THE PC  }  Choreographers / Current Repertoire

Aszure Barton was born and raised in Alberta, Canada and received her formal training at the National Ballet School, where she helped set in motion the Stephen Godfrey Choreographic Showcase. She also studied at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Alberta Ballet School, and the John Cranko Schule in Germany. Aszure has been commissioned to create new works for Mikhail Baryshnikov, The National Ballet of Canada, Sydney Dance Company, The Juilliard School, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, bjm_danse Montréal, The Martha Graham Dance Company, American Ballet Theatre Studio Company and many others. She choreographed the Broadway production of "The Threepenny Opera," staring Alan Cumming, Jim Dale, Nellie Mackay and Cyndi Lauper, and has choreographed several international film projects. Aszure was recently designated a Paul D. Fleck Fellow at the Banff Centre. She is Artist-in-Residence at the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York City and is the Resident Choreographer for bjm_danse Montréal.

James Canfield: Choreographer + Artistic Director / Nevada Ballet Theatre

The founding Artistic Director of Oregon Ballet Theatre, James Canfield received his early dance training at the acclaimed Academy of the Washington Ballet and went on to dance for the renowned Joffrey Ballet for several years. In addition to creating numerous original, visionary works, including an original production of "The Nutcracker." James established the School of Oregon Ballet Theatre and played a crucial role in establishing Oregon Ballet Theatre as a major Portland arts institution. He was named Interim Artistic Director of Nevada Ballet Theatre in March 2008. James has created three works and regularly teaches for NWPDP.

Alejandro Cerrudo: Choreographer / Hubbard Street Dance Chicago

Born in Madrid, Spain, Alejandro Cerrudo received his training at the Real Conservatorio Professional de Danza de Madrid and joined the Victor Ullate Company in 1998. The following season, he moved to Germany to dance with the Stuttgart Ballet where he would also choreograph his first piece for the annual choreographic workshop in 2001. From 2002 to 2005, Alejandro joined Nederlands Dans Theater 2 where he performed works by Jirí Kylián, Lightfoot-Leon, Ohad Naharin, Johan Inger, Hans Van Manen, and many others. In August 2005, he joined Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and was invited to choreograph his first work, "Lickety-Split," the following year. Last year, Alejandro marked his second world premiere for HSDC with his work, "Extremely Close," which was commissioned by The Joyce Theater in New York City. Alejandro was awarded the Bronze Medal for his choreography at the 5th International Competition for Ballet and Modern Dance in Nagoya, Japan (2005), and at The Hannover International Choreographic Competition, Germany (2006).

Lucas Crandall: Associate Artistic Director / Hubbard Street Dance Chicago

Lucas Crandall began training in dance at the age of 14. In 1980 he obtained his first professional contract with the Ballet du Grand Theatre de Geneve. In 1985, he joined Nederlands Dans Theater where he first worked with HSDC's Artistic Director, Jim Vincent. After performing with the Nederlands Dans Theater for two years, Crandall returned to the Ballet du Grand Theatre, working with choreographers including Ohad Naharin, Jirí Kylián, Mats Ek and Christopher Bruce. In 1996 he became the company's Rehearsal Director. Since joining Hubbard Street in 2000, Lucas Crandall has also served on faculty with the Lou Conte Dance Studio, as well as ballet and repertory instructor for master classes throughout the country. Creating works since 1982, his pieces have been performed in the US and abroad. Lucas created "Triptych" for the 2006 Project and has led master classes and workshops for NWPDP.

Sarah Slipper: Choreographer + Artistic Director / NWPDP

An award winning independent choreographer, Sarah Slipper studied at the Royal Ballet School, was a principal dancer with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and appeared as a guest artist worldwide. She has worked with internationally renowned directors and choreographers such as Arnold Spohr, Rudi van Dantzig, Hans van Manen, Jirí Kylián and Agnes de Mille. Sarah Slipper served as Ballet Mistress of Alberta Ballet and Oregon Ballet Theatre, and teaches master classes throughout North America. She was awarded the Grand Prize for Choreography at the International Choreographic Competition at Saint Sauveur in 2000. Sarah has created over 20 works for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Cincinnati Ballet, Nashville Ballet, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Ballet Jorgen, Louisville Ballet, Alberta Ballet, Ballet New York, Ballet Pacifica and The Jefferson Dancers. "A Fine Balance," her pas de deux created during the inaugural NWPDP, was a finalist for the prestigious Benois de la Danse award in 2006 and was performed at the Bolshoi Theatre as part of the award's gala celebration. Sarah is currently working on several new creations and serves as the Artistic Director of the Northwest Professional Dance Project.

Cayetano Soto: Choreographer

Cayetano Soto was born in Spain in 1975. He started his dance education in his hometown Barcelona at the Instituto del Teatro and continued his studies at the Royal Conservatorium in Den Haag (Netherlands). After receiving his degree, Cayetano danced with IT Dansa in Barcelona before joining the Ballet Theater Munich a year later. There he created several successful ballets for the company. Cayetano has gone on to create "Cotidiano" for the Festival Internazionale di Danza in Venice, Italy and "24FPS" for the Royal Ballet of Flanders, which won the Hapag Lloyd prize in April 2006. His first full evening ballet was a new "A Midsummer Night's Dream" which was premiered in July 2006 in Lübeck and in November 2006 in Schwerin, both in Germany. Earlier this year he choreographed new works for the Royal Ballet of Flanders and the Stuttgart Ballet. Cayetano created "Not Yet" for the 2007 Project.

Edgar Zendejas: Artistic Director / ezDanza + Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal

Edgar Zendejas hails from Mexico City where he began his training at the Estudio Profesional de Danza de Ema Pulido. His passion for dance soon led him to the United States where he received a fellowship from the United States International University, and shortly thereafter became a member of the International Ballet Company of USIU. Prior to joining Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal in 1993, Edgar lived in Chicago where he was a dancer in both Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Gus Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago. Edgar has worked with several choreographers who have inspired him to further his career, not only as a dancer, but as a creator as well. Among these inspirations are David Parsons, Twyla Tharp, Ulysses Dove, Mia Michaels, Crystal Pite and Jennifer Muller. Edgar was named Associate Choreographer of Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal, following several successes and commissions with his choreography. Currently Edgar also serves as Artistic Director for ezDanza a Montreal based company dedicated to presenting his choreography.