Leann Alduenda
Born and raised in Southern California, Leann has trained extensively in all forms of dance throughout the LA and Orange County areas. She holds a BA in Dance with honors from UC Riverside, where she received a Chancellor’s Scholarship. Leann has performed extensively with numerous companies including Rhapsody in Taps, Jazz Spectrum Dance Company, and Bare Dance Co. along with working in video and television. Leann is the Artistic Director of the Jimmie DeFore Dance Center, Co-Director of Pulse, and is on faculty at Chapman University.

Sebastian Arango
“Dance is your Pulse, your heartbeat, your breathing. It is the rhythm in which we live. It’s the expression of time, music, and movement in happiness, joy, sadness, and frustration” “Dance needs no language…” “…it’s poetry in silence.”

Sebastian Arango has been moving and moved by music ever since he can remember. Starting off as a figure skater at the age of 10, going on to compete at the regional and national level, and then eventually making his way back to dance in search of an understanding of all movements in relationship to music. This search lead him here to Defore studio where he received a scholarship during the 2006 pulse term and was rigorously immersed in many dance & teaching styles.

Shortly then after he was asked to be a part of Rhetoracle Dance Company which was an unexpected yet thrilling opportunity for him. Also since finishing scholarship Sebastian has taken the opportunity to expand his training by taking from numerous teachers and classes from all around the southern California area. In gratitude to all his wonderful teachers and mentors he hopes to bring his students the beauty, determination and strength they brought him. He feels very honored to be teaching at Defore Dance and his goal is for his students to find the passions we have inside and be able to express and communicate that with our bodies.

Christine Baltes
Christine Baltes is a master teacher, specializing in jazz dance and recognized as a leader in technique who ‘teaches’. Born in Evanston, IL, Christine studied with Gus Giordano, the grandfather of American Jazz Dance.She’s traveled the U.S. performing on stage, television, industrials and dinner theater before moving to California.

With a teaching career that spans over 35 years, Christine holds a lifetime California Teaching Credential in dance, Pilates and Gyrokinesis® certification and faculty positions that included University of California, Irvine, Chapman University, California State University, Long Beach, Orange Coast College, Irvine Valley College, Long Beach City College, Academy for the Performing Arts High School, and more.

She directs the scholarship program at DeFore Dance Center, owns her own Pilates studio where she privately coaches dancers of all ages as well as the non-dancer. Many of her students are working in the entertainment industry, both nationally and internationally.

Christine has made numerous contributions to the awareness of dance. She was founder/producer of the Choreographers Showcase of O.C., founder/advisor for California Choreographers Dance Festival, writer for the Dance & Fitness West magazine, and board member for Jazz Dance L.A. Presently, she serves as a board member for Jazz Dance World Congress and guest teacher for Giordano Dance Studio and Hubbard Street Dance Company Studio when visiting Chicago.

Her choreography and company, Jazz Spectrum Dance Company, has been presented at several dance festivals in Los Angeles & Orange County. Festivals include Los Angeles Women’s Theatre Festival, Festival of Solos & Duets, Spectrum L.A., Jazz Dance L.A. Jazz Dance World Congress to name a few, as well as numerous self-produced concerts.

This devoted, passionate and energetic professional is bound to make a difference in your body, mind and overall improvement of movement.

I care about the students who walk into my classes and I make a commitment to each one. At DeFore’s I offer a class schedule that provides several progressive levels of jazz dance, from beginning, intermediate & advance/professional, where each level offers a stepping-stone into the next. Grab your opportunity to work with this highly motivated, educated and knowledgeable instructor.

Gina Cerato

Bahareh Ebrahimzadeh

Mike Esperanza
Mike Esperanza received his BFA in graphic design from Cal State Fullerton in 1997. During that time, he discovered the art of dance.

Mike has been teaching since 1998 and served as a guest choreographer at CSUF, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Chapman University, Santa Ana College, Mt SAC and OCHSA.

In 2004, Mike was awarded the “Dance: Creation to Performance” grant from Dance USA and The Irvine Foundation. This prestigious honor launched his dance company, BARE.

Cody Michael Evans

Alyssa Fuhrman

Michel Gervais
Michel Gervais, a native of Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, started dancing at the age of 11 with the Ida Sauvé Dance Studios. He continued his studies at the National Ballet School of Canada as well as at the school of Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal. His ability to understand and teach various choreographic styles was first seen when he was assistant to the choreographer for the Canadian company Juan Antonio’s Confidanse, under the direction of the late Juan Antonio. Mr. Gervais has also worked extensively as a performer, assistant and ballet master for choreographer David Allan, setting many of his ballets for companies such as: The National Ballet of Canada, Ballet Pacifica, National Dance Theatre of Bermuda, Hong Kong Ballet and others.

