MDAA Spring Workshop 2019 Guest Faculty Biographies

Ballet/Pointe 4 Corwin Barnett grew up in Phoenix and began dancing at the young age of three. He received his formal training from the Tempe Dance Academy, where he trained in numerous styles of dance. Winning National Senior Outstanding Dancer, Cory furthered his training through New York City Dance Alliance, where he toured regionally as an assistant. Cory was accepted to The , where he received his BFA in 2014. Under the direction of Larry Rhodes, he performed works by William Forsythe, Pina Bausch, , Martha Graham, Jose Limón, Stijn Celis, Victor Quijada, Mathew Neenan, and Alex Ketley. During school, Cory appeared as a dancer in the movie “Match” starring Patrick Stewart and Carla Gugino. Upon graduation, Cory joined the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet and then Les Grands Ballets des Montreal. Here he performed the works of Ohad Naharin, Jiri Kylian, Stephan Thoss, Shen Wei, Nicolo Fonte, Alejandro Cerrudo and Norbert De La Cruz III. While working for Les Grands, he developed his choreographic voice and even created his own work, “You’ll Never be Alone” for 5 female dancers. Throughout his time in school and companies, Cory has performed at The Joyce Theater and Jacob’s Pillow, and in countries such as, France, Germany, Colombia, Holland, China Scotland, and over 20 other cities in the US. He was a faculty member for FRESH dance intensive, based out of Toronto. With FRESH, he taught and choreographed all over the Toronto area and northeast US. Most recently, Cory performed at the Festival International De Ballet in Cali, Colombia amongst ballet and contemporary companies from around the globe. Currently, he resides in Tulsa, OK with his husband Troy, and together they teach, choreograph, and perform throughout the US. Although he loves performing, Cory has found a new passion in teaching and guiding this generation of young dancers.

Jazz/Ballet Folklorico Cynthia Gutierrez-Garner is a choreographer and dance educator committed to inclusion, representation and social consciousness in both pedagogy and creative practice. She received her B.F.A. Summa Cum Laude at the University of Minnesota, and her M.F.A. as an Advanced Opportunity Fellow at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee’s Peck School of the Arts. She has served as the Choreographer in Residence for the Minnesota Dance Theater and is a four- time winner of the Arizona Choreography Competition’s Professional Division. Original works by Gutierrez-Garner have been commissioned by numerous colleges and universities across the U.S. including Kent State University, University of Minnesota, Arizona State University, Gustavus Adolphus College, University of Wisconsin, Middle Tennessee State University, University of Texas Rio Grande, Muhlenburg College and the American University. Additionally, she has enjoyed commissions by professional companies including the Minnesota Dance Theater, Dulce Dance Company, Eclectic Edge Ensemble, Zenon Dance Company and JazzAntiqua. Gutierrez-Garner’s work has seen support from organizations such as the Jerome Foundation, the McKnight Foundation, the Walker Art Center, and the Arizona Commission on the Arts. She has taught on the dance faculties of the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities and Gustavus Adolphus College, among others, as well as the prestigious Bates Dance Festival in Lewiston, Maine and as a guest faculty at Xuchang University in China. She currently serves on the faculty of Western Oregon University and is the Artistic Director of Company Movimiento, based in Eugene, OR.

