The 2023 International Summer Dance Intensive (ISDI) begins Monday, August 7 and Arts Umbrella Dance is looking forward to welcoming guest artists and faculty from all over the world to our Granville Island campus. Learn more about the International Summer Dance Intensive here and explore this year’s ISDI faculty below.

Faculty

Amy Josh

Amy Josh (she/her) currently works as a freelance dancer based in Germany. She also fulfils numerous arts management/arts production roles. Amy was born in England and grew up in Vancouver, Canada. She completed her professional dance training at Arts Umbrella Dance School, graduating in 2011. In her career, she has worked for companies Noord Nederlands Dans, Club Guy and Roni, and Tanzmainz. She has had the privilege of collaborating on new creations with choreographers such as; Sharon Eyal, Guy Weizman & Roni Haver, Rui Horta, Koen Augustijnen & Rosalba Torres Guerrero, Guy Nader & Maria Campos, Eleonore Valère-Lachky, Garry Stewart, Jose Navas, Jo Stromgren and Guiseppe Spota. As a freelance artist, she is currently working with choreographers; Alexandra Waierstall and Astrid Boons, with previous engagements with  Bryan Arias and Alba Castillo, Dunja Jocic, Edan Gorlicki and Jill Crovisier.

Amy Raymond

Amy Raymond danced professionally as a soloist with Dutch National Ballet and as a member of William Forsythe’s Frankfurt Ballet. Over the last 20 years, she has worked as a freelance choreographer, improvisation teacher, and ballet teacher, and stages the works of William Forsythe. She has worked in many professional companies and schools and crosses both the classical and contemporary worlds. Some of these institutions include The Forsythe Company, Paris Opera, NDT, San Francisco Ballet, Dutch National Ballet, Cullberg, Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, Goteborg Danskompani, English National Ballet, Arts Umbrella, Codarts, and National Ballet Academy. Over the past 15 years, she has studied with martial artist master Akira Hino and has integrated his unique in-depth knowledge of the body into all aspects of her work.

Anders Hellstrom

Born in Stockholm, where he got his professional education at The Royal Swedish Ballet School followed by his first engagement at the Royal Swedish Ballet in 1980. After nine years, 1984-1993, as Principal Dancer at The Hamburg Ballet he continued his dancing career at William Forsythe’s Ballet Frankfurt, 1993-1999. 1999-2002 he took on the Artistic Directorship of The Gothenburg Ballet, where he raised the company’s international and contemporary profile. 2004-2009 appointed Artistic Director of the Nederlands Dans Theatre. In this position, he commissioned and introduced works by among others Crystal Pite, Marco Goecke, Wayne McGregor, William Forsythe, Alexander Ekman, and Medhi Walerski. After three years of international freelancing, he returned to NDT in the position of Curator & Artistic Producer from 2013-2019. Besides teaching and coaching the dancers of the companies he has directed, Anders Hellstrom has been a regular Guest Teacher with Royal Swedish Ballet, Norwegian National Ballet, and Berliner Staatsballett.

Anna Herrmann

Born in Zürich, Switzerland, Anna Herrmann began her dance education in her hometown and completed her studies at the School of The Hamburg Ballet. In 1998 she joined The
Hamburg Ballet where she danced for the first 3 years of her professional career. Anna has been a company member of Niedersächssiche Staatsoper Hannover, Göteborgs Operan, Staatstheater Wiesbaden and later of Nederlands Dans Theater 1, where she performed from 2009 until 2016. In 2019 Anna joined the Berlin-based Dance On Ensemble. Throughout her career, Anna had the privilege to create with and dance works of renowned choreographers such as John Neumeier, Jiří Kylián, Mats Ek, Crystal Pite, Marco Goecke, Lucinda Childs, Merce Cunningham and Medhi Walerski, to name a few. Anna has served as a guest teacher at The Royal Conservatoire Den Haag, Arts Umbrella Vancouver, Codarts Rotterdam and Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris.

