2016/17 Dance Jam Members

KT Nelson joined ODC/Dance in 1976 and partners with Brenda Way to direct the ODC/Dance Company. KT choreographed and directed the Company's first full-length family ballet in 1986, The Velveteen Rabbit, which has since been performed annually in the Bay Area as an ODC/Dance holiday production.

KT has been awarded the Isadora Duncan Dance Award four times: in 1987 for Outstanding Performance, in 1996 and 2012 for Outstanding Choreography, and in 2001 for Sustained Achievement. Her collaborators have included Bobby McFerrin, Geoff Hoyle, Shinichi Iova-Koga, Max Chen, Zap Mama, and Joan Jeanrenaud. In 2008, her work RingRounRozi, in collaboration with French-Canadian composer Linda Bouchard, was selected to be performed at the Tanzmesse International Dance Festival. In 2009 Nelson was one of three artists selected for Austin Ballet’s New American Talent Competition. In 2012 she created new work for Western Michigan University as part of their Great Works Dance Project.

In addition to her work as a choreographer, Nelson served on the Zellerbach Community Arts Panel from 2005 to 2011, ran the summer dance department for Center for Creative Youth at Wesleyan University 2003-2006, and founded the ODC Dance Jam in 1997.

Over the last 25 years, KT has played a major role in defining and implementing ODC's on-going and project-based outreach programs. She has mentored the Margaret Jenkins' Chime Project and continues to mentor emerging artists in the Bay Area and abroad.

Corey Brady is a native of Houston, TX and is a graduate of the Houston Ballet Academy, the Martha Graham School, and American Dance Festival. During this time he performed in musical productions of Oklahoma!, The Music Man, and Guys and Dolls. While working on his B.F.A. at the University of Oklahoma, he was a part of numerous international repertory tours in Paraguay and Mexico, and was a guest artist with Prism Dance Theater under the direction of Sonia Dawkins. Since moving to San Francisco, he has also worked with RAWdance, Amy Seiwert’s Imagery, and Concept o4. In addition to stage performances, Corey is a member of Bay Area Models for the Arts. Corey joined ODC/Dance in 2003.

Jeremy began his professional career with Parsons Dance, receiving critical praise for his performance of the acclaimed solo Caught. He is twice an Isadora Duncan Dance Award nominee and once a winner for ensemble performance. He is an advisory board member and the artistic advisor for Post:Ballet in San Francisco and a former artist with Ben Munisteri Dance Projects and Lydia Johnson Dance in New York City. Jeremy also collaborates with former ODC dancer Yayoi Kambara in Kambara + Dancers. He hails from Miami, FL, and graduated summa cum laude from the Florida State University. Jeremy joined ODC/Dance in 2007.

BRENDA WAY (Founder and Artistic Director) received her early training at The School of American Ballet and Ballet Arts in New York City. She is the Founder and Artistic Director of ODC/Dance and creator of the ODC Theater and ODC Dance Commons, community performance and training venues in San Francisco’s Mission District. Way was instrumental in forming an inter-arts department at Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music in the late 1960’s before relocating to the Bay Area in 1976.

She has choreographed more than 100 pieces over the last 53 years. Among her commissions are Unintended Consequences: A Meditation (2008) Equal Justice Society; Life is a House (2008) San Francisco Girls Chorus; On a Train Heading South (2005) CSU Monterey Bay; Remnants of Song (2002) Stanford Lively Arts; Scissors Paper Stone (1994) Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; Western Women (1993) Cal Performances, Rutgers University and Jacob’s Pillow; Ghosts of an Old Ceremony (1991) Walker Art Center and The Minnesota Orchestra; Krazy Kat (1990) San Francisco Ballet; This Point in Time (1987) Oakland Ballet; Tamina (1986) San Francisco Performances; Invisible Cities (1985) Stanford Lively Arts and the Robotics Research Laboratory. Her work Investigating Grace was named an NEA American Masterpiece in 2011.

In 2024, Way was inducted into the California Hall of Fame and is being featured in the NY Public Library’s Jerome Robbins’ Dance Division Oral History Project. Her work was selected by the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2010 to represent the US in a tour of Southeast Asia, as part of the inaugural DanceMotion touring program sponsored by the US Department of State. She is a national spokesperson for dance, has been published widely, has received numerous awards including Isadora Duncan Dance Awards for both choreography and sustained achievement, and 40 years of support from the National Endowment for the Arts. She is a 2000 recipient of the John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship. In 2009, she was the first choreographer to be a Resident of the Arts at the American Academy in Rome, and in 2012, she received the Helen Crocker Russell Award for Community Leadership from the SF Foundation. She is currently involved in helping to reimagine the future of the San Francisco Arts institute campus. Way holds a Ph.D. in aesthetics and is the mother of four children.

Kimi Okada is a founding member of ODC. Her work includes more than 30 choreographies for ODC/Dance, as well as commissions and collaborations with Geoff Hoyle, Bill Irwin, Julie Taymor, and Robin Williams. She has choreographed productions for the American Conservatory Theater of San Francisco, Yale Repertory Theater, the New Victory Theater in New York, the Children’s Theater Company in Minneapolis, Theatre for a New Audience in New York, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, the American Music Theater Festival, the Santa Fe Opera, Los Angeles Music Center Opera, Los Angeles Theatre Center, the Pickle Family Circus, and the San Francisco Mime Troupe.

She was nominated for a Tony Award for the Broadway production of Largely New York, which she co-choreographed with Bill Irwin. She received a 2014 Isadora Duncan Award for Outstanding Choreography for ODC’s Two If by Sea. Since 1996, Kimi has served as director of the ODC School, which she has brought to the forefront of international and national dance education for youth and adults. She has been honored with a California State Legislature Assembly Resolution for choreographic and community contributions. She also directs one of ODC’s two teen companies, the ODC Dance Jam.

Dennis Adams was born in Fort Worth, TX. He received his training at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing Arts and the School of Dance at the University of Oklahoma. After completing a B.F.A. in Dance he joined the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble. He has toured works by Alvin Ailey, Donald McKayle, Austin Hartel and Mark Dendy. Dennis joined ODC/Dance as an apprentice in 2008 and was promoted to dancer in 2009. 

Josie grew up in Lagunitas, CA. She trained on scholarship at Marin Ballet and NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. Since returning to the Bay area in 2007, Josie has enjoyed working with choreographers including Sidra Bell, Manuelito Biag, Molissa Fenley, Amy Foley, and Robert Moses, and she is a former member of Robert Moses' KIN. Josie is also a widely published writer and holds an M.A. in Communications from Stanford University. She joined ODC/Dance in 2013.

Steffi Cheong, from Murray Hill, NJ, began training at The New Jersey Dance Theatre Ensemble. In 2011 she graduated summa cum laude from SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance with a B.F.A. in dance performance. During her graduating year, Cheong became a member of DanceWorks Chicago under the direction of Julie Nakagawa. Over the years she has performed works by Robert Battle, Marie Chouinard, Jill Johnson, Alex Ketley, José Limón, David Parsons, Christian Spuck, Kate Skarpetowska, and Paul Taylor. Cheong loves to travel and has been fortunate to perform in Mexico, Vancouver, Italy, Germany, and The Netherlands. Steffi joined ODC/Dance as an apprentice in 2013 and was promoted to company member in 2014.

