Nikki Allen

Nikki Allen is a graduate of Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle. Originally from Houston, Ms. Allen attended ballet, tap, jazz and modern dance classes at Dew Ann Cotten Dance Academy for 15+ years. She also studied at the University of Houston where she danced with their performance company, Dance Ensemble. In addition to dance, Ms. Allen is an accomplished photographer and videographer, participating in dozens of art exhibits since 1999. She has taught at Spectrum since 2002 and is excited to bring her love of dance to the students at Spectrum.

Kelly Ann Barton

bio coming soon

Angie Bolton

Angie Bolton, an ACE certified instructor, teaches Fitness for Living at Spectrum Dance, where she has worked since 1981. She developed Fitness for Living to work students aerobically, and with weights and rubber resistance bands. The class is focuses on people 40 years old and up. Some of her students are in their 80's and many of them have exercised with her for over 10 years.

Marco Carrabba

bio coming soon

Michelle Curtis

Michele Curtis is from Los Angeles, CA. Ms. Curtis received her early training from Catherine Kingsley, Meredith Baylis, Yvonne Mounsey, Rosemary Valaire, and Stanley Holden. She attended summer courses on scholarship at The Joffrey Balley and Pacific Northwest Ballet and also trained on scholarship at Merce Cunningham Dance Company in New York. Ms. Curtis was a soloist with Connecticut Ballet where she was featured in works by Lar Lubovitch, Ann Marie De Angelo, Ramon Oller, and Brett Raphael. She has also performed as a guest artist with Mark Morris Dance Group, Donald Byrd/The Group, The New Jersey Ballet, and appeared in a commercial and a photography book with Pilobolus Dance Theater. As a freelance artist, Ms. Curtis has performed with Pat Catterson, Brenda Daniels, Jonathan Appels and others. Ms. Curtis holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in dance from UCLA. She currently dances with Seattle Dance Project and is also on faculty at Pacific Northwest Ballet School.

Chris Daigre

bio coming soon

Natalie Danielson

bio coming soon

SuzAnne Duckworth

SuzAnne Duckworth trained at Cornish, began teaching in 1975, and quickly became one of the Seattle area's most popular teachers of ballet and jazz dance for children and adults. As a founder of Spectrum Dance Theater in 1982, her contributions as a board member, dancer, and choreographer helped define the style and direction of the company's early years. After dancing with Spectrum, SuzAnne continued to perform throughout the Northwest with the award winning vocal Trio "A Cappella-Go!" until 2006. She continues to teach her Tuesday/Thursday Jazz Class and has a long and dedicated following. In June 2007, SuzAnne, her students, and Spectrum faculty celebrated her 30 years of teaching at Spectrum Dance Theater's home, the Madrona Dance Studio.

Lora Lue Chiorah Dye

Lora Lue Chiorah-Dye, a native of Zimbabwe, has resided in the Pacific Northwest since the seventies. She has been instrumental in the development of the Pacific Northwest African cultural scene since arriving. She has been captivating American audiences with her cultural presentations in song, story telling, music and dance from her native culture, the Shona People. Ms. Chiorah-Dye has been an artist-in-residence with the Washington State Arts in Education Program for grades K-12 since the early 1980’s. She is also Artistic Director for Sukutai Cultural Performing Ensemble. Ms. Chiorah-Dye and her group have toured all over USA & Canada. They entertained the US military abroad in Iceland, Denmark, England, Scotland, Norway, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Hungary, and Bosnia. As a choreographer she worked on Follow the Drinking Gourd with the Children’s Theater, TAKUNDA by the Seattle Rep. Theater in 1991 and 1992, and The WIZ by Langston Hughes Summer Teens. Previously, Ms. Chiorah-Dye was the Recreation Specialist at Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center and retired after 25 years. Ms. Chiorah-Dye teaches African Dance & Culture in Spectrum’s Outreach Department as well as in the Summer Intensive Programs.

Carrie Goodnight

Carrie Goodnight grew up in the Seattle-Tacoma area, studying classical ballet, modern, tap, and jazz dance. She spent two years with the Tacoma Performing Dance Company, and went on to study modern dance in Minnesota with Mary Easter, Shawn McConneloug, Judith Nelson, Gretchen Pick, Stuart Pimsler, Jane Shockley, Morgan Thorson, and Cathy Young. Ms. Goodnight has performed with Semaphore Repertory Dance Company in Minnesota, Sapphire Moon Dance Company and Spoon And Fork in New York City, and the U. O. Repertory Dance Company in Eugene, Oregon. While earning her MFA in Dance from the University of Oregon (2008), Ms. Goodnight taught modern, ballet, tap, jazz, and ballroom dance as a Graduate Teaching Fellow. She is currently on faculty at Spectrum Dance Theater, Seattle Civic Dance Theater, and the BareFoot Collective. Ms. Goodnight is also a founder and Co-Director at the BareFoot Collective where she enjoys collaborating with composers, choreographers, and digital artists in her creative work. She received her Pilates Certification from the Kane School for Core Integration (2002) and currently teaches at Bria Pilates and the YMCA of Greater Seattle.

