Frances Smith Cohen (Artistic Director) is a teacher, choreographer, administrator and dance graduate from Bennington College in Vermont. She was dance director of the Jewish Community Center in Tucson for 18 years, and directed the first touring dance company in Arizona, the Kadimah Dancers. In 1963 Frances helped create Arizona Dance Arts Alliance in Tucson and in 1972 she co-founded the dance program at the University of Arizona. She was the recipient of a National Opera Institute grant to tour regional opera companies as choreographer and assistant director. Plus, she was director of opera at George Washington University from 1981 to 1986. Frances began Wolf Trap in Arizona, the placing of performing artists in Head Start classrooms. She has been the regional director for this program since 1986. Frances was honored with the Outstanding Artist Fellowship Award for Choreography from the Maryland State Arts Council. She also created Dance Theater West with partner Susan Silverman, and directs CDE, housed at the Herberger Theater Center. Cohen is the proud recipient of the 1994 Arizona Governor’s Outstanding Artist Award, and the 2004 Women Who Care lifetime Achievement Award. She is co-author of “Dance Essential Skills” and “Performing Dance Standards” for the Arizona Department of Education.

Hailey Apligian began dancing at age three and soon was studying at the internationally acclaimed Academy of Dance Arts - Home of the Dallas Repertoire Ballet. While training with the DRB, Hailey was privileged to represent the United States as one of the “Stars of Tomorrow” in the Tanszommer European Jazz Tour. Hailey continued her studies at the University of Arizona School of Dance where she earned her BFA in Dance. Hailey was privileged to perform in works such as the premier modern piece "Hush" by Amy Ernst (Lewitsky Dance), "It's A Jazz Thing" by Michael Williams (Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago) and "Borrowed Baroque" Sam Watson (Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago) and many more. In addition to performing, Hailey has a passion for teaching and choreographing.  This is Hailey’s first season with Center Dance Ensemble and she is excited to be part of the company.

Michelle Arroyo grew up in Mesa and graduated from New School for the Arts in 2003 as a dance major. As a teenager she trained at Studio One Performing Arts Center under the direction of Melissa Cesarano. It was here that she gained a knowledge of the competition world and a love for the artistry of dance. In 2003 Michelle became a founding member of Gravity Jazz Dance Theatre; since joining the company Michelle has performed in such principle roles as Jo in “Little Women,” Kate in “Taming of the Shrew,” Catherine in “Wuthering Heights,” Juliet in “Romeo & Juliet,” The White Rabbit in “Alice in Wonderland,” and Hope in “Pandora's Box.”  Michelle graduated from Scottsdale Community College in 2007 with an Associate Degree and a Certificate in Dance Technology. She is currently attending Arizona State University where she will receive her BA specializing in the Design and Production of Theatre.  She is currently performing in Center Dance Ensemble’s school touring show Poetry ’n Motion. She is very excited for her first season with CDE.

Martha Baker returns to dance for her second season with Center Dance Ensemble after years spent away committed to a career in architecture.  She began her dance training at the age of 16 at the School of Ballet Arizona. As she progressed through her training she was selected to study and perform with Burklyn Ballet Theater in Johnson Vermont. She attended Tulane University in New Orleans and holds a Masters of Architecture with a minor in dance. While in New Orleans she danced with the Newcomb Dance Company where she performed in both modern and ballet works created by faculty members Barbara Hayley and Alice Pascal-Escher as well as guest choreographers including Joanne Woodbury, Jim Martin, Liz Lerman and Donna White. After college Martha moved to New York where she danced at both the Taylor and Cunningham schools. Martha has studied, performed and created works of theater, performance and installation art, inspired by the perception of the body in space. She continues to explore these themes, now back in Arizona, both through dance and with her recently established collaborative architectural studio InKinetic.

Rachel Cohen (storyteller, Snow Queen) has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance from the University of Arizona. She has choreographed and performed in musicals with many community theaters around the Valley, including Theater Works, Tempe Little Theater, Mesa Encore Theater, Greasepaint, and Soul Invictus.  Rachel teaches jazz for Dance Theater West and is a rehearsal mistress for Snow Queen.

Martha Patricia "Patty" Hernandez started her dance training in 2005 at Metro-Arts, where she later graduated in 2007 at the age of 16. A member of their dance department for two years, she later attended Glendale Community College to train with Lenna DeMarco and Teal Darkenwald and their dance company PHYSICAL GRAFFITI. In the 2009-2010 season, Patty apprenticed with Scorpius Dance Theatre. This past summer she attended the three-week Martha Graham Summer Intensive in New York City. In her spare time she paints, choreographs, volunteers for the community, and trains in Tai Chi from Master Philip Selmon. Patty has won several awards for solos and group choreography pieces. She thanks her family, friends, and God for supporting her love for dance and the arts. This is Patty's first season with Center Dance Ensemble.

