Dance
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The Dance Program at Skyline College elevates students' dance ability, technique,
performance and expression. We offer a variety of courses to help students to enter
the dance profession, achieve their Associate Degree in Dance and/or transfer to a
dance program at a four-year university.
Students performing in Dance Concerts each semester can dance in front of live audiences,
choreograph and perform their own and faculty productions in many styles, and participate
in producing live shows. The Dance program also collaborates with the Music, Drama,
Cosmetology and Visual Arts departments on our Musical Theater productions.
Check out the Program
Students pursuing the Associate Degree in dance receive one-on-one academic counseling from the department lead, Amber Steele. Feel free to contact us for more information!
Overview
The Skyline College academic program focuses on an emphasis in technique that is split between elective courses and the most commonly required dance techniques in universities and entertainment businesses.
Students take six units of a mix of Contemporary Modern Dance, Jazz Dance, and Ballet. They also take six units of elective technique courses, which may include Hip Hop, Tap, Social Dances, Tango, Acting Courses and more. Students fulfill their Art GE by taking a lecture course, DANC 100 Dance Appreciation, a Pilates course on physical alignment, and two units of Production, which involve participating in the Dance Concert and/or Musical.
Our program was revised in 2018 to remove any courses that alumni had reported as being obstacles for their transfer, and so we are proud to have a dance major which is possible to finish the courses required for the major under a year and half, leaving the student some flexibility to schedule their other GE requirements.
Career Outlook
An Associates Degree in Dance can help students to be competitive in the job market for teaching positions in dance studios, working with adults and/or children; working in administration, performance or teaching positions in arts organizations; writing and academic research at universities and for social media; students who are seeking transfer to a four-year university dance program; as well as dancers pursuing professional performance careers.
Looking for a list of classes offered this semester?
Check out the current class schedule.All Courses
DANC 100 Dance Appreciation (3 units)
An overview of dance history, beginning with classical era folk and ethnic dance, this course will survey the development of Modern, Ballet, Jazz and other dance forms. Focusing largely on the 20th Century, students will read, write and watch videos to form an overview of the history of dance and the historical events that influenced the major choreographers of the 20th Century. NOTE: This course is not activity-based and is not applicable to the specific area requirement in Physical Education for the Associate Degree.
DANC 102 Hip Hop Dance Roots - A Survey of Black Dance in America (3 units)
Focuses on the cultural, economic and historical impact that Black dances such as Hip Hop, Jazz and Breakdance have in the lives of women and marginalized groups. From pre-Colonial times to today, the course will survey the evolution of Black vernacular dance in social settings and performances onstage, in musical theater and in film. NOTE: This course is not activity-based and is not applicable to the specific area requirement in Physical Education for the Associate Degree.
DANC 103 Global Dance Traditions: Culture and Transformation (3 units)
An overview of ritual, social, and classical dance traditions practiced around the world, this course will survey the spiritual, cultural, political, and social forces that shape and are shaped by these dance forms and the people who practice them. Students will read about, discuss, write and reflect on, and watch videos of major dance forms from Indigenous North America, West and East Africa, the Caribbean, South and Central Asia, Polynesia/Oceania, the Middle East and North Africa, and Central and South America.
DANC 117.1 Tap Dance I (0.5- 1 units)
Beginning Tap Dance technique. Tap vocabulary, rhythmic patterns and style while developing dexterity, musicality and basic performance skills. Opportunities will be available to perform, in order to better appreciate tap dance. Choreography and improvisational group projects/presentations develop over the course of the semester.
DANC 117.2 Tap Dance II (0.5- 1 units)
Intermediate Tap Dance technique. Tap vocabulary, rhythmic patterns and style while developing dexterity, musicality and basic performance skills. Opportunities will be available to perform, in order to better appreciate tap dance. Choreography and improvisational group projects/presentations develop over the course of the semester.
