The duo known as Satarah combines the talents and passions of Sarah Hahn and Satya, two gifted belly dancers, aerialists, and fire performers that have twenty years of experience between them. After years of operating their own performance troupe, producing shows, hosting workshops, and teaching alongside one another, they are thrilled to see Bloom Movement Artistry taking shape.
Introducing all of our lovely instructors you are able to take classes and privates from to learn different disciplines. If you’d like to take classes with us, please review our schedule.
Sarah Hahn
Sarah found an early love of movement in gymnastics starting at 8. She traveled with the competitive circuit for ten years. In 2008, she discovered Middle-Eastern dance and became captivated by the art form, immediately seeking out instruction before becoming an instructor and performer herself, adding fire arts to her repertoire along the way.
In 2012, Sarah found aerial and began as a silks student. Later, she would become a silks instructor and director of a trapeze program at a Charlotte studio.
Fascinated by kinesiology and physicality, Sarah has traveled around the country as a performer, student, and educator.
Satya
Finding a colorful and unbridled love of movement at an early age, Satya started formal dance classes at age 14. Her love of the unconventional led her to join the AZ Renaissance Festival in 2005 as a belly dancer and fire performer in a world music and dance troupe. Since then, she has continued training and now teaches classes and workshops throughout the US.
In 2011, she moved from Arizona to North Carolina and began her training in aerial arts including lyra, silks, loops, trapeze and corde lisse. Her passion for teaching emerged as she created a lyra instruction program, which she taught for 7 years. In late 2020, Satya and her partner, Sarah Hahn, opened their own studio, Bloom Movement Artistry, to create a welcoming, warm, supporting environment for those wanting to learn circus arts.
With a focus on teaching snake-like, buttery movements, fluid transitions and creative pathways, Satya hopes to encourage her students to discover their unique autonomy as artists both on the ground and in the air
Laura
In 2012, Laura found a Groupon for an aerial class and figured it might be fun to try. To put it simply, a full-blown love affair was born. Since then, Laura has also become a student in sling, lyra, flying trapeze, acro yoga, pole, static trapeze, and various other apparatuses. Laura has taught and performed on silks for multiple years, including a performance in Costa Rica.
As an instructor, Laura celebrates students wherever they are in their aerial journeys. In her time as an aerialist, Laura was involved in a serious car accident and has managed late-stage Lyme disease, so she is an expert in practicing the arts of patience and grace with oneself; she has experienced time and again the absolute joy from overcoming fear, weakness, and doubt. Laura’s favorite quote is “you didn’t come this far just to get this far” - so let’s see how far we can go!
Carolina Quirós
Everything began with dance and music when she was a 6-year-old, taking classes in ballet, contemporary dance, piano, and violin. After years of training, she graduated from Conservatorio de Castella (Costa Rica) and later from Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica with a Bachelor in Dance Degree.
She had performed professionally with Compañía de Cámara Danza UNA, Compañía Nacional de Danza de El Salvador, Las Tres Marías, “Metamorfosis”, JF Ballet contemporáneo, Caroline Calouche and Co., Baran Dance Company and many more. As a teacher, she started teaching dance and ballet about 15 years ago. She developed a passion of teaching to all ages and mostly to people eager to learn.
Carolina is a multitasking artist. She knows dance, ballet, artistic gymnastics, lyra, silks, acrobatics, stretching, conditioning, and many other discplines (just ask). She discovered the aerial world and circus life back in 2013, and she fell totally in love with it. She is excited to teach and learn more about aerial every day.
Casandra Newkirk
Casandra Newkirk is originally from North Carolina and lived in Charlotte and Rocky Mount before leaving for undergrad. She has a Ph.D. in Marine Science from the University of Florida and does research focused on coral reef ecology and preservation. She started aerial almost 5 years ago during graduate school as a way to relieve stress and has been hooked ever since.
