SDA Staff

Avnun Yakubov was born in Russia and received a Masters Degree in Choreography and Arts Management from the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory in Leningrad.

Mr. Yakubov was the Artistic Director and Head Choreographer Alumnus of the Moscow Ballet Theater in Russia from 1973-1993. From 1974-1988, he staged numerous works in Italy, Austria, Turkey, and Greece. By invitation of the Italian government in 1992, he choreographed and produced "An Evening with Strauss." He also choreographed different ballets for the Kirov Theater in Leningrad and the Vaganova Choreography College.

From 1993-1997, Mr. Yakubov appeared in the Chicago Festival Ballet’s "Nutcracker" as Herr Drosselmeyer and served as Ballet Master and Choreographer for the Chicago Festival Ballet School. He served as a choreography instructor for the Looking Glass Theater Company’s production of Bulgakov’s "Master and "Margarita" and taught at the Lou Conte Studio.

Mr. Yakubov was the Ballet Master and Head Choreographer for the Faubourg Ballet Theater from 1995-2001. In 1997-1998 he staged and choreographed Ravel’s "Bolero" and "Paquita" with Alexander Lunev (principal dancer with the Kirov Ballet). In 1999-2000, he served as Ballet Master and choreographer at the Academy of Dance Arts. There he staged and choreographed "New Ballet Divertissement" and "Paquita" with Roger Van Fleteren (principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre) and Yumelia Garcia (principal dancer with Milwaukee Ballet).

From June 2001 till August 2007 Mr. Yakubov was a Founder and Artistic Director of " Ballet Cultural Arts Center" and "Youth Ballet Theatre of Chicago - NFP"

In 2002 – Evening of Ballet was performed at the Schaumburg Prairie Center for the Arts. Featured guest artists included Elena Martinson & Andrei Ustinov formerly principal dancers from the Kirov Ballet Theater and Mr. Yakubov’s Youth Ballet Theatre pre-professional division students.

In the summer of 2004 Mr. Yakubov proudly presented his US Ballet Premier of “BAMBI”. This full length ballet in 2 acts featuring original libretto stage version with staging and choreography by Mr. Yakubov. Performances by Milwaukee Ballet Theater members Jennifer Provins and Christopher Fellows - 1 st Principal Soloists and Kirk Henning of Daytona Ballet Company – Principal Soloist. Performing from the Youth Ballet Theater (YBT) NFP were Principal Soloists Renee Briglio, Lindsay Cregier and Kira Stiers and the pre-professional division students of the YBT. This wonderful event was held at Hemmens Cultural Arts Center.

Christina Gross is a 2006 graduate from the University of Iowa with a B.F.A. in dance with an emphasis in ballet, modern, choreography, and dance kinesiology. She studied under esteemed instructors: Charlotte Adams- founding member of Tenth Street Danceworks, Armando Duarte- member of Cinse Negro Dance Company, Jennifer Kayle- founding member of Architectsdance, and George De La Pena and Eloy Barragan- both former members of American Ballet Theatre. Christina also had the exciting and unforgettable opportunity to take master classes from dance companies such as Bill T. Jones/ Arnie Zane, Pilobolus, Alvin Ailey, Hubbard Street, and Luna Negra dance theatre. Christina was a member of "Dancers in Company," the university's traveling dance troupe and she also danced a summer season with "Duarte Dance Works" in 2005. In the spring of 2006, Christina had the amazing opportunity to be able to participate in the American College Dance Festival where she was able to take classes from master teachers all over the country as well as perform and have her own choreography adjudicated.

Christina has also had the wonderful opportunity to choreograph for the studio's yearly production of the "Nutcracker" and the pleasure of being one of the competition company's teachers and choreographers. Christina's routines have won many awards and high placements, truly showing her passion for dance, and her dedication to her students.

Dori began her dance training in California at a small local studio under the direction of Joan Golden learning the Cecchetti Method of ballet as well as studying and competing in Jazz, Lyrical and Tap. As a teen, Dori trained at Inland Pacific Ballet Academy broadening her ballet style to include RAD and Balanchine technique, as well as at the EDGE Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles, California. She spent the school year working on commercial and film roles and her summers across the country at professional ballet summer programs such as The Joffrey Ballet and Houston Ballet Academy. In addition to holding a BFA in Interior Design and Architecture, she became a fully certified Pilates trainer in 2009 and has studied Costume Design and Construction for Dance and Theater. Taking her first professional contract at just 17, Dori had a long professional performance career working with several companies including Downey Civic Light Opera, Houston Ballet, Ballet Austin, Thodos Dance Chicago, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Chicago Repertory Ballet, and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. In her time as a professional dancer, Dori has had the honor of having various roles created on her as well as the opportunity to recreate very famous roles by Lucas Crandall, Millicent Johnnie, Ben Stevenson, George Balanchine, Choo San Goh, Melissa Thodos, Brian Enos, Wade Schaaf, Ayman Harper, Ron De Jesus, Harrison McEldowney, Ann Reinking, and Steven Mills. Dori is a sought-after instructor and choreographer, having taught at various studios throughout California and Chicago in addition to spending 5 years as the Artistic Director of BPD DanceForce Competitive Team in Illinois. As a competitive choreographer, she has won regional and national titles every year for the past 7 years and was recently nominated for an Industry Dance Award for People’s Choice Choreography. She has been commissioned to choreograph for various Nutcracker productions and for professional concert dance companies including: Thodos Dance Chicago, Piel Morena Contemporary Dance, and the Dance Chicago Festival where she was named the New Moves Choreographer of 2009; earning her the opportunity to present an evening of her works. Retired from the stage and wanting to spend more time with her husband and 3 year old son, Dori now works as an independent contractor teaching and choreographing around Chicagoland.