Brandon, better known as "Private," is from Colorado, and joined ODC in 1996. While ODC is his artistic home, he has had the privilege of working with many other dance companies and schools. He was a principal dancer in the movie The Matrix II: Reloaded. He also had the rare opportunity to be a guest artist with the Colorado Ballet, performing in Glen Tetley's Le Sacre Du Printemps in 2013.

Nominated multiple times, Private received Bay Area Isadora Duncan Awards for Ensemble Performance in 2002 with Brian Fisher, in 2012 with Katie Faulkner, and in 2014 with Katherine Wells. He is particularly proud of these recognitions, as partnering is his favorite aspect of dancing. In addition to teaching ballet and modern dance technique (including Dance for Parkinson's Disease), he is a sailor, a poet, a woodworker, oil painter, and was formerly an Artillery and Military Police Sergeant in the Army National Guard. He gratefully acknowledges all who have influenced his dance career, specifically Brenda, KT, Sonya, Amy, and Randy.

Jeremy was born in Brooklyn, NY, and grew up in Augusta, GA, where he received his initial training at the Augusta Ballet School. In 2005, he graduated with honors from the North Carolina School of the Arts, where he performed leading roles in The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, and Lynn Tailor Corbett's Lost and Found. Jeremy then danced with Nevada Ballet Theater, performing principal roles in George Balanchine's Rubies and Serenade, Mathew Neenan's At the Border, along with works by Twyla Tharp, Fredrick Ashton, Val Caniporoli, and James Canfield. Since moving to San Francisco in 2012, he has worked with Robert Moses Kin, Post:Ballet, Zhukov Dance, DawsonDanceSF, and Hope Mohr Dance. He joined ODC/Dance in 2015.

Instagram: @jeremybn

Alec, a Palo Alto native, has enjoyed dancing since early childhood. He began seriously exploring and training in dance at Ayako School of Ballet. Alec continued studying dance at UC Irvine's Claire Trevor School of the Arts, where he was awarded dance scholarships and graduated in 2013 with a B.F.A. in Dance with a Performance Specialization. At UCI, Alec worked with Donald McKayle as a member of his Etude Ensemble. He has also trained and worked with Jodie Gates, David Allan, Tong Wang, Diane Diefenderfer, Michael Lowe, and Molly Lynch.

Alec has had the opportunity to perform principal roles in Festival Ballet's The Nutcracker and Neos Dance Theatre's contemporary Snow White. From 2013-15, he performed with both Neos Dance Theatre (Ohio), and Menlowe Ballet. Alec joined ODC/Dance in 2015.

Allie Papazian is a native of Los Angeles. She trained on scholarship at Interlochen Arts Academy in Interlochen, Michigan where she received the 2006 young artist award in dance. She joined the inaugural class of Alonzo King's LINES Ballet/ Dominican University of California BFA program where she graduated summa cum laude in 2010. During this time she danced professionally with Mark Foehringer dance project SF, Central California ballet, and performed with Zhukov dance theatre for the 2010 and 2011 seasons. On graduation she joined the Compañía Nacional de Danza in Madrid, Spain. Throughout her five years with the CND she has enjoyed the privilege of performing works by Nacho Duato, Mats Ek, Ohad Naharin, Jiri Kylian, Johan Inger, Alexander Ekman, Ivan Perez, and Angelin Preljocaj. Allie has toured Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. She joined ODC/Dance in 2015.

Lani Yamanaka is from Carlsbad, California and graduated from UC Irvine with two Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Dance Performance and Choreography. At UCI she was able to work closely with the late Donald McKayle as a member of his Etude Ensemble, creating new works and learning many of his world-renowned repertoire. Lani has danced professionally with Entity Contemporary Dance, touring to Singapore and Hong Kong, Shaun Boyle and Artists, and was an original member of Pearl, a multimedia production directed and choreographed by Daniel Ezralow. She has trained with Hubbard Street Dance Company, BodyTraffic, San Francisco Conservatory of Dance, Unity Dance Ensemble and San Shi Judo Dojo, earning a brown belt in Judo. Lani joined ODC/Dance as an apprentice in 2016 and was promoted to company dancer in 2017.

Rachel Furst is from Baltimore, MD, where she began her dance training in competitive dance and then formally trained at the Baltimore School for the Arts. In 2012, she was awarded the Dizzy Feet Foundation Award and also began her professional dance career at Amy Seiwert’s Imagery. In 2013, she graduated summa sum laude with a BFA and minor in psychology from the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA program at Dominican University of California. Rachel also danced with Smuin Contemporary Ballet and Dawson Dance SF before joining ODC/Dance in 2016. During the pandemic, Rachel worked as a rehab trainer at Active Care Physical Therapy, where she found a deep passion for helping others heal. Those skills have helped her grow as a physical artist, and she feels immensely grateful to conjoin that experience with her dancing as she nourishes her artistic home at ODC.

Instagram: @sailorraerae

Daniel Santos was born in Manila, Philippines. He began his formal dance training at the age of 16 with State Street Ballet under the tutelage of Rodney Gustafson, and later received a full scholarship from the San Francisco Ballet School. Santos danced with ODC/Dance for 10 years, winnning an Isadora Duncan Award for Individual Performance. In 2012, Santos temporarily left dance to explore his outdoor interests, studying at the Mountain Training School and learning to guide in three disciplines: Alpine Mountaineering, Back Country Skiing, and Rock Climbing. But after 4 years in the great outdoors, the stage was calling: Santos rejoined the company in 2016.

Keon Saghari was born and raised in Los Gatos, CA. She graduated summa cum laude from Alonzo King LINES Ballet at Dominican University with a BFA in Dance, and received her early training from San Jose Ballet School. Keon is a former member of AXIS Dance Company, with whom she toured nationally and internationally; as well as ZiRu Dance, with whom she toured in China. She has had the pleasure of working with choreographers including Marc Brew, Alex Ketley, Bobbi Jene Smith, Maurya Kerr, Yuri Zhukov, Bianca Mendoza, David Hererra, and Natasha Adorlee Johnson. Keon is also a certified Bikram Yoga instructor. Keon joined ODC/Dance in 2016.

Mia J. Chong is from San Francisco, California. She received her training from the Kirov Academy of Ballet, San Francisco Ballet School, the Ailey School, Alonzo King LINES Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, the School at Jacob’s Pillow’s Contemporary Program, and ODC School, where she trained for over a decade. Mia has danced with Post:ballet, Robert Moses’ Kin, Dance Theatre of San Francisco, and San Francisco Symphony. She has received a Princess Grace Award, Chris Hellman Dance Honor, Aninstantia Foundation Grant, LINES Ballet Homer Avila Award, Jacob’s Pillow Ann & Weston Hicks Choreography Fellowship, and Isadora Duncan Dance Awards and nominations. Mia currently studies Organizational Behavior and Change at New York University. She joined ODC/Dance as an apprentice in 2016 and was promoted to company dancer in 2018.

