STAFF & COMPANY MEMBERS




Kim Martinez
Artistic Director

Originally from the Twin Cities, Kim was born into a family of entertainers and dance instructors. She has spent her 40+ year career performing, teaching and nurturing the talent of young people here in the Twin Cities Area. She has taught master classes in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and Tokyo. She considers her special talent is that of recognizing and developing talent in others, and thrives on seeing the best being brought out of young, dedicated performers.



Amber Rosah Keeley
Training Program Coordinator

Amber has been teaching ballet in the Twin Cities since 1993. Her performing career includes local and national dance companies such as Pacific Northwest Ballet and Pennsylvania Ballet. She has worked with the Moscow Ballet and has taught ballet in Tokyo, Japan. Amber has been the school director and a company member since OOAL's debut in 2001.



David Bensussan
 Company & Faculty Member

David is a Theatre major at Metropolitan State University. He has been dancing with OOAL since the beginning and is now a valued member of the company. He loves OOAL and the people in it.



Jeremy Bensussan
Company Member

Jeremy Bensussan is a charter member of the OOAL family. As a Junior at the University of Minnesota in the dance and music programs, Jeremy has performed with well-known dance companies such as Keane Sense of Rhythm, Joe Chvala and the Flying Foot Forum, and University Dance Theater and has danced on great stages such as The O'Shaughnessy Auditorium, The Southern Theater, Hopkin's Center for the Arts, McGuire Theater at the Walker Art Center, The Avalon in Minneapolis, and has toured to Winona State University to perform. Jeremy takes a special interest in tap dancing and focuses his energies on passing his knowledge of technique and repetoire onto students both within and outside OOAL's training program.



Allie Causin
Company & Faculty Member

Allie has been studying dance for 14 years under many different instructors, including nationally known Derek Mitchell, Svetlana Todinova, and Willy Shives. She has been with OOAL since it first opened in 2001, and has been a company member and ballet instructor since 2004. The best part of dance for her is when all the hard work, time, and effort pay off dancing on stage in front of friends and family in OOAL's fantastic productions! Currently Allie is going to school to get her degree in Elementary Education.



Carisa Drews
Company & Faculty Member

Carisa has studied under many nationally known instuctors such as: Tony Peyla, Ray Leaper, Desiree Robins and in New York at Broadway Dance Center. She is an award winning choreagrapher and a member of OOAL Dance Company.



Jake Erling
Faculty Member

Jake is an award-winning black belt who has been teaching Karate at OOAL for the last three years. His classes teach technique, style, power, discipline and respect.



Allie Evertz
Apprentice to the Company



Lindsey King
Company & Faculty Member

Lindsey has been teaching rhythm tap in the Twin Cities for seven years and has performed with such groups as Keane Sense of Rhythm and Ten Foot Five. Her pension for travel has Lindsey studying with such greats as Diane Walker, Barbara Duffy, Jimmy Tate and Brenda Buffalino in New York as well as Linda Petrino in Paris. Whilst studying for her MA in Art History & Visual Studies at the University of Manchester, UK, Lindsey honed her salsa dancing skills under the tutelage of Brigitte & Franklyn (Cross-Body on 1) and Laura & Alessandro (Cuban style). She has been a company and faculty member since 2002.



Mykala Lind
Faculty Member

Mykala attends the University of St. Thomas and plans to attend law school in the fall of '07. Mykala has been dancing 16 years and has trained with some of the country's top instructors such as Paula Abdul, Liz Imperio and Charles McGowan.



Andrea Martinez
 Company & Faculty Member

Andrea has been teaching in the Twin Cities for 10 years and has been a company member with OOAL since it's inception. She has performed with the Children's Theatre Company and has studied with the Pittsburg Youth Ballet.



Sara Martinez
Company Member

Sara has been an OOAL company member since the beginning and taught in the training program for four years. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts.



Bridget Noltimier
Company Member




Mary Pivec
Company Member

Mary has been dancing in the Twin Cities for 16 years. Working with choreographers such as Leslie Daly, Alison Doughty, and Kara Anderson, she has been part of many award winning performace lines. Mary is currently a student at Minneapolis Community and Technical College and enjoys teaching in the West-Metro Area. "It's not 'Dance like no one is watching", it's dance like EVERYONE is watching!"



Jessica Tice
 Apprentice to the Company

Jessica Tice has been dancing for 9 years. Her training includes Midwest Youth Dance Theatre, Ballet Arts Minnesota's Springboard Apprentice program, and Out On A Limb Dance Company and School. She's participated in summer intensive programs with Madison Ballet, Ballet Arts Minnesota, Out On A Limb, American Ballet Theatre, and the Joffrey Ballet School in New York. Jessica is currently attending the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul for pre-physical therapy and psychology.


BOARD OF DIRECTORS


Kim Martinez, President

Marcey Bolter Mastbaum, Vice President

Nancy Evertz, Treasurer

Carol Cantrell, Secretary

Annie Gibson, Board Member