Justin Allen (Dancer)
Justin is in his third year dancing at CCBC. He graduated from Milford Mill High School. He enjoys being in dance company this year because of the opportunities for performances and masterclasses and working with the guest artists. It has also been great to meet new dancers. He chooses to dance at CCBC because it’s affordable and a great experience.

Sarah Harris (Dancer)
Sarah is in her second year dancing with the CCBC Dance Company. This year she has enjoyed learning new choreography and traveling to ACDA with her classmates! Sarah loves the opportunity to dance, learn from new people, and work on my technique. Sarah is also currently teaching at Holabird Dance studio.

@sarahemiliaharris

Rachel Huber (Dancer)
Rachel Huber has been furthering her dance education, as well as her career at CCBC for almost three years now. She attended Perry Hall High before coming to CCBC. She was also a company member with Supernova Dance Company for about three years prior to her acceptance into the CCBC Dance Company in Fall of 2020. This semester, she is enjoying enriching her knowledge and understanding of what it means to be a professional dancer in the present and the unpredictable future of dance as a society, as well as an art-form. In her final semester before graduating from CCBC and earning my A.F.A degree, she is lucky enough to be able to be a rehearsal assistant, as well as an active member of the dance company. She is dancing at CCBC because she has found that there is always an inspirational, nurturing environment surrounding the program. She shared: “No matter what circumstances or situations a dancer might find themselves engaged in, there will always be a safe space for them, provided by the CCBC Dance Company.”

Anastasia McKenzie (Dancer)
Anastasia was born in Kirov, Russia and raised in Baltimore, Maryland. Anastasia just recently graduated with her Master’s degree in Sports Science and rehabilitation from Logan University. In 2017 she graduated with her BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography at Coker College in Hartsville, South Carolina. Anastasia was a part of the pre-professional Coker Repertory Dance Company at Coker College. In 2012, Anastasia was nominated to travel to London, England to represent Maryland in dance. During the summer of 2016 she was one of 25 lucky dancers chosen to travel to Italy for a two-week summer dance intensive. Anastasia is currently back in school pursuing another degree while continuing performing with Trajectory Dance Project and creating choreography around Maryland.

Andre Payne Jr. (Dancer)
Andre (Andre Breaks) is in his first year dancing with the CCBC Dance Company. He graduated from New Town High School and has trained with the Merrit Clubs training center. Andre enjoys the learning process of building up a foundation for choreography and dance. The new challenges help him to create new ideas, new movements and develop as a dancer. Andre is learning more about the choreographic process and how to create and share dance as a form of communication, it is “an art that expresses one's emotion and feeling.”

Maegan Read (Dancer)
Maegan is a CCBC Dance Company alum and graduated from CCBC in June 2021. This semester she is enjoying being able to dance with her friends again after graduating from CCBC last year. She is back dancing at CCBC this semester because she missed her friends and missed dancing in a studio and just dancing in general. Since graduation, Maegan has not been dancing as much and is very thankful for this opportunity.

Stephanie Waters (Dancer)
Stephanie is in her first year dancing at CCBC. She graduated from Perry Hall High School. We enjoy having her in our program and dancing with us.

Shannon Willing (Dancer)
Shannon is a community member joining us this semester. She is an alumnus of Towson University and danced at the Ballet Royal Academy studio until 2007. She is grateful to be invited to join the guest artist piece.

Melinda Blomquist (Artistic Director/Choreographer)
Melinda Blomquist holds an M.F.A. in Dance Choreography and Performance from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a Master of Arts in Dance Pedagogy from Brigham Young University. Melinda has presented her choreographic work at numerous venues nationally and internationally including the Mid-Atlantic and South-Central American College Dance Festival, Northwest Vista College, Towson University, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and the Attakkalari Festival in Bangalore India. Currently Melinda is a Professor of Dance at the Community College of Baltimore County, and she also serves as the Artistic Director for the CCBC Dance Company. Melinda has also worked with Trajectory Dance Project and with the Theatre and Music departments as a choreographer for Musical Theatre productions in Arizona, Texas and Maryland including The Fantasticks, Fiddler on the Roof, Good News, and She Loves Me. Melinda is involved in community outreach, focusing on promoting the importance of dance as art form in public education. She has provided workshops and master classes in Texas, Alaska, and Maryland to students at the Elementary, Middle, and High School levels. She currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors for Deep Vision Dance Company and as Past-President of the Maryland Dance Education Association. To learn more about the Dance Program visit: www.ccbcmd.edu/dance