Modern/Choreography Rachel Oliver Young is the Education Director of the Classical and Contemporary Pre-Professional Dance Program at Denver School of the Arts. Rachel holds an MFA in Dance, as an Arts and Sciences Fellow at CU- Boulder, and a BS in Dance and Biochemistry from Beloit College, having graduated Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa. Rachel has performed professionally across the country as a freelance dancer and as company member. Rachel has performed professionally with Avodah Dance (New York), Ballet Afsaneh (San Francisco), Carli Mareneck (West Virginia), Dance Theatre/Shannon (San Francisco), Double Vision (San Francisco), MDAA Spring Workshop 2019 Guest Faculty Biographies ecnDanceworks (Chicago, now The Moving Architects in NY), Gesel Mason (New York), Presidio Dance Theatre (San Francisco), Shandoah Goldman/Carte Blanche Performance (New York), Shaun Irons & Lauren Petty (New York), Tough Cookie (Brooklyn), You & Me Performance Project (Denver), and the West Virginia Dance Company, touring the Mid-Atlantic Region for three years under the direction of Toneta Akers-Toler and Donald Laney, performing work by Gerri Houlihan, Doug Varone, and others. Rachel currently collaborates on immersive, site- specific dance with Denver based choreographers Kate Speer, Tara Rynders, and Mary Lynn Lewark. As a dance maker, Rachel has created work for women’s prisons, public schools, outside spaces, multi-media performance spaces, and traditional theaters. Rachel’s choreographic work has been presented nationally and internationally, most notably being commissioned by Bare Bait Dance Company, Centennial State Ballet, and West Virginia Dance Company, selected for performance at WestFest Dance in New York and Performática in México, and presented at the University of Iowa, WV Wesleyan University, the ATLAS Institute (CO), the Philly Live Arts & Fringe (PA), Dixon Place (NY) and Triskelion Arts (NY). Rachel has taught dance courses and as a guest artist at public schools, dance studios, women’s prisons, community centers and universities across the country including University of Colorado-Boulder, Metro State University, for the Colorado Ballet, Cleo Parker Robinson Dance, Longmont Dance Theatre, Presidio Dance Academy, Radford University, Performática, and Pikes Peak Community College. Through teaching Dance & Popular Culture at CU-Boulder, Rachel was nominated by the Theatre & Dance department and awarded the Graduate Part-Time Instructor Teaching Excellence Award by The Graduate School at CU-Boulder. Rachel is currently an adjunct instructor for the Continuing Education Department at CU-Boulder in addition to her work at Denver School of the Arts. Rachel has an undergraduate degree in Biochemistry, completed her Pilates Mat certification through ITT Pilates at A Body of Work in San Francisco, has been teaching Pilates for the past 11 years, has worked in physical therapy settings around the country, working one-on-one with patients, educating proper biomechanics and form for injury recovery. While pursuing an MFA in Dance, Rachel focused on Somatics and Dance Wellness, studying Alexander Technique and Body-Mind Centering. With this background, Rachel strives to provide a deep and factual understanding of anatomical information, while encouraging body awareness, strengthening, and an increase in flexibility in her dance classes, and offer injury prevention and dance wellness to students at Denver School of the Arts.

Tap AlexJo (AJ) Natale is an east coast educator, choreographer, and dancer residing in New Jersey. She received her formative training under Shelley Oliver of Manhattan Tap, and Gloria Frances of GFSOPA. AJ received her BA in Dance and Psychology from Muhlenberg College, named #1 college for theater and dance by The Princeton Review. She is pursuing her master’s degree in Arts Administration from Southern Utah University. AJ teaches throughout the tri-state area, and is a guest judge/teacher for local competitions and conventions. She has had the pleasure of leading and/or creating several projects throughout her years with Leon Dance Arts, Ballet Forte, Muhlenberg College, Gateway to the Arts, KK Dancing Dreams, and BDC. Her class focuses heavily on rhythm, musicality and performance. Her mission is to have every student leave the room feeling full. Full of knowledge, full of motivation, full of spirit. She is an avid choreographer, with work shown at the American College Dance Festival, New York Live Arts and other showcases around the NYC area. Most recently, her piece ‘Ignition’ ranked third in Anthony Morigerato’s Operation Tap’s National Choreography Challenge. Regional choreographic credits include Muhlenberg College Summer Music Theater productions of Gilbert and Sullivan's HMS Pinafore, Jesus Christ Superstar and Crazy for You and New Jersey City University's Little Shop of Horrors, Side Show, Sister Act, In the Heights and Next to Normal. Other favorite credits include Moravian Academy’s My Favorite Year (FA's Best Production), Hello Dolly!, Big Fish (FA's Best Production) and Urinetown (FA's Best Production). AJ currently works at New Jersey City University in their Music, Dance and Theater department as an adjunct faculty member and resident choreographer. In honor of her father, AJ has been instrumental in the formation of the Joseph F. Natale Commitment to Excellence Scholarship, awarded to a qualifying Musical Theater Major at NJCU. MDAA Spring Workshop 2019 Guest Faculty Biographies

Modern I Joy French is a dancer, choreographer, videographer and producer. After earning her MFA in Performance and Choreography at the University of Colorado Boulder, Joy moved to Missoula and in 2011 founded Bare Bait Dance (BBD). Joy created BBD to be a home for dancers in the region and to produce nationally and internationally acclaimed artists and their work. In addition to BBD, Joy is on faculty at The University of Montana, teaches in Missoula high schools through BBD's Montana MoDE program and has performed professionally with Headwaters Dance Company and the CoMotion Dance Project.