Aurélie Cayla

Aurélie Cayla was born in 1980 in Paris, France. She studied at the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique et de Danse in Lyon, France from 1996-1999. From 1999 to 2002, danced with Aalto Ballett Theater in Essen, Germany. She then joined Nederlands Dans Theater 2 from 2002-2005 where she created and danced for choreographers such as (i.a) Johan Inger, Ohad Naharin, Hans van Manen, Paul Lightfoot/ Sol Leon, and Jiri Kylian. In 2005, Aurélie was invited to join NDT 1 and performed works by Hans Van Manen, William Forsythe, Mats Ek (i.a) and creating with Jiri Kylian, Crystal Pite, Paul Lightfoot/Sol Leon, Wayne Mac Gregor, (i.a). Presently, Aurélie Cayla is dancing as a freelance Artist and stages work by Jiri Kylian for international dance companies and workshops in schools. Aurélie is also part of the collective OFF projects, created in 2012 around dance works and installations of Dutch-Israeli choreographer-musician Amos Ben Tal. She graduated in Cultural Mediation-Art Management in September 2012 and works as a manager for choreographers Johan Inger and Tom Weinberger.

Beatrice Larrivee

Born in Sherbrooke, Québec, Béatrice Larrivée is a performance artist and creator. She danced with Batsheva Dance Company ‘The Young Ensemble’ between 2018-2020 and is a certified Gaga teacher. Since then, she has been a freelance dancer and has worked with various choreographers like Bosmat Nossan, Dana Gingras (Animals of Distinction), Shahar Binyamin, Lior Tavori, Gil Kerer, Noa Zuk and Ohad Fishof. Béatrice began her career in Montréal with RUBBERBANDance Group. During this time she also did freelance work with Compagnie Marie Chouinard. She studied ballet at l’École Supérieure de Ballet du Québec before moving to Vancouver, BC to attend the renowned Arts Umbrella School of Performing Arts. Béatrice is now performing her first solo work in Canada and abroad for which she received a creation grant from Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec.

Christoph von Riedemann

Christoph von Riedemann was born in New Westminster on the unceded Central Coast Salish territory on the ancestral lands of the Qay’qayt and Musqueam First Nations, Canada. He grew up dancing at Arts Umbrella under the instruction and mentorship of Artemis Gordon, Lynn Sheppard, Marquita Lester, Emily Molnar, Justine Chambers and Lina Fitzner. After graduating from the school’s graduate program he joined Ballet BC where he danced for 4 years. He has worked with several reputed artists such as Crystal Pite, Sharon Eyal, Johan Inger and Company 605. He has also worked in Vancouver with Karissa Barry, Rachel Meyer, Jenifer Mascall, Stephanie Cyr and Lexi Vajda while also building solo material that was presented at Vancouver’s Contemporary Art Gallery (CAG). He joined GöteborgsOperan Danskompani in 2019 and has been dancing there for the past 4 seasons, performing works by Yoann Bourgeois, Sharon Eyal, Damien Jalet, Maxine Doyle, Alexander Ekman and Kenneth Kvarnstrom

Donna Krasnow

Donna Krasnow is Professor Emerita, Department of Dance, York University, Toronto. She has a distinguished career as a choreographer, performer, teacher, researcher, and author. Donna performed with the Daniel Lewis Dance Repertory Company in New York, Möbius, Footloose, Northern Lights, and Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane. Donna specializes in dance science, receiving her master’s degree in 1994 and her Ph.D. in 2012. She has published over 40 articles, book chapters, and books, including Conditioning with Imagery for Dancers, Motor Learning and Control for Dance, Dancer Wellness, and Daniel Lewis: A Life in Choreography and the Art of Dance. She created C-I Training™ (Conditioning with Imagery) including a video series and certification courses for teachers. Donna received the University of Oregon’s Distinguished Alumna Award, the Lifetime Achievement Award from Healthy Dancer Canada, the Dance Educator Award from the International Association for Dance Medicine & Science, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Dance Education Organization.

Eric Beauchesne

Born in Québec, Eric grew up fishing and hunting before discovering dance at the age of 16. A graduate from École supérieure de danse du Québec, he has been on stage with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe and Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal, as well as with Canadian contemporary dance icons such as La Fondation Jean-Pierre Perrault, Paul-André Fortier, Louise Lecavalier and Crystal Pite. Company member since 2004, Eric currently collaborates with Kidd Pivot as associate artistic director, and stages Pite’s work on companies worldwide including the National Ballet of Canada, Ballet Zürich, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Ballet British Columbia and the Paris Opera Ballet. Eric has served as guest teacher and faculty for several organizations such as Arts Umbrella, TransFormation, Springboard, the Seattle Festival of Dance Improvisation and the Dutch National Ballet Academy, as well as rehearsal director for Nederlands Dans Theater. He currently resides in Holland and devotes much of his spare time to advocating for climate action and sustainable practices in the dance world.