Instagram: @miajchong
Website: miajchong.com

Kate Weare creates dances with rawness and precision dealing directly with violence, sensuality, and interconnectedness. Raised by visual artists in the San Francisco Bay Area, Weare received her BFA from California Institute of the Arts and danced in Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Belgrade, and Montreal before settling in New York City to found Kate Weare Company in 2005. Weare is a 2017 Aninstantia Foundation Fellow, recipient of White Bird's Barney 2015 Creative Prize, a 2014 Guggenheim Foundation Fellow, 2015 & 2011 Mellon Foundation Awardee, and a 2009 Princess Grace Awardee in Choreography. Artistic residencies awarded include Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), The Joyce Theater, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, CalArts, Bates Dance Festival, Djerassi, DANCEworks and ODC/SF, and Weare’s work has been commissioned by BAM, The Joyce Theater, ADF, DANCEworks, Jacob’s Pillow, Danspace Project, Bates Dance Festival, DTW, DNA, as well as by dance companies worldwide. Weare has been on faculty as a Guest Artist at Princeton, Juilliard, NYU/Tisch, CalArts, Virginia Commonwealth University, Keene State University, Marymount Manhattan, among others, and is currently a Resident Choreographer at ODC/SF.

Jasmine Rivers, a senior at the Urban School of San Francisco, is currently in her third year as a part of the ODC Dance Jam. She has trained in various styles of dance since she was 2 years old, and has been a proud member of the ODC community for the past 8 years. Jasmine has participated in summer intensives with Alonzo King LINES Ballet and Alvin Ailey, and in addition to dance, is a certified yoga instructor. She is excited to continue her dance and educational pursuits at college next year, and is grateful for the important role the Jam has played in her life.

Eliza Loran is 17 and a senior at Berkeley High School. This is her third year as part of the ODC Dance Jam. Eliza began dancing at age 7 at Berkeley City Ballet. In high school, she continued her training in ballet and contemporary at ODC. She has attended summer intensives at Alonzo King Lines Ballet, NW Dance Project and Complexions Ballet. Eliza also enjoys choreographing and performing for Berkeley High’s Dance Production. Eliza is so grateful and proud to have been part of the “Jam” family and wants to thank the dancers, teachers and staff for all their support. Next year, Eliza looks forward to continuing her passion for dance in a college BFA program to be determined soon.

Carma Zisman recently served as Director of Institutional Advancement at The Walt Disney Family Museum, where she set strategy for and directed the museum's comprehensive fundraising efforts, membership programs, and marketing and communications. While at the museum she also oversaw business development, guest experience, and the museum's robust volunteer program.

Previously she served as the Vice President of Development at the World Affairs Council of Northern California, and prior to that, as Development Director of the College of Liberal & Creative Arts at San Francisco State University. As an independent consultant and in various roles at Stanford Jazz Workshop, the Amador County Arts Council and the Labor Archives, Zisman has worked collaboratively and successfully with artists, educators, business and operational teams, entrepreneurial leaders, and community members. She is an alumna of Leadership SF and holds a BA from San Francisco State University.

James Gilmer of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was trained at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School and the Pittsburgh School for the Creative & Performing Arts. After graduating in 2011, he joined Cincinnati Ballet's Second Company and joined the main company the following season.  James danced with the Cincinnati Ballet for six seasons being promoted to Soloist in 2015, he has performed works by Septime Webre, Ohad Naharin, Val Caniparoli, George Balanchine, Annabelle Lopez-Ochoa,  Edwaard Liang, Jennifer Archibald, Trey McIntyre, Adam Hougland, Amy Seiwert and Victoria Morgan to name a few.  He has also been a member of Amy Seiwert's Imagery, performing with the company since the summer of 2013. Looking to branch outside of the classical ballet realm, he is excited to join ODC/Dance for his first season.

Lily McDonald is 17 years old and is in her second year in the ODC Dance Jam. Lily started dance at the age of 3 at Footloose Dance Studio where she first started studying ballet, jazz, modern, hip hop, and tap. At the age of 14, she began dancing at Triple Threat Performing Arts where she continued her studies, adding lyrical and contemporary. Lily has attended summer intensives at The Rock School for Dance Education in Philadelphia, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York City, and Hubbard Street Dance in Chicago. Lily plans to continue dancing in the future and keep it a huge part of her life.

Kendall Teague was raised in the mountains of western North Carolina and attended the South Carolina Governors School for the Arts and Humanities in Greenville,SC. He started his professional career in the Bay Area in 2008 as a corps de ballet member at San Francisco Ballet. He has since worked with North Carolina Dance Theatre, Complexions Contemporary Ballet under Dwight Rhoden, Ballet San Jose, and most recently with Alonzo King Lines Ballet. Kendall joined ODC in 2018. 

Allie Heal is from Los Angeles, CA. She trained at Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan and was a member of the inaugural class in the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA program at Dominican University of California, where she graduated summa cum laude. While in college, she danced with Mark Foehringer Dance Project SF and performed with Zhukov Dance Theatre for their 2010 and 2011 seasons. After graduation, she joined the Compañía Nacional de Danza (CND) in Madrid, Spain. In her five years with the CND, she had the privilege of performing works by Nacho Duato, Mats Ek, Ohad Naharin, Jiri Kylian, Johan Inger, and Alexander Ekman, among others. Allie joined ODC/Dance for their 2015/2016 season. After freelancing and working with numerous Bay Area companies, including Post:ballet, Kambara+Dancers, and Dance Theatre of San Francisco, she returned to ODC/Dance as a company member from 2018 to 2024. Currently, she is pursuing a doctoral degree in occupational therapy and is thrilled to return as a guest artist in The Velveteen Rabbit.

Adonis Damian Martin Quiñones was born in Contramaestre, a province of Santiago de Cuba. He holds a degree from Jose Maria Heredia Dance Academy of Santiago de Cuba in Modern & Contemporary Dance. Adonis joined Danza Teatro del Caribe in 2008 under the Direction of Eduardo Rivero Walker and became a soloist in 2010. In Santiago de Cuba, he also performed with Locomotion, an audiovisual and interactive dance company. In the Bay Area since 2013, he has danced for Joanna Haigood’s Zaccho Dance Theater (an aerial arts dance company), Dance Brigade, KAMBARA+DANCERS, SoulSkin, Tandy Beal & Company, Alayo Dance Company, Kim Epifano, Raisa Simpson, and Dance Theater of San Francisco (DTSF). He was nominated for an IZZIE (Isadora Duncan Dance Award), for Outstanding Achievement in Performance-Ensemble in Defection-Deflection-Devotion, featured in Dance Brigade’s 40th-anniversary concert at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

"My safe space, my happy place, mine!"

Kaamna Bhojwani-Dhawan - My ODC from ODC Dance on Vimeo.

"My heart is full of thanks for this space for us to connect with dance."

"I met my best friend and husband at ODC! Now we have a dance company together."

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"My ODC is like my religion. It's a place where I can dance, or watch dance. I can lose myself there, but also be a part something bigger than myself. As a student, as a dancer, as a dance aficionado, and as a board member I feel connected to something important, something artful, something alive."

Carolyn Goor Hutchinson - My ODC from ODC Dance on Vimeo.

"A standout moment was when I was an audience member at YBCA watching the company perform Kate Weare's Giant. I remember being so struck by the power of the choreography. Even more impactful was how each individual dancer looked so strong and unique. Every single company member was stunning in their individuality and my respect/admiration for them increased tenfold that day."

"My ODC is a time of respite, reflection, and rejuvenation."

"My ODC is a temple of art and health"

"It doesn't feel transactional. You may go there to take a class, but the facilities provide you with much more. It provides the space to warm-up before a rehearsal or perhaps meet a friend and have an in-depth conversation about art."

