Meet Our Staff!
12 years ago, Miss Stacy went on a hunt for a dance studio for her then 3-year-old daughter. She wanted a fun dance class where her daughter could learn to love dance, gain balance and coordination skills, and where she could watch the class. What she found was that classes were too strict for younger dancers and that she was not allowed to stay and enjoy her daughter's experience in class. She could not find a place that offered this type of class, and with her daughter being shy, she ultimately did not want to go back, which was heartbreaking. A few years passed, and Miss Stacy knew there was a need for this type of program, so she and her Mom, Miss Carol, started the Freckled Frog, and the rest is history.
Miss Stacy grew up from the age of 4 an artistic roller skater, skating 4 hours a day, 6 days a week, and a dancer. After graduating from high school, she attended Fullerton College, where she got her degree in paralegal studies and worked thereafter for The Irvine Company.
Although dance may not be every child's path, as they grow, the benefits will help them in many aspects of their life. Miss Stacy hopes that the Freckled Frog program brings many memories for children and their parents.
Stacy Reese
Owner
Josh is the co-owner of The Freckled Frog. In his role, he looks after all aspects of the finances, maintenance, cleaning, and so much more. He has been around the studio since the beginning, but only as a part-time helper and advisor, as he had been pursuing a career in property management. He had worked with The Irvine Company for 12 years, which is where he met his wife, Stacy. While working at The Irvine Company, he learned quite a bit about customer service and having high standards.
During his time there, he had been honored three times with the “People Service People” award, which is the highest customer service award. Helping people is something that Stacy and Josh are always passionate about. In 2016, he left The Irvine Company to help Stacy with the studio as it was growing so fast.
He is passionate about supporting Stacy and the incredible dance instructors. Although he is rarely seen at the studios, he visits them all the time, fixing this or painting that in the early and late hours. He is passionate about maintaining the integrity of the studios. His hopes are for the dancers, parents, and instructors to always feel comfortable in the studios as if it were their second home.
Josh Reese
Josh Reese
Owner
Sara Birnbaum
Studio Manager
Sara Birnbaum has been a dedicated part of the Freckled Frog Dance Studio family for over 11 years! As the Studio Manager and Team Coordinator, she keeps everything running smoothly—from organizing recitals and competitions to supporting dancers, families, and staff. With a background in Communications and Public Relations from California State University, Fullerton, Sara also brings her creative touch to marketing, social media, and fun studio events.
She loves creating a positive and welcoming environment where young dancers can grow in confidence and teamwork. When she’s not at the studio, you can find Sara curled up with a good book, experimenting in the kitchen, or practicing her newest hobby—sewing!
Briana Hare
Teacher
Bri Hare started working for Freckled Frog Dance Studio a little over 3 years ago. She studied dance and choreography at Humboldt State University, as well as many dance studios throughout her childhood. Passionate about dance, the transition from working at a traveling dance company to Freckled Frog was easy and fitting.
In her free time, Bri likes to gallivant through various theme parks with her best friend, Justin (it inspires creativity!). She also likes to attend the theater to see musicals, mostly the ones that star her friends, and loves promoting live, on-stage performances. Grateful for the opportunity to work for such an amazing establishment, Bri makes sure to do her best to inspire these young dancers and improve their technique. Always remember "dance is magic!"
Maxine Weidner
Teacher
Maxine Weidner brings the experience of 20 years as a professional dancer, and 20 years as a teacher, to her classes at Freckled Frog-Leap Academy. She began dancing at age 3 in Houston, Texas, and has studied ballet, tap, acrobatics, and jazz. At an early age, Maxine moved to New York City to further her dance career. There she was on scholarship with Madame Maria Nevelska at Carnegie Hall Studio. Maxine danced in the ballet company at Radio City Music Hall, then toured with Disney On Parade-Alice Unit, understudying the lead dancer. Then began her career at Disneyland as dancer and line captain at the Golden Horseshoe Revue. This led to a solo as Mary Poppins on TV's Academy Awards, and 6 months in Japan for the opening of Tokyo Disneyland. After marrying and having her 2 children, Maxine began teaching, and today enjoys teaching ballet at Freckled Frog-Leap Academy.
Sydney Conte
Teacher
Miss Sydney was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada, and has called California home for the past four years. She grew up dancing and figure skating, but at 15, she chose dance as her true passion. Throughout her childhood, she danced competitively and trained in a variety of styles, including ballet, tap, contemporary, and modern techniques such as Graham and Hawkins.
Sydney earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Performance and Choreography from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She has been a part of Freckled Frog for nearly four years and loves watching the children grow and develop in their dance journey. Sydney is deeply passionate about the future and safety of the dance world and inspiring the next generation of dancers to chase their dreams.
Teagan
Teacher
Miss Teagan began dancing at the age of 3 and has been doing it ever since! She is trained in many styles of dance. With years of performance experience and a background in competitive dance and musical productions, she brings both technique and stage presence to her classes.
Miss Teagan has been teaching for over 4 years, and has been at Freckled Frog for over two years and absolutely loves being part of the community. Her favorite style to teach is tap, and she especially enjoys helping students build confidence, express themselves, and have fun through movement.
Outside of the studio, Miss Teagan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from UC Irvine. She loves taking dance classes and going to the dog beach with her basset hound, DOOM. She’s passionate about education, creativity, and creating a positive space where all dancers feel seen, valued, and inspired to grow.