Ethan Colangelo

Ethan Colangelo was born and raised in Toronto where he began his initial training at Canada’s National Ballet School and Elite Danceworx. He is now an alumnus of The Juilliard School where he received the Hector Zaraspe Prize for Choreographic Promise. As a choreographer, he has presented work at Orsolina28, The Baryshnikov Arts Center, Festival des Arts de Saint-Sauveur, The Queen Elizabeth Theatre, APAP, Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center and the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Ethan was also one of nine choreographers selected internationally for the Copenhagen International Choreography Competition in 2018 and 2021. At the competition in 2021, his piece recurrence won the Audience Choice Award along with the DAF Production Prize and a residency with Hessisches Staatsballett. Most recently, he has created new works for Ballet BC, BODYTRAFFIC, Orsolina28, Whim W’Him Contemporary Dance and the National Ballet of Canada. Colangelo has also taught and made new creations for educational institutions such as The Juilliard School, The Ailey School, Arts Umbrella Dance Company, Springboard Danse Montréal, DAF in Rome and MOVE NYC. Ethan joins The National Ballet of Canada as Choreographic Associate in July 2023.

Fernando Hernando Magadan

Fernando Hernando Magadan is a Spanish dancer and choreographer with roots in professional gymnastics. After joining the Nederlands Dans Theater 2 in 2001, he was later appointed to the main company. Throughout his 15 seasons as a performer with NDT, he collaborated with renowned choreographers such as Jiří Kylián, Paul Lightfoot, Sol Leon, Ohad Naharin, Mats Ek, Johan Inger, Crystal Pite, and Hofesh Shechter among others. He later went on to be Artistic Leader for NDT2.  As a choreographer, Fernando’s works have been presented by companies worldwide, which include NDT1 and 2, The Curve Foundation Dance Company (Scotland), Luna Negra Dance Theater (Chicago), Cross Connection Ballet Company (Copenhagen), Ballet Mainz (Germany), Ballett Saarländisches Staatstheater (Germany), Ballet BC (Vancouver), Korzo Theater (The Hague), Dance Lucerne Theater (Switzerland), and BODYTRAFFIC (Los Angeles).

Francisco Martinez

Francisco Martinez was a dancer with Compania Nacional de Danza (Spain), and Ballet Royal de Wallonie (Belgium). He received his training at the National Ballet School in Spain and obtained his Ballet Degree from the Royal Conservatory of Dance in Madrid. He also graduated from the Dance Education Laboratory at the 92nd Street Y in New York City. Mr. Martinez holds a BA of Arts from ESC and he is also certified as a Hatha yoga instructor and a Mindfulness-Based Stress reduction. Mr. Martinez was a guest rehearsal director for Ballet Hispanico of New York from 1996 to 2000 and has been a guest teacher for Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal, Ballet Jazz de Montreal, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Compania Nacional de Danza, Ballet British Columbia, Cedar Lake, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Netherlands Dance Theater. He has also been a faculty member of Sarah Lawrence College, Boston Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet School, The Ailey School, Marymount Manhattan College, etc… and in the fall of 2009, he became a faculty member of the Juilliard School in New York City where he is currently working.

Gioconda Barbuto

Gioconda Barbuto is an internationally esteemed Canadian dancer and choreographer. As a long-time member of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens and Nederlands Dans Theater III, Gioconda was quickly recognized as a versatile and magnetic artist, gracing the works of many leading choreographers. Her synergy in studio with Jiří Kylián in particular led to
two celebrated dance films, Birth Day and Car Men. In 1996, she was nominated for The Kennedy Center Fellowship and received The Banff Centre’s Clifford E. Lee Choreography Award. Gioconda has unflaggingly pursued her choreographic calling, creating detailed, dynamic friezes of full-bodied gestures, marked by her innate musicality. Choreographing for
many acclaimed dance companies her oeuvre now counts over fifty works. Gioconda has been extending her intimate understanding of the language of movement and shares a collaborative approach to creation and methods for moulding space and energy. Gioconda is invited to teach her movement workshops at academies worldwide.

