Ronya-Lee Anderson
Professorial Lecturer
CAS | Performing Arts
Ronya-Lee LaVaune Anderson is the daughter of Pauline and Roxroy Anderson; the granddaughter of Madge McLellan and of Mavis Lawrence, both healers and entrepreneurs. She is an Afro-Caribbean woman of …
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rlander@american.edu
Esperonto Bean
Adjunct Instructor
CAS | Performing Arts
Esperonto is recognized as one of the pioneer House Dancers from Baltimore, and is well-versed in many dance styles, including House, Hip-Hop, Locking, and Punking/Waacking. He is the founder and dire…
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ebean@american.edu
Lisa Clarkson
Adjunct Professorial Lecturer
CAS | Performing Arts
Lisa Clarkson is a dancer, movement educator, and physical therapist. She had a 10+ year career as a full-time professional ballet dancer, with Louisville Ballet, Lexington Ballet and Ballet Memphis, …
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clarkson@american.edu
Jocelyn Cox
Adjunct Professorial Lecturer
CAS | Performing Arts
Jocelyn E. Cox (Maryland) is a proud member of the Actors' Equity Association, and the independent author of Jocelyn Learns to Dance, for which she received the Prince George's Arts and Humanities Cou…
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jcox@american.edu
Nkenge Cunningham
Adjunct Instructor
CAS | Performing Arts
Nkenge Cunningham began her professional dancing career at the precious age of 5 in New York City under the auspices of Marie Basse Wiles, founder and director of Maimouna Keita School of West African…
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ncunning@american.edu
Omi Davis-Smith
Assistant Professor
CAS | Performing Arts
A multifaceted artist-scholar, Dr. Omilade Davis-Smith has worked the majority of her life as a dancer, educator and performer. Omi earned a PhD in Dance from Temple University with a specialization i…
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odavissm@american.edu
Gabriel Mata
Adjunct Professorial Lecturer
CAS | Performing Arts
Gabriel Mata (pronounced: gah-bryehl mah-tah) is a Mexican U.S. American dance choreographer, educator, dance film maker, and performer. He also navigates the world as queer, Latinx, immigrant, and as…
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gmata@american.edu
Sarah Oppenheim
Adjunct Professorial Lecturer
CAS | Performing Arts
Sarah Beth Oppenheim hails from the Wild, Wild West where she could never cut on the dotted black line, so she read Steinbeck and became a modern dancer instead. She earned her BFA at SUNY Purchase an…
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soppenhe@american.edu
Kristopher Pourzal
Adjunct Professorial Lecturer
CAS | Performing Arts
Kristopher Pourzal teaches courses in dance and theater history and Black cultural production more broadly. He is at work on a dissertation about New York City’s Clark Center, a community-oriented dan…
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kpourzal@american.edu
Stephanie Vadala
Adjunct Instructor
CAS | Performing Arts
Stephanie Vadala is a dancer, educator, photographer, cat mom, and beloved member of the DMV dance community. She is a native of Syracuse, NY, where she trained in many dance styles from the age of th…
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vadala@american.edu
Irina Wunder
Adjunct Instructor
CAS | Performing Arts
Irina Wunder, an ethnic Russian, received her classical dance training in Turkmenistan, then a republic of the former Soviet Union. She performed with the Republic's State Theater of Opera and Ballet …
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wunder@american.edu
Alice Wylie
Adjunct Instructor
CAS | Performing Arts
Born in Washington DC, Alice began her dance training with Jane Bittner and trained extensively with several other renowned teachers including Dawei Zhang, Suzanne Farrell, Patricia McBride, Jean-Pier…
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wylie@american.edu