"ODC is joyful. When I'm there, I see people dancing and enjoying themselves. Some studios are competitive, some dance schools are strict and humorless, some dance companies are self-important. ODC is an open, fun, and curious organization."

"My ODC is SOOOO MUCH FUN!!!"

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"ODC strives to nurture and inspire its young dancers in a healthy and joyful environment."

Alma Moon is a 15 year old homeschooler. She lives in Oakland with her parents and six siblings. Alma has received training in classical ballet and character dance from San Francisco Ballet School. When she's not dancing, you'll find her baking pies or hiking the Sierra foothills.

Anise Fernandez is an 18-year-old senior at Berkeley High and is loving her first year in the Dance Jam. She danced at Berkeley City Ballet for several years before training with the LINES' teen program and joining the Dance Jam. She also spent a summer in New York training at the Joffery Ballet School. Anise is excited to learn and grow as a dancer and a person during her time in the Dance Jam.

Ella Miles-Urdan is 18 years old and a senior at Berkeley High School. She began her training at Shawl-Anderson Dance Center at the age of 5, where she studied ballet, contemporary, and jazz before joining the Shawl-Anderson Youth Ensemble in her sophomore year. She has attended intensives at ODC, Oakland School for the Arts, and the American Dance Festival. This is her first year in the Dance Jam, and she is so grateful to be at ODC. Ella hopes to continue dancing in college and beyond.

Esmé Lee-Gardner is a senior at Ruth Asawa SOTA. She began her dance training at age 4 at her local YMCA. From 2011-2017, she trained at San Francisco Ballet where she performed in Helgi Tomasson's The Nutcracker, Coppelia, and several student showcases, before joining ODC in 2017. She spent her summers at SFB, Ballet Austin, Oregon Ballet Theatre, and City Ballet School. This is her first year in the ODC Dance Jam. She loves working with this talented group of dancers and choreographers and is grateful to be a part of creating this production!

Kaya Chun is 15 years old. She has been dancing since the age of 2. Kaya received a full scholarship at Alonzo King LINES Ballet Advanced Summer Program. She was also on year-round full scholarship at BalletNova and City Dance for several years. Kaya has competed at regional YAGP and placed in the top 20. She attended master classes with Suzanne Farrell, Dance Theater of Harlem and Gallim and Koresh on a full scholarship. Kaya has been in the honors, advanced academic programs. She will be pursuing the International Baccalaureate full diploma program in her junior and senior year in high school.

Yasmine Harmon-Quinata is 15 years old and a new member of the ODC Dance Jam. She started her dance journey at the age of 5 studying Hula and Tahitian dance. By the age the of 8, she was on a competition jazz team and studied jazz, contemporary, modern, lyrical, hip-hop, tap and classical ballet. Yasmine has competed at countless competitions and has had the opportunity to perform in Disneyland, Las Vegas, and all over the San Francisco Bay Area. In the 2017 and 2017, she trained at the SF Joffrey Ballet summer intensive. Yasmine is currently enrolled in a homeschool program so that she may solely focus on her art form and pursue her passion to become a professional performer.

Henry Shane is 16 years old from Menlo Park attending Kehillah Jewish High School in Palo Alto. He has trained at Menlo Park Academy of Dance and also at San Francisco Ballet School, where he received a full scholarship. Henry has also studied at a variety of summer dance intensives including Pacific Northwest Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet School, and the American Ballet Theatre. Since joining the ODC Dance Jam this past fall, Henry is eager for future challenges and opportunities.

After a fun, progress-filled decade or so with ODC, Zoé-Liv Rossi became a new Dance Jam member this year and since has leapt, at times literally, into the deeper education of a modern age dancer at ODC. By participating in drop-in classes and Discovery Projects at Alonzo King LINES Ballet, she has also vastly expanded her growth as a dancer and student by experiencing different perspectives on dance. Her academic education continues as Zoé enters her sophomore year at International High School but at the end of every school day begins a new dance day -- to which Zoé meets with enthusiasm.

Pablo Lopez is a 16-year-old sophomore at the Urban School of San Francisco. He has danced for most of his life at ODC, starting at age four. He has danced contemporary, ballet, and currently hip hop. Pablo enjoys learning how to breakdance with one of his Seeds teachers George, and wants to expand his knowledge and experience in breaking.

Stella Robinson is a 17-year-old senior at Urban High School. Stella and has danced ballet prior to joining Seeds, which she has been a member of for four years. She is originally from New Zealand, and has spent the past years in the Bay Area. Outside of dance, Stella plays music, writes poetry, and creates visual art.

Léa Vilna-Santos is a 16-year-old junior at Le Lycée Francaise de San Francisco. From dancing in her bedroom with her sister to dancing with ODC Seeds, Léa’s passion for dance has only increased with time. She went from a 1-hr dance class with Just Dance Academy to marking her second year ODC Teen Hip Hop Company, Seeds, where she dances 5-hours per week. While Léa was born in San Francisco and has lived in the Bay Area her whole life, she celebrates a diverse background: her mother is from France and her father, from the Philippines.

Piper Rutchik is a 16-year-old junior at Tamalpais High School. Piper has been dancing for 13 years, has studied ballet for 10 of those years, and most recently joined Seeds for her second year. Being devoted to the arts, Piper is interested in not just the performing arts, but also visual; drawing, painting and writing. Aside from dance, she is a competitive equestrian and works part time as a sales person selling women’s shoes.

Lena Samak is a 16-year-old junior at Le Lycée Francaise de San Francisco.  Originally from Paris, France, she studied ballet for nine years at Temps Dance. Lena pursued her passion for dance after moving to San Francisco, where she studied contemporary at ODC, as well as hip-hop and Bollywood. This is Lena’s second year as a member of the ODC Teen Hip Hop Company, Seeds, where she continually works to express herself as an artist.

Isabelle Barroga is an 18-year-old senior at The Bay School of San Francisco. Isa has been dancing at ODC for 12 years. This young Filipino-American was born and raised in the Bay Area and has received training in ballet, contemporary, and hip hop. Isa has been a part of the ODC Teen Hip Hop Company Seeds for the last five years, has performed with ODC/Dance, and has been in the ODC School productions of The Velveteen Rabbit and Uncertain Weather. Isa is the 2019-2020 recipient of the Bi-Rite Family Foundation scholarship.

Lauren Edwards is a 15-year-old sophomore at the Urban School of San Francisco. Although this is her first year as a Seeds member, Lauren has been dancing hip hop for over five years. In addition to hip hop dance, she has studied ballet for 10 years, as well as contemporary and jazz.

Odette Bradbury is a 17-year-old Bay Area native whose interdisciplinary art practices include visual art, poetry, singing and dance. She’s been training at ODC with Seeds for four years, and is well-versed in a multitude of styles including house, hip hop, vogue and more. Currently she is a senior at Albany High School, and plans to attend a four year university in the fall of 2020.

Noelani Gaudario, a 16-year-old junior from San Francisco, has been dancing her whole life.  Noe uses dance as a way to express her emotions,  and as a means of having fun by being in the moment -- dancing gives her confidence to be herself. Noe also enjoys doing kpop choreography. When she is not dancing, she enjoys creating miniature art pieces and doing photography. This is Noe’s first year with ODC Seeds.