Tommy Parlon (Dance Coordinator/Choreographer)

Tommy a native of Washington, D.C., received his M.F.A. in Dance (Choreography and Technology) from Arizona State University and his B.F.A. in Dance and Choreography from Virginia Commonwealth University. From 1998-2002 he was an Assistant Professor of Dance at Kent State University. While in New York City he danced with J. Fregalette Janson Dance, Centaur Dance Theatre, Beyondance Inc! and the Paris based multi-media performance art company FIASCO. Mr. Parlon has danced in pieces by Doug Varone, Stephen Petronio, Alvin Mayes, Laura Dean and Elizabeth Streb. In 1996-1998 he collaborated on Falling to Earth, an interactive multi-media performance piece created with the Institute for Studies in the Arts at Arizona State University. His choreography has been commissioned by Incidents Physical Theater of New York City, NEW ARTiculations in Tucson, Arizona, Lansing Chamber Dance in Michigan, and numerous colleges throughout the United States. He was awarded an Individual Artist Award in Solo Dance Performance from the Maryland State Arts Council in 2004 and an Artist Award in Choreography in 2007. Mr. Parlon is currently the Artistic Director of Tommy Parlon Dance Projects in Washington, D.C., the Artistic Associate of Ground Zero Dance in Richmond and the Dance Coordinator at CCBC.

Kristi Schaffner (Associate Director/Choreographer)

Kristi attended the University of Oklahoma as a teaching fellow where she received her MFA in modern dance (2011). She also has BFA in dance education from Kent State University (2004).  Through a graduate student grant, she studied Laban Movement Analysis at the Laban Institute in NYC. Ms. Schaffner has performed with Jeslyn Dance Gallery, Clawson Dances, Junction Dance Theatre, and Tommy Parlon Dance Projects among others, and is a current dancer and Director of Education and Outreach for Dragonfly Dance Experiment. Her choreography has been presented across the country including Pittsburgh, Oklahoma City, Washington D.C., Annapolis, Baltimore, Salt Lake City and at the Howard County Dance Festival. A passion for education has inspired her to create and implement dance curricula for both preschools and charter school students diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder. Ms. Schaffner is a current adjunct faculty member in the dance divisions of Anne Arundel Community College and the Community College of Baltimore County and is a frequent guest instructor and performer in schools and community events.

Alice Howes (Choreographer)

Alice is a dance artist and educator who is director of Trajectory Dance Project, a Baltimore-based modern dance ensemble. She has held full-time faculty positions at universities including Coppin State University, UNC Charlotte, and Lamar University.  In addition, she served from 1995 to 2004 as artistic director and resident choreographer of Washington, D.C.’s Sister’s Trousers Dance Company, a modern dance ensemble based in the D.C. area. Sarah Kaufman of The Washington Post described Howes’ performance as “riveting, thrilling and deeply mysterious”.  Howes’ choreography has appeared in selective showcases at venues such as D.C.’s Dance Place, The Booth Theater in Charlotte, North Carolina and the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater and Millennium Stage. She holds an MA in dance from American University and an MFA in dance from Sam Houston State University. Howes also has earned a Certificate of Movement Analysis (CMA) from the Laban Institute of Movement Studies in New York City.

Adrienne Kraus Latanishen (Choreographer)

Adrienne is proud to have graduated with honors from The Community College of Baltimore County with her A.A. in Dance.  She then transferred to The University of Maryland where she also graduated with honors with her B.A. in Dance.  Besides being an adjunct dance faculty member at CCBC, she dances professionally for Trajectory Dance Project and independently for herself.  Previously, she also danced for BlueShift Dance (principal dancer), The Collective (dancer, choreographer, educator), B3W of New York City, Andary Dance (soloist, principal dancer), and withhart.dance.projects (founding member, assistant director, soloist, principal dancer).  She was Director of Dance at St. Timothy's School, a private and boarding school for girls and she choreographed as Artist in Residence at Patapsco High School and Center for the Arts for numerous years.  Recently, Adrienne choreographed for The Salem Players Theatre Company, Northeast High School, and Baltimore Composers Forum. 

