Sarah Pope (she/her) is a dancer, dance educator, personal trainer, fitness instructor and clown based in Brooklyn, New York. Originally from Southern California, she earned a BFA in Ballet & Modern Dance from Texas Christian University. A person of faith with a heart for building community, Sarah aspires to be a JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) woman warrior through dance and theater performance and education.

Dancing for over 25 years has led her into collaboration with numerous artists and companies in New York City, including Mark Lamb Dance, Renee Gerardo Dances, Sarah Council Dance Projects, HT Chen & Dancers, Daniela Hoff Dance Company, Beth Leonard/The Construction Company, and Louise Heit, as well as Catey Ott Dance Collective (Milwaukee), Cilla Vee Life Arts (Asheville) and Sudden Enlightenment Theater (NY/Seoul). From 2019 to 2022, Sarah served as the Assistant Director of Dances for Solidarity, a project which co-creates dance with currently and formerly incarcerated artists. IG: @SolidarityDance

Concurrent with her collaborations in NY’s downtown dance scene, Sarah’s teaching practice specializing in early childhood dance has continued to thrive. A longtime faculty member at Spoke the Hub Dancing, and a lead teacher in the Tiny Toes & Ballet program at the Prospect Park YMCA for over 10 years, Sarah launched her own dance school in 2020 – first on Zoom (“Ms. Sarah’s Online School of Ballet & Modern Dance”), and now in Spoke the Hub’s jewel box studio on Union Street. Sarah works as the dance and movement specialist at Congregation Beth Elohim’s Early Childhood Center, and as a teaching artist in NYC public schools with Together in Dance. Sarah has also taught in workshops and camps for It’s A She Thing, Inc., a Black-Women-led non-profit specializing in providing services to women and girls in NY and beyond.

A beloved group fitness instructor at the Prospect Park YMCA, Sarah is certified by the American Council on Exercise with continuing education credits in training older adults. She’s established a personal training practice in Brooklyn’s Park Slope neighborhood, and is experienced in working with neurodiverse clients. Sessions are tailored to the individual’s physical needs and goals, and typically include strength training using free weights, cardio conditioning and body weight exercises. For the past several years, Sarah has also been practicing the MELT Method™ as part her personal wellness practice, which has helped her stay out of chronic pain. A certified Level I & II instructor, she’s happy to share the MELT Method™ with clients. Click here to inquire about booking a session!

Clowning since 2015, SarahBesque, alongside partner Bethford (Beth Leonard), has been charming audiences from Park Slope’s streets, to Spoke the Hub’s stages, to The Brick’s Clown Theatre Festival. An aspiring juggler who will don a tutu for a ballet number, white gloves for a “magic act,” an ukulele for a song, or a pillow for a pillowfight with Bethford, SarahBesque is as versatile as the character she plays in real life. Facebook: SarahBesque & Bethford IG: @heysarahbesque