Ai is 11 years old, and has been dancing since the age of five. When not dancing, Ai focuses on school work, and enjoys knitting and hanging out with friends. Ai also enjoys tumbling, and hopes to  incorporate some of her tumbling skills into her dance training. Though she is still quite young, she hopes to continue to learn more about dance, and eventually be a professional dancer!

Cassidy Walters, 18 years old, is originally from a small island in the Philippines called Hinawod, near the San Jose province. She moved to San Francisco at age 9, where she began her movement journey with figure skating. She eventually started to explore dance through Ballet and Contemporary. At age 16 she came across a house dance class, fell in love, and has pursued her house dance training ever since. Cassidy continues to explore other genres of movement  in her training with Seeds.

Léa Vilna-Santos is a 16-year-old junior at Le Lycée Francaise de San Francisco. From dancing in her bedroom with her sister to dancing with ODC Seeds, Léa’s passion for dance has only increased with time. She went from a 1-hr dance class with Just Dance Academy to marking her second year ODC Teen Hip Hop Company, Seeds, where she dances 5-hours per week. While Léa was born in San Francisco and has lived in the Bay Area her whole life, she celebrates a diverse background: her mother is from France and her father, from the Philippines.

Tobias Samak is a 14-year-old freshman at Le Lycée Français de San Francisco. Tobi has been dancing with his sister at home in his native France since childhood, and when he moved to San Francisco in 2016, he took the opportunity of expanding his passion for dance by taking hip hop classes at ODC in 2017. In 2019, he was integrated into Seeds, and continues improving in the art of hip hop.

Elinor Kry is a 16-year-old sophomore at Menlo Atherton High School. This is Eli's fourth year dancing with ODC Seeds. She started dancing when she was 7 years old, and has experience with jazz, lyrical, and ballet. In addition to training at ODC, she has danced at Menlo Park Dance Academy, Dance Connection, and Tiffany's Dance Academy. In her free time, Eli enjoys taking photos and listening to R&B music.

Jammie Walker began his dance training at Western Arkansas Ballet under the direction of Melissa Schoenfeld. He earned his BFA from the University of Oklahoma School of Dance under the direction of Mary Margaret Holt. Jammie performed with the Dayton Ballet for three seasons, and toured throughout the United States and internationally with Jessica Lang Dance for four seasons.  Jammie has appeared as a guest artist with Dance Grand Moultrie as well as with Clawson Dances.

Brendan Barthel is from California's central coast, and has studied and taught visual, performing and martial arts for most of his life. In San Francisco, Brendan has had the privilege of working with many talented dance artists including Mary Carbonara, Liss Fain, Janice Garrett, Joe Goode, Joanna Haigood, Margaret Jenkins, Robert Moses, Amy Seiwert and Victor Talledos, in addition to making his own work. It is a joy and honor for Brendan to guest with ODC.

Jaime Garcia Castilla was born in Madrid, Spain, and studied at the Royal Conservatory of Professional Dance. He was named an apprentice with the San Francisco Ballet in 2001 and joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet the following year. He was promoted to soloist in 2006 and to principal dancer in 2008. He created roles in Elo’s Double Evil; McGregor’s Borderlands; Morris’ Beaux, Joyride, and Sylvia; Page’s Guide to Strange Places; Possokhov’s Classical Symphony and Fusion; and Wheeldon’s Within the Golden Hour. As a guest artist, Jaime performed at “Ballet Stars From San Francisco,” the Lively Arts Foundation Gala in Fresno, California, in 2012, and at the Pas de Deux Gala in Valladolid, Spain, in 2011 and 2012. He danced Flames of Paris and “The Ocean and Two Pearls” from The Humpbacked Horse in Osaka, Japan, in 2006.

Donghoon Lee is from Seoul, South Korea and received his training at Sejong University. He made his debut in The Nutcracker three months after entering the Korea National Ballet in 2008. As a principal dancer, he danced principal roles in Cinderella, Don Quixote, Giselle, La Bayadere, The Nutcracker, Prince Ho Dong, Romeo and Juliet, Serenade, Spartacus, Swan Lake and The Taming of the Shrew. Mr. Lee received the prestigious nomination for the Russian Benois de la Danse Award and was invited as a guest principal dancer to perform for the Bolshoi Ballet's performance of Spartacus. It was the first time a Korean dancer had the lead role with this esteemed international ballet company. He joined Diablo Ballet in April 2019 and began his career in the US.

Dalmacio Payomo is a native of Oakland, CA and a graduate of the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA Program. After graduating from the BFA program Dalmacio had the opportunity to perform the works of Kara Davis, Maurya Kerr, Fernando Melo, Robert Moses, K.T Nelson, Brenda Way, Kate Weare, and Johannes Wieland. Aside from dance, Dalmacio is also a music producer and has created music for Bay Area choreographers Tanya Bello, Gregory Dawson, Arturo Fernandez, and Maurya Kerr.

Ryan Rouland Smith (He/Him) hails from Colorado where he graduated from the Denver School of the Arts. In 2013 Smith graduated Cum Laude from Virginia Commonwealth University with a BFA in Dance and Choreography. Smith received additional training at the American Dance Festival, where he had the pleasure of working with John Jasperse, Reggie Wilson and performed in the first reconstruction of Bill T. Jones’ Love Redefined.  In 2014 Smith became a member of Kate Weare Company, performing in and originating roles in such works as Dark Lark, Unstruck, Marksman and Praise.  In 2019 while dancing in New York, Smith had the pleasure of working with Stefanie Batten Bland, Look Who is Coming to Diner and Nicole Vaughn Diaz, A Portrait of Them.  Following the collaborative process between Kate Weare Company and ODC, Decameron/Up For Air; Smith joined ODC in 2021.

BRANDON W. FREEMAN - Assistant to the Artistic Directors - Better known as “Private” hails from Colorado. He is an ODC veteran having first joined the company in 1996 - and has passionately danced, coached, taught, choreographed, and championed for ODC ever since! He has also been a guest artist, collaborator, and choreographer for many other Colorado and Bay Area companies and schools, and was a Principal Dancer in the movie, “The Matrix 2: Reloaded”. Private has always brought his outside experiences back to his artistic home to enrich and deepen his contributions to ODC. Nominated multiple times, Mr. Freeman received Isadora Duncan Dance Awards for Ensemble Performance in 2002 with Brian Fisher (Sonya Delwaide), 2012 with Katie Faulkner (Little Seismic Dance), and 2014 with Katherine Wells (Imagery) Notably, Private received a nomination for Individual Performance in 2004 for his role, which he helped to create, in Brenda Way’s masterpiece, Investigating Grace. As a teacher, incorporating ODC's values, he enjoys teaching ballet and modern dance technique as well as Dance for Parkinson’s Disease. Mr. Freeman also has had the honor of being entrusted by Val Caniparoli to set Mr. Caniparoli’s work on Singapore Dance Theater and Ballet X in Philadelphia.

