Our Team
Lisa Silvestro
Certified Buti Yoga & Buti HotCore Instructor
Lisa is PFA’s Buti instructor, and has been leading the PFA community through this fun and dynamic yoga practice since October, 2019. Being a former collegiate athlete, Lisa was drawn to the physically-intense nature of Buti, it’s ability to facilitate emotional release, along with its heavy focus in intuitive, primal and dynamic movement.
Lisa brings enthusiasm and high-level energy into all of her Buti classes and the physical intensity of her practice is always met with the same level of humour and fun. Lisa believes movement is medicine, and with that you can expect to leave your mat feeling grounded, smiley, and sweaty!
Jenny Vanigasooriyar
Jenny was a competitive dancer for 14 years and trained in ballet, jazz, tap, and lyrical. During that time, she was team Canada tap dance participant in 2010, 5th place.
Jenny is now a Teacher of children by day and a teacher of dance and fitness by night. You can catch her teaching a number of different dance classes at PFA, as well as Booty Blast Fitness and HIIT style workouts!
Emily Beekhuis
Emily started pole dancing over 5 years ago and she has recently found her calling as a Pole Instructor with her tough love attitude and sneaky tips and tricks she has picked up along the way. She loves the energy her students provide and absolutely loves watching them grow and succeed. You will definitely leave Emily’s class feeling stronger, happier and wanting to come back for more!
Victoria Khounborinh
Victoria is a well-versed fitness instructor and wellness coach. Her certifications include group fitness and personal training, pilates, and healthy eating coaching. Committed to moving and fuelling her body, Victoria has always believed in a happy, holistic lifestyle. She has an honours BA in kinesiology and is currently doing an MA in Management and Leadership at Western University. Her strong thirst for knowledge has pushed her to always stay educated in the health and fitness field.
Having played a high level of competitive sports for many years, Victoria’s love for fitness continues to grow. She began her aerial/dance journey in the summer of 2021 and has been in love ever since. She finds fulfillment in the way it continually challenges her mind and body. She is so happy to be a part of the PFA community. As much as she loves working out and all-things fitness, she also spends her time creating yummy plant-based meals/desserts and running her wellness blog. Victoria believes in creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere for students as they explore their fitness goals. Victoria loves Pilates and you can see her every Monday on the mat making you sweat! You can join Victoria for Beginner and Intermediate Lyra to get started on your aerial journey at PFA!
Heather Megan
Dance and fitness have been Heather’s medicine of choice for her entire life; she finds it so refreshing to engage in workouts that are exciting and fun! Heather has been teaching BootyBarre for over 7 years, and has expanded her repertoire of classes to include heels, booty vibes and the aerial arts. She absolutely loves connecting with other humans through sweat and laughter!
Stephanie Perkin
Steph is a lifelong dancer who began studying ballet at the age of four and continued until she turned nineteen. In university, she expanded her dance repertoire by exploring different styles and techniques. Seeking a new way to stay active, Steph discovered her passion for lyra at PFA and fell in love with the aerial art form. Now a certified group fitness instructor, she is excited to share her love of lyra and guide others in discovering their strength, grace, and creativity in her classes.
Sarah Campos
Sarah discovered yoga for the first time during university circa 2011 and has been practicing ever since. She decided to take her journey deeper and also share this transformative practice with the community. She completed a 200 hour yoga teacher training in 2023 and has been teaching hatha style yoga ever since. Yoga has been a source of profound healing over the years for Sarah and she is so excited to guide others with their mind-body connection.
Sarah’s other passion is dance! Growing up in a latin family, dance was always been a big part of this culture. She started doing dance classes recreationally during high school and went on to perform in several recitals in university and beyond. Sarah believes dance is such an important aspect of embodiment and self-expression. It has increased her sense of confidence and self-esteem and she hopes to inspire her students in the same way.
Rachel Lethbridge
Rachel is a corporate paralegal by day and Aerialist by night. She is a cat mom to 2 fur babies that make her heart happy. She was a competitive figure skater, and did several years of jazz, lyrical and tap. She found her joy in Pole dancing in 2021 during the pandemic and fell absolutely in love with it. Since then she's been a regular at PFA and placed at CPAC Nationals. She is a fierce and loyal friend to her circle and she is a girls girl through and through.