Abby Mitchell danced competitively for thirteen years. Even as a young girl, dance was her passion. She has trained in many styles such as jazz, contemporary, lyrical, ballet, hip hop, tap, modern, and musical theater. Abby began her training, under the instruction of Brook Langkan, at La Premiere Dance Company. After the studio went a new direction Abby stayed with Brook to continue her career at Storm Dance Alliance. She was a member of the competitive company from 2003-2013. Abby has even taken classes from world renowned choreographers like Mia Michaels, Stephen "Twitch" Boss, Jonathan "Legacy" Perez, Jeanine Mason, Bobby Newberry, and Misha Gabriel, to name a few. Along with the many years of dancing, she began student teaching at a young age. In 2011 she began teaching her own classes at Storm, and in 2014 Abby took on the role of Performance Company Director. Abby loves sharing her passion with her students. She hopes to continue to grow as a dancer and a teacher everyday.

Sarah began her dance career at the age of two, and there was no turning back. Dance became her greatest passion. She started her training in ballet, tap, acrobatics and jazz. By age seven Sarah was on the stage competing. In 2008 she joined Storm Dance Alliance’s Competition Company where she expanded her training to include lyrical, contemporary and hip hop. With the training from the Storm staff Sarah has won many awards and scholarships on the regional and national levels. In 2012 Sarah was awarded regional Senior Miss Spotlight. She was chosen to perform in Star Systems national opening number in 2011, along with Masquerade Dance Competition’s in 2013 and Spotlight Dance Cup’s in 2014.

While Sarah's passion for dance is strong, she has also discovered the joy of teaching. She began student teaching at 14 and began her own classes by 16. Sarah strives to share her knowledge from the past 18 years she has spent in the studio and on stage with her students.

Savannah Enoch started in dance class at the very young age of two and never looked back. From a very young age she knew that dance and the performing arts were her passion. Savannah has been trained in a variety of styles including jazz, contemporary, lyrical, ballet, hip hop, acrobatics, tap, modern, musical theater, advanced partnering, and ballroom. After graduating high school, she continued her dance and performance training at the prestigious Theater Arts Preparatory School (TAPS) in Las Vegas, Nevada. There she was taught by top industry professionals and choreographers from Los Angeles, New York City, and Las Vegas. Savannah has performed in multiple projects from theater to film. She has danced for Holland America Line Cruise ships, Hershey Park, RWS Entertainment Group, “Show Dogs” (film), 20th Century Fox, McDonald’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and many more. As a choreographer and teacher, Savannah became well renowned at a very young age. She has received many honors for her work in the competition circuit including multiple IDA nominations. Over the years she has learned that she truly loves to teach and inspire young dancers. She plans to share all of her knowledge about dancing and performing with her students. Savannah strives to continuously grow and learn as a dancer, teacher, and choreographer.

Kendra Jorstad is currently the artistic director and founder of jorsTAP Chicago, the only all female concert tap dance company in Chicago. Originally from Newark, IL, Kendra graduated from Point Park University with a BA in Dance Performance and an emphasis in jazz dance. She moved to Chicago and began her career with the Joel Hall Dancers. During that time, she also performed with Rasa Dance Theatre and became an original member of Chicago Tap Theatre. Kendra was the rehearsal director and dancer for Chicago Tap Theatre for nine seasons. She choreographed many pieces for the company as well, receiving critical acclaim. Performance credits include Dance Chicago, Giordano Jazz Dance World Congress, Chicago Human Rhythm Project, New York Musical Theatre Festival, Lollapalooza (with the Polyphonic Spree), Ravinia, Duets for my Valentine, Chicago National Association of Dance Masters, and other Chicago Tap Theatre performances in Chicago, France, Cincinnati, Pennsylvania, and NYC. Teaching credits include the Omaha Dance Teachers Association workshop, Chicago National Association of Dance Masters, Des Plaines Dance Idol, Wisconsin Dance Masters Workshop, Indiana State Dance Championships, suburban high school orchesis/dance programs, and numerous studios in the Chicagoland area. She is sought after for her innovative approach to choreography and unique take on technique, incorporating a full body approach where the movement of the upper body sometimes contradicts the lower body-a challenge for many dancers. After taking many years of yoga to calm her mind and challenge her own body, Kendra became certified to teach kids yoga in Fall of 2018. She plans to leave her mark on the world by encouraging the future generation to tune into mindfulness and meditation.

