the Team
Meet your teachers
-
Teaching pole class, chair dance and BungeeWORKOUT all in the same day whilst managing the behind-the-scenes and front-facing work of a dance studio? Sounds like the job of a superhero who we call Nana! As Managing Director of Viva Vertical, Nana is the brains who has helped lead Viva Vertical since 2012 to where it is today, always tending to the daily operations of our three studio locations and on every stage our performers stand on.
True to her ambition, Nana began pole dancing in 2008 and competed in her first ever pole competition a mere 3 months after her start. 15 years later, she is still going strong, building her dance career from a strong foundation of ballroom latin, jazz dance, and commercial dance.
Fuelled by her passion for performing arts, she has also brought the professional performance troupe, Viva Circus, to ever great heights. This group of elite talents have staged a number of awe-inspring, visually spectacular productions locally and internationally.
In 2019, she became the Master Trainer of BungeeWORKOUT in Malaysia and pioneered another avenue for people seeking fun fitness. See if you can also catch a lyrical pole class or workshop with her, and experience her soulful choreography and dance for yourself.
-
Have you been looking for the cutest teacher around? You’ve found her!
Angel stumbled across pole dancing as it was taking the world by storm in the late 2000’s, and soon after, aerial arts. She would go fast from being a student, to performing stunning aerial routines and being hoisted higher in the air than she could comprehend (yes, teachers feel heights too)!
Her first steps in the pole world were due to sheer enjoyment. After a while of taking classes and competing, she took an instructor course to further her own knowledge. Battling self-doubts and language barriers at first, Angel would persistently forge on and come to develop her own unique style, language, and method of teaching, which her students are familiar with. She is effusive when describing her enjoyment of laughter and light-heartedness in her classes.
15 years on and cuter than ever, Angel has dedicated her career to not just nurturing students. For her, teaching is not just tending to her students and watching them grow, but to improve alongside them.
Having competed locally and internationally, her honours include: 1st Runner Up Duo Pole in Vie & Vault 2.0 Asian Pole Championship 2013 Phillipines (her very first international competition), and Champion Duo Hoop in China International Pole Dance Competition 2015, among others
-
Everyone who has seen Yen perform on stage can’t help but be struck by her unmistakeable cool presence and powerful personal style.
A veteran of the dance world, Yen’s discovery of aerial arts allowed her to combine her unique talents. During the production of Cre 2018, she found a burning passion in aerial rope, and has since fully applied herself in the exploration of this artform. In 2022, she became a BungeeWORKOUT instructor.
In Sakti 2023, she brought the demon Basiron to life, truly highlighting her broad skillset of aerial arts, bungee fitness/performance, dance, and drumming and dominating the stage with her ferocious energy.
In the studio, Yen brings her fiery presence from the stage to class settings as she shares her love and hard-won experience in performance to her students, guiding them to achieve things beyond their imagination.
-
Shernes is synonymous with the sensual sizzle she serves in her exotic pole and chair dance classes. Previously a gym-goer, she discovered pole dancing in 2012 and thus uncovered her soft, sensual side. With her talent and ear for music, her choreography work is more than just individual tricks like leg waves; they translate movement into dazzling showcases that students love to perform, and audiences love to watch.
She has a deep understanding of the techniques behind dance, and regularly sets goals for her students, whether it is flexibility, or the foundations of sensual dance and works with them to achieve them.
Her eye for beauty extends to more than dance; when outside the studio, she is at work in her garden tending to her beautiful rose blossoms.
-
If you are lucky enough to witness Sheila’s dynamite athleticism on stage, flipping and tumbling on the pole, you might find it hard to believe she was a self-described regular office girl stuck in her 9 to 6 grind with zero dance moves up her sleeve. Serendipitously, she stumbled upon a movie with a pole dance scene. Enthralled, she set out on her own journey and transformed herself into other people’s inspiration through grit.
Fully embodying her belief that your results reflect the effort that you put in, she threw herself fully into training, frequently having back-to-back pole classes and gym sessions. Training at every moment she could developed her mastery in her preferred acrobatic style, and today, her name is inseparable from her signature acrobatic style of incredible stunts around the pole. For exotic pole, her electric dynamism shows up in a fiery style (known as exotic hard style).
Do you think dying gravity and performing cool tricks on a vertical bar sounds appealing? If so, Sheila’s class is definitely the one for you!
-
A striking performer who wears many hats, Noah is at once a powerful aerialist, an actor, and BungeeWORKOUT teacher that has marked his work indelibly with his signature style.
He is known for his arresting ability to combine the drama of theatre and the incredible skills of aerial arts into captivating shows. Aside from his own performances, this glittering performance powerhouse draws inspiration from a wide variety of sources and applies it to his classes and student choreography, making his and his students’ productions into wonderful pieces of entertainment.
