Meet the Dancers – Rocked By Women 2015

Sarah Bush Dance Project presents Rocked By Women May 9 & 10 in Oakland.
Joining Sarah Bush will be: Courtney Hope Armani, Audrey Borst, Shanise Dews, Margot Lena, Jeanette Jing Male, Nina Wu

Tickets on sale now!

Courtney Hope Armani started her training when she was five in her hometown at Los Angeles Ballet Academy where she studied ballet, jazz, contemporary and tap. After high school she decided to pursue a degree in chemistry, which she completed at the University of San Francisco. During her time in school she continued dancing, and upon graduation decided to put away her beakers and periodic tables and dance professionally. Since making that decision she has danced with Dancing People Company in Ashland, Oregon. She debuted her San Francisco career with PUSH in Point Ship Yard Project and is now also dancing with Sarah Bush Dance Project, David Herrera Performance Company and SoulSkin dance. She is so excited to have this wonderful opportunity to dance with so many beautiful people.

Audrey Borst was born in Berkeley, California and has been dancing since the age of 3. She trained at the San Francisco Ballet for 10 years where she performed the role of “Clara” in the Nutcracker. She is currently working at LINES Ballet to round out her training in multiple modern disciplines. She has also done summer sessions at City Ballet and Ballet San Jose. This summer she will travel to the Big Apple to study with The Harlem Dance Theater. She has done modeling, acted in a couple of short films, a national commercial, “Anthem Blue Cross” and a professional play as “Zonia” in Joe Turner’s Come and Gone at Lorraine Hansberry Theater. SBDP is Audrey’s first job in a company as a professional dancer. She is excited to be tackling new challenges in the world of contemporary dance on her journey as a dancer.

Shanise Dews fell in love with dance at the age of 4 and has not stopped since. Growing up in San Diego, CA she studied tap, jazz, ballet, and modern techniques with California Ballet, The San Diego Civic Dance Association, and The Academy of Ballet. After high school, Shanise went to college at the University of California, Riverside, where she studied under Wendy Rogers, Kelly King, Neil Greenberg, and Susan Rose graduating in 2012 with a BA in Dance. This is Shanise’s first time dancing with Sarah Bush and she is excited and ready to take on the challenges of being a professional dancer.

Margot Lena graduated from the The Hartt School May 2014, with a full talent scholarship, pursuing a BFA in Dance Performance with a Pedagogy Emphasis at The Hartt School. Since her recent graduation, she moved cross country to the Bay area where she is dancing with Sarah Bush Dance Project and Danse Lumiere. In addition to dancing and teaching dance, Margot has had the opportunity to model and act in several independent, short films. Prior to The Hartt School, she spent ten years with Ballet Etudes in Norwalk, under the direction of Nanette Valas, and former American Ballet Theater soloist, Christina Fagundes. Margot has attended several summer intensives, including: American Ballet Theater (NYC), Boston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet (NYC), and Walnut Hill. In addition, she was blessed with the opportunity to study aboard, dancing in The Netherlands. Some of her performances with The Hartt School include works by Jose Limon, Balanchine, Viktor Plotnikov, Maurice Causey, and Greg Dolbashian.

Jeanette Jing Male is a San Francisco native who began her dance training at City College of San Francisco. She then went on to study at Arte XXI: Escuela de Danza in Buenos Aires, and at the Graham School of Contemporary Dance in New York. After receiving her BFA in Dance (Magna Cum Laude) from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, Jeanette relocated to Oakland, CA were she received her MFA in Dance at Mills College. She has performed with the Mills Repertory Company, CCSF Repertory Company, Ishika Seth and Dancers, and most recently with BadMarMar (Seattle, WA) and with WaxPoet(s) (San Francisco, CA). Her choreographic work has been presented at the Brava Theater (SF), Noh Space (SF), The Garage (SF), and during the BOOST Festival (Seattle). Jeanette is currently on faculty in the Dance Department at City College of San Francisco, and is also a performer and teacher of Argentine Tango. She is excited and honored to be a part of Sarah Bush Dance Project 2015.

Nina Wu is a learning game designer by day, and a contemporary dancer all other times. She studied math, visual art, and education at Duke University. Her pursuit for adventure took her from teaching 4th grade, to working in an NYC art gallery, to now designing math video games, dancing and performing all the while. Nina is ever grateful and excited to be a part of SBDP!

Photo credit: Molly DeCoudreaux