Our Instructors

Kimberly was born and raised in NY and has a style like no other in the business: Soulful and Elegant with tons of flavor. At 8, Kimberly learned how to dance Bomba, Plena, and other Folkloric dances from Puerto Rico and began to dance for world-famous Puerto Rican traditional musician William Cepeda. She began her salsa training at 12 in New York City with David Melendez and Maribel Maldonado at Starlite Dance Studio in NYC. Her expertise has enabled her to travel the world alongside Candy Mena, Andy Cruz, Adolfo Indacochea, Sekou McMiller, Jorge “Ataca” Burgos, Tanja “La Alemana” Kensinger, and the Mambo King Eddie Torres as one of his principal partners. Kimberly is the director and founder of an all-ladies team, Diosas, a coed team, Tun Bere, and a franchise team, MG Chicago. She is also a Latin dance instructor for several programs at After School Matters and is now the proud owner of her studio, KR Dance Studio.

Jocelyn started dancing in high school, “Hubbard Bachata Club,” at 15. By 17 years old, she knew that dancing was what she wanted to pursue for the rest of her life! She studied dance at Columbia College for two years, learning many different styles. (Ballet, modern, West African, Hip Hop, etc.) Sebastian was 12 years old when he started dancing with The Joffrey Ballet in Chicago. He was with them for seven years, then went to the Chicago High School for the Arts, where I had more ballet training and danced contemporary, Modern, Horton, etc. Together, they have several years of experience dancing, training, performing, and teaching. They are also Bachata World Champions, winning titles at the Summit Championship.

Mario has been dancing since he could walk, inspired by his parents’ love for music. In 2012, he joined Urban Vibe, co-directed by Kimberly Rivera, and fell in love with mambo On2 "NY" style, a passion he continues to nurture as one of Kimberly’s proud students.

With nine years of experience as an educator, including teaching high school dance, Mario is dedicated to helping students connect with salsa music, feel the rhythm, and express themselves. Social dancing is his greatest love, it’s the heart of salsa, where we connect and truly express through the music.

Mario has been fortunate to perform internationally and across the U.S., and he’s excited to share my experiences and passion for dance at KR Dance Studio.

Denisse began her dance journey while attending University of Illinois Chicago, joining a Latin dance team that sparked her passion for movement and community. Over the past 10+ years, she has performed and danced with multiple teams throughout Chicago. Deeply rooted in the Latin dance scene, Denisse especially value the connection and joy found in social dancing. As an instructor, she is passionate about helping students build confidence, develop strong fundamentals, and enjoy every step of their dance journey.

Adi (they/them) is a 2nd generation Mexican and Puerto Rican queer, trans, sober, non-binary embodiment practitioner, facilitator, body worker, and dancer. Growing up Adi learned to dance at family parties with their tios and cousins playing the guitarra, congas, bongos, y güira. Their love for music, community, and dancing hasn’t stopped. Adi has since trained with professionals around the country and is deeply committed to sharing the skills they have and most importantly, fulfilling their dream of more dance spaces that center community, connection over competition, admiration over judgement, and active and on-going consent!