Private seeks to exhaust the joys of life! He is a woodworker, oil painter, voice actor, a poet, and an actor. He has solo flown an airplane; and served honorably as a Sergeant in the Army National Guard for 11 years. He gratefully acknowledges all who have influenced his career; specifically Brenda, KT, Sonya, and Randy.

private@gallerybrandoni.art
Instagram: @PvtPilot73

Colton Wall, originally from Florida, began his dance training in 2013 at Santa Fe College after years of gymnastics and martial arts. In 2015 he received his BFA in Dance at Florida State University and in 2016 he joined the company of Diavolo: Architecture in Motion and performed L’espace Du Temps. In 2017 he joined the cast of VIVA by MOMIX. He was part of the original cast and dance captain for the creation of ALICE by MOMIX. Colton has toured ALICE internationally from 2018-2022. Colton is thrilled to join ODC and the Bay Area community.

Isa Infosino is a 17 year old junior at Convent High School. This is her third year in the Dance Jam. She began dancing at the age of five at a local studio. From 2013 to 2019, she trained at the San Francisco Ballet School, where she performed in the Nutcracker, Don Quixote, Coppélia, Cinderella, and Swan Lake. Isabella has also attended summer programs with Ellison Ballet, San Francisco Ballet and Bolshoi Ballet Academy. When she is not dancing you’ll find her doing a wordle or reading a science fiction book.

Amali Hart is 15 years old, and has now been dancing for 12 of those years. This is her first year on ODC Dance Jam, and she doesn’t plan on it being her last. Amali is a sophomore at Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, where she trains in the Dance Department. She is very dedicated to her craft, dancing for a minimum of 28 hours a week, including her training outside of Jam. Outside of dance, Amali enjoys thrifting, journaling, and collecting crystals, and she was voted by her teammates as the “most likely to burst into song at any given moment."

Lila Martini is 15 years old and a sophomore at University High School. This is her third year of the Dance Jam. She started dance at the age of 5, and has trained in ballet, modern, contemporary, hip hop and composition classes. She started her training at Roco Dance, later dancing at the Marin Conservatory of Dance, and then at ODC in the Dance Jam. She is so grateful to be in the Dance Jam, with such amazing peers and teachers. In her free time, you can find her in the ceramics studio, making art.

Priita Peterson is a senior at Nueva and this is her second and last year in the Dance Jam. Priita grew up dancing at Mobu DancEsteem from ages 5-11 and joined ODC in freshman year of high school where she took classes in ballet, contemporary, and hip hop. She has also attended classes at Alonzo King LINES Ballet dance center. Priita joined the Dance Jam in her junior year of high school. Priita plans on keeping dance a big part of her life in the future, whatever it may hold.

Sophie Faustinelli is a 17-year-old senior at the Lycee Francais de San Francisco. Sophie started dancing when she was 3, first discovering Arabic dance In Venezuela, then taking zumba and hip-hop classes in Chicago before moving to San Francisco in 2014. Since then, she’s dedicated her after-school time to train with ODC in ballet and contemporary. Sophie is super excited to be a part of the Dance Jam for her third year and is thrilled to keep growing as a dancer with the other Jam members, teachers, and staff by her side. When she’s not dancing, Sophie is most likely sewing clothes while binging her favorite show. 

Born in Tel Aviv, Noa Loewinger has been dancing Ballet and Contemporary at ODC for eleven years and this is her second year in the Jam. She has been a part of ODC’s Velveteen Rabbit, Uncertain Weather, and Yerba Buena Night. During the summers, Noa has participated in summer intensives at Alvin Ailey, Batsheva Dance Company, Alonzo King Line Ballet, Kibbutz Contemporary Dance company, and others, where her passion for dance deepened. Her dream is to dance professionally in Batsheva and to choreograph. She is immensely grateful for the Jam community and can’t wait to perform!

Kiko Tilles is a sophomore at Ruth Asawa School of the Arts. After several years of training in the ODC School, Kiko is excited to make her seven-year-old self proud and perform in the ODC Dance Jam. Over the past summers she has attended intensives at Alonzo King Lines. In her spare time, Kiko enjoys cooking with her friends and family, with complete control of the kitchen.

Jenna Marie (she/they), originally from Philadelphia PA, began her dance training at Olga Kresin's Ballet School and later attended The Philadelphia High School for the Creative and Performing Arts. As a scholarship student at The Ailey School, Jenna became a member of Ailey II. Jenna Marie has been a member of Complexions Contemporary Ballet, Nai Ni Chen Dance Company, MOMIX, The Metropolitan Opera, and Ballet Hispanico. She has participated in Amy Seiwart's Imagery SKETCH 11 and 12 and has been a guest artist with The Black Iris Project, Mark Foehringer Dance and San Jose Dance Theatre’s Sleeping Beauty Production. Jenna has worked for artists such as Beyoncé, Romeo Santos, Nile Rodgers, and Betsey Johnson. Since moving to the Bay Area in 2019, she has danced with Post:Ballet, Robert Moses’ Kin, Marika Brussel, Christy Funsch, and Janice Garrett and Moulton Productions. Jenna joined ODC/Dance in 2022.

Julia Ahn is 15 years old and a sophomore at Fremont High School. This is her first year at ODC as well as being a part of the Dance Jam. She started dancing at her local studio in Sunnyvale at age 3, and since then has trained in ballet, contemporary, tap, and jazz. She danced competitively before deciding she wanted a different experience and auditioning at ODC, and hopes to someday choreograph and dance professionally. She is very thankful for the opportunity to be a part of the Jam!

Eve Axelrod is a sophomore at Ruth Asawa School of the Arts where she studies dance, as she has been doing for ten years. Eve started her training at City Ballet San Francisco, then moved to Dance Training Center/San Francisco, and finally ODC, making this her first year in the Jam. When not dancing, you can find her reading with her cats or listening to music at a ridiculous volume in her room.

Ruby Chen is 17 years old and a senior at Lowell High School. She started dancing when she was 8, mainly focusing on contemporary and ballet. She has been dancing at ODC for the past 9 years, and first joined the Dance Jam in 2022 as a freshman. In these years, Ruby has performed in ODC’s The Velveteen Rabbit for 4 years, and has received various outside training. She greatly appreciates the mentorship and opportunities the Jam has given her, and is forever grateful for the family she has found at ODC.

Ella Ford is 17 years old and a Senior at Ruth Asawa School of the Arts. She has been dancing at ODC since she was 3 years old, and has always had a passion for performing of any kind. She spends her time at school singing jazz, opera, and choir. In the past Ella has performed in ODC’s The Velveteen Rabbit for 6 years, and sung at SF Jazz and Freight and Salvage. She has participated in Alonzo King LINES summer intensive for three years, and continues to be a part of ACT’s high school Cabaret program, and performed as Persephone in Hadestown this past summer. Ella loves to watch her fellow Jamer’s grow, and is so grateful to have had Jam be such a large part of her High School experience.  She can't wait for her fourth and final season in the Jam!

Ever Keegstra is 17 years old and a senior at Jewish Community High School.  She started her dance training at the age of 3, primarily focusing on contemporary and ballet, but dabbling in hip hop, tap, and acro.  Ever has been dancing at ODC for 9 years, and this is her fourth year in the Dance Jam.  She has also attended Joffrey Ballet School’s summer intensive for 3 years in a row.  On the weekends, she enjoys assisting ODC’s creative youth classes, and has done so since she was freshman.  She is so grateful that she has been able to give back to the community that raised her, and that she continues to be a member of ODC’s beloved Jamily.

