Gina Bolles Sorensen earned her MFA in Dance from the University of Oregon in 2008 and her BA in Mass Media Communication Studies and Political Science from UCLA in 2003. She has danced with modern dance companies in New York, San Francisco, San Diego, and Oregon, and has taught dance in California, Oregon, Michigan, and Montana. Special awards include the Gary E. Smith Summer Research Grant and the Center for Study of Women in Society Research Grant to study the classical Indian dance Bharatanatyam in India in 2007. Her article, “Imagery ability, imagery use, and learning style: an exploratory study,” was published by the Journal of Dance Education in Spring 2009. Gina currently teaches dance at the Chula Vista School for Creative and Performing Arts, and the Coronado School of the Arts, and yoga around San Diego county. She and her husband, Kyle Sorensen, are the artistic directors of San Diego’s newest modern dance company, somebodies dance theater. Visit them online at http://somebodiesdancetheater.com.

Eric Geiger was a company member of the Bill T Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company in New York City, the Lyon Opera Ballet in France, Djazzex Modern Dance in the Netherlands, and V-TOL Dance in London. As a guest artist he has performed with ODC in San Francisco, San Diego Dance Theatre, Lower Left, Allyson Green Dance, Gabriel Masson Dance, Yolande Snaith, and Patricia Sandback. In San Francisco, he facilitated movement workshops for The Medea Project, Theatre for Incarcerated Women, directed by Rhodessa Jones. Eric is also the Associate Artistic Director of McCaleb Dance in San Diego, collaborating with Artistic Director Nancy McCaleb, for which he has performed, choreographed, and designed scenic elements and costumes for numerous works. Eric has also been a part of the Hybrid Authorship Project with Joe Alter, Liam Clancy, D. J. Hopkins, Ashley Johnstone, and Craig Wolf, collaboratively creating the evening-length Still Undecided. Most recently he performed with Ron Estes, Jess Humphrey, Rachael Lincoln, Karen Schaffman, and Leslie Seiters in Kalpa 1: My Life as a Turtle under the direction of Sara Shelton Mann. Eric is honored to be a full time faculty member of the Department of Theatre and Dance at UCSD. Learn more about Mr. Geiger’s work and training at http://theatre.ucsd.edu/people/faculty/EricGeiger.

After a distinguished performing career with Twyla Tharp Dance in New York and other companies, John Malashock founded Malashock Dance in 1988. He brings 35 years of experience in the fields of dance and theater to his current endeavors as the company’s Artistic Director, for which he has created more than 60 original choreographic works. While with Tharp, Malashock performed worldwide, was featured in numerous television specials (Dance in America, The Catherine Wheel, Twyla Tharp Scrapbook), appeared in the Academy Award winning film Amadeus, and performed in benefit concerts with Baryshnikov and Cynthia Gregory. In San Diego, Malashock’s productions have earned top awards among the dance and theater communities, and he has garnered four Emmy Awards for his dance films. His collaborative credits include choreography for the La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe Theatre, the San Diego Symphony, La Jolla Music Society, and the San Diego, San Francisco, New York City, Florida Grand, and Washington National Operas; Opera de Montreal, and Colorado Opera. Upcoming collaborations include Opera Pacific, Minnesota Opera, and Toronto Opera (Opera Company of Canada). In January 2007, Malashock opened The Malashock Dance School at Dance Place San Diego. Visit the company’s Web site at http:www.malashockdance.org.

Originally from Bristol, Tennessee, Traves began his dance career at Virginia Intermont College, where he graduated in 1991 with a BSW and concentration in dance. After college, Traves studied at the Harftord Conservatory, where he worked with members of Pilobolus and Momix. During this training, he performed at Jacob’s Pillow with Bludance Theatre and was a company member of Sonia Plumb Dance Company, which performed throughout New England. In 1996, Traves began graduate school at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. During his graduate training, Traves performed with both the Greensboro Ballet and High Point Ballet dance companies. In 1999, shortly after earning his MFA in choreography, Traves founded Butterworth Dance and relocated to San Diego. Over the past decade, Traves has presented work in Mexico and across the U.S., including Hawaii, Pennsylvania, California, New York, North Carolina, Nevada, and Arizona. Keep up with Butterworth Dance at http://www.butterdance.org/.