Jorge Soler Bastida

Jorge Soler Bastida, originally from Spain, is currently the rehearsal director at Dance Theater Heidelberg, directed by Iván Pérez. Jorge received his dance training at the Conservatorio Profesional de Danza de Murcia and Madrid. As a dancer, he has worked in companies such as; Tanzmainz, Staastheater Saarbrücken and Staatstheater Nuremberg. He has also accompanied Marguerite Donlon as a choreographic assistant and teacher at numerous theatres over the span of three years, along with working as a freelance dancer with a variety of different choreographers. Jorge has collaborated with choreographers Roy Assaf, Sharon Eyal, Guy Weizman and Roni Haver, Guy Nadar and Maria Campos, Koen Augustijn and Rosalba Torres, Caroline Finn, and Felix Berner, among others.

Julia Cratchley

Julia Cratchley is a Toronto-based Choreographer/dancer and trained as a contemporary and classical artist in Vancouver, B.C., with Arts Umbrella’s Graduate Program under the direction of Artemis Gordon and Lynn Sheppard. Here she had the opportunity to work with internationally known choreographers, including Emily Molnar, Roberto Campanella, Serge Bennethon, and Robert Glumbek. Working as a professional dancer Julia was lucky enough to be a part of the Toronto company Helix Dance Project, Bridge to Artists As well as dancing for Toes for Dance, Conteur Dance Company, Rutherford Movement Exchange and Derrick Yanford she has danced in Toronto, New York and the Dominican Republic. Julia opened her own professional Immersive dance company Transcen|Dance Project in 2015 with “Eve of St.George” which ran for three seasons. Julia premiered “A Grimm Night”- the company’s newest interactive production in 2022 and just remounted it in the Spring of 2023.

Katrina Cruickshank

Katrina Cruickshank has been a dance educator at Arts Umbrella since 2011. She is a graduate with honours from the three-year Teacher Training Program at Canada’s National Ballet School. Katrina has completed teaching qualifications with the Cecchetti Society of Canada, Registered Teacher Status with the Royal Academy of Dance and teaching qualification in National Dance. Throughout Katrina’s teacher training, she was under the tutelage of leading dance mentors such as Glenn Gilmour, Carina Bomers, Rosalie Deligioridis, Evelina Krasnova-Ganina, Teresa Randall, and Anushka Roes. Katrina has extensive knowledge in Ballet, Pointe, Repertoire Studies, Injury Prevention, History of Dance, Voice, Character Dance, Creative Movement, Modern (Irene Dowd) and Music. She continues to attend pedagogy workshops and master classes around the lower mainland with world-renowned dance educators and examiners.⁠

Katrina held the position of Secretary as a member of the Cecchetti Society of Canada, B.C. branch from 2011-2014. She has been the adjudicator of dance for the District Authority Scholarship in British Columbia for 2021 and 2022 and recently was Rehearsal Director for the 2023 Cecchetti Awards Celebration.⁠

Kevin Cregan

Soloist dancer with the Dutch National Ballet, freelance performer, choreographic assistant and dance teacher. Collaborated with William Forsythe in Frankfurt, Unterwegstheater (Heidelberg), and with Meryl Tankerd in London. Performed the speaking role in Forsythe’s “Artifact” with the Bayerische Staatsballett, Munich. As a ballet teacher, Kevin has worked for The Forsythe Company, Netherlands Dance Theatre, Culberg Ballet, Skanesdanstheater, Danish Danstheater and Alonzo King’s, Lines Contemporary Ballet. He has taught at most of the contemporary dance companies in Holland and is on the faculty at Codarts, University of the Arts, (Rotterdam). Kevin is a certified Feldenkrais Practitioner© and his classes focus on Postural Alignment, Force Transmission and the role of Intention and Sensory Awareness in the development and training of dancers. Kevin also applies the Feldenkrais Method© to assist dancers with injuries that have failed to respond to traditional treatment.

Livona Ellis

Livona Ellis was born in Vancouver on the unceded CoastSalish Territories. She completed her training at Arts Umbrella under the direction of Artemis Gordon. In 2010 she received her Dance Diploma and began dancing with Ballet BC. Throughout her time with the company, she has performed works by world-renowned artists such as Crystal Pite, Sharon Eyal, Medhi Walerski, Johan Inger, William Forsythe, and many others. Independently she has collaborated with Jennifer McLeish-Lewis for the EDAM Spring Series, Rachel Meyer and Jennifer Mascall for Dancing on the Edge Festival 2019, and Mary-Louise Albert and Peter Bingham for Solo Dances 2020. She has created works for Dances for a Small Stage, Dance Deck Trois, Public Salon 2019, Contemporary Art Gallery Gala 2018, and Arts Umbrella Dance. In 2017 she received the Vancouver Mayor’s Arts Award for Emerging Artist. In 2019 Livona staged Medhi Walerski’s “Prelude” on Staatsoper Hannover in Germany. Livona was also a guest artist with Konzert Theater Bern in Switzerland for their 2019/2020 season. She completed a residency at Left of Main in January 2021 and will continue her choreographic research toward developing a new work. She is a full-time company member at Ballet BC.