Oleg Gorboulev

Oleg Gorboulev received his ballet training from the National Ballet School of Uzbekistan. Upon graduation, he was offered a job with Moscow Classical Ballet in Russia, where he toured with the company throughout Europe, the USA, and Asia. Curious to perform ballets of Western choreographers, Oleg came to the USA in 1995, to dance with Indianapolis Ballet Theatre. A few years later, he was invited to join Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB) in Seattle, WA, where he reached soloist rank. While dancing with PNB, Mr. Gorboulev was featured in works of American choreographers such as George Balanchine, Kent Stowell, Lynn Taylor-Corbett, Val Caniparoli, Eugene Loring, Glen Tetley, Paul Taylor as well as in works by European choreographers such as Rudi van Dantzig, Hans van Manen, Ronald Hynd, and Nicolo Fonte. Oleg Gorboulev was an original member of Los Angeles Ballet, Los Angeles, CA and Seattle Dance Project, Seattle, WA, where his acquaintance with American choreography continued. He also teaches at various dance institutions including: Spectrum Dance Theatre, Seattle, WA; Olympic Ballet Theatre, Edmond, WA; Pacific Northwest Ballet School, Seattle, WA. In the spring of 2007, Mr. Gorboulev received an Associate of Business degree from North Seattle Community College.

Heather Harris

bio coming soon

Richard Jessup

Richard has been teaching, performing, directing and choreographing for the last 30 years. He has performed extensively in Nevada, California, Oregon, Kentucky, Michigan and Washington State. He continues to teach master classes and lecture/demos on the importance of Lyrical Jazz, and directs and/or choreographs 4-5 musical theatre productions per year throughout the West. Richard originally hails from Dallas, TX and began his dance training in Reno, NV

Mia Monteabaro

Mia Monteabaro was born and raised in Santa Barbara, California. She started off as a competitive gymnast before transitioning into dance. She trained with the West Coast Ballet under the direction of Ellen Schipper. Ms. Monteabaro graduated from the University of Utah with a BFA in dance and an emphasis in performance, teaching, and character dance. While attending the University of Utah she was a member of two performing companies, Utah Ballet and the Character Dance Ensemble. Also in Utah, she taught dance and coached gymnastics in multiple schools. Ms. Moteabaro joined Spectrum as an apprentice and teacher in 2009.

Dora Oliveira Newman

Dora's career as a professional dancer began in 1976 when she joined renowned Brazilian folkloric dance troupe, Exaltacao A Bahia. Ms. Oliveira has a repertoire that ranges from Afro-Brazilian dance forms through jazz and modern dance. Dora has toured internationally with Olodum and other groups. She holds a degree in dance from the Federal University of Bahia. For over a decade Dora has toured and performed with Occeami - the premier African dance ensemble of the Northwest. She also dances for Show Brazil, a Seattle-based Brazilian band.

Tori Piel

bio coming soon

Patrick Pulkrabek

bio coming soon

Meaghan Sanford

After dancing with Spectrum for 14 years, Meaghan is honored to be teaching creative tap! She has been dancing since she was 3, and is a part of the academy program at Spectrum. Besides dancing, Meaghan is a certified lifeguard, and enjoys raising and showing her pigeons. Meaghan is home schooled, is an active 4-H member, and is president of the club she belongs to.

Mara Siciliano

Mara Siciliano earned a B.A. in Drama with a minor in Dance from the University of Washington. Mara has been teaching dance and theater for over ten years. Her choreography has been seen in various venues including Annex Theater, Intiman Theater, The Ethnic Cultural Theater, the Seattle Fringe Festival, Mercer Island High School, and in association with the Dance Connection in Colorado.

