring her experience, enthusiasm, and love of dance to the Alegria community — spending her evenings helping others find JOY on the dance floor.