DANC 121.1 Contemporary Modern Dance I (0.5or 1 units)
Beginning level instruction in the Contemporary Modern Dance style, including warm-up and floor movement with an emphasis on proper techniques, creativity, style and self expression. Students will learn short dance phrases and will be expected to analyze, choreograph and/or perform a modern dance by the end of the semester. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 121.2 Contemporary Modern Dance II (0.5or 1 units)
Intermediate level instruction in the Contemporary Modern Dance style, including warm-up and floor movement with an emphasis on proper techniques, creativity, style and self expression. Students will learn short dance phrases and will be expected to analyze, choreograph and/or perform a modern dance by the end of the semester. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 121.3 Contemporary Modern Dance III (0.5or 1 units)
Advanced intermediate level instruction in the Modern Dance style, including warm-up and floor movement with an emphasis on proper techniques, creativity, style and self expression. Students will learn short dance phrases and will be expected to analyze, choreograph and/or perform a modern dance by the end of the semester. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 121.4 Contemporary Modern Dance IV (0.5or 1 units)
Advanced level instruction in the Contemporary Modern Dance style, including warm-up and floor movement with an emphasis on proper techniques, creativity, style and self expression. Students will learn short dance phrases and will be expected to analyze, choreograph and/or perform a modern dance by the end of the semester. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 130.1 Jazz Dance I: Lyrical, Pop & Broadway (0.5or 1 units)
Jazz Dance covers American jazz-inspired movement techniques developed for musical theater, film and television. Developed by fusing African American social dance forms with Ballet, Modern and Tap dances, Jazz Dance emphasizes body-lines, flexible torso, exaggerated movements of individual body parts, isolations and precise footwork. Jazz dance is ever-changing because it reflects the cultural trends of the times. In multiple styles of Jazz dance, including lyrical and blues, musical theater, and hip hop/street/funk styles, students will work towards mastery at the beginning level. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 130.2 Jazz Dance II – Lyrical, Pop and Broadway (0.5or 1 units)
Jazz Dance covers American jazz-inspired movement techniques developed for musical theater, film and television. Developed by fusing African American social dance forms with Ballet, Modern and Tap dances, Jazz Dance emphasizes body-lines, flexible torso, exaggerated movements of individual body parts, isolations and precise footwork. Jazz dance is ever-changing because it reflects the cultural trends of the times. In multiple styles of Jazz dance, including lyrical and blues, musical theater, and hip hop/street/funk styles, students will work towards mastery at the intermediate level. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 130.3 Jazz Dance III – Lyrical, Pop and Broadway (0.5or 1 units)
Jazz Dance covers American jazz-inspired movement techniques developed for musical theater, film and television. Developed by fusing African American social dance forms with Ballet, Modern and Tap dances, Jazz Dance emphasizes body-lines, flexible torso, exaggerated movements of individual body parts, isolations and precise footwork. Jazz dance is ever-changing because it reflects the cultural trends of the times. In multiple styles of Jazz dance, including lyrical and blues, musical theater, and hip hop/street/funk styles, students will work towards mastery at the advanced intermediate level. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 130.4 Jazz Dance IV – Lyrical, Pop and Broadway (0.5or 1 units)
Jazz Dance covers American jazz-inspired movement techniques developed for musical theater, film and television. Developed by fusing African American social dance forms with Ballet, Modern and Tap dances, Jazz Dance emphasizes body-lines, flexible torso, exaggerated movements of individual body parts, isolations and precise footwork. Jazz dance is ever-changing because it reflects the cultural trends of the times. In multiple styles of Jazz dance, including lyrical and blues, musical theater, and hip hop/street/funk styles, students will work towards mastery at the advanced level. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 140.1 Ballet I (0.5or 1 units)
Beginning barre, floor technique and movement fundamentals with emphasis on body control, form and special patterns. Students will learn a variety of dance phrases. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 140.2 Ballet II (0.5or 1 units)
Intermediate barre, floor technique and movement fundamentals with emphasis on body control, form and special patterns. Students will learn a variety of dance phrases. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 140.3 Ballet III (0.5or 1 units)
Advanced intermediate barre, floor technique and movement fundamentals with emphasis on body control, form and special patterns. Students will learn a variety of dance phrases. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 140.4 Ballet IV (0.5or 1 units)
Advanced barre, floor technique and movement fundamentals with emphasis on body control, form and special patterns. Students will learn a variety of dance phrases. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 150.1 Hip Hop I (0.5or 1 units)
Beginning practical experience in current hip-hop techniques, body isolations, directional changes, level changes and hip-hop variations of Jazz and African dance forms. Students learn the characteristic terminology, coordination, step-counting and performance skills. Students perform hip-hop technical drills and choreography.