Mr. Gervais has danced for such companies as; Feld Ballet/NY, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal, Theatre Ballet of Canada, National Dance Theatre of Bermuda, P.M. Jazz, Zing Ballet, Ontario Ballet Theatre, Los Angeles Classical Ballet, Sacramento Ballet, Ballet Pacifica and California Riverside Ballet where he also served as Ballet Master. He has also worked with many renowned choreographers such as; Louis Falco, Lynn Taylor-Corbett, Danny Grossman, Ulysses Dove, Brian MacDonald, Paul-Andrée Fortier, Rick McCullough, Miriam Mahdaviani, Colin Connor, Peter Pucci and Elliot Feld.

Mr. Gervais has been teaching during most of his dancing career and has had the opportunity to teach and coach such illustrious dancers as; Veronica Tennant, Darci Kistler, Galina Shlyapina, Sabina Allemann, Rex Harrington, Anthony Randazzo, Steven Legate, Greta Hodgskinson, Johan Peerson, David Palmer, Serge Lavoie and Julia Adam.

He is a sought after teacher for summer schools such as; American Ballet Theatre, Canadian Dance Teachers Association, Dance In Action, Debbie Reynolds Dance Center and Ballet Pacifica. He has been invited as a guest teacher to work with; Hong Kong Ballet, London Rambert Dance Co., JimmyDeforeDanceCenter, University of California, Irvine, University of California, Riverside, YorkUniversity and the National Dance Theatre of Bermuda.

Mr. Gervais’ choreography has been performed by: American Ballet Theatre (summer intensive), CaliforniaRiversideBallet, Canada’s Excalibur, Ballet Pacifica, Festival Ballet Theatre, L’Amalgame, Theatre du Nouvelle Ontario and the University of California, Irvine. Mr. Gervais’ choreography was presented in 2003 by UCI at the prestigious Paris Festival, Danses de Mai at The National Conservatoire of Paris.

Danny Hochman

Arianna Hyatt

Steven Inskeep
Steven Inskeep has an extensive background in dance, including performing, choreography, and teaching. He has trained and been accepted to prestigious companies such as Houston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, San Francisco School of Ballet, Ballet West School in Aspen, Washington Ballet School, Ballet Pacifica, Ballet Austin, and Indianapolis Ballet Theatre.

Steven is a founding faculty member of Ballet Pacifica. He has choreographed many ballets, including Jack and the Beanstalk, In the Garden, and Ferdinand the Bull, all showcased in the popular Children series at Ballet Pacifica.

Steven has performed leading roles such as Valse Fantasy, Allegro Brilliante, and Concierto Baroquo by Balanchine, Snow King and Cavalier in The Nutcracker, Bluebird in Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet Pas de Deux and Copellia, Don Quixote by Petipa, and the Prince in Firebird.

Steven is a highly sought after instructor teaching here at Jimmie DeFore Dance Center, Saint Joseph Ballet, Ballet Pacifica, Opera Pacific, UC Irvine, Chapman University, Orange County Performing Arts High School, Irvine School of Dance, and West Coast Dance Academy, to name a few.

Hannah Karacic

Lynee Laurent

Chris Liu

Kim Loveridge

Christina Lyon

Sarah Melli

Gina Mendes

Jerusha Needham

Rika Piper

Sarah Rayburn

Stephanie Renz-Davis
Stephanie Renz-Davis is honored to be a member of the DeFore's staff. Her dance training was shaped by amazing artists including Keri LaGrand, Ray Leeper, Gregg Russell, and Julie Rhoton. Stephanie's most recent credits include The Music Man, My Fair Lady, 42nd Street, and a contract with BARE Dance Company. She expresses herself most efficiently through dance, but also holds a B.F.A. in Communicative Disorders. When Stephanie is not at DeFore, she is busy creating with RhetOracle Dance Company.

Maria SiFuentes
The following is a short synopsis of Maria’s training and teaching experiences in ballet, tap, jazz, acrobatics and other forms of dance: Nanette Brodie Dance Ensemble, Stella Dance Academy, Stella Dance Company, Valley View High School Color Guard, Nina Newman Dance Studio, Phyllis Cyr Dance Academy, Twin Towers Academy, The Dance Spot, Kathryn Lowe Dance Academy, NinoSina Polynesian Dance, Compton Junior College, Pollyanna Gold Dance Academy and Jerry Singer Theatre.

Linda Love Simmons
Linda’s choreography and direction have been seen in theme parks, on television and on stages across the country. She has created choreography for the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes, Disney, Mattel, Sesame Street Live, Paramount, Holland America Cruise Lines, Under Armour and the Megan Mullally show just to name a few. Her favorite was the musical “Swing” for which she won a Zoni Award. Ms. Simmons’ diverse range of styles includes works in ballet, jazz, modern and musical theatre.

