Our Alumni – School of Dance

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UA Dance BFA Alumni

The following list is compiled of various types of employment that the UA School of Dance Alumni were placed in after their completion of a BFA degree. The list begins with the most recent and current running contracts along with other noted contracts fulfilled by former BFA graduates.

Ballet Companies

Ballet Nebraska
Rochester Ballet, NY
Florida Dance Theater
James Sewell Ballet
Ballet Tucson, AZ
Ballet Nouveau/Wonderbound, Denver, Co
California Ballet
City Ballet of San Diego, CA
Stadttheater Bremerhaven, Germany
John C. Art Ballet, Orange County, CA
Joffrey II, Chicago, IL & Suzanne Farrell Ballet
Smuin Ballet, San Francisco, CA
Grupo Corpo in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Ballet Hispanico II
Nevada Ballet Theatre
Pacific Northwest Ballet
Las Vegas Ballet, NV
Ballet Austin, TX
Houston Ballet, TX
American Ballet Theatre, NYC & Washington Ballet, DC

Modern, Contemporary & Jazz Companies

Giordano Dance Chicago
Giordano II, Chicago, IL
Limón Dance Company, NYC
Eisenhower Dance, Detroit, MI
Hubbard Street Dance Chicago
Paul Taylor II, NYC
Royal Flux, Los Angeles,CA
Larry Keigwin + Co., New York, NY
Lar Lubovitch Dance Company , NYC
Odyssey Dance Theatre, Salt Lake City, UT
Lehrer Dance, Buffalo, NY
BodyVox, Portland, OR
DanceWorks Chicago
Thodos Dance Chicago
The Big Muddy Dance Company, St. Louis, MO
BODYTRAFFIC, Los Angeles, CA,
Rasta Thomas’ Bad Boys of Dance, Los Angeles, CA
Koresh, Philadelphia, PA
Company E, Washington, DC
LA Contemporary Dance Company
Hubbard St II, Chicago

Broadway /Touring Shows

An American In Paris
An American In Paris (Paris, France production)
West Side Story
Cats, Wicked, Bring It On
Billy Elliot
Hairspray
Elf, The Musical
Phantom of the Opera, Las Vegas (dancer /rehearsal director)
Radio City Rockettes (NYC cast)
Movin’ Out

Cirque du Soleil Productions

Mystère (Las Vegas)
The Beatles LOVE (Las Vegas)
Elvis (Las Vegas )
Le Rev (Las Vegas)
Cirque du Soleil /Toyko

Las Vegas Shows

Jubilee
Steve Wynn’s Show Stoppers
The Donny & Marie Show, Las Vegas

Cruiselines

Numerous graduates each year have contracts with:
Royal Caribbean (Including the Broadway production of Chicago)
Stiletto Entertainment
Norwegian Cruise Line
Holland America
Disney Cruise Line

Vocal Artists

Britney Spears (Las Vegas & world tour)
Ricky Martin (world tour)
Celine Dion ( Las Vegas show & world tour)

Professional Talent Agencies

Numerous graduates each year are represented by:
McDonald Selznick & Associates (MSA), LA & NYC
Bloch, LA & NYC
Clear Talent, LA
Go 2 Talent, LA

Other

Spamalot /Palace Theatre, New Hampshire
National commercial for Nike
Barbie Live World Tour
The Lido, Paris, France
Tokyo Disney
St. Louis Muni Opera

UA Dance MFA Alumni

The following list is a sample of various types of employment that the UA School of Dance Alumni achieved after their completion of an MFA degree.

Universities and Colleges

Austin Peay State University- Adjunct Instructor
Brenau University- Affiliate Professor in Dance
Brigham Young University- Adjunct Faculty
California State, CA – Associate Professor
College of Dupage- Faculty
Creighton University- Guest Choreographer
East Carolina University- Associate Professor
Kansas State University- Associate Professor/Director of Dance
Messiah College- Assistant Professor
Pima Community College- Faculty
Radford University- Assistant Professor, Online Instructor
Salve Regina University- Assistant Professor
Santa Barbara College- Faculty
Southeastern MO State University- Associate Professor, Instructor, Dance Coordinator
University of Arizona- Faculty
University of Buffalo- Instructor
University of Nebraska- Artist in Residence
Wichita State University- Professor/Director of Dance

Dance Schools and K-12

Arcadia High School, AZ – Faculty/ Dance Teacher
Ballet Conservatory of Dance, Music and Art, AZ – Executive Artistic Director, Modern Dance Instructor, Resident Choreographer
Crossing Dance Ministries, Calgary – Artistic Director
Dance Wise for Parkinsons, KY – Founder/Director
Glass House Dance, WA – Owner/Director
Gwinnett Ballet Theatre and Youth Performance Division, KY
Joffrey Ballet School, NY – Faculty
Kern Dance Alliance, CA – President
Louisville Ballet School, KY – Director
Motor City Dance Factory, MI – Faculty
Open Minds Through the Arts, AZ – Program Director
San Marino Dance Academy, CA -Faculty

