Urban Jazz Dance Company's Dancers
Zahna Simon
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Company and Festival Assistant Director: Zahna Simon (Company Dancer)
Zahna Simon
Deaf from birth, Ms Zahna started her dance training with City Ballet School in San Francisco. She expanded her dance background when she was accepted to San Francisco School of the Arts (SOTA) by training with Elvia Marta in Modern, Jazz, African, Ballet, Hip Hop and Choreography as well as participating in Alonzo King’s LINES Pre-Professional Summer Programs. Upon graduating from SOTA in 2003, Ms Simon attended UCI double majoring in Chemistry and Dance. At UCI she trained and performed in over 20 performances in various dance styles, working with fellow peers, graduate students and distinguished faculty such as Lisa Naugle, David Allan and Donald McKayle. Upon graduating from UCI with a BS in Chemistry and a BFA in Dance Performance, Simon moved to San Diego to work full time at Vertex Pharmaceuticals and also performed with the Mesa College Dance Company, with CAC Repertory Dance Theatre (CACRDT), Bite Dance Company, Visionary Dance Theatre and in Jean Isaac’s Trolley Dances 2013. Ms Simon is now relocated back to the Bay Area and is acting Assistant Director for both Urban Jazz Dance Company and the Bay Area International Deaf Dance Festival (BAIDDF) under Antoine Hunter, Founder and Director and a full time office manager at a small Fiduciary Office in San Francisco; not only does she love performing and coordinating/conducting workshops for Urban Jazz Dance Company and BAIDDF, she has performed with Epiphany Productions for Alameda Island City Waterways.
Deaf from birth, Ms Zahna started her dance training with City Ballet School in San Francisco. She expanded her dance background when she was accepted to San Francisco School of the Arts (SOTA) by training with Elvia Marta in Modern, Jazz, African, Ballet, Hip Hop and Choreography as well as participating in Alonzo King’s LINES Pre-Professional Summer Programs. Upon graduating from SOTA in 2003, Ms Simon attended UCI double majoring in Chemistry and Dance. At UCI she trained and performed in over 20 performances in various dance styles, working with fellow peers, graduate students and distinguished faculty such as Lisa Naugle, David Allan and Donald McKayle. Upon graduating from UCI with a BS in Chemistry and a BFA in Dance Performance, Simon moved to San Diego to work full time at Vertex Pharmaceuticals and also performed with the Mesa College Dance Company, with CAC Repertory Dance Theatre (CACRDT), Bite Dance Company, Visionary Dance Theatre and in Jean Isaac’s Trolley Dances 2013. Ms Simon is now relocated back to the Bay Area and is acting Assistant Director for both Urban Jazz Dance Company and the Bay Area International Deaf Dance Festival (BAIDDF) under Antoine Hunter, Founder and Director and a full time office manager at a small Fiduciary Office in San Francisco; not only does she love performing and coordinating/conducting workshops for Urban Jazz Dance Company and BAIDDF, she has performed with Epiphany Productions for Alameda Island City Waterways.
Assistant Rehearsal Director: Linda Steele II, (Company Dancer)
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Linda Steele II formally trained at Marin Ballet before receiving her BFA from Alonzo King LINES Ballet/Dominican University of California. She has been honored to have worked with Alonzo King, Drew Jacoby, Maurice Causey, Gregory Dawson, Maurya Kerr's tinypistol, Sidra Bell, Katie Faulkner, Amy Seiwert LEVYdance and recently with My-Linh Li's Mud Water Theater, Inside Out Contemporary Ballet, Antoine Hunter, Labayen Dance/SF and Anandha Ray among others. She has been dancing withUrban Jazz Dance Company since 2017.
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Marissa Head, Company Dancer
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Growing up in Vallejo, Marissa studied dance at Berkeley Ballet Theater under Sally Streets and Ilona McHugh. She then pursued her BFA in Dance at Alonzo King LINES Ballet/ Dominican University of California. Prior to graduation in 2017, Marissa performed and taught dance in Guatemala and Nicaragua with JUNTOS Collective. In 2016-2017, she co-lead a project for the Isadora Duncan Dance Awards to celebrate their 30th Anniversary. Marissa is currently a trainer at San Francisco GYROTONIC®. Marissa’s first performance with Urban Jazz Dance Company was in 2018. The community within the company has allowed her to learn and share the power of communication through movement- whether it be learning new rhythms in dance, or new words in ASL. She has been dancing withUrban Jazz Dance Company since 2018.