In 2002, Linda directed and choreographed 23 separate shows that entertained millions of spectators in Salt Lake City at the Olympic Games. These shows opened for such big name groups as Big Bad Voodoo Daddies, Dave Mathews and Martha McBride. She was the choreographer/assistant director for the extravaganza “Creation” at the Crystal Cathedral. Between special events and musicals, she is a show director/choreographer and master teacher for the Walt Disney Company.

Phillip Solis

Mike Song

Tim Stevenson
Tim Stevenson is one of today's most innovative choreographers, producers, and song writers.

In choreography he has worked with some of the industry's greatest performers like Jennifer Lopez, Jo Dee Messina, Chris Rock, Ty Hemdon, Destiny's Child, Stacie Oricco and More. He also has set dance routines on the LA Clipper Girls, Portland Trailblazer Girls, Sacramento Kings Girls and Memphis Grizzlies.

Tim comes from an extensive background in all styles of dance and has performed on stages, concerts, television award shows, and music videos with Jennifer Lopez, Boys II Men, Usher, Brandy, TLC, Jennifer Love Hewitt and many more.

He Currently Co-Owns a Dance Convention called On Cue LA Dance and has recently been signed to Perfection Records as a recording Artist. His album is available on his official music store www.oncuemusic.net.

Michael Van Patten
Born and raised in Orange County, Michael Van Patten has been a fixture here at DeFore Dance Center since 1985. Michael’s dance education includes Santa Ana College, Tremaine Dance Center, Debbie Reynolds Studio, DeFore Dance Center, and the Edge, amongst many. Michael’s professional credits include “Star Search,” Los Angeles Opera Company, Disney, Irvine Civic Light Opera, Curtain Call Dinner Theater, Harlequin Dinner Theater, along with numerous industrial shows and appearances with Southern California dance companies.

Currently, along with his schedule at DeFore Dance Center, Michael is on the staff at Santa Ana College. Michael’s current projects are his Dance Company, MVPdanceproject, and choreographing hair shows for J’s Hair studio and Academy in Los Angeles, Orange County, and Japan. Michael is a graduate of UCLA with a B.A. degree in English.

Kimberely Valenzuela

Shawn Vitale
Shawn Vitale is a DeFore Scholarship alumn who has been dancing since age 18. She is currently on staff at Dance Dynamics in Rancho Santa Margarita and Jimmie DeFore Dance Center, where she directs the hip-hop performing groups. Her choreography has been featured in the DeFore Unleashed show as well as DeFore Generations and Pulse shows. She has choreoghraphed for solo artist Anna Wade and taught a master class for Los Amigos High School. Her performance career includes O.C. Weekly’s Taste of Newport, On Cue LA, Generations, Orange Coast College’s dance concert and an appearance in Tim Stevenson’s music video, You’re Gone.

Erika Waters

Darren Wong

Ruth Ziegler
began her study of classical ballet as part of her training as a competitive gymnast in San Fernando Valley as a teenager. After high school graduation, Ms. Ziegler moved to California's central coast where she continued her ballet training while attending Cal Poly State University in San Luis Obispo. While there, she performed for several seasons with Cal Poly's Orchesis dance company and the San Luis Ballet Theatre where she danced in diverse ballet productions, including Pas de Quatre, The Story of Ruth, Afternoon of a Faun and The Nutcracker. During that time, she also studied both the art of dancing and (her second love) the art of teaching under Gilbert Reed and Zory Karah.

In 1985, Ms. Ziegler became the co-owner of Central Coast School of Dance in Los Osos and served as head of its Ballet division, where she led both children and adult ballet classes and served as Artistic Director of the school's Festival Ballet student company. Under Ms. Ziegler's direction, the Festival Ballet mounted a full-length production of The Nutcracker and a spring production featuring original chamber ballet pieces.

Later, Ms. Ziegler continued her ballet studies with former Joffrey Ballet principal dancer Susan Magno and LINES Ballet's Ballet Master Arturo Fernandez. During this time, she also founded a children's ballet company, Ballet La Jeunesse, where she was recognized by the Ventura Arts Council for her full-length children's ballets, Country Fair and Alice's Tea Party, and for her outreach program of lecture-demonstrations to various local elementary schools.

Ms. Ziegler continues to devote herself to both dancing and teaching. She believes that dance is the expression of the joy that is in one's heart, expressed through movement. She strives to foster that joy and encourage beautiful movement in her classes by combining elements from both the Russian and the English schools of classical ballet, sound biomechanics, musicality and opportunities for creative expression.

Ms. Ziegler recently completed her Pilates certification from Stott Pilates and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in French from Cal State Fullerton.

Jimmie DeFore Dance Center 151 Kalmus Drive, Suite G3 Costa Mesa, CA 92626 714.241.9908
DeFore Foundation for the Arts is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation. Federal Tax ID #33-0432352