Kylie Harris
Teacher
Miss Teagan began dancing at the age of 3 and has been doing it ever since! She is trained in many styles of dance. With years of performance experience and a background in competitive dance and musical productions, she brings both technique and stage presence to her classes.
Miss Teagan has been teaching for over 4 years, and has been at Freckled Frog for over two years and absolutely loves being part of the community. Her favorite style to teach is tap, and she especially enjoys helping students build confidence, express themselves, and have fun through movement.
Outside of the studio, Miss Teagan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from UC Irvine. She loves taking dance classes and going to the dog beach with her basset hound, DOOM. She’s passionate about education, creativity, and creating a positive space where all dancers feel seen, valued, and inspired to grow.
Sydney Heiner
Teacher
Sydney Heiner is an award-winning choreographer and dedicated dance instructor with a passion for developing technically strong and confident dancers. With over a decade of training in jazz, hip-hop, contemporary, lyrical, musical theater, and ballet, Sydney has competed and performed at elite levels, earning national recognition for both her performances and choreography.
As an instructor at Leap Academy, she brings her expertise and creativity to inspire dancers of all levels, coaching competitive teams to success. Sydney’s leadership experience includes serving as Captain and Student Choreographer for the Trabuco Hills High School Varsity Dance Team, where she helped produce dynamic performances for showcases, rallies, and competitions.
Beyond dance, Sydney’s background in public speaking and team leadership makes her an engaging and motivating mentor. Her commitment to excellence, creativity, and passion for the art of movement continues to shape the next generation of dancers.
Jordan Sly
Teacher
Miss Jordan started dancing when she was 3 years old! She continued her dance education at Onstage Dance Center until she was 18 years old. She started competing when she was 11 years old and fell in love with it instantly. She loved being onstage and putting on the best performance she could. Her favorite styles of dance growing up were lyrical and jazz. In high school, she was on the song team for 2 years and was a part of the dance program for 1 year. She has had a passion for dance her whole life and wanted to pass down her knowledge to the littles. She loves to travel and see new places with her family and her boyfriend. She loves being outside and seeing new things.
Jessica Morton
Teacher
Miss Jessica started dancing when she was only a year old and hasn’t stopped since. Miss Jessica learned a majority of her dance skills with the studio The Dance Place, where she performed, competed, and choreographed for 23 years of her life. After The Dance Place had retired, she continued to improve her dance skills and teaching strategies by completing her Bachelors of Science Degree in Child and Adolescent Studies at California State Fullerton with a Minor in Dance Teaching Strategies.
Miss Jessica has been helping teach beginning dance to children 2 years old and older since she was 12 years old and thoroughly enjoys spending time watching her students continually grow as dancers and people. Even though Miss Jessica loves all types of dance her two favorite styles are Tap and Musical Theater! She has won many awards and accolades for her tap and musical theater solos when she was competing and is always excited to incorporate both Tap and Musical Theater dance styles in her choreography. Miss Jessica loves helping to push her students to become the best dancers and people they could be and will always put them first.
Giselle Diaz
Teacher
Miss. Gigi was born and raised in Orange, California. She began dancing at just 3 years old! She attended Academy of Dance and then Elite Dance Academy. She was trained in ballet, tap, jazz, and lyrical. Once reaching high school, Giselle danced, performed, and competed with the Villa Park HS dance program for all 4 years, where she eventually became one of the senior dance team captains, and was also voted best dancer by her senior class! With Villa Park, she explored new dance styles, such as hip-hop and contemporary. After graduation, Giselle is now attending Santiago Canyon College, where she is studying nursing. Giselle’s biggest passion in life is dance, and she is extremely grateful to be able to continue pursuing her passion through her job. She loves all her students and loves to learn and grow with them.
Sydney Kerl
Teacher
Miss Sydney grew up in San Diego where she began dancing at a young age in styles including tap, ballet, pointe, jazz, lyrical, and more. In addition to dance, she began training in vocal performance, musical theater, and acting from the age of 10. Miss Sydney has danced competitively, performed in showcases, galas, musicals, and modeling shows across southern California.
Throughout her college career, she trained under Brandee Lara and had the opportunity to learn from renowned tap artists including Chloe Arnold, Parris Mann, Dante Lara, and more. In addition, she was a part of the development of the first TapFestCali in 2022.
Miss Sydney graduated from Chapman University with a B.S. in Business Administration and a B.A. in Public Relations and Advertising. She now works full time in marketing.
With 10+ years of teaching experience, Miss Sydney’s passion is empowering young dancers to express themselves through the art of dance.
Sarah Anderson
Teacher
Miss Sarah fell in love with dance at the age of 3 and has been immersed in the performing arts ever since. At 14, she expanded her passion by joining musical theater, performing with companies such as Downey Civic Light Opera, MYART, and Yayas Performance Academy and the Young Americans. She pursued her love for the stage academically, earning an degree in Theater Arts from Cerritos College.
After graduating, she found her calling in teaching and choreography. As the choreographer and assistant director for West Arts Productions, she worked with young performers ages 5-18, choreographing and directing children's theater productions, main stage shows, summer performances, and ensemble showcases. With extensive experience in both dance and musical theater, she is passionate about creating an encouraging and engaging environment where children can express themselves through movement and storytelling. Whether in the dance studio or on stage, she loves watching students grow in confidence, technique, and passion for the performing arts while helping the next generation of performers shine!