She primarily trains on silks and lyra, but recently started dance trapeze and straps classes, which she she loves those as well! Outside of aerial and science, she loves to read, write, and spend time with her family and her chocolate lab Zeus! Casandra always aims to create a positive and uplifting training environment, and make sure aerial remains fun as it should be!
Tanya
Tanya is a lifelong dancer, starting with tap and ballet at age 3, progressing to pointe and lyrical in her early teenage years. She discovered belly dance in 2016 and is a multi-faceted dancer, trained by many different instructors, including Nayna, Serena, Naima Sultana, and Satya Jvala, across many different styles of belly dance. A multi-Bloom veteran, a former member of the Raq-a-bellas and 1/2 of the duo known as Seleena, Tanya continued dancing thru the darkness in her kitchen until she felt it was time to rise up on her own. When not shimmying, Tanya enjoys spending time on the river/riverbank and lounging with her cats. She is also learning aerial arts and has been known to play with fire.
Taylor
Taylor is a Charlotte native. She has been training circus since 2013 and currently focuses on contortionism, hand-balancing, and Lyra. They have professionally performed on solo/duo Lyra, trapeze, silks, straps, hand balance, and contortionism. On the side, she also likes to train rope and aerial loops. Along with that, she has 5 years of training in ensemble dance, theatre, and classical vocals. In college, she focused on visual arts and anatomy. While working and performing with a troupe in Vermont in 2019 she had the fun opportunity to try out tightwire, and can't wait to give it another go!
With a unique approach to circus, they merge resistance training with flexibility training- creating strong, flexible bodies able to bend both on the ground and in the air. She is currently working with a local circus troupe to create visually stunning and socially inquisitive productions.
Angela
Angela first found strength in movement through cheerleading. She cheered competitively from second grade until her senior year of college. During that time, she also taught tumbling classes at Evolution Gym in Bridgewater, NJ. After graduation, this former cheerleader was delighted to discover aerial circus. It was love at first climb. Few disciplines allow you to showcase your strength, musicality, and still surprise the audience the way aerial does.
Although she primarily practices silks, trapeze, and loops, she loves hanging from just about anything she can get her hands on. Angela's love of performance and improvising bring her back to aerial every time. She also performs on stilts and with poi, because circus is just too fun not to explore multiple disciplines!
Anna
Anna has had a love for acrobatics since her first gymnastics class at the age of 4. She went on to compete in USA Gymnastics until college where she was on the club gymnastics team at UNCW right up to her graduation in 2015. It was around that time when she came across silks for the first time and instantly fell in love. Shortly after college she moved to Greece where she lived for five years and trained in the circus community there, learning many diverse training styles and perspectives.
She currently trains in lyra, trapeze, sling, and silks. As an instructor with over a decade of experience coaching and a masters degree in counseling psychology, she loves to motivate her students and facilitate growth in an inclusive and encouraging environment.
Hanna B.
A lifelong student of dance, Hanna has been training and performing as an aerialist since 2017. As a performer and an instructor Hanna specializes in aerial hoop. Her approach to hoop technical theory is informed by her personal dabbling in other aerial apparatuses and her deep background in movement composition and release technique modern dance. More interested in honing technique than teaching tricks, Hanna is a good match for intermediate students looking to attain more fluidity and intentionality in the air.
Aside from spreading her gospel of spinning, strength moves, and playful transitions on aerial hoop, Hanna’s main focus in teaching is sharing her passion for creative craft with her students so they can discover their artistic voice and realize the chock-full-of-meaning performances that she believes are within every human, just waiting to be brought to life. Her years in art school have honed her ability to give useful, creator-focused feedback to fellow performers and one of her greatest delights is in offering advice to those looking to summon and sharpen their choreographic visions.
Fascinated by kinesiology and physicality, Sarah has traveled around the country as a performer, student, and educator.
Anna P.
While growing up, Anna had very little interest in any kinds of sports or physical activities. It wasn't until she took her first aerial class on a whim that Anna found a hobby that she truly loves. You can typically find Anna on the trapeze, straps, sling or lyra, but trapeze is her ultimate love.