Bailey Renae Hildebrand grew up in central Indiana, training with Laura Hayden's School of Dance. When she was 15, she started teaching for Laura Hayden's, finding her passion in instructing and choreographing. After graduating high school in 2014, Bailey became a member of the Chicago National Association of Dance Masters, where she is a certified ballet and jazz instructor. She has spent many summers in Chicago with CNADM, training and performing in productions directed by Vicki Barlow and Diane Gudat.

She continued her dance training at the Ann Lacy School of American Dance and Entertainment at Oklahoma City University. While attending school, Bailey performed in five productions with the American Spirit Dance Company, directed by Jo Rowan. In 2018, she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in American Dance Pedagogy.

Throughout college and post-graduation, Bailey taught and choreographed full-time for competitive studios in Oklahoma City, winning awards for her choreography and technical training. She is also a certified Barre3 instructor, getting to use her extensive anatomy and pedagogy education in the fitness industry. Bailey also judges for Applause Talent Dance Competition.

When back in Indiana, Bailey works closely with several studios and theaters, including Noblesville Cultural Arts Coalition and Tipton Community Theater, choreographing for their productions and teaching masterclasses. She enjoys opportunities to give back to these communities that first gave her the love of performing.

In 2020, Bailey moved to Chicago to continue teaching dance and Barre3. She loves all opportunities to travel for teaching, choreographing, and performing. Bailey continues to invest all that she has into every student she has the privilege to work with.

Ciera Nolan, originally from Lake Zurich, Illinois, graduated from Western Michigan University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance, a minor in event management, and a certification in Dance Studio Management. At WMU, Ciera performed in many student works and was a part of the WMU department of dance touring ensemble, Western Dance Project, under the direction of Whitney Moncrief. Additionally, she performed works by guest artists Jackie Nowicki, Mike Esperanza, and Melanie George, as well as faculty members Jeremy Blair, Monique Haley and Kelsey Paschich. During her time at WMU, Ciera represented her class serving on the board of Orchesis Dance Society. Ciera has also attended many intensives including DanceWorks Chicago, The Cambrians, Inaside Chicago Dance, and River North Dance Chicago. She is also a staff member at Masquerade Dance Competition, and a staff member and teacher at Chicago Dance Connection. Ciera teaches and choreographs throughout the Chicagoland area and enthusiastically shares her passion of dance with young dancers.

Sammy Gonzalez is a native of the Chicago land area. After training at various studios, he became a member of the award winning Boom Crack Dance Company based in Chicago in 2016-2019. While dancing with BoomCrack, he was given the opportunity to perform alongside of Benny the Bull and the Luvabulls. He spent 3 years as member of the Chicago Bulls 312 Crew. Sammy’s dynamic choreography has won numerous awards and accolades in the competitive scene. As an instructor, Sammy loves to share his passion for dance and knowledge with his students while encouraging them to continuously grow and inspire one another.

Krissy attended Northern Illinois University where she pursued her BFA in Dance Performance. At Northern she studied under Randall Newsom, Paula Frasz, and Judith Chitwood. While at NIU Krissy was a member of the Northern Dance Theater.

Krissy has 20 years experience teaching dance in the Chicagoland area. The last 13 years she has been the Arts and Humanities Director at the Fox Valley Family YMCA. In that position she was director of the La Premiere Dance Company. She also implemented and managed the Music Academy. Along with dance, Krissy also has been trained in piano and voice.

Monique Enoch has been working the storm dance alliance front desk since storm first opened. She is also our talented steamstress and costume designer.

Bailey Langkan was born into the world of dance and fell in love with movement and performance as a little girl. She began dancing at 18 months, and never stopped! Bailey studied extensively in ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, contemporary, acrobatics/ gymnastics, modern and lyrical, but her greatest love is Musical Theatre! During her youth, Bailey studied acting and fell in love with drama and acting in addition to dance. She was fortunate enough to act in many productions, as well as in several commercials. Bailey spent many years as a competitive dancer and won multiple national titles for her solo performances. As a young choreographer, her work has won national championships, as well as a nomination for the prestigious Industry Dance Awards. Bailey's greatest love for teaching is the connection that grows between the dancer and mentor, and helping them to achieve goals and dreams they never thought possible. Bailey has had the privilege of training under many incredible mentors and teachers across the country, and she is truly thankful for her dance home, Storm Dance Alliance. In addition to teaching and choreographing at Storm, Bailey is studying to become an Athletic Trainer at the University of Alabama, and eventually to earn her Doctorate in Physical Therapy. She would like to merge her dance career with helping performers to be their best on the stage and off!

Lauren began her dance journey at the age of two, and there was no looking back. Dance is her greatest passion. She has training in tap, ballet, jazz, musical theater, hip hop, contemporary, acrobatics, modern and lyrical. Lauren also has experience in the drama department as well as musically. Lauren has been a competition dancer for many years and has earned multiple regional and national titles and has been a part of many summer intensives such as The Rockettes Summer Intensive, Inaside Chicago dance Intensive, River North Summer Intensives and many more.

While Lauren’s love for dancing is strong, she has also discovered a passion for teaching. Lauren is passionate about sharing her knowledge of performance as well as her love for dance with her students. Lauren strives to continuously grow and learn as a dancer and teacher.