owner/instructor
Gordon Bratt began his professional dancing career in 2005 after earning his BA in Biology from St. John’s University. Over the last few years he has been familiar face at competitions across the country, both in the Professional and Pro/Am categories. Most recently his students have earned finalist placements at the United States Dance Championships, Millennium Dancesport Championships, and Emerald Ball Championships.
Gordon’s professional motto is “the best teachers are the best students”, and he tries to live out that idea every day, exploring all areas of life as opportunities for wisdom. Gordon is married to the love of his life (and dance partner), Kate Bratt, with whom he is kept busy raising eight little ones. He also enjoys playing music and tennis with his children, using these other activities as an opportunity to exercise his passions of learning and teaching.
Gordon Bratt
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owner/instructor
It is often said that you will hear Kate Bratt long before you see her. Kate's fun-loving personality, animated gestures, attention to detail, and copious supply of knowledge make her the ideal instructor for both new and experienced dancers.
Winning regional and state competitions in elite gymnastics led Kate to search for a new competitive outlet after she got "too old" for gymnastics, which naturally led her to ballroom dancing. Ballroom has afforded her creative opportunities such as performing with Michael Johns (American Idol) and Gene Simmons (KISS), working on a national campaign for LensCrafters, and performing in the Minnesota Fringe Festival. While consistently making finals through her career in pro-am, am-am, and pro competitions is fun, seeing her students succeed on the social and competitive dance floor keeps her motivated.
Kate also hangs with her husband and eight kids while creating content for the blog/podcast Riot and Frolic to keep sleeping hours to a minimum
Kate Bratt
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instructor
Jessica has had a passion for dancing most of her life. She danced as a child and into her teenage years. After a short break to focus on a career in the radio business as a news reporter, producer and DJ she was able to return to her love of dancing in 2009.
For over 15 years Jessica has had the opportunity to pursue her dancing as a full time instructor, coach, competitor, choreographer and performer, focusing on all aspects of partnership dancing.
Although performing for others has always been a joy, Jessica says her greatest delight comes from helping others learn and grow through dancing. She’s a huge fan of creating personalized routines, digging into technique and is constantly studying to improve her own dancing.
Jessica is also a mother of one, delights in spending personal time with her family, loves all things science fiction, collects rocks, gardens, cooks and can’t wait to see you on the dance floor!
Jessica Restivo
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instructor
Favorite Dance Memory: Attending my first ever competition in college! Seeing so many wonderful dancers sparkling in their costumes was so inspiring. It made me determined to join the wider ballroom community and I have yet to be disappointed.
Favorite Dance Movie: Does Mamma Mia! count? No? Dirty Dancing!
Fun Facts: Loves arts and crafts, ducks, hiking, skiing, and baking pies. Once won a jar of mustard at the National
Mustard Museum.
Ella Boyer
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instructor
Favorite Dance Memory: Being the captain of my college’s ballroom team and watching newer dancers fall in love with the sport.
Favorite Dance Movie: Does Moulin Rouge count? No? Dirty Dancing!
Fun Facts: Can clap with one hand. Loves a good game of pinochle. HUGE swiftie. Enjoys soccer, kayaking, baseball, camping, and bikepacking. Once ate an entire 12-pack of Taco Bell’s Doritos Locos tacos.
Stuart Kraabel
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instructor
Julia joined the fantastic team of instructors at Dancers Studio in 2021. Her dance journey began at an early age with training in ballet, classical Chinese dance, and acrobatics, laying a strong foundation for her diverse dance career. After earning her degree from Macalester College, Julia became a member of the St. Paul-based professional dance company, Ananya Dance Theatre. From 2016 to 2020, she performed and toured nationally and internationally in the contemporary Indian dance form of Yorchha.
Julia fell in love with Argentine Tango while studying abroad in Argentina, and since then, she has become a familiar face in the Twin Cities’ social dance scene, dancing tango, salsa, bachata, kizomba, and her latest obsession, Brazilian Zouk. Specializing in American Smooth and Rhythm, Julia is dedicated to making dance accessible, fun, and rewarding for students of all levels.
Julia Gay
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"My wife and I have been enjoying private lessons at Dancers Studio every week for more than 15 years and I’ve gone from being a hesitant 2-left feet guy, afraid to get on a dance floor, to a more confident dancer, looking forward to loads of laughter and superb instruction. Whether you’re a beginner or been ballroom dancing for a long time and just want to hone your technique, these are your people!""
"Dancers Studio is a wonderful company. The owners and all the instructors are super friendly and accomplished in their own rights. After classes I always leave with a smile on my face."
"I held an event at Dancers Studio for a group of young professionals. Everyone had so much fun! They talked about how they loved Kate's super enthusiastic style of instruction. Embracing dance has the potential to be awkward for a lot of young professionals, but after Kate's lesson, everyone simply accepted it as normal, which was awesome to see!"
"Dancers Studio is an amazingly supportive dance studio. The instructors are lovely, affirming people who have helped me to move from a tripping old lady to a graceful budding dancer in just 12 weeks! I'm so glad I found Dancers Studio."
"Best Ballroom Dance Studio"
Voted
in the Twin Cities by Mpls. St.Paul Magazine
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