Micaela Church, MFA, is currently the resident dance faculty for Chandler-Gilbert Community College. She received her MFA from Arizona State University, where she also taught as faculty associate. She has earned both her BA in Dance and a BM in Viola Performance from Alma College. Her commissioned works have most recently been performed at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA and Alma College, in Alma, MI. While in Arizona, she has choreographed and produced several works shown at ASU, CGCC, MCC and PVCC. Her choreography for MAC & Company has been chosen for performance at dance festivals in Arizona, California and Nevada. She has produced all of MAC & Company's full length performances and has toured the company throughout the Southwest. She has danced for several companies in addition to MAC & Company, including H.Lab Performance, Convergence Dance Project, Michigan Dance Collective, Northwest Michigan Ballet Theatre, and the Blue Lake International Ballet. She has danced throughout the country and internationally in China and Europe. She presented her research in 2010 on the integration of music and dance at the National Dance Education Organization's conference.

Martha Hernandez is a born native to Mexico and a painter. She began her dance training at age 15, and received additional training with Ballet Arizona and Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance. She uses her non-dance background in martial arts, yoga, acro-yoga and aerial arts to influence her creativity. Her most recent choreography was presented at the 2019 Blaktinx Dance Festival. She has performed for Center Dance Ensemble, Roberto Villanueva's BalaSole Dance Company at Dance Theatre Workshop in New York City, Cazo Dance Company, Scorpius Dance Theater and Movement Chaos.

Laura has been a student of dance for the past 26 years and a teacher of dance for the last 15 years. Her styles include technical training in: Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Tap, Musical Theater, Lyrical, Hip hop, Tumbling, Pom and cheer. She started her dance training at the age of four at Lynn's school of Dance in Globe, Arizona and continued training there tell she graduated in 2008. After graduating she toured with the organization Up with People for 6 months. Singing and dancing in three countries the United States, Mexico, and Philippines, after she continued working for Up with People as a dance intern training multiple casts. She continued her education in dance at Scottsdale Community College where she had the opportunity to work with choreographers out of New York such as: Broadway fosse dancer Ann Reinking, Cunningham instructor Janet Charleston, Lemon dancer and company member Kathryn Alter, Tammy Dyke Compton who studied at Julliard, and Christopher Dolder whom danced with the Graham Company in New York City. Continuing her studies Laura graduated magna cum laude, Bachelor of fine arts in dance from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle Washington. Working with and performing in pieces choreographed by: Camille A. Brown, Ariel Freedman, Zoe Scofield, Deb Wolf, and Iyun Harrison. After graduation she has gone on to receive her pilates mat teacher certification. Today, Laura performs with CaZo Dance Company, MAC & Company, and Rosenkrans dance. She has taught at studios around the valley and back in her hometown of Globe, AZ. Sharing her dance education with student's eager to learn and be challenged, it's so rewarding for both student and teacher. Currently Laura works with a non-profit organization Believe I Can Academy. Teaching students of all ages with special needs how to dance. She builds encouragement through dance, Laura believes, "Anyone Can Dance!" no matter limitations or capabilities.

Lindsie is a native to Arizona and began her dance training at 5 in multiple forms of dance at Benders Performing Arts (formally Betty Jonson's School of Dance) in Phoenix. Lindsie studied at Paradise Valley Community College, where she performed multiple times, in addition to performing at Tempe Center for the Arts and the American College Dance Association Regional Conference. While at PVCC, Lindsie continued her training in Jazz, Ballet, Hip Hop, Pointe, Modern, Choreography and also started learning a little bit of country dancing. In 2018 she graduated PVCC with an Associates degree in Fine Arts- Dance. Her next goal is to get a degree in Psychology and start a career in Dance Therapy, where she hopes to make an impact with those that are struggling and wish to express themselves through dance. Lindsie has also started forming new interests in photography and interior design. A couple fun facts about Lindsie is that she hopes to own a fox one day and loves Taco Bell. When Lindsie is not dancing, she enjoys spending time with her loved ones, reading, DIY projects, camping and being outdoors and enjoying being a new aunt!