Peter Pucci (Guest Artist in residence)
Peter Pucci is a Lucille Lortel Award winner and Drama Desk Nominate for Outstanding choreography for Queens Boulevard (the musical). Peter also received a Drama Desk Award for his work on The Orphans' Home Cycle. Peter graduated from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts with a BFA in Modern Dance. Peter was a principal dancer and rehearsal director with Pilobolus Dance Theatre for nine years. While with Pilobolus, Peter toured and taught worldwide, made several film and television appearances, performed on Broadway, collaborated on many Pilobolus pieces, before forming his own company, Peter Pucci Plus Dancers. Pucci Plus performed in New York City on Broadway and five seasons at The Joyce Theater. Peter has choreographed over 150 dances, including commissioned works for The Joffrey Ballet, Ballet Arizona, Ballet Hispanico, Colorado Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet, Alberta Ballet and the Big Apple Circus. He has also served as movement director on numerous theatrical productions. Recent commissions include a new commission for the University of Richmond’s Theatre & Dance department’s University Dancers, Fete du Ballet for the Texas Christian University’s School of Classical & Contemporary Dance, a NEA funded production of Migration, a group work for 50 dancers produced by the Community College of Baltimore County, Dream On By for the State Street Ballet in California and the Joffrey Ballet Ensemble in New York City. Peter has also directed two dance films, Swag n' Bach: A Path To Choreography and In the Garden that premiered at the Jacob Burns Film Center. His third dance film Exuviae will premiere in the fall of 2022. Peter is a Trustee Host for the Dance on Film Series at Jacob Burns and has curated many short dance films programs for the Dance on Film Series. He was an Artist in Residence at Manhattanville College for nine years and a Guest Choreographer/Movement Director for seven years at the Juilliard School of Drama. Additional information at: https://pucciplus.com/

Nathaniel Hunt (Guest Choreographer)
Nathaniel “Nate” Hunt (he/him/his) is a dancer, teacher, and choreographer based in Lenapehoking (Manhattan, NY) represented by MSA talent agency. He graduated summa cum laude from LIU - Brooklyn (BFA Dance). Nathaniel studied at the Alvin Ailey School, Joffrey Ballet, Cedarlake Contemporary Ballet, Jacob’s Pillow, and EMIA. Nathaniel’s performing credits include the Metropolitan Opera Ballet, Ailey II, Ballet Hispanico, Company XIV, and PARA/MAR Dance Theatre. He has performed works by Alvin Ailey, Dwight Rhoden, Ronald K. Brown, Lorin Latarro, Alexei Ratmansky, Alexandra Damiani, Jennifer Archibald, and Annabelle Lopez Ochoa. Nathaniel’s choreographic and teaching highlights include Alvin Ailey II, Bucknell University, Adaptations Dance Theater, FLOCK, and Santa Fe College among others; showcasing his choreography at the Kennedy Center, Manhattan Movement & Arts Center, and the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. Nathaniel is a union member of AGMA constantly fighting for diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout the entire performing arts industry. IG @nathanielhunt_ | www.nathanieljhunt.com

@nathanielhunt_

Lisa L. Boeren (Production Coordinator)

Lisa has worked on over sixty productions in the Baltimore area for many companies including Dundalk Community Theatre, Cockpit in Court Summer Theatre, and Phoenix Festival Theatre. Lisa just celebrated 15 years as the Box Office Manager for CCBC and also serves as the Administrative Manager for Cockpit in Court Summer Theatre. In her spare time, she sits on the Board of Directors for Dundalk Community Theatre. She has also recently launched a new theatre company with her husband, the Peace Players, and had a very successful production of Godspell.

Jason Randolph (Technical Director)
BS Math, College of William and Mary MFA Rinehart School of Sculpture, MICA MFA Technical Theatre and Design, UVA TD/Resident Scenic Designer Single Carrot Theatre 2014-2017 TD CCBC Essex 2015-present TD Cockpit in Court Summer Theater 2016-present