Anna has been doing aerial for over three years, but has had to take several breaks for medical reasons. She's been lucky to have instructors who have always been encouraging and modified exercises around limitations. Anna hopes to emulate this in her teaching style. Aerial has helped Anna to grow in ways that she never expected and she wants to create a similar experience for others.
Outside of the studio, Anna loves to play DnD, boardgames and to hang out with her partner and their three pets. She also has a love for everything dramatic and can be found making props for photoshoots with friends.
Theresa
Theresa started her circus journey at the age of 26 with no background in dance, gymnastics, or any physical activities customarily seen in this industry. In lieu of a traditional movement background, her passion was in theatre and creative writing. Since her first aerial class she’s been addicted to flying and searched for more avenues to train independently. This hunger and drive has since led her to perform in multiple main stage shows, teach workshops, and manage various performance troupes.
Her repertoire of disciplines includes fabric, aerial hoop, duo straps, partner/group acrobatics, and more. When not training, Theresa enjoys spending quality time chasing around her 8 year old and 9 month old sons. She aspires to build a social circus endeavor with the goal of giving back to underserved communities through outreach, education, and training. Her biggest teaching goal is to instill the belief that regardless of your background and starting point, everyone is capable of achieving success in circus and that this art form should be inclusive and accessible to all.
Shannon
Shannon is a North Carolina native, born and bred! She started doing Aerial just over 7.5 years ago when she moved to Charlotte for work. She wanted something that would join her gymnastics background with something new and unique and still get a great workout in, as she had just switched from a job coaching gymnastics to a job sitting at a desk. She trains on sling, lyra, trapeze, silks and more recently - double loops. She has taught aerial silks on and off since 2019 and has performed on many occasions since 2018 at various venues around North Carolina.
Outside of the studio - Shannon is a CPA and a new mom to a wonderful little boy and is learning to balance everything and still find time for all the activities! She loves game nights with friends, escape rooms and hanging out with her family.
Jeremy Foster
Jeremy has had a lifelong love of fitness but it wasn't until he was entering his thirties that he discovered the world of the aerial arts. He was on a cruise with his wife when they saw a partner acrobatics duo on our for the first time. On the drive home they immediately signed up for every class possible. Now Jeremy focuses on duo trapeze and partner acrobatics with his wife, aerial straps, and is an aspiring juggler.
Jeremy is excited to bring his experience as a personal trainer to the studio and help bridge the gap between traditional exercise and aerial expression.
Courtney
Courtney has been practicing aerial for the last five years. Aerial has helped her feel empowered and more in touch with herself. Practicing aerial through pregnancy and the postpartum period helped her develop a deep appreciation for her body. She loves the combination of strength and fluidity that is present in the discipline.
Courtney believes that aerial arts is for everybody at any stage in their personal journey. Her true aerial love is Lyra and she is so excited to bring a lyra introductory class to the schedule this summer. She has dreamed of teaching since her first class with @satya_performance_arts and is so excited to be embarking on this journey with the beautiful community Bloom Movement Artistry.
Olivia
Olivia's love for movement arts began at age 5 when she put on her first pair of tap shoes. During the next 12 years she continued her dance journey in Columbia, SC before starting college at the University of South Carolina. Olivia was so happy to join the aerial world five years ago shortly after moving to Charlotte. Her circus journey began through a close friend and fellow aerialist’s recommendation to help build strength and discover a new workout. Since then, aerial has become one of her passions, and she now trains primarily on sling and lyra, but has also trained on trapeze and silks! She loves graceful movement in the air, and has permanently pointed toes. Olivia was thrilled to join the BMA teaching staff in 2023, and enjoys helping others fall in love with aerial. She has an optimistic personality and loves to cheer students on in class. Outside of the studio, Olivia enjoys theatre, animals, volunteering, and spending time with her family, friends, and husband.