In Noah’s class, you never know what to expect! He is highly imaginative and brings an eclectic mix of tricks, combos and routines, ensuring that all his students learn and progress in a fun environment.
Noah’s ambition has brought him onto the stages of national and international competitions. He was Champion in the Solo Aerial Silk category in Asian Air Stars 2017 and Duo silk category in Philippines Aerial Cup 2018. You may also recognise him in his commercial work, which includes him being featured in the 2020 CNY Celebration on 8TV as an aerialist.
-
Emily is defined by her unmatched poise on stage. In 2007, she completed theatre drama training in TEA theatre, and won “Best Artists” award with in the 8th ADA Drama Awards. Since then, she has brought her formidable talents to the pole and aerial world, the yoga world and BungeeWORKOUT.
Her dance has a gentle current that touches a chord in audiences’ hearts, and years of training have refined her technique. This has backed her performances on stage; her winning routines in 2012 Polestars Malaysia as Pole Art Champion and Duo Pole Champion. In Sakti 2023, she brought the role of Seventh Princess, the female lead, to life, both on the ground and in the air.
She does not subscribe to any template or preconceived notions in both dance and life; rather, in her training and on stage, she draws inspiration from her mentors, peers, and experiences. This is also what she offers to her BungeeWORKOUT students: a chance to change. Outside of the dance, yoga and bungee studio, her favourite activity is enjoying good food with good people.
-
Yun Ru is here to dispel the common notion that students can be too weak or too inflexible to start aerial. As important as strength and flexibility are, she remains firm that they can be built, and the most important things for aerialists are strong fundamentals and immaculate form. With proper technique, any trick or routine can be done elegantly and safely.
She loves geeking out over aerial theory and uses it as a formwork to structure her classes to best lay the foundation for her students, and convey aerial techniques in an entertaining and easily understandable manner.
A winner of the 2017 Viva Vertical In-House Competition and runner-up in the 2023 Viva Circus Awards, her class is the place to go for those looking to get started or for those looking to get reacquainted with aerial.
When not choreographing routines and inspecting her students' toe points, Yun Ru enjoys making bread, reading and weightlifting.
-
Cynthia has built formidable experience as a pole dancer and aerialist. A dedicated student from the very beginning, she participated in casual student recitals, more formal outdoor events, and eventually growing into a performer at commercial shows and full-fledged productions. Most notably, she performed as part of a cube quartet in CRE Arts Asia (2018), a modern showcase of circus arts, and had the role of Second Princess in Sakti (2023), a multi-disciplinary production of aerial arts and drumming theatre.
This extensive experience has impressed on her the value of repetition- she recalls the meticulous work on routines to make them familiar and look seamless to the audience, no matter how challenging the tricks, and always showcasing her best self on stage.
Backed by her years of performance, she has forayed into teaching. She now works on sharing her skills to students of various strength, flexibility, body types, and approach to movement.
-
It is difficult to describe with words the level of expertise of who we at the studio affectionately call “sifu”. Suffice to say that she carries a rare mixture of talent, courage, discipline, technical understanding, and ambition that truly sets her apart.
A exceptional dancer whose performances touch your soul, she started by majoring in jazz dance in 2002. After competing in So You Think You Can Dance Season 2 in 2008, she dove headfirst into pole dancing and then aerial arts. A natural proficient, she soon began competing and performing internationally including in Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Korea, Vietnam, Philippines, and Japan. She was champion of Singapore Pole Challenge 2016, and Female Professional Silk in Thailand Aerial Arts Competition 2017- merely two titles in a very long list.
Having built herself up from the ground, her dedication to her craft and daring runs so deep that she has not only sculpted herself into one of the industry’s most respected and admired artists, but has also trained and created a studio with a roster of exceptional artists. She has always sought to bring herself and others to the next level, be it in technical skill, theory, or musicality.
-
If one person embodies the charm of Viva Vertical, it would be no other than our beloved Kitt. Her bubbly personality and expertise in many disciplines personifies what our studio strives to be.
From an early age, she demonstrated a natural talent for movement and music, and started dancing informally and self-trained through exploration. After being approached to perform professionally in 2008, she began formal training and elevated herself into a performer extraordinaire.
Across 10 years of professional performance, she has experienced many unforgettable moments on stage and is regarded as one of the top pole and aerial artists in Malaysia. This breadth of experience has honed her craft and made her a true master pole and aerial dancer who possesses a magnetic quality.
Her 13 years of work with students has brought a deep understanding of different bodies, and a knowledge of how to adapt teaching methods to any classroom setting. She has guided many students from diverse movement backgrounds to professional pole dancer and aerialists, no mean feat.
Her years of disciplined training have not diminished her cheerful demeanour in the least, and you will always have a good time in her classes. Have we mentioned that she is a trained musician and plays the piano and erhu?
-
Combine over 40 years of dancing, a rigorous training in ballet, rhythmic gymnastics, latin ballroom dance, pole dance, aerial arts, and a spirit for achievement… and you get Nathalee! Nathalee is a corporate lawyer by day and a dance teacher by night.