Lukas Timulak

Lukas Timulak works in the fields of performing arts and film. As a dancer, he has worked with Les Ballets de Monte Carlo and at Nederlands Dans Theater. He has choreographed for several companies around the world including Nederlands Dans Theater, Gothenburg Ballet, Balé da Cidade de São Paulo, Royal Swedish Ballet, Staatsballett Hannover, Lyon Opera Ballet among others. His interest in cinematography led him to intensive study at New York Film Academy, which strengthened his skills as an editor and director for short films & documentaries. Most of his works since 2004 are in collaboration with designer Peter Bilak, concerning new concepts for contemporary dance. In 2017 they started Make Move Think Foundation for interdisciplinary artistic collaboration.

Marc Boivin

Dancer, improviser, teacher and choreographer, Marc Boivin begins his dance career at Le Groupe de la Place Royale in Ottawa under the directorship of Peter Boneham and in 1985 joins Ginette Laurin and her newly formed company O Vertigo Danse. Since 1991 he has worked as an independent dancer, performing among others for Louise Bédard, Mélanie Demers, Sylvain Émard, Jean-Pierre Perreault, Tedd Robinson and Catherine Tardif. Affiliated with L’École de danse contemporaine de Montréal since 1987 Boivin regularly guest teaches and choreographs in schools and professional organizations across Canada. He has been president of Espace Perreault – Transmissions chorégraphiques since 2006, president of the RQD (Regroupement québécois de la danse) from 2010 to 2014 and sat on the board of the Montreal Arts Council from 2005 to 2010. He is the recipient of the Canada Council’s Jacqueline-Lemieux Prize (1999) and the Dora Mavor Moore Award (2014) for interpretation, in Mélanie Demers’ WOULD, alongside Kate Holden.

Nicole Rose Bond

Nicole Rose Bond began her formal training at York University, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts-Dance cum laude in 2005. Since that time, Nicole has felt privileged to perform works by many esteemed choreographers including Peggy Baker, Patricia Beatty, Tom Brouillette, Susan Cash, Bill Coleman, David Earle, Danny Grossman, Ryan Graham Hinds, Christopher House, James Kudelka, Learie McNicholl, Andrea Nann, Yvonne Ng, John Oswald, Peter Quanz, Peter Randazzo and Andrea Spaziani.

As a teacher, Nicole has had the pleasure of working as a course director in Graham Technique and Contemporary Dance at York University, The National Ballet School, Arts Umbrella and Modus Operandi and has taught dance classes and workshops within the Toronto District School Board. As part of outreach initiatives through Toronto Dance Theatre, The National Ballet of Canada’s YOU Dance Program and Peggy Baker Dance Projects, Nicole has taught in Toronto, Dryden, Vancouver, Moncton and Whitehorse. Nicole has also served on the Toronto Arts Council Advisory Panel and as a member of the Dance Collection Danse ‘Encore: Hall of Fame’ Committee. Through her work as both a performer and a teacher, Nicole’s goal is to empower others to effect conscious change in the world whilst honouring those who have come before us. Nicole is beyond grateful that her vocation encompasses doing what she loves and is humbled by, and indebted to, the unique and beautiful arts community that she calls home.

Pedro Goucha Gomes

Pedro Goucha Gomes started his dance education in Lisbon, Portugal. In 1991 he graduated from the National Ballet School, in Toronto. As a professional dancer, he worked with the Stuttgart Ballet, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Nacho Duato’s Compañia Nacional de Danza and the Netherlands Dance Theatre. Since 2006 he created several choreographic and installation works.  Currently, he is a regular guest teacher at the Netherlands Dance Theater, Pina Bausch Tanztheater Wuppertal, Goteborg Dance Company, Scapino Ballet, and ArchiTanz in Tokyo, among others. Pedro is a certified Feldenkrais® Teacher, a Somatic Movement Practicioner and a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction teacher. He teaches Somatic Movement Workshops internationally. He lives in the Portuguese countryside with his wife and two children and is a partner of the Loural Ecovillage, a community committed to the creation of a retreat and training centre for integrative therapies, art, permaculture and energy autonomy.