Jena is an Arizona native and her passion for dance sparked when she was a sophomore in high school. She started training through YouTube videos before officially taking classes in high school and trying out for the pom team. Jena was a part of the Falcon Dance company and was on the Cactus Shadows varsity pom team for 2 years. After high school Jena pursued a bachelor's degree in medical microbiology and continued dance through classes at PVCC and MCC. After graduating from ASU, she moved to Minnesota to gain experience in the research field and took ballet classes for fun. Since moving back to AZ she was eager to find an opportunity to continue dance and is so grateful to have found MAC & Company such a warm, welcoming, and creative community! Jena currently works in the cancer immunology research field. Some of her other hobbies include reading, running, hiking, and spending time with her husband and loved ones.

Born and raised in Arizona, Brandon Farrer found inspiration from watching a friend move and was drawn to the art of dancing. He was a college student at Paradise Valley Community College where he studied dance. Brandon plans to continue expanding his knowledge of the art form by achieving a higher education degree. He has performed in the Arizona Dance Festival, and in a variety of shows at PVCC in both faculty and student work. In addition to dancing with MAC & Company, Brandon also dances with CaZo Dance Company. Excited to work with many different people and learn new things, Brandon is an inspired dancer, hopeful of one day becoming a choreographer.

Jonathan Montoya Gerardo is an aspiring artist from Mesa, Arizona. His love for dance began during his freshman year at Desert Ridge High School, where he quickly excelled in choreography and teaching during his four years in the dance department. This progress led him to become a member of Pulse Dance Company by his senior year. Jonathan continued to deepen his passion for choreography and teaching at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. His undergraduate choreography, The Dream (1910), was selected to debut at GCU's spring faculty dance concert, Intertwine. He graduated summa cum laude and from the Honors College with a BA in Dance for Secondary Education; he hopes to pursue a master's degree in Choreography and Education. Now developing his artistry and passion in Tempe, Arizona, he continues to share his dedication to choreography and teaching at local high schools, colleges, and dance companies. He aims to make a difference by promoting art and community, encouraging students and peers to reflect on their purpose. He believes that creativity is liberation, and everyone should have the opportunity to express it. Catch him at your local coffee shop or record store and connect!

Brittany Hood is a Tempe, AZ native currently living in Mesa. She graduated from McClintock High School and continued her education at ASU, where she earned a BA in dance. While attending ASU, Brittany danced in several faculty, graduate, and undergraduate works. She culminated her studies with a choreographic work that included live music. After three years of dancing with H.Lab Performance, Brittany now continues her dance pursuits with MAC & Company. Brittany's days consist of homeschooling her four young children, raising animals, gardening, and helping her husband with various business ventures.

Amanda Hunkins, a California native, found her passion in dancing when she was eight years old. Graduated from Horizon High School in 2013, Amanda also was a Dance Performance Major at Paradise Valley Community College. Originally starting with ballet and musical theater, Amanda has ventured into Burlesque and Pole dance/fitness, and has worked her way into being an apprentice with the burlesque company, Scandalesque, since August of 2014. She has also worked with the Scottsdale Musical Theater Company and with the 56th Street Players in various theatrical performances. Amanda is thoroughly excited to return and dance with MAC & Company so she can further her skills as a Modern/Contemporary performer.

Maddie has been dancing for 10 years and loves the feeling of dancing. She trained at Studio R Ballet in Mesa, AZ and at Chandler-Gilbert Community College, where she has performed in numerous dance performances. Ballet has been her main focus, but she always has fun branching out to other styles of dance. She continues to grow and strengthen her technique and dance experience. Maddie is excited to start her dance journey with MAC & Company!

A California native, Kathleen Kennedy is a visual artist, musician and a dancer. She graduated from California State University, Fresno with a BA in Art. While at the university, Kathleen studied painting and performed with various wind ensembles, experiences that now inform her movements as a dancer. After relocating to Arizona, she began taking ballet classes and has not stopped dancing since. She has studied at Glendale Community College and Paradise Valley Community College, performing in several of PVCC's student collections. Kathleen has also performed with Desert Dance Theater and in Interconnected- A Hybrid Performance.

Born and raised in Arizona, Kaitlyn started dancing at the age of 12 for her health, but fell deeply in love with it and has continued to dance ever since. She started strictly only dancing classical ballet, then learned modern, contemporary, and more, but ballet will always be her favorite style. Kaitlyn danced for 3 years at Desert Ridge High School and continues to dance through college at CGCC.