Sally Hogan (Assistant Director) is originally from Rockford, Illinois, where she was a member of the Rockford Dance Company and co-founder of Without Shoes Modern Dance Company. She has choreographed shows for Theater Works, Arizona Jewish Theater’s youth group Curtain Call Productions, and various high schools in the Phoenix area. She danced with CDE from 1993 to 1995 and then returned to the company in 1998. Sally is the dancers’ representative on CDE’s Board of Directors. She created, choreographed and directed CDE’s outreach program school-touring shows, the lecture/demonstration The ABC’s of Dance for K thru 4th grades, and two versions of the new show Poetry n Motion—one for K to 3 and one for Grades 4 to 8. She is thrilled to be dancing with the company and devoting time to her 18 year-old son Sean. 

D. Daniel Hollingshead is returning for his 11th season with Center Dance Ensemble. Mr. Hollingshead received a BFA in Performance and Choreography from Arizona State University and has performed in Arizona with Desert Dance Theatre, A Ludwig Co., among other local dance works. He has also performed in Colorado with The Dance Connection, Boulder Jazz Dance Co. and the Jan Justice Dance Company. In addition to performing, he has also worked as a costume designer, hair and make-up designer, cutter/draper and theatre technician for many local and national theatre companies throughout the state and southwest region. He is currently the Costuming and Wardrobe Director for Childsplay.

James Jeffery was born and raised in Tempe.  He attended Arizona Elite Dance Institute where he trained under Lisa Eardley, Jennifer Lamb-Swisher and Radel Vasquez.  Later he further his studies at the University of Arizona where he continued to train in Ballet, Modern, Jazz and Choreography.  He was able to perform in dances choreographed by Donald McKayle, Doug Nielsen, Sam Watson and Michael Williams.  James also was able to perform as Division 1 Finalist at the 11^th Annual Dance Under the Stars Choreography Festival in Palm Desert, Ca. in a piece choreographed by Joshua Blake Carter.  This is James’ first season with Center Dance Ensemble and is very excited to be back in the Valley.

Alan Khoutakoun began dancing when he was 18 years old at Encore Dance Center and Glendale Community College. While at Glendale Community College, Alan trained with and performed works by Lenna DeMarco, Teal Darkenwald, Golde, Thomas Ralabate and Logan Lipton as well as being a member of the college’s modern dance company, PHYSICAL GRAFFITI This is Alan’s first season with Center Dance Ensemble, and he is performing in CDE’s school-touring show Poetry ’n Motion. He is very excited to be performing with such talented dancers and is constantly watching and learning.

Katey Konderik began her dance training at the very young age of 2-1/2 years old.  She trained extensively in Ballet, Jazz, Lyrical, Contemporary, Tap and Hip-Hop.  In all the years Katey has been dancing she has mainly focused on ballet.  Her training began at Arizona Sunrays Dance and Gymnastics under the direction of Jenny Hjalmarson, Elvia Rabinor and Liz Casebolt; at Plumb Performing Arts Center under the direction of Lili Griffiths, Kelly Roberts and Susan Schwartz; at Arizona School of Classical Ballet under the direction of Nadya Zubkov and Olga Tarasova; at Master Ballet Academy under the direction of Slawomir and Irena Wozniak; at Catalyst Arts Academy under the direction of Julie Gooters and Lili Griffiths.  Katey has also trained with Master teachers Jean Paul Comelin and Kennet Oberly.  Katey is a graduate from American School of Correspondence where she finished her home-school studies. This is her first season with Center Dance Ensemble.

Kelsey Kroll, a Phoenix native, has been trained in a variety of different dance styles since a very young age. She recently trained under Lenna DeMarco, Teal Darkenwald, C.C Braun, and Frances Goritsas at Glendale Community College and danced for GCC’s pre-professional dance company, PHYSICAL GRAFFITI, for two years. Among many performances during her time in PHYSICAL GRAFFITI she performed in the American College Dance Festival at UC Irvine and ASU’s Moving Art Gallery “Night Moves”. Also while at GCC, she was trained by guest choreographers including Logan Lipton, Tom Ralabate, Golde, Brad Garner, Melissa Rolnick, Pablo Cornejo, Lori Bellalove, and Charles Torres. Kelsey has been a guest choreographer for Barry Goldwater High School for the past four years and also choreographed dances for PHYSICAL GRAFFITI. She won awards for Best Choreography and Group Performance pieces in the Artists of Promise competition for two years in a row. This is Kelsey’s second year performing with Center Dance Ensemble and she hopes to be here for many years to come. Her future plans include becoming a dance instructor and one day starting her own Dance Academy or her own company after completing her Masters Degree in dance performance. Kelsey is looking forward to this next year with CDE and cannot thank her friends and family enough for all of their support and love!

Maria Leverson (Rehearsal Mistress) has been dancing with Center Dance Ensemble since 1996. From 1995 to 2001 she danced with DeVere Dance, a modern dance company directed by Deb Meiers, based in Chandler. She performed in the 2000 Summer Musical Theater Revue for CDE and is now performing in CDE’s two school-touring shows, The ABC’s of Dance and Poetry n Motion. Maria has a BS in Foods and Nutrition from Cal Poly, Pomona, and an MS in Nutrition and Biochemistry from Virginia Tech.