DANC 150.2 Hip Hop II (0.5or 1 units)
Intermediate level Hip-hop Dance choreography, alignment, floor patterns with group interactions and projects. A variety of hip-hop dance phrases, intermediate hip-hop terminology and correct body alignment as it applies to hip-hop dance.
DANC 151.1 Social Dance I (0.5- 1 units)
Beginning Social Dance class emphasizing the basics of several dance styles, including footwork, posture, and the arts of leading, following, and co-creating a dance. Each semester dances are selected from the following list: East Coast Swing, Slow Waltz, Cha cha, Night Club Two- Step, Tango, Foxtrot, Rumba, Merengue and Salsa. Partners are not required; no prior experience needed.
DANC 151.2 Social Dance II (0.5- 1 units)
Intermediate Social Dance class emphasizing the basics of several dance styles, including footwork, posture, and the arts of leading, following, and co-creating a dance. Each semester dances are selected from the following list: East Coast Swing, Slow Waltz, Cha cha, Night Club Two- Step, Tango, Foxtrot, Rumba, Merengue and Salsa. Partners are not required; no prior experience needed.
DANC 151.3 Social Dance III (0.5- 1 units)
Advanced Intermediate Social Dance class emphasizing the basics of several dance styles, including footwork, posture, and the arts of leading, following, and co-creating a dance. Each semester dances are selected from the following list: East Coast Swing, Slow Waltz, Cha cha, Night Club Two- Step, Tango, Foxtrot, Rumba, Merengue and Salsa. Partners are not required; no prior experience needed.
DANC 151.4 Social Dance IV (0.5- 1 units)
Advanced Social Dance class emphasizing the basics of several dance styles, including footwork, posture, and the arts of leading, following, and co-creating a dance. Each semester dances are selected from the following list: East Coast Swing, Slow Waltz, Cha cha, Night Club Two- Step, Tango, Foxtrot, Rumba, Merengue and Salsa. Partners are not required; no prior experience needed.
DANC 152.1 Cuban Salsa I (0.5- 1 units)
Beginning level Cuban Salsa, focused on the fundamentals of Cuban popular dances, including Salsa, Cha Cha Cha, Bolero and Salsa Rueda. Liberate your salsa dance moves in the Cuban style by integrating the traditional Afro-Cuban elements.
DANC 152.2 Cuban Salsa II (0.5- 1 units)
Intermediate level Cuban Salsa, focused on the fundamentals of Cuban popular dances, including Salsa, Cha Cha Cha, Bolero and Salsa Rueda. Liberate your salsa dance moves in the Cuban style by integrating the traditional Afro-Cuban elements.
DANC 152.3 Cuban Salsa III (0.5- 1 units)
Advanced intermediate level Cuban Salsa, focused on the fundamentals of Cuban popular dances, including Salsa, Cha Cha Cha, Bolero and Salsa Rueda. Liberate your salsa dance moves in the Cuban style by integrating the traditional Afro-Cuban elements.
DANC 152.4 Cuban Salsa IV (0.5- 1 units)
Advanced level Cuban Salsa, focused on the fundamentals of Cuban popular dances, including Salsa, Cha Cha Cha, Bolero and Salsa Rueda. Liberate your salsa dance moves in the Cuban style by integrating the traditional Afro-Cuban elements.
DANC 157.1 Afro Cuban Dance I (0.5or 1 units)
Beginning level Afro Cuban dances. Students will integrate Afro Cuban elements into modern social dancing, using the body as a medium for cultural understanding and community building. Students will gain a foundation of Afro Cuban Folkloric and Rumba dances; variations of the Rumba, Salsa, Son, ChaChaCha, Conga and Cabaret, so they are ready to join the dance community.