Lexi has loved dancing ever since she was a little girl. She started taking dance class in high school at North Canyon and eventually choreographed solos and group dances for the recitals as well as joined the dance and cheer team. After high school she took classes at Paradise Valley community college where she earned her Associates in Fine Arts in Dance studying jazz, ballet, hip hop and modern dance. Lexi danced in a company for Alice Cooper's Teen Rock Center for a few years where she performed at various events like Alice Cooper's Celebrity Golf Tournament and Alice Cooper's Christmas Pudding at celebrity theater! Hip hop had always been a favorite style of dance for Lexi, and she danced for the 13th Floor Haunted House where she was a hip hop zombie dancer. She is currently back with MAC and continuing her dance journey.

Allie, an Arizona native, developed her passion for dance in high school after inspiration from her high school dance teacher. This inspiration has kept her dancing to this day! Allie danced with CHSazz, Coronado High School's performance company during her years at Coronado. After high school, Allie pursued dance at Scottsdale Community College and was a member of their performance company. Allie is still actively dancing at SCC and has also danced with Center Dance Ensemble under direction of the late Fran Cohen as well as Ignite Collaborative. Allie enjoys taking master classes within the community, and loves to take classes at Broadway Dance Center in New York City at least once per year! This has become her most favorite experience next to performing with MAC. Allie is married to an amazing husband, a mom to three amazing not so little “kids”, and thoroughly enjoys dancing with one of them in MAC! When not dancing, Allie works as a labor and delivery and high risk antepartum nurse and teaches OB as a professor, for both SCC and GCU. Allie's favorite hobbies include dance and travel, and is thrilled to be a member of MAC & Company!

Alysia, an Arizona native, loves to dance with her mom, Allie! Alysia began dancing at the age of eight attending hip hop and contemporary classes at Paula Carr Dance Academy. Alysia's dance interest and love for dance grew during her years at Saguaro High School where she was captain of Saguaro Dance Company. Post high school, Alysia danced at Scottsdale Community College and was a member of SCC's Moving Company. Alysia has also danced with Ignite Collaborative and Center Dance Ensemble and is now thrilled to be a part of Mac and Company! Alysias hobbies include dining out, yoga, dance, and hiking with her boyfriend and Boston terrier Moe!

Allie is an Arizona native with a versatile dance background in many different styles. Allie grew up dancing at Centrestage Dance Studio where she began her dance journey at the age of 12, and continued dancing there throughout all of her middle and high school years. During her time at Centrestage, Allie learned ballet, jazz, contemporary, hip-hop, pom, and musical theater. She also competed on a pre-company team during her last year at Centrestage and placed first with her team at all of their competitions. After her senior year of high school, Allie left Centrestage to go study dance at Paradise Valley Community College where she earned her Associates degree in Fine Arts in Dance. During her college experience, Allie had the opportunity to perform and represent her school at the American College Dance Association. After she graduated college, Allie joined MAC & Company in 2018 and has been dancing with us ever since! Allie is thrilled to have been a member of MAC for so many years and is grateful for all of the performance and choreography opportunities it has brought her. One of her favorite memories with MAC is getting to travel and perform in dance festivals in Las Vegas and Santa Monica. Allie loves MAC for its positive dance culture and sense of community, and hopes to continue sharing her love of dance with us for many more years!

Robyn Tye-Lennex fell in love with dancing when she was just five-years-old. She is a classically trained ballerina whose teachers include Lee Gerlack, Nina Marlow, Sally Smith, and Dawn Chambers. She attended a summer intensive with Long Beach Ballet Arts, which included guest teachers such as Edward Villella and Gelsey Kirkland. Robyn has also taken a variety of classes at Steps on Broadway and Broadway Dance Center in New York City. She has taught and choreographed ballet at various studios in Arizona and Colorado, including Royal Dance Works in Phoenix. Robyn earned her Bachelor's Degree in Education from ASU, and teaches Visual Arts for Higley Unified School District. She also teaches dance to her students as part of a unique electives program at her school. Robyn danced with Terpiscore Dance Company and performed in several original works. She currently performs with a local theatre company (State 48 Theatre) and has been seen on their stage in Shakespeare and musical productions. When Robyn isn't dancing or acting, she enjoys painting, drawing, reading, spending time with her husband, and caring for their three cats.

Belle is an Arizona native that began dancing her freshman year of high school. After graduating, Belle went to Chandler Gilbert Community College to get her AAFA in Dance. At CGCC she was on the dance company where she studied ballet, modern, and jazz. After getting her degree, she transferred to Grand Canyon University and is working on her Bachelors of Secondary Education for Dance.

Photography by Rick Meinecke