Shauna Opitz

Born in Burlington, Wisconsin, Shauna began dancing at a young age.  At a local studio, she took Jazz classes for seven years.  Into high school she had the opportunity to choreograph for her cheer and dance team.  All of which lead her to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to study in dance.

Shauna matured as an artist over the next 4 years, going from a dancer to a creator. She danced in a number of productions at the college, some including the restaging of "Water Studies", an original piece by Alwin Nikolais, (reset by Alberto del Saz) and the one that stands out most still to this day "Forgotten", choreographed by Ferne Yangyeitie Caulker-Bronson, which portrayed the beautiful and tragic reality of Hurricane Katrina.

The summer of 2010 brought the prospect of travel into her dance career.  She ventured to Brazil on a study abroad program in dance for a month.  After a 3 day return, she traveled to Takoma Park, Maryland to work with the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange for another month. To finish off the busy summer, she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance.

That Fall she began choreographing and dancing for Sparrow Dance out of Burlington, WI. She has continued with them since, even flying in for performances after moving to Arizona in 2015.

While in Arizona, Shauna was invited to performed at Christ Life Church in Tempe.  Dancing at Christ Life set fire to something else within her; it was no longer the passion just to dance and create, but the passion to the serve the Lord with it. God called her to launch Rise, and sent her to Ecuador to continue the journey. Among thousands of other moments, Shauna was invited to choreograph for a team of women there at a local church. If there were any doubts of what God was calling her to, this was confirmation.

Shauna returned from Ecuador, and almost a year later, returned to Wisconsin where she resides once again. If you were to ask her why she moved back to Wisconsin from the beautiful & sunny state of Arizona, her only answer would be “But God”.

Shauna teaches adult dance classes as well as private lessons throughout Southeast Wisconsin and Northern Illinois. She is also building her skills as a Make-up Artist and Costume Designer.

A special thanks to all her family and friends and their encouragement and most importantly, their support.

With much passion, dedication, and love; God Bless each and every one of you.

“Rise is not my company, but His.” -Shauna Opitz