Rafi Sady

Rafi Sady had his dance training at Bat-Dor Beer-Sheva/Tel-Aviv dance school. He was a soloist in the Bat-Dor dance company and principal dancer in Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève for 7 years. Rafi was also a member of the Cullberg Ballet for 14 years where he danced many lead roles including Carabosse in Mats Ek’s “Sleeping Beauty”, and Don José in Mats Ek’s “Carmen”. Since 2009, Rafi Sady has been assisting Mats Ek and teaches his works to dance companies around the world.

Risa Steinberg

Risa Steinberg is active in many facets of the dance community as a performer, teacher, re-constructor of the works of José Limón, rehearsal coach, and choreographer mentor. A native New Yorker, Ms. Steinberg attended the High School of Performing Arts. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from The Juilliard School, where she has served as full-time faculty since 2004 and held the position of Associate Director of Juilliard Dance from 2008-2016. Ms. Steinberg has been a guest teacher worldwide and in many summer intensives. In 2022, she received the DanceTeacherMagazine Award of Distinction. As a performer, Ms. Steinberg was a principal dancer with the José Limón Dance Company and guested with companies worldwide. She was a cast member of Punchdrunk’s, Sleep No More from 2015-2020. As a choreographic advisor, she has mentored many emerging and established choreographers. Ms. Steinberg is the co-director of the Ann and Weston Hicks Choreography Project at Jacob’s Pillow.

Spencer Dickhaus

Spencer Dickhaus is a freelance dancer, creator, rehearsal director and teacher based in The Hague, Netherlands. He graduated from the Juilliard School with a BFA in 2012 after which he joined Nederlands Dans Theater for seven seasons (2012-2019). He has since performed works with Hofesh Shechter Company, Astrid Boons and Marina Mascarell. Spencer is an assistant to Crystal Pite and has restaged her works at The Royal Opera House in London, Zurich Opera Ballet and The National Ballet of Canada. He was guest rehearsal director with NDT2 season 2022. He has taught educational workshops for Arts Umbrella (Vancouver), Netherlands Dans Theater (NL), NOD (Torino, IT) and Princess Grace Academy (MC). Most recently he created and toured his work Recess throughout The Netherlands.

Valentina Scaglia

Valentina started her dance education in Italy, Torino at the Studio Danza Narcisa. After participating at the Prix de Lausanne in 1995 she wins the ‘Hope Price’ and get a scholarship to the Hamburg Ballet School where she finishes her studies in 1997. She works as a professional dancer for 3 years with the Hamburg Ballett and from August 2001 to December 2013 with the Nederlands Dans Theater 2 and 1 in The Hague, Netherlands. Since then Valentina has been coaching and teaching the repertoire of NDT in the Netherlands and internationally to older students and professionals. She is part of different NDT educational dance projects and loves to help younger kids explore their creativity. In 2014/15 Valentina certifies as a trainer in the GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® method. She is exited to keep learning more about the human body and share her knowledge after all those years of experience

Yvan Dubreuil

After his studies at the Conservatory of Paris, Yvan Dubreuil started his career at @ndtdance in 1991. In the 18 years that followed he danced in works by Jiri Kylian, Ohad Naharin, William Forsythe and Saburo Teshigawara to name a few. Yvan has also worked as co-choreographer, dramaturge and set designer with such artists as Karine Guizzo, Johan Inger and Dylan Newcomb. Prizes have distinguished several of those works, such as Walking Mad by Inger, winning the Lukas Hoving Prize for best production in 2001; as well as Newcomb’s Passing and Full Circle, winning the same prize in 2000 and 2003 respectively. Yvan has been collaborating with Amos Ben-Tal since his very first creation in 2005. Yvan Dubreuil is one of the co-founders of @offprojects, a collective consisting of former dancers of Nederlands Dans Theater and @batshevadancecompany Ensemble, gathered around the work of choreographer and musician Amos Ben-Tal.⁠

Musicians

Craig Wingrove

Craig Wingrove graduated from the Royal Conservatory of Music with his ARCT in piano performance and has his Honors BFA in music from York University. He has been a
full-time musician at Canada’s National Ballet School (NBS) for 32 years. He has also been a regular guest pianist for the National Ballet of Canada in Toronto and in the summer has worked at Arts Umbrella in Vancouver. He has produced 29 CDs that feature music especially arranged for dance classes. These tracks are available on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon and several other digital platforms. Craig also teaches all three levels of the Teacher Training Program at NBS and has written two books on music for the dance teacher. As part of the pioneer team at NBS, he plays and composes music for the Dance for Dementia initiative and regularly gives workshops to teachers and facilitators at Baycrest. Craig has also given lectures and master classes at the Royal Academy of Dance and more recently in New York at the Mark Morris Dance Centre in Brooklyn. His lectures are for both musicians and dance teachers. Craig’s expertise is in how to put these two art forms together in harmony.