Ballet I/Pointe III Ashley DeGroot is a Missoula native. Ashley began dancing at the young age of three years old. She's attended multiple summer intensives including The School of American Ballet and The Pacific Northwest Ballet and has competed and performed all around the world in places such as China and Europe, where she danced professionally with Austria's Salzburg Ballet. Ashley has worked with world-renowned choreographers such as Elliot Feld and Alexander Ekman and graduated from The Julliard School with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2014.

Jazz I/Improvisation Faith Morrison was born in the tundra of Alaska and raised in the Rocky Mountains of Montana. She completed her MFA in Dance at the University of Oregon in 2015, and received her BA in Dance and Mathematics from the University of Montana in 2010. Faith received Graduate Teaching Fellowships from 2012-2015 in the Dance Department at the University of Oregon where she taught modern, ballet, jazz, and contact improvisation. She has been a guest artist in the Dance Department at the University of Montana. While living in Missoula, Faith has danced with Headwaters Dance Company and choreographed for Bare Bait Dance Company. She has had the opportunity to perform in works by Bebe Miller, Mark Haim, Robert Guitron, Shannon Mockli, Brad Garner, Barbara Lima, and Katie Scherman+Artists. For the past two years she has been a company member and instructor with Polaris Dance Theatre in Portland, OR.

Tap I Kasey Davis has been dancing since she was 3 years old. She tackled everything from ballet, tap, and jazz to modern, hip hop, and musical theater. She has always loved performing, ultimately earning a degree in musical theatre. She has often been cast in tap-heavy shows, and she loves being able to continue dancing within a full musical. In the last 5 years, Kasey has become a choreographer and director as well. She loves sharing her passion and experience with other dancers and performers. Kasey has dedicated the majority of her life to dance and is thrilled to educate others to love it, too.

MDAA Spring Workshop 2019 Guest Faculty Biographies

African Tarn Ream has been the Dance world for many years. Collaborating and performing with SPARK! Arts Ignite, the Montana Arts Council, CoMotion Dance Project, Students of African Dance and Music, and many other local and national dance workshops, she has diversified her background to share with students. Tarn has attended multiple conference across the United States including Camp Merveilles in Colorado, Bantu Camp New Mexico, International Hawaii Multi Cultural Music and Dance Conference in Hawaii, and Adefua Cultural Education Workshop African Drumming and Dance Cultures in Washington. She has been awarded the Montana Arts Council grants and award,s along with Missoula Cultural Council Arts Educator Award and UM Women’s Resource Center Equality Award. Tarn has been teaching and performing in the Missoula community for over 25 years.

Variations Laura Haller was born in the beautiful mountains of Helena, Montana, Laura Haller began her professional dancing career at the age of 18. She studied dance at the , Kirov Academy of Ballet, Alberta Ballet, and Kansas City Ballet on merit based scholarships before beginning her professional career with classical ballet company, Ballet Idaho. While dancing full-time, she also obtained her BS from Boise State University, where she graduated cum laude with a degree in medical sciences. Laura danced as the principal professional dancer with Viking Ocean Cruises, where she had the opportunity to dance and travel to over 30 countries and 5 continents. She was recently awarded the Talent Scholarship for her classical ballet en pointe at Miss America, and she was the very first Miss Montana to win the STEM award (science, technology, engineering, and math) at the Miss America Competition. During her year of service as Miss Montana, Laura has shared her personal message, "Own Your Movement," with over 20,000 children across the state, and has worked closely with Shodair Children's Hospital- Montana's only Children's Miracle Network Hospital. She aspires to dance on Broadway, and recently completed her first Broadway audition for Disney's Aladdin, where she made it to the final callbacks and will hear the results of her audition this upcoming summer.