Core Power Yoga Lakeview Virginia

Jamie Brunson was raised in Sumter, South Carolina. She received her BFA in Dance from Marymount Manhattan College, and subsequently earned an MA in Dance Education from New York University. She has performed with the Freed Spirits Dance Company, Kaleidoscope Dancers, and Jennejohn Dance. She has taught at Alvin Ailey, the 92nd Street Y, and has taught in several New York City public and private schools as a teaching artist. Since moving to Chicago, Jamie has taught master classes at Families Together Cooperative Nursery School and with several local youth groups.

Mai Claypool

Mai Claypool was born in Saitama, Japan. She trained at Kishi Ballet studio, The Matsuyama Ballet School in Tokyo, Japan, The Joffrey Ballet School and Steps on Broadway in NYC under the direction of Yoko Kishi, Yoko Morishita, David Howard, Finis Jhung, Michael O’Brian, Francesca Corkle and Eleanor D'Antuono. She has received awards from ballet competitions, such as the Hope Award and Achievement of Excellence. She has turned her passion for dance towards teaching and spreading the joy of dance. She has been teaching ballet, pointe, variations, modern and contemporary at several schools in New York, Illinois, Florida and Japan. Mai is an American Ballet Theatre® Certified Teacher in levels Primary through Level 7 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum and pursuing a BA in Dance Education from University of Bath in England.

Maliwan Diemer

Maliwan began her formal training with RAD certified teacher, Ng Siew Fong. By the age of thirteen she had been invited to study and perform with Indiana University's Ballet Theater, where she trained with Violette Verdy, Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux, Patricia McBride, Jacques and Virginia Cesbron, Leslie Peck and Doricha Sales, along with notable guest choreographers and directors. A long time instructor for Indiana University's Pre-College Ballet Program, Maliwan also spent a year as Associate Instructor for the African American Dance Company under the direction of Iris Rosa. She is now on faculty at the Lou Conte Dance Studio, the Chicago High School for the Arts and Chicago Ballet Arts, where she also serves as Performance Project Director. Maliwan has worked with the University of Chicago's UBallet and has taught company class for DanceWorks Chicago. She is a professional ballroom dancer, competing in Latin and ballroom. Maliwan holds a MA in arts administration and a BSOF in ballet and political science, magna cum laude, both from Indiana University.

Kaitlin Flynn

Kaitlin Flynn is recent graduate of Ohio University, completing a BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography on multiple scholarships and talent awards. Kaitlin has performed the work of Nathan Andary, Travis Gatling, Tresa Randall, and Xan Burley and Alex Springer (The Median Movement). She performed Christine Cali’s SUSPECT at the 2014 ACDFA East Central Conference and performed her first solo work, The Sweet Escape at the Paramount Theater in Ashland, Kentucky and will be continuing the work at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater as part of the 2015 New York Jazz Choreography Project in October. Kaitlin has collaborated with several artistic organizations including The Thomas Studio of Performing Arts (Pittsburgh), Dance Studio M (Cleveland), and Ashland Youth Ballet. She has studied at Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago, Boulder Jazz Dance Workshop, Lou Conte Dance Studio, Jazz Dance World Congress, and completed internships with Chicago Human Rhythm Project and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. A native of Pittsburgh, Kaitlin has trained with local companies Attack Theatre, The Pillow Project, Pittsburgh CLO and on scholarship at Point Park University's International Summer Dance. She is currently a teaching artist at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and a performing artist with SPOKEN, as well as creating and performing her own contemporary jazz work.

Shannon Grayson

Shannon Grayson (Teaching Artist) was born and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She began her professional dance training at Howard University, where she received a BFA in Dance. While at Howard, she received summer internships at the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, Ronald K. Brown/Evidence, and Dallas Black Dance Theatre. She was on scholarship at the Lou Conte Dance Studio, Jacob’s Pillow Jazz/Musical Theatre Program, Jacob's Pillow Choreographers Lab, and Nathan Trice Summer Dance Intensive. She continues to train and teach Hip Hop, Jazz, Ballet, and Tap throughout the city of Chicago as a faculty member of the Lou Conte Dance Studio, Hubbard Street Youth Dance Program, Principle Dance, The Gallery, and Dominican University.

Rebeca Griffin

Rebeca Griffin was born and raised in Mexico, where she trained professionally at the Instituto Real Flamenco, studying under flamenco choreographer, Betty Villarreal and performed with the Compañia Real Flamenco. At that time, Rebeca also co-directed the dance department of Escuela Cristiana de Artes, where she initiated a dance program focused on musical theater. Rebeca continues to choreograph and teach workshops in Mexico. While performing and teaching in Mexico, she graduated with Cum Laude recognition from the Universidad de Monterrey in 2008 with a B.A. in Human Resource Management and a concentration in Personnel Law. In 2010, Rebeca moved to Chicago to pursue formal dance pedagogy training at Columbia College Chicago, where she graduated Cum Laude. Upon graduation, she began working with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and East Bank Club as a teaching artist and ballet instructor, respectively. Most recently, Rebeca has performed the works of Paige Cunningham Caldarella, Pamela McNeil, Luis Segoviano, Maria Macsay and Ela Olarte.

Winifred Haun

Winifred Haun has been choreographer and artistic director of her own modern dance company since 1991. From 1985 to 1991, she was a soloist with the critically acclaimed Joseph Holmes Chicago Dance Theatre, under the direction of Randy Duncan. Wini won three Ruth Page Award nominations and in 2000, she won the Ruth Page Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Dance Community. Her work has been seen at many prestigious venues throughout Chicago, the midwest, Texas and Colorado, including: Athenaeum Theater, Ruth Page Center, Link’s Hall, Fermilab’s Ramsey Auditorium, Overture Center (Madison, WI), Epic Center (Kalamazoo, MI), St. Mary’s College (IN), Montrose (CO) Pavillion and in many non-traditional spaces, such as Cheney Mansion and Cloud Gate in Millennium Park. Wini’s choreography has been commissioned by Chicago Ballet, Aerial Dance Chicago, MOMENTA, Oak Park’s Handel Week and many other Midwest and national groups. She has taught modern dance and dance composition at the Joffrey Ballet, Beijing National Dance Academy and at numerous festivals and workshops worldwide. Currently, Wini teaches modern dance at Hubbard St. Dance Chicago, Deeply Rooted Productions, and Legere Dance Center. She and her husband theoretical physicist, Stephen Parke, have three daughters and they reside in Oak Park, IL.