Craig Ziebarth

Craig Ziebarth received his music education at the University of Calgary, where he majored in piano performance. His interest in working with dancers has led him to play extensively in both ballet and modern dance for over 40 years. He has performed and accompanied extensively throughout Canada, the United States, England, China and Japan.  From 1990 to 1999 he was a full-time accompanist in the Faculty of Dance and York University after which he joined the artistic staff and NBS and continued into his 24th year. Craig is returning to Arts Umbrella ISDI for almost 20 years now and is thrilled to be working focusing on both ballet and Jose Limon Technique.

Perri Lo

Perri was raised on the traditional lands of the Tsuut’ina nation, formally known as Sarcee (Calgary, Alberta). She is Chinese-Canadian, with Hong Kong heritage from her father’s side and Singapore heritage from her mother’s side. Perri is a collaborative pianist and vocal coach, working in opera, and chamber music. She completed her Master of Music degree from McGill University in 2011 and an Artist Diploma at the University of Toronto as a répétiteur in 2018. She joined the Yulanda M. Faris Young Artists Program at Vancouver Opera as an apprentice coach for the 2018/19 season. Perri has now established herself in Western Canada as a collaborator with Indie Opera West companies including Heroic Opera, East Van Opera, and Re: Naissance Opera. Aside from performing with singers and instrumentalists, she has worked with dancers across Canada at Ballet BC, Arts Umbrella Dance, Harbour Dance Centre, l’École supérieure du ballet de Québec, and Canada’s National Ballet School.

Ron Stelting

Ron Stelting has been accompanying Dance for over 25 years now, including Modern classes, Ballet classes and Traditional West African classes and is one of the most in-demand accompanists in Vancouver. ⁠Ron has facilitated rhythm events around the world for thousands of people. Some highlights include Deepak Chopra meditation retreat in Whistler with 500 ecstatic meditation students, Bumbershoot in Seattle, Orientation day at BCIT for 3000 students, South Asian Family Association, Music Therapist Grads from Capilano Collage, World Urban Fest, Canada Day at various locations including Granville Island and Fort Langley, Project Stitch: a youth HIV/AIDS awareness project, The Starlight Dream Walk: a benefit for seriously ill kids and their families. Ron also works with Drum Café, a corporate team-building company, travelling across Canada and the World. Ron has also performed and recorded with many artists including kids performers the Buddy System, Nuevo Flamenco sensation John Gilliat, World Music pioneers Drum Prayers, singer-songwriter Jim Foster and Beat Poet Ralph to name a few. Ron has been the Musical Director of Judith Marcuse’s ICE, has performed in Bah Humbug featuring Jim Burns as well as performing in the award-winning show Little Mercies First Murder. He has directed or led processions for Public Dreams Illuminares, Parade of the Lost Souls, LightWaterDrums, the West Coast Sacred Music Fest, and the Fringe Fest.⁠

Sacha Levin

Vancouver percussi­onist Sacha Levin has studied her craft in West Africa, Europe, and Canada. For over 15 years, Sacha has been performing and recording with some of the city’s top players. She has played alongside Sal Ferreras, Pepe Danza, Jack Duncan, and countless other heavy hitters. She has shared the stage with artists as diverse as Julian Marley, Ron Sexsmith, Celso Machado, 5 Alarm Funk and Queer as Funk. She has toured and performed at festivals and concerts throughout Canada and the U.S. She spent 8 years playing with the worldwide Drum Café, with whom she performed as a drummer for the Vancouver Whitecaps. You may have seen Sacha on Television and in Movies where she has been filmed playing various roles for 2007 Hollywood movie Catch and Release, and TV shows Jerimiah, and Stargate Atlantis. She has played in commercials for Bratz dolls and composed music for documentaries such as “Down Here” with her group Diva Drum, and “No Fixed Address” with her group Smash. She has toured Canada in children’s groups such as SWARM and Dumpsta Dragons playing over 750 school shows combined. Sacha also works as a dance accompanist in the School for Contemporary Arts at SFU, The Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, Arts Umbrella and many other dance companies including The Training Society, Harbour Dance, and Mascall Dance. Sacha continues to pursue her path as a percussionist, reaching out to all communities, and constantly exploring the positive energy and healing power of rhythm. Establishing a meaningful link between rhythm and movement through music is her passion.⁠