DANC 157.2 Afro Cuban Dance II (0.5or 1 units)
Intermediate level Afro Cuban dances. Students will integrate Afro Cuban elements into modern social dancing, using the body as a medium for cultural understanding and community building. Students will gain a foundation of Afro Cuban Folkloric and Rumba dances; variations of the Rumba, Salsa, Son, ChaChaCha, Conga and Cabaret, so they are ready to join the dance community.
DANC 157.3 Afro Cuban Dance III (0.5or 1 units)
Advanced intermediate level Afro Cuban dances. Students will integrate Afro Cuban elements into modern social dancing, using the body as a medium for cultural understanding and community building. Students will gain a foundation of Afro Cuban Folkloric and Rumba dances; variations of the Rumba, Salsa, Son, ChaChaCha, Conga and Cabaret, so they are ready to join the dance community.
DANC 157.4 Afro Cuban Dance IV (0.5or 1 units)
Advanced level Afro Cuban dances. Students will integrate Afro Cuban elements into modern social dancing, using the body as a medium for cultural understanding and community building. Students will gain a foundation of Afro Cuban Folkloric and Rumba dances; variations of the Rumba, Salsa, Son, ChaChaCha, Conga and Cabaret, so they are ready to join the dance community.
DANC 161 Tango Argentino (0.5- 1 units)
Dance the Argentine Tango (the dance of love) and learn basic improvisational skills. Viewing tango as a language, students will develop musicality and focus on the connection between partners in order to dance confidently in social settings around the world.
DANC 162 Tango Milonga (0.5- 1 units)
Dance the Tango Milonga, an Argentine dance which is the precursor to the tango. Viewing tango and Milonga as a language, students will develop musicality and focus on the connection between partners in order to dance confidently in social settings.
DANC 163 Tango Buenos Aires (0.5- 1 units)
Experience many of the most fun Tango Buenos Aires steps from the past and today. Students will begin to develop more confidence, demystifying and internalizing the tango’s structural elements and intricacies.
DANC 164 Tango De La Confiteria (0.5- 1 units)
Designed to strip Tango de la Confiteria down to its joyful essence, with many of the most fun steps of Buenos Aires from the past and today. The focus is on connecting with one’s partner, dancing rhythmically, and feeling harmonious and happy in one’s body, with one’s partner and with the music.
DANC 330.1 Creative Dance I (0.5- 1 units)
Beginning level instruction on the principles of dance composition through individual experiences, studies in use of varied stimuli, processes of dance construction and simple compositional forms.
DANC 330.2 Creative Dance II (0.5- 1 units)
Intermediate level instruction on the principles of dance composition through individual experiences, studies in use of varied stimuli, processes of dance construction and simple compositional forms.
DANC 330.3 Creative Dance III (0.5- 1 units)
Advanced intermediate level instruction on the principles of dance composition through individual experiences, studies in use of varied stimuli, processes of dance construction and simple compositional forms.
DANC 330.4 Creative Dance IV (0.5- 1 units)
Advanced level instruction on the principles of dance composition through individual experiences, studies in use of varied stimuli, processes of dance construction and simple compositional forms.
DANC 350.1 Cardio Dance I (0.5or 1 units)
Steps, stretches and toning movements from many dance sources; Latin, hip hop, folk, jazz, ballet, modern, rock, etc., that are choreographed to various rhythms designed to develop cardiovascular efficiency at a beginning level. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 350.2 Cardio Dance II (0.5or 1 units)
Steps, stretches and toning movements from many dance sources; Latin, hip hop, folk, jazz, ballet, modern, rock, etc., that are choreographed to various rhythms designed to develop cardiovascular efficiency at an intermediate level. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 350.3 Cardio Dance III (0.5or 1 units)
Steps, stretches and toning movements from many dance sources; Latin, hip hop, folk, jazz, ballet, modern, rock, etc., that are choreographed to various rhythms designed to develop cardiovascular efficiency at an advanced intermediate level. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 350.4 Cardio Dance IV (0.5or 1 units)
Steps, stretches and toning movements from many dance sources; Latin, hip hop, folk, jazz, ballet, modern, rock, etc., that are choreographed to various rhythms designed to develop cardiovascular efficiency at an advanced level. For students who are taking the course to meet a requirement for the ADT in Kinesiology, be advised that the Movement Based Courses requirement requires the course be 1.0 unit.