Eva Stone

Eva L. Stone (B.F.A., M.A.) received a B.F.A in Performance and Choreography from Arizona State University. Ms. Stone also trained at SUNY Purchase, Harvard University and the Alvin Ailey School in New York. After completing a Master of Arts Degree in Choreography and Choreological Studies from the Laban Centre in London, England, she then formed the Stone Dance Collective, a modern dance company. Ms. Stone came to Seattle in 1995, re-established her company and began an extensive teaching and lecturing career throughout the Puget Sound. Some highlights have included presenting works at On the Boards, Bumbershoot, ArtsEdge and Broadway Performance Hall. Ms. Stone has appeared as a guest teacher at Western Washington University and has been a faculty member of both Washington Academy of Performing Arts and Olympic Ballet School. Ms. Stone is currently a modern dance instructor for the Pacific Northwest Ballet School Summer Program and the International School of Classical Ballet for the Professional Division. She has created commissioned works for many local dance companies as well as part of a collaborative effort with Seattle Dance Project on the critically acclaimed Project Orpheus at ACT Theater. Her work has premiered in New York, London, Geneva and St. Petersburg, Russia. A recent work, The Unraveling, debuted at Lincoln Center as part of the New York International Ballet Competition gala. Ms. Stone also had the extraordinary opportunity to assist Donald Byrd for the Seattle Opera production of Aida. Ms. Stone is the curator and producer of Chop Shop: Bodies of Work, a contemporary dance festival held annually in Bellevue. This highly anticipated event brings the best of the Seattle dance community together for a unique series of performances and master classes.

Amy Thompson

Amy Thompson was the Artistic Director of the Ellensburg Youth Ballet for 7 years during which time she choreographed and staged many full length ballets including Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Giselle, and Coppelia. She has taught Ballet, Pointe, Variations and Partnering for over ten years. She has also choreographed several musicals including Fiddler on the Roof and Brigadoon. Ms. Thompson trained at the Washington Academy of the Performing Arts in their Conservatory Program.

Erricka Turner

bio coming soon

Alfredo "Fredo" Vergara

As a founding member from one of the most innovative and influential dance groups Circle of Fire, Alfredo Vergara aka "FREE", embodies the true essence of self expression through movement. With more than 10 years of experience, deeply rooted in B-boying (Breaking), he has gained the respect and admiration of his peers and his community. He has participated in various dance events and competitions locally and internationally, such as Freestyle Sessions (USA), Dance Delight (Japan), Red Bull: Lords of the Floor (USA), Juste Debut (France) and the International Battle of the Year (Germany), just to name a few. Internationally known for his charismatic style and finesse, Mr. Vergara has also starred in his self-titled solo DVD "A Beautiful One Man Show", a DVD that shines a new light to the art of dance. His knowledge and experience of Breaking and other dance styles such as Hip Hop, House Dancing, Freestyle and including the Brazilian martial arts/dance Capoeira, has led him to take part in judging competitions, discussion panels as well as teaching workshops all over the world. Mr. Vergara has taught in schools, community centers, dance studios and a variety of dance programs all over the US and other countries. His students range from kids as young as 5 years of age to adults. Being world traveled through dance, he has learned that movement is a language in its own, giving him the ability to communicate with other cultures where words cannot. He considers this art of movement, dance, as a way to express oneself physically, mentally and spiritually. Through teaching and sharing his knowledge and experience, Mr. Vergara strives to free and uplift the soul through music and dance!

"Let your soul be free...DANCE!" - Alfredo "FREE" Vergara

Xaviera Vandermay

A Seattle native, Xaviera Vandermay first found her love of dance at age five. The majority of Ms. Vandermay’s dance schooling was completed at the Pacific Northwest Ballet School and Washington Academy of Performing Arts. She loves instructing all ages in jazz, lyrical, ballet, ballroom, contemporary, creative movement and hip-hop. Her pursuits also include choreography and she directed her own pre-professional contemporary company, LOA: Dance Project since 2004. Ms. Vandermay’s choreography has received many awards and honors including Innovation in Choreography awarded in 2006 by Dance Educators of America. Ms. Vandermay has toured and performed professionally in the U.S. and Mexico with Spectrum Dance Theater (2000-03) under the direction of Donald Byrd and former directors Dale A Merrill and Wade Madsen. She has also performed in the 2003 Seattle Neil Young Engagement and with premier hip-hop dance company Street Level Dance. During her four year stint in Chicago she had the pleasure of performing with GI Alliance and independent choreographer Duwane Pendarvis.

Jordan Weiss

bio coming soon

Ahyoung Wooh

Ms. Ahyoung Wooh was born and raised in South Korea. She started dancing at the age of six, and then went on to Art High School, majoring in ballet and minoring in Korean traditional dance. Ms. Wooh performed with Jin Su In ballet Company in Japan, Mexico and Australia. After moving to the U.S, Ms. Wooh joined Morning Star Korean Traditional Dance Association and performed in Japan, China, Europe and all over the U.S. She received her BA in dance from the University of Washington.