Trevor McLain

Trevor McLain hails from Saskatoon where he got his start playing for dance in 1971. This was during his training at the University of Saskatchewan which he graduated from in 1975 with a Bachelor’s in Music Education. In 1976, he began his 32-year stint at Canada’s National Ballet School. In 2008 McLain started full-time at Arts Umbrella after playing for many of the Summer Dance Intensives in Vancouver. He has had the good fortune to work in the Cecchetti and RAD syllabi under top professional teachers. He has made two CDs for the CDTA syllabus and taught music workshops all over Canada over the last three decades. He loves Vancouver and the special caring nature of the west coast.⁠

Youngsin Choi

Youngsin Choi has a classical piano background attending Sunhwa Art School in her teen years in Seoul, Korea. During her science program at college in the United States, she continued her musical journey by accompanying for musicals, vocal and instrumental recitals, holding piano solo recitals, and winning awards at piano competitions. When she went back to Seoul, she got her master’s degree in dance music at Kookmin University under prof. EunSoo Kim, where she learned to provide music for dance: live accompaniment for ballet, modern, and traditional Korean dance classes, and recording and producing music for stage performances. During and after her master’s program, she worked as a ballet pianist for ballet classes, workshops, and master classes at Korea National University of Arts, Ewha Womans University, Seoul Tanz Station, and Universal Ballet Company. She also worked as a music director and producer at Vienna International Ballet Experience Korea, Seoul International Improvisational Dance Festival, and other choreography. With her experience, she released a ballet class album in 2019. She moved to Vancouver in 2022 and has been expanding her music career at Arts Umbrella as a dance musician, at Langara College, finishing up Digital Musical Production program, and accompanying for ballet classes at Harbour Dance Centre. Her experience in Vancouver has only been grateful and inspiring because of the most talented and intelligent co-workers, students, and friends.

Zabelita Fraser

After living in Canada and Spain, Zabelita Fraser moved to Venezuela where she worked for Ballet Nacional de Caracas, and was an accompanist for the Santa Cecilia Choir. In 1995 Zabelita returned to Vancouver where she has since worked for Ballet Classique, Goh Ballet, Ballet BC, Harbour Dance Centre, and Arts Umbrella – where she has been an accompanist for more than 18 years. Each year Zabelita has accompanied the VBS Spring Seminar and, for many years, has played for the Cecchetti Society Workshops and exams.

Artistic Direction

Artemis Gordon

An artistic and pedagogical authority in dance, Artemis Gordon was named Artistic Director of Arts Umbrella Dance in 1992. Since then, she has developed the program’s international recognition. Artemis has toured the Arts Umbrella Dance Company to Europe, Asia, and the United States, and fostered collaborations with companies around the world. In 2015, Artemis secured an affiliation with Ballet BC, increasing opportunities for emerging artists and amplifying the impact of international choreographers in Vancouver. In 2016, Artemis won the YWCA Women of Distinction award in the Arts, Culture, and Design category. She was also awarded with the 2017 City of Vancouver Mayor’s Arts Awards in Dance.

Sabra Perry

Sabra Perry began dancing under the guidance of Linda Klassen and graduated from Canada’s National Ballet School. She has performed with companies including the National Ballet of Canada, Hartford Ballet, Merce Cunningham Repertory Group, and Complexions Contemporary Ballet, in works by choreographers such as George Balanchine, Merce Cunningham, Ulysses Dove, Martha Graham, Nicolo Fonte, William Forsythe, and Dwight Rhoden. She has been a ballet mistress with Complexions, a faculty member at Ballet Academy East, and a guest instructor across the United States and Canada. Sabra holds a BA in dance from SUNY/Empire State College and is a certified Pilates Mat instructor. Sabra joined the Arts Umbrella faculty in 2012.

Arts Umbrella’s International Summer Dance Intensive is generously supported by:⁠
Tom Ferries and Lisa Pankratz⁠
Darren Kopetsky⁠