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Paunika Jones, Company Dancer
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Ms. Jones was born and raised in Miami, FL. Is an alumnus of New World School of the Arts. After graduating, she began her dance career at Dance Theatre of Harlem under Direction of the late Arthur Mitchell, where she ascended the ranks from Dancing through Barriers Ensemble®️training program to Principal Dancer. From there, she worked in various ballet, contemporary and dance theatre companies nationally and internationally. Such as Dance Theatre of Harlem, Collage Dance Collective,Oakland Ballet,Complexions Contemporary Ballet,Ballet Noir,DEMA,Urban Jazz Dance Company,Brooklyn Ballet, Sign Dance Collective and Columbia City Ballet.
During her ever expanding career, she's had the opportunity to work closely with her mentor: Arthur Mitchell on investigations of ballet schools within the US, ballet technique, dance education and personal assist in/outside of the studio, while further developing a deeper love and understanding for ballet/dance instruction, Yoga, GYROKINESIS® and overall well being. She has a desire to further her studies within these areas and to continue blooming artistically. Which include continuing to cultivate her own Dance/Performance Art Company. She has been dancing with Urban Jazz Dance Company since 2015. |
Ashley Gayle, Company Dancer: graduated from UC Irvine with a B.F.A in Dance Performance and minor in Business Management in 2012. After moving back home to the Bay Area, she has performed with Alayo Dance Company, PUSH Dance Company, LV Dance Collective, David Herrera Dance Company, Mix’d Ingrdnts, and Urban Jazz Dance Company. She regularly teaches youth and adults throughout the Bay Area and is also the Co-Director of Visceral Roots Dance Company.
Cynthia Rodriquez, Company Dancer: was born in Los Angeles, California and moved to the Bay to go to UC Berkeley, graduated in 2019 with a Doctor in Physical Therapy. She began dancing at 3 at Fine Arts Academy learning jazz, tap, tumbling and eventually modern dance at Cal. After college she began to study under Reginald Savage where she met Mr. Hunter. In 2006, she was forced to stop dancing after a debilitating back injury that would eventually lead to back surgery. Never believing she would return to dance, having endured nerve damage from her injury, she was compelled to return after the birth of her daughter. After a 10 year hiatus, she began to dance again and is ever so grateful for every day she can get up and move in whichever way she can. Through her experiences she is determined to help others heal and feel better. Every moment, every movement is an opportunity to connect with others and express that which can not be said in words... and she hopes this is conveyed in her dancing.
Danielle Silk, Staff and Dancer: lives at the intersections of white Deaf, Disabled, queer, Jewish, Mad, and femme. She is a youth organizer by day and a dancer, artist, and access worker by night. She was raised by a poor and working class mixed faith family on Pomo, Graton-Ranchera, and Coastal Miwok land all over Sonoma County. She now lives on Ohlone Land in Oakland, California where she dances with Urban Jazz Dance Company and creates accessible art media.
Kelly Garrett, Dancer: joined the Urban Jazz Dance Company in 2019, with her debut performance in Deaf’s Imprisoned. Kelly’s love of dance began as a child in ballet class and continued to expand once exposed to Jazz and Hip-Hop. In 2003, she performed in the Super Bowl XXXVII pre-game & halftime shows in her hometown of San Diego. She then went on to perform in productions organized by the San Diego Community College, before transferring to SFSU and starting her career in nonprofits. In her free time, Kelly is an avid reader and moviegoer. She enjoys exploring San Francisco on-foot, puppy sightings, and dancing with the Urban Jazz Dance Company.
Piper Thomasson, Dancer: dance has been an integral part of her life since she began ballet at 3 years old. She is originally from Stockton, CA but moved to the bay area when she started attending Santa Clara University earning a BA in Theatre Arts with a Dance Emphasis as well as a BA in English with a focus in Technical Writing. Needing more dance in her life than the Silicon Valley provided, she moved to the East Bay. She is also currently the Project Director for the Bay Area’s long-time performance series, Works in the Works with Choreographers’ Performance Alliance. Most recently, she performed with Risa Jaroslow and Dancers at ODC in At Your Service. She is excited for her first season with Urban Jazz Dance Company