Ava Miller-Green is a 15-year-old sophomore attending Ruth Asawa school of the arts where she studies dance.  She started dancing at the age of 3, mainly focusing on ballet but doing hip hop, carnival, and contemporary on the side. She started off her training at ODC then went to SFB and now is back at ODC as a first-time jam member. While Ava is not dancing she is hanging out with her cats or baking.

Áine Dorman was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. She began her professional dance training at the San Francisco Ballet School and Westlake School for the Performing Arts, before moving on to graduate from the University of California, Irvine in 2019 with a Bachelor's in both Dance and Public Health Sciences. She then completed postgraduate studies at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago's Professional Program under the direction of Alexandra Wells. Upon graduation, she danced with Eisenhower Dance Detroit for two seasons where she performed original works by choreographers including Hope Boykin, Norbert de la Cruz III, and Maleek Washington. Áine has also performed as a dance soloist with the Detroit Opera, and danced in works by Lar Lubovitch, Peter Chu, and Rena Butler. Ms. Dorman has supplemented her dance training with workshops including b12 (Berlin) and Post:ballet. Áine is a fashion and costume designer under her design brand Undercurve where she explores design as a means to abstractly connect movement back to the community. She has launched two successful clothing collections, designed and handcrafted costumes for Post:ballet's Spring 22 and Spring 23 season, and styled large dance photoshoots. 

Katie Lake grew up in Massachusetts and received her primary dance training at the Dance Studio of Wakefield and Northeast School of Ballet with additional training at Boston Ballet, the Joffrey School of Ballet, Miami City Ballet, & Kaatsbaan. In 2012, she graduated summa cum laude from Alonzo King LINES Ballet’s BFA program at Dominican University of California.

After university, Katie performed with Garrett + Moulton Productions in their Swiss tour of “Stringwreck”. Following the tour, she stayed in Europe and was hired as a Soloist at Saarländisches Staatstheater in Saarbrücken, Germany. In her four years with the company she performed in 50+ performances a year of contemporary repertoire including works by world-renowned artists such as Ohad Naharin, Johan Inger, Alexander Ekman, Stijn Celis, Marguerite Donlon, & Kenneth MacMillan, among others.

Since returning to the states in 2016, Katie has danced with Gibney Company in NYC, SFdanceworks, Alejandro Cerrudo, ISHIDA Dance, and little house dance, and has performed in creations by Bryan Arias, Emilie Leriche, Olivier Wevers, & Andi Schermoly. In addition to performing and teaching dance, Katie is a 500HR Registered Yoga teacher. She is passionate about the restorative power of movement and uses the practices of both dance and yoga as tools to help others discover a sense of awareness, freedom, and joy.

Katie joined ODC in 2024, and she is delighted to be back in the Bay Area!

Joanne Kim was born and raised in Southern California, where she trained with the late Lois Ellyn, former ballerina of New York City Ballet under George Balanchine. After receiving her higher education in Visual Communications from the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Los Angeles, she built a decade-long career in social media strategy, influencer marketing, and event production before transitioning to dance professionally. Kim joined ODC/Dance in 2024.

Addison Norman (she/her), originally from Dallas, began her early training at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing Arts. She received a BFA in Dance, BS in Exercise Science, and Pre-Medical Certificate from The University of Texas at Austin under the direction of Charles O. Anderson. There, she performed works by Jenn Freeman, Rennie Harris, Stephanie Marinez, Gesel Mason, Courtney Mazeika, and  Rena Butler and Manuel Vignoulle. Norman received additional training at The Ailey School, Northwest Dance Project, American Dance Festival, and Orsolina 28, where she closely studied works by Marco Geocke, Jiří Kylián, Crystal Pite, and Yin Yue. 

Previously, she worked with Dance Theatre X (Austin, TX) and SALT2 Contemporary Dance (Salt Lake City, UT) before moving to California in 2022 to freelance and choreograph throughout the Bay Area. Norman also enjoys the craft of choreography and has showcased her work at The University of Texas, the American Dance Festival, Safehouse Arts, and most recently in ODC’s 74th Pilot Program. Now, Norman is honored to join ODC as a dancer.

Rylan-Christian Pon is 17 years old and a senior at Oceana High School. He has danced since the age of 7, primarily focusing on contemporary, but exploring other styles as well. Following his training at Spindrift School of Performing Arts, this is Rylan’s fourth year with ODC and second season in the Dance Jam. He is deeply grateful for the incredible opportunities offered by the company and can't wait to perform in his final year with his Jamily.

Caitlin Hicks grew up in San Diego where she received her formative dance training at Performing Arts Workshop before completing her B.F.A. in Dance Performance at UC Irvine. She has been living and performing in the Bay Area since 2015, appearing with companies including Post:ballet, Sharp & Fine, REYES Dance, Garrett + Moulton Productions, Bellwether Dance Project, Capacitor, and The MoveMessenger(s). Caitlin has also appeared in work by media artist John Sanborn and as a collaborator with The Residents.

Natalie Rovner is a 16 year old junior at Lowell High School. She started dancing at ODC when she was 6, primarily in ballet but later incorporating contemporary as well.  She is excited to be joining the Jam for her first year and is extremely grateful for opportunity to be a part of it. She looks forward to getting to work with her fellow company members and directors. Outside of dance and school, you can find her acting, reading, and baking in any of her sparse free time.

Nina Delos Reyes-Webb is 15 years old and a sophomore at Ruth Asawa School of the Arts where she studies dance. This is her first year in the Jam but she has been dancing at ODC since she was 2 years old. She started her training in mostly ballet, but in the past few years, she has discovered her passion for contemporary and choreography, which she is excited to explore in the Jam. Nina is very grateful for the opportunities she’s been given and is so excited to perform with her fellow Jam members! When she’s not dancing, you can find her in the kitchen, baking, or finding something to snack on. 

Ja'Moon is a conjurer of movement, channeling ancestral memory through ritual, dance theater, and immersive experiences. Their work invites audiences into the liminal—where history, fabulation, and the present converge. Ja’Moon’s performances have spanned Senegal, NYC, Colorado, and California. They are the inaugural Resident Choreographer at Ballare Carmel. A Juilliard graduate, they have performed in Sleep No More NYC and danced works by Crystal Pite, Bill T. Jones, and Kyle Abraham, among others. Honored with the Max Mara Young Visionary Award, YoungArts Gold Medal, and a residency at École Des Sables, they continue to shape new futures through motion.

MIA J. CHONG (Co-Artistic Director) was born and raised in San Francisco, where she began her dance training at the ODC School at age 5. Mia danced with Robert Moses’ Kin and Dance Theatre of San Francisco before joining ODC/Dance, where she performed for six seasons and received a Princess Grace Award and Chris Hellman Dance Honor for her work as a company dancer. She returned to the company as Staging Director in 2024, where she has collaborated with Brenda Way and KT Nelson on numerous restagings and reimaginations of ODC/Dance repertory and assisted guest choreographer Sidra Bell in creating new work.