Erica Lizotte (on leave) graduated in 2000 from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst with a BFA in dance. She then relocated to Chicago and was a company member with Zephyr Dance for four seasons. She performed and taught master classes in Chicago as well as toured throughout the U.S. Lizotte also danced with Cindy Brandle Dance Company in various Chicago festivals and performed in CBDC’s evening-length concert. While in Chicago, she performed in numerous independent dance projects and as a guest artist to multiple companies. In addition to performing, she enjoyed teaching dance in the Chicago Public School system as well as many after-school programs, and taught ballet classes from beginner through advanced in local dance studios in the Chicago suburbs.  Erica is performing in CDE ’s school-touring show Poetry n Motion. She is thrilled to be back for her third season with CDE, returning with a renewed passion after spending time at home with her beautiful baby girl Mia.

Madison MacDonald started dancing when she was 6 at Dance Theater West under the direction of Susan Silverman. She studied there for 10 years. Madison attended Arizona School for the Arts where her focus was dance and is a 2004 graduate from Arcadia High School. She has studied at Arizona Ballet School, Phoenix Dance Academy and Dance Factory where she is now a teacher. Madison is performing in Center Dance Ensemble’s school-touring show Poetry ’n Motion. When she is not dancing with the company, Madison enjoys performing and choreographing with Desert Stages Theater. She is thrilled to be celebrating her 8th season with the company.

Katherine “Katie” McDowell discovered dance at the early age of 5 and was fortunate enough to find Dance Theater West when she was 7 years old.  There, she trained in ballet under the direction of her beloved friend and mentor, Susan Silverman. During her ten years with the studio and her six years with Storybook Ballet Theater, she performed lead roles in several ballets including “Coppelia,” “Cinderella,” “Sleeping Beauty” and Odette in “Swan Lake.” After graduating from Arcadia High School in 2007, Katie has been attending Arizona State University working toward her degrees in both English Literature and in Film and Media Studies. This is Katie’s first season performing with Center Dance Ensemble and she could not be more excited and grateful for the opportunity.

Emilio Minto was born and raised in Venice, Italy. Although he carried a lifetime interest in the arts from drawing to singing, it was not until he moved to Phoenix that he began training in the field of dance at the age of 18. While his exposure was belated, he excelled in the field as many boys do and worked in the industry doing film, television, and live stage as a dancer, choreographer and actor. After establishing and running his own Company for several years in Northern Arizona, he decided to re-establish himself as a performer and joined Center Dance Ensemble. Currently performing in CDE’s school touring show Poetry ’n Motion, Emilio is excited to return for a third season with the company.

Amber Robins is excited to be in her 12^th season with Center Dance Ensemble. After receiving her BA in dance from Arizona State University she went on to perform with Ballet South in Savannah, GA, where she danced both with the corps de ballet and solo roles.  Soon after returning to Arizona she danced with local modern companies and traveled with a touring dance group to Las Vegas.  Currently Amber is a full-time company member of CDE, company teacher and performing in CDE’s school touring show Poetry ’n Motion.  She also teaches dance and fitness at Abby Bella dance studio.  Amber has been married to Jim for nine years and together they share their home with three great kids, two dogs and two cats!  She is very thankful to have all she has.

Brad Speck is excited to return for his second season at Center Dance Ensemble.  He is a native of Cleveland, Ohio, and holds a BA in Theatre Arts with minors in Dance and Music from Ohio University.  This marks his first year performing with CDE's school show program Poetry ’n Motion.   Performance highlights include seasons with Lyric Opera Cleveland, Ohio Valley Summer Theatre, The READING COMPANY at the Cleveland Playhouse, Cleveland Public Theatre and the Cleveland and Detroit companies of “Tony & Tina’s Wedding.”  When he is not dancing Brad is a pilates teacher and fitness instructor.

Michael J. Eddy (Production Manager/Lighting Designer) as been thankful for the opportunity to work in the theatre industry for many years beginning his career as a lighting designer. Michael has expanded his duties including Production Manager of Phoenix Theatre for the last seven seasons. Michael has worked on over 100 productions locally and nationally, and has won several awards for his lighting designs. Michael is honored to have been a part of Center Dance Ensemble these past several years and is looking forward to another great season with Fran and CDE. Michael would like to give special thanks to his wife Laura and son William. More information about Michael can be found at www.michaeljeddy.com

Gary Bacal (Managing Director) is in his 10^th season with Center Dance Ensemble. From 1991 to 2000 he was Managing Director of Childsplay, Inc. theatre. Previously he worked as Marketing and Public Relations Director of Arizona Theatre Company and with Arts for All/Third Street Kids, Very Special Arts Arizona, the Valley Center for the Deaf, Arizona Jewish Theatre Company and currently with Chamber Music PLUS. He has served as a grant review panelist for the Arizona Commission on the Arts and for arts agencies in Scottsdale, Tempe and Tucson. Prior to moving to Arizona, he was Director of Public Relations for Syracuse University.