Dance Companies

Artifact Dance Project, AZ – Artistic Director
Corps Bara Dance Theater, Calgary – Faculty
Deborah Birrane Dance, WA – Founder, Choreographer, Soloist
Mannakin Theatre and Dance, CA – Artistic Director
Rosa Company – Faculty
Santa Barbara Dance Theatre, CA – Rehearsal Director

People

Facebook

On this Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day 2021, UA Dance remembers the Selma to Montgomery voting rights march led by Dr. King in March 1965. We are proud to have taken part in the 50th anniversary commemoration that took place in March 2015. Professor Melissa Lowe received an invitation from Alabama Gov. Robert J. Bentley and under her coordination, faculty member Barbea Williams choreographed a piece and traveled with now School of Dance alumni, Kennedy Thomas and Kevyn Butler to Alabama where they performed on the steps of the Alabama State Capitol in a nationally televised ceremony. Bernice King, Dr. King’s daughter, was among the featured speakers. Thomas and Butler also performed in educational programming designed for youth and the three participated in lectures and discussions.

Of the experience, Lowe said, “This is one of my high points in all of my years of teaching. When we can send a dancer to an event that is of national importance, it not only provides great visibility and prestige for us, but it is a great opportunity for our dancers.”

Photo left to right: UA Dance Ensemble members Kevyn Butler and Kennedy Thomas, Bernice King, UA Dance faculty member Barbea Williams at the 50th anniversary commemoration of the Selma to Montgomery March in Alabama (2015) ... See MoreSee Less

20 hours ago

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Cheers to our graduating dance majors!
We are so proud of you. 💙 ❤️

BFA
Elise Cricchio,
Katie McCluskey, &
Ben Ferguson, Outstanding Senior!

MFA
Emigdio Arredondo Martínez

Celebrate their big achievement by visiting: graduation.cfa.arizona.edu ... See MoreSee Less

1 month ago

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How exciting. Congrats

i love you all!!💙💙❤️❤️

Congratulations!💙❤️

CONGrats!🎉

Well done! Congratulations!

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Now Showing!
UA Dance Digital Debut: Dec. 15-20 & Jan. 5-10
Online/On-Demand
Free Admission
To register and watch: watch.dance.arizona.edu

Join UA Dance for a virtual performance of works produced during the Fall 2020 semester that capture and juxtapose the isolation and togetherness of our current collective experience. The program features a new work by Hayley Meier, a re-staging of Elizabeth George-Fesch's “Woven” (2016), a new poppin' take on a holiday classic by Marquez Johnson, and an excerpt from Paul Taylor's “Cloven Kingdom” (1976). Plus, view an improvisation collaboration featuring the entire freshman class!

Photo by Ed Flores ... See MoreSee Less

1 month ago

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Thank you UA Dance!!!

Happy last day of classes! Already looking forward to 2021 back in the studio!

Photo: Erina Ueda ... See MoreSee Less

1 month ago

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Such a gorgeous space!

Beautiful, Erina💜

Beautiful!

>> Pointes from Professors <<
Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies, Tamara Dyke-Compton, is the co-director of dance at Perry Mansfield Performing Arts Camp, has been on faculty for Dance Masters of America, Domaine Forget in Montreal, and The Dance Project in Toronto. She has performed principal roles in Twyla Tharp’s “Movin’ Out,” as well as the national Broadway tour of “Fame.”

Tammy tells us how she ensures she is providing equal attention to both online and in-person students simultaneously:

“I always like to check in with my students—when we first log onto Zoom and with my in-person dancers—with a simple ‘Good morning, how is everyone?’ We usually start every class with a mindfulness pause and set our intention for the class. This allows us all to be present, in the moment, and connect as a class even if it is virtually.” ... See MoreSee Less

2 months ago

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I had the opportunity to watch Camryn in your class last year . You are such a gift to U of AZ...

Bella would love to take class with you again!

Mom and dad did something right You should be proud What a beauty. Inside and out

Christopher loves your classes! 🥰🤗👍

Congratulations to LILY CONG, who was the 2019/2020 Ralphie Spirit Award winner!

One way we celebrate our UArizona Dance values is the Ralphie Spirit Award, a recognition named in memory of dance major Ralph Romero. This peer selected award recognizes a dancer in our program who exemplifies these five qualities:
OPTIMISM of the “glass is always full” variety;
KINDNESS that manifests itself in daily acts of generosity;
ASPIRATION that is undaunted and filled with the lust for life;
A SENSE OF SELF that is unique and unapologetic; and
AN ATTITUDE of the noble variety

Former Dance Collective club president, Ally Hauke, wrote “Lily is a beautiful example of everything this award is. Her kindness spreads throughout the entire program….She has been an inspiring and gracious leader to not only her freshman class, but to the program as a whole! Thank you Lily for the love and positivity you've brought into the program this past year— we are so grateful, and you're appreciated by all of us!” ... See MoreSee Less

2 months ago

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