Mia was the founding Artistic Director of EIGHT/MOVES, a contemporary dance company dedicated to creating unity through movement and utilizing dance to generate cultural and social change. Through EIGHT/MOVES, she has collaborated with Rena Butler, Keerati Jinakunwiphat, KT Nelson, RJ Muna, and Sidney Chen. Mia’s choreography has been presented by Post:ballet, FACT/SF, RAWdance, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, UC Berkeley, Gonzaga University, BODYSONNET, and more. Her choreography for film has been selected and screened by more than ten festivals around the world, reaching audiences in South Korea, England, Turkey, and Italy. Mia has also received a Jacob’s Pillow Hicks Choreography Fellowship, Aninstantia Grant, Zellerbach Community Arts Grant, Alonzo King LINES Ballet Homer Avila Award, and Metro Film and Arts Foundation Grant, among other honors. She earned a BA in Social Sciences with a concentration in Organizational Behavior and Change from New York University and an MS in Arts Administration and Cultural Entrepreneurship from Northeastern University. Mia is grateful for the constant support from Brenda, KT, Kimi, and the countless other mentors she’s found through the ODC community throughout her journey, and she is excited to premiere her first work on ODC/Dance at Summer Sampler this July.

Michael Wells, born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, began his formal dance training at Decatur School of Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, and later the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. He started his career as a trainee with Atlanta Ballet, working with world-renowned choreographers and teachers for three seasons before moving to New York City. In New York, he performed with Ballet Hispanico’s second company before joining New York Theatre Ballet for several years and two national tours. In 2016, Wells moved to San Francisco to dance with Smuin Ballet, and later with Diablo Ballet and the San Francisco Opera. Throughout his career, he has danced many principal roles in both classical and contemporary works and has been a key part in the creation process for a wide array of artists such as Trey McIntyre, Nicole Fonte, Julia Adam, Robin Dekkers, and Penny Saunders. He is a teacher, choreographer, and rehearsal director with Diablo Ballet.

Sarah Emmons, originally from Paducah, KY, graduated Summa Cumme Laude with a BFA in Dance from Northern Kentucky University. Sarah has performed and taught in Cincinnati and San Diego where she had the chance to work with Exhale Dance Tribe, Malashock Dance, Khamla Somphanh, and PGK Dance Project. Sarah has performed in works ranging from the rock opera One Hundred Days choreographed by Sonya Tayeh to Ólafur Arnald’s concert at Memorial Hall choreographed by Heather Britt. Sarah is currently on faculty at the ODC School where she teaches Barre and Rhythm & Motion. Since moving to the Bay Area, Sarah has performed with Garrett + Moulton Productions, Printz Dance Project, and Margaret Jenkins Dance Company. Sarah is thrilled to be working with ODC/dance.

Isaac Bates-Vinueza is an American choreographer, dancer, and writer who lives and works in San Francisco. He made his professional choreographic debut with Sacramento Ballet in 2022, and that same year, he was awarded the Ann and Weston Hicks Choreography Fellowship at Jacob’s Pillow. As a performer, Isaac has danced with the Sacramento Ballet, SFDanceworks, Post:ballet, Amy Seiwert’s Imagery, and LED Boise. He’s worked with artists like Brian Arias, Rena Butler, Lauren Edson, Jodie Gates, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Laura O’Malley, Mosceleyne ParkeHarrison, Penny Saunders, and Amy Seiwert. Isaac is an alumna of Pacific Northwest Ballet School and holds a B.A. in English from UC Berkeley.

Ria Fifield is a San Francisco–based dance artist and choreographer, born in Russia. Her work explores shape, texture, composition, and the expressive possibilities of the body, with an interest in how movement can create relationships, images, and shifting structures in space.

Her performance background spans contemporary dance, theater, and interdisciplinary work, including New Ballet Theatre, the Nemirovich-Danchenko Theatre, the Open Look Festival, and the Circle of Light. She has worked with choreographers and artists including Yaniv Abraham and Guy Shomroni, Daniel Ezralow, Kim Epifano, Tara Pilbrow, Alexandra Pirici, Amy Lewis, Straw Dogs, and Alyssandra Katherine Dance.

After participating in Pilot 75, Ria is thrilled to return to the program this year.

@riakamalala
 

James Jared is a dancer, choreographer, and dance instructor in San Francisco. He received a Certificate in Modern Dance and Choreography from Princeton University, and is a former dance faculty member at both ODC and Rae Studios as a heels instructor. He has choreographed and performed for local San Francisco organizations including ODC and Rae, as well as Electroluxx, Comfort & Joy, West Edge Opera, Oaklash, 200 Channels, and more.

James’ work explores themes of interconnectedness, self-expression, and kinesthetic empathy through the lens of post-modern contemporary movement with commercial and urban style influences. He is interested in the cross-pollination of formalized dance techniques with the raw, untrained movement languages found in social dance environments, and how this blend can be used to investigate and make tangible different types of relationships. James’ work is designed to be malleable, capable of transforming to fit equally on a well-lit stage or in a crowded club.
@jams_jard
 

Lauren Settembrino (she/her) is a Bay Area-based movement artist. Her practice centers around bombastic, raw movement and theatric world-building.

Throughout her career, Lauren has worked with choreographers Stefanie Batten
Bland, Crystal Pite, Ori Flomin, Giada Matteini, Kristen Klein, and more. She has
performed throughout the greater NYC area at theaters such as BAM, New York City
Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and the Ailey Citigroup Theater. She has also toured
along the East Coast and Midwest. As a choreographer, Lauren’s work has been
presented in festivals and showcases throughout the country. Her 2023 solo, titled “Flee porneia,” has been regarded as a “deeply personal dance that’s impossible to ignore.”

Before relocating to the Bay Area, Lauren worked in New York as a principal dancer with Neville Dance Theater and performer/collaborator with installation contemporary company Angie Moon Dance Theater. She holds a BFA in Dance from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, with additional training with Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and RUBBERBANDance Group.

In 2026, Lauren produced GREENLIT Choreography Showcase, a new mixed-bill showcase designed to highlight emerging Bay Area choreographers. Stay tuned for GREENLIT 2027!

@lauren_sette
 

Eli Shi is a San Francisco based choreographer and freelance dancer. They are a Stanford graduate with a Bachelor's in Human Biology and minors in Ethnic Studies and Theatre and Performance Studies. Recent choreographic credits include Run all the way home (ODC Pilot 75, FACT/SF Fieldwork '26), Bruce Lee and Wong Jack Man (Story Fest SF), Once again, for me (Qualia Contemporary Art), Constellations (Stanford IDA Fellowship). Eli is excited and grateful to participate in ODC Pilot again.

@eli_shi
 

Elizabeth Wiehe is a dance artist and choreographer based in San Francisco. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance with a minor in Journalism from George Mason University. She is the founder and director of Pearl Street Dance Collective, a female-run collective dedicated to producing original work, fostering collaboration, and creating performance opportunities for early-career female artists.

As an artist, Elizabeth is drawn to sharing an authentic physicality through movement. Her work highlights women’s power and strength while honoring the tenderness, care, and vulnerability that shape the way they move through the world.

In addition to her work with Pearl Street Dance Collective, Elizabeth has performed in works by Rafael Bonachela, Martha Graham, Lawrence Jackson, and Susan Shields. She has worked with DC-based companies, including ChamberDance Project and Company Medusa, and in San Francisco, she currently collaborates with DragonsDance, directed by Erin Yen, and Tether Dance Project. Her choreography has been presented at the George Mason School of Dance, Carmel Dance Festival, RAW Artist Showcase, Flux & Form Festival, Art Pärdê Salon, The CONCEPT Series by RAW Dance, ArtIs immersive multidisciplinary performance, and Pearl Street Dance Collective performances.

@Elizabeth22wiehe