DANC 391 Dance Composition - Theory and Choreography (3 units)
Choreographic principles and techniques are learned through discussion and practical experience in various dance styles. Study of dance choreography to include construction of phrases; structure and form in a composition; and the basic elements of time, space and energy as used to create dance as a performing art. NOTE: This course is not activity-based and is not applicable to the specific area requirement in Physical Education for the Associate Degree.
DANC 395.1 Dance Workshop I (0.5or 1 units)
Designed to provide a structured workshop for students to collaborate and develop choreographic works at the beginning level. Students will dance in other students' work, and may also choreograph their own pieces. Students will perform these works for peer analysis and performance.
DANC 395.2 Dance Workshop II (0.5or 1 units)
Designed to provide a structured workshop for students to collaborate and develop choreographic works at the intermediate level. Students will dance in other students' work, and may also choreograph their own pieces. Students will perform these works for peer analysis and performance.
DANC 395.3 Dance Workshop III (0.5or 1 units)
Designed to provide a structured workshop for students to collaborate and develop choreographic works at the advanced intermediate level. Students will dance in other students' work, and may also choreograph their own pieces. Students will perform these works for peer analysis and performance.
DANC 395.4 Dance Workshop IV (0.5or 1 units)
Designed to provide a structured workshop for students to collaborate and develop choreographic works at the advanced level. Students will dance in other students' work, and may also choreograph their own pieces. Students will perform these works for peer analysis and performance.
DANC 400.1 Dance Performance and Production I (0.5- 2 units)
Beginning level dance performance, composition, and program production. Students will work with various choreography principles, stage production tasks and dance in a variety of styles. Rehearsal times will be arranged with the instructor. NOTE: Students wishing to fulfill the requirement for the Dance Major should enroll in 2 units.
DANC 400.2 Dance Performance and Production II (0.5- 2 units)
Intermediate level dance performance, composition, and program production. Students will work with various choreography principles, stage production tasks and dance in a variety of styles. Rehearsal times will be arranged with the instructor. NOTE: Students wishing to fulfill the requirement for the Dance Major should enroll in 2 units.
DANC 400.3 Dance Performance and Production III (0.5- 2 units)
Advanced Intermediate level dance performance, composition, and program production. Students will work with various choreography principles, stage production tasks and dance in a variety of styles. Rehearsal times will be arranged with the instructor. NOTE: Students wishing to fulfill the requirement for the Dance Major should enroll in 2 units.
DANC 400.4 Dance Performance and Production IV (0.5- 2 units)
Advanced level dance performance, composition, and program production. Students will work with various choreography principles, stage production tasks and dance in a variety of styles. Rehearsal times will be arranged with the instructor. NOTE: Students wishing to fulfill the requirement for the Dance Major should enroll in 2 units.
DANC 410.1 Dance for the Musical Theater Production I (2 units)
Designed to prepare students to perform at the beginning level in a musical theater production. Students will learn the historical context of the play, costuming and perform choreography specific to the production.
DANC 410.2 Dance for the Musical Theater Production II (2 units)
Designed to prepare students to perform at the intermediate level in a musical theater production. Students will learn the historical context of the play, costuming and perform choreography specific to the production.
DANC 410.3 Dance for the Musical Theater Production III (2 units)
Designed to prepare students to perform at the advanced intermediate level in a musical theater production. Students will learn the historical context of the play, costuming and perform choreography specific to the production.
DANC 410.4 Dance for the Musical Theater Production IV (2 units)
Designed to prepare students to perform at the advanced level in a musical theater production. Students will learn the historical context of the play, costuming and perform choreography specific to the production.