Her start in the dance world was at 6 years of age with ballet, and it never stopped- exploring all genres and types of dance. She started pole dancing and aerial 12 years ago, and started teaching when she gained the desire to share her passion with students. Teaching gets her creative juices flowing, and she describes imparting her knowledge to students as therapy after working hours, and seeing their transformation as the ultimate gratification.
When we say she never stops moving, we mean it! She constantly pushes the limits and continued pole dancing up to 7 months of pregnancy. Her ambition is as broad as her experience- to grow, teach and perform for as long as possible.
-
Originally from Malaysia, Nicholas specializes in pole, aerial and choreography. Formerly Master Instructor of Aerial Arts Academy, Hong Kong, he is currently a Senior Instructor of Viva Vertical Malaysia.
Nicholas is a main cast member in prominent Viva Circus Productions, including Neverland, Secret Of The Lost Circus, and, Art Is Power and Femme Fatale and CRÈ.
He has been victorious in pole and aerial competitions, winning numerous championships in Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, China and the USA. Though too many to list here, his notable titles include Pole Fit Champion, Aerial Hoop Champion and Overall Champion in China Intl Pole and Aerial Championship 2013, and Aerial Hoop Men’s Champion in Philippines Aerial Cup 2018.
What next after multiple championships under his belt? Nicholas has applied his ability in this artform to judging various national and international competitions around the globe, from as close as Thailand, HK, and the Philippines, to as far as the UK, Hungary, and Brazil. He is the first Malaysian to be certified in the prestigious judging panel of Pole Theatre. In 2017, Nicholas was appointed as the head judge of Airstars championship till today.
-
Hailing from Osaka, Japan, this skillful teacher, who has been pole dancing for over a decade, will have you doing your dream bendy and power tricks!
Mai leads exciting classes full of wonderful combos and conditioning exercises gleaned from her years of experiencing in dancing and teaching. These techniques she shares are tailored to get her students to the level of performing aspirational tricks like Janeiro, BOP, spatchcock, flips, etc. Nothing fills her with pride more than watching her students perform.
Among her favourite memories are a hot air balloon photoshoot, where she showcased her skill on aerial silks, and a touching pole performance with her daughter in “Femme Fatale: Decadance”, a performing arts production in 2016. She looks forward to many more as a performer and teacher, with her ultimate aim to dance as long as possible.
When not poling, she loves to sew, bake, spend time with her poodle Daisy, and garden. A skilled seamstress, she creates the chic-est pole and aerial wear.
-
Imagine a young dancer of thirteen, tentatively taking her first steps into the spotlight on stage, not knowing this would culminate in a lifetime career in the performing arts. That was Yiki, who has a background of Chinese Culture Dance. Yiki danced regularly throughout her adolescence, and represented Malaysia in the International Traditional Culture Festival in Yunnan, as well as multiple competitions in Hong Kong.
In 2011, she joined Viva Circus and eventually became the producer of Cre 2017 & 2018, an event that she recalls as the hardest event she had organised so far and a wonderful learning experience.
More recently, as part of Bungee Fitness Malaysia, she brings an exciting new exercise format to students. Even though she joined initially for the benefits of exercise, she did not stray far from her roots and fell in love with the choreography aspect. A dancer through-and-through, she uses it as another medium to communicate and tell a story with her body, mind, and soul. Students who work hard and break through difficult skills in her class are what keeps her going.
-
An active athlete all her life, Jennifer stumbled across aerial arts in search of a novel fitness pursuit, and immediately immersed herself in training. Her natural strength enabled her to make the most of her 12 years of training, and she has performed not just in solo aerial performances but duo and group performances. Most recently, she graced the stage as part of a captivating aerial cube quartet in Sakti (2023), a full-fledged production of aerial arts and drumming theatre. These number of high-calibre performances gave her a full appreciation for the challenges aerial arts presents in terms of artistry.
In 2022, she took the next step to become a teacher, and continues her aerial life challenging students to do what they thought was impossible. In her, there is a teacher who has genuine joy in bringing accomplishment and pride to her students.
-
Nothing short of bubbly playfulness, this girl brings cheer, laughter, and light-heartedness into every class she leads! Jessica, a born and bred city girl, joined a pole dancing class in 2016 as a bet- a bet that would kickstart a delightful journey. After dabbling in activities that sparked joy for some time, she left her banking job and turned it into a full time pursuit.
Jessica hopes to bring the same happiness she feels when dancing and making beautiful shapes around the pole to students: she recalls how she felt it was impossible in the beginning and nearly gave up. Through her own, her teachers’, and her friends’ persistence, she grew in her progression, but she never lost the feeling of awe when she sees others create incredible performances on the pole. This fuels her passion to share the same happiness to her students, one step at a time.