Marissa Shapiro

Experience Team Lead

Marissa has been passionate about the arts since she stepped into her first pair of ballet slippers in first grade. Whether acting, singing, directing, drawing, or dancing, she has always felt most at home expressing herself through the arts.

During high school, Marissa performed in plays and musicals, sang alto in a vocal jazz ensemble that toured across the United States and Europe, and assistant taught tap classes. Her love for theatre led her to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama with Honors from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, where she studied theatre performance and appeared in productions and industry showcases. She has also performed in local community theatre productions with Town and Country Players.

For more than 20 years, Marissa has dedicated her professional career to supporting students as a school counselor. She earned her Master of Science in Education in Psychological Services from the University of Pennsylvania and currently serves as a high school counselor. She is also a proud member of the American School Counselor Association.

Marissa first became part of the Synergy family in the summer of 2015 when her four-year-old daughter attended a week-long dance camp. From that first experience, Synergy quickly became a second home for their family. Today, Marissa is the proud mom of two daughters who both love being part of the Synergy community.

As a member of the Synergy Experience Team, Marissa combines her backgrounds in counseling, theatre, and customer service to help create a welcoming, positive environment for every dancer and family. Her kindness, creativity, empathy, and dedication shine through in every interaction, making each family feel valued from the moment they walk through the doors.

When she's not counseling students or spending time at Synergy, Marissa enjoys traveling, attending concerts and theatre performances, gardening, and making memories with her family and friends. She has traveled to more than 13 countries and counting, loves planting hydrangeas in her garden, and her current favorite Broadway musical is Ragtime.