DANC 665 Selected Topics: Dance in Cultural Context (0.5or 1 units)
This course is designed to introduce students to the fundamentals of different styles of dance from selected cultures. In-depth study of selected dance forms as Flamenco, Congolese, Salsa, African-Brazilian, Swing, and Capoeira will be offered and one hour by arrangement per week.
| Program | Type | Total Units |
|---|---|---|
| Dance | AA | 60 Units |
Upon completion of the program students will be able to:
- Interpretation and Performance: Provide a more authentic and individualized interpretation of a given dance form through a demonstration of appropriate levels of technique that incorporate cultural elements of this dance form (e.g. costume, history, vocabulary, rhythm and music)
- Creative Collaboration: Create and develop unique movement sequences, and collaboratively organize that material into a dance
- Critical Evaluation: Critically evaluate and objectively discuss dance as a performance art
Amber Steele
As a tenured professor at Skyline College, Amber Steele leads the Dance Program at Skyline College, teaching Contemporary Modern, Jazz, Choreography, Pilates, Core Fitness and Yoga with a focus on technique for strength, longevity, and emotional expression. She has a passion for inspiring her students to break out of their shells and surpass their own expectations, and to see dance in a broader social context. Her lecture courses work to de-colonize dance history education by examining how richly black vernacular dance infuses American culture. She directs student-produced dance concerts that showcase many dance styles, and she mentors students to share their work as a form of community service and activism.
Projects include working as the Choreographer, Artistic Director and Coordinator for the Skyline College Performing Arts Showcase, Spring Musicals and Annual Dance Shows, Faculty Advisor for the Yoga Club, and the Dance Honor Society Club, Academic Senate Senator and Professional Development Committee.
As a featured dancer, Steele toured Germany and performed at the Cannes Film Festival in "TRIP - Remix Your Experience," a multimedia exhibition of film, live music, and art. Her nationally acclaimed dance-comedy troupe, the Living Dead Girlz, performed across the nation from the Knitting Factory in NYC to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and appeared in Season 5 of "America's Got Talent." She has performed at The Great Dickens Christmas Fair as a member of Le Cancan Bijou and as a dancer in the Fezziwig's Warehouse Cast.
As the CEO of the Steele Dance Company, Steele provides artistic direction, storyline creation, rehearsal facilitation and choreographic services, as well as teaching the company's master classes. Steele has been teaching dance classes and private lessons since 1997. Recent projects have focused on remote dance and creating magic and connections to counter the isolation so many have experienced during the pandemic.
Steele achieved a double baccalaureate at the University of California at Berkeley in Theater, Dance & Performance Studies (emphasis in Dance) and Comparative Literature (emphasis in English and French). In 2008, Steele completed her Master of Fine Arts in Choreography at Mills College. She received an Associate's Degree in Liberal Arts from Monterey Peninsula College, where she began taking dance classes. She is registered with Yoga Alliance as an e-RYT500. Her written and concert theses focused on technology's impact on bodies and body image in a voyeuristic, commercialized modern culture.
Ken Delmar
Ken Delmar has taught Argentine Tango at Skyline College for over twenty years and created the Cuban Salsa and Afro Cuban Dance courses.
A native of San Francisco, Ken Delmar performed with numerous illustrious ballet companies, including the Joffrey Ballet, Netherlands Dance Theater, Stuttgart Ballet, and he toured the U.S. with the Bolshoi Ballet. Ken toured the world with five major dance companies dancing in the most beautiful theaters between San Francisco and the Baltic Sea. Ken worked for 10 years in Europe and five years in New York, and gave private performances for Rudolf Nureyev & Margot Fonteyn, and for Princess Grace of Monte Carlo at her palace.
Before coming to Skyline College, he taught for eight years at Stanford University and with Richard Gibson founded and directed the Western Ballet School and Company. Ken danced in two Tango productions Tango Fatal and Tango For You.
Ken Delmar studied under Harold Christensen and Roberta Meyer at the San Francisco Ballet School. At the age of 13, he became the protégé of Richard Gibson. During his teenage years, he was the principal dancer with the Peninsula Ballet Theater and “the wunderkind” of the Bay Area. Ken was a scholarship student at the School of American Ballet in New York and the Ford Foundation funded for his lessons and numerous trips to New York.
ATER Balletto, Italy
Makarova and Company, New York
Netherlands Dance Theater, Netherlands
Joffrey Ballet, New York
National