Sunny was born in the hills of Northern California, raised amidst the natural beauty of the Hawaiian Islands, and educated in the dynamic arts scene of Los Angeles. From a young age, she was immersed in a large, multicultural, and artistic family, which nurtured her love of creative expression.
At nineteen, she signed with her first talent agency, launching a professional career as a dancer and actress. Early exposure to meditation, and later to yoga as a teenager, sparked a lifelong journey of embodied practice, which evolved into her unique Vedic astrology-informed yoga methodology.
Sunny studied cultural anthropology and photography at Santa Monica College, applying these disciplines during extensive travels through Europe, Central America, the Caribbean, Mexico, the Mediterranean, Southeast Asia, and India.
Her life has been a confluence of diverse experiences—both challenging and illuminating—which have shaped her artistry, deepened her purpose, and inspired a devotion to service. This path forms the foundation for the innovative wellness and transformational services she now offers as RizingXol.
yoga
Sunny has been studying yoga for over 30 years and has been teaching since 2016. Her foundational training includes long-term study with respected instructors such as Nancy Gilgoff, Mark St. Pierre, Casey Palmer, Jennifer Lynn, and Jørgen Christensen.
Beyond asana, Sunny engages deeply with Vedic wisdom, integrating philosophy, cosmology, and embodied practice. She is certified in Vedic (Ayurvedic) astrology through the American Institute of Vedic Studies, and in 2024 produced a short artistic film exploring the symbolic and significant dimensions of the lunar mansions.
Her studies also include Dzogchen, Aikido, Eight Brocade Baduanjin Qigong, somatic and mindful movement, cortical field re-education, and integrative bodywork. She holds certification in massage therapy from the Heartwood Institute.
This breadth of training informs an approach to yoga that is grounded, attentive, and integrative—supporting strength, clarity, and embodied awareness. Sunny offers students an experience that is both technically informed and inwardly attuned, whether through movement, contemplation, or somatic awareness.
dance
Sunny brings over four decades of professional training and experience in classical, contemporary, and culturally rooted movement traditions. Her background includes ballet alongside West African, Haitian, Congolese, Brazilian, Tahitian, Afro-Cuban, jazz, hip hop, and contemporary forms—informing a movement language that is both technically grounded and culturally fluent.
Her performance career spans film, television, stage, music videos, and commercial work in the U.S. and internationally. She has collaborated with internationally recognized recording artists and appeared in major commercial campaigns for global luxury and lifestyle brands.
Sunny’s 25+ years of teaching experience includes work with studios, retreat centers, and nonprofit arts organizations in Hawaiʻi and California. She has taught students across ages, backgrounds, and ability levels, with an emphasis on presence, precision, and embodied intelligence.
A curated selection of professional dance work is available upon request or via select online platforms.
GALLERY
sacred
Sunny’s connection to her ancestry has profoundly shaped her spiritual ethos. For over thirty years, she has participated in traditional indigenous ceremonial practices and cultivated a deep understanding of the universal wisdom traditions of many cultures.
Her studies and immersion in philosophy, mystery school teachings,
esoteric disciplines, spiritual psychology, and the Divine Science
provide the foundation for her work as a teacher and guide.
She brings an attuned presence and careful discernment,
offering support to those seeking to cultivate coherence
of body, mind, and heart.
service
Service has been a consistent thread throughout Sunny’s career as an artist and teacher. In 2010, she contributed her vocals on stage at the Phuket Jazz Blues Festival in Thailand in support of relief efforts following the 2004 tsunami.
On the island of Maui, Sunny has produced fundraising events benefiting organizations including Save Darfur, Doctors Without Borders, and several animal rescue initiatives. In 2019, she produced Little Stars, a short film created on behalf of an NGO serving children in Varanasi, India.
Moments from Sunny's ongoing service work and community engagement
work with sunny
Sunny offers private, small-group, and collaborative work designed to support embodied awareness, clarity of purpose, and meaningful transformation. Her offerings draw from decades of experience in movement & dance, philosophy, yogic arts, sacred practice, and integrative guidance.
Embodied Practice
Custom-designed yoga and movement sessions informed by individual needs and, where appropriate, sidereal Vedic astrology. Sessions may include asana, breathwork, meditation, and somatic movement, and are accessible to all levels, ages, and abilities. Available in person or online.
Astrological & Purpose Guidance
Personal consultations exploring archetypal patterns, timing, and orientation through the lens of Vedic astrology and contemplative inquiry. This work supports those seeking clarity during transitions, awakenings, spiritual crisis or soul searching.
Ritual & Intentional Design
Custom-curated rituals and frameworks that bring depth and significance to life events, milestones, and personal practices. Drawing from sacred space principles, symbolism, cosmology, and natural rhythms, these offerings support meaningful engagement with moments both large and small.
Private work is offered by inquiry. Pricing and formats vary depending on scope and context.