She believes that pole and other forms of dance are a type of therapy. Being able to move your body in a way that helps you feel emotions without having to use words is a type of cathartic release that can't be explained. She hopes to bring pole and dance joy to others through beginner pole, pole choreo and sensual low flow.
Jacqueline Lau
My interest in dance started at a young age. From learning traditional Chinese dances, to growing up dancing in an arts school- I’ve always loved the art of movement. When Sarah Ellen came to London and brought heels dance with her, it really changed me as a dancer. There’s something about heels dance that provides a level of confidence that I’ve never felt in any other form of dance. Fun fact: I’ve been in every dance production (6 Shows!) put on by Sarah Ellen Dance. My favourite genres to take as a student are hip hop, lyrical and of course heels! Come and join me at PFA for my Heels classes!
Candice Rabkin
Candace discovered yoga in 2017 and quickly fell in love with its transformative benefits for both the body and mind. What began as a personal practice grew into a passion for sharing yoga with others. After completing her 200-hour yoga teacher training, Candace began teaching in 2022 and is currently pursuing her 300-hour advanced yoga teacher training to continue deepening her knowledge and practice.
Candace teaches a variety of yoga styles, creating classes that balance strength and softness, movement and stillness, and challenge and ease. With an emphasis on the mind-body connection, her classes invite students to build strength, cultivate presence, and connect more deeply with themselves.
Believing that yoga is a journey of self-discovery rather than a pursuit of perfection, Candace encourages students to meet themselves exactly where they are, honouring what they need in each moment. Her goal is to create a welcoming space where practitioners of all experience levels can explore, grow, and find a little more balance both on and off the mat.
Candace looks forward to welcoming you to your mat!
Maddie Silverster
Maddie has been a dancer since she was 3 years old and started dancing competitively since she was 8. She has competed in various styles of dance, including lyrical, jazz, contemporary, ballet, acro, hip-hop, and tap. Throughout her undergraduate degree, Maddie was also on Western's dance team. In January of 2023, Maddie started her pole dance journey and instantly fell in love with the sport. Since then, she has competed in several competitions across Ontario and attended the CPAC nationals in 2024. Maddie loves combining her dance background with her newfound love for pole dancing to choreograph creative and entertaining routines.
In addition to her enthusiasm and expertise in dance, Maddie has a passion for fitness and health. She has her BA in Kinesiology from Western and is in the midst of completing her Masters in Kinesiology. Maddie has her personal trainer’s license and competes in triathlons and marathons. She is very passionate about using movement as medicine and a way to improve mental and physical health.
Maddie has been a member of PFA since September 2022 and immediately fell in love with the studio, teachers, other dancers, and the environment. She is so excited to spread her love and passion for dance and fitness with the PFA community!
Mari Udarbe Han
Mari is a life-long lover of movement, music and dance. She began her aerial journey in 2019, after taking a Lyra class, she fell in love with both the hoop and with the PFA community. She has been a familiar face in classes and showcases ever since.
When she is not hooping, Mari operates a private physiotherapy practice treating several local artists and performers over the years. She has completed professional development courses in performance/dance medicine, strength and conditioning in rehab, circus science and acupuncture. She is also an MSK Assessor and Advanced Practice Provider at London Health Sciences Centre, an Adjunct Assistant Clinical Professor at McMaster University and is currently participating in health justice research.
As a new mom, Mari feels it is more important than ever to teach the next generation of women that bodies of all backgrounds and all abilities are made to move, even in the air! Join Mari for Beginner Lyra and unleash your inner aerialist!
Em K
Emily started pole dancing in 2008. What she loves most about pole is embracing her sexy side, while dancing with grace, strength and flexibility. She has performed in many pole showcases and competed in many pole competitions over the years. Emily has been an XPERT certified pole dance instructor since 2013 and has taught many pole classes and workshops over the years. She looks forward to sharing some of the pole techniques she’s learned over the years with all of you at PFA! Emily will be sharing her signature, sexy flow style in Russian Technique Pole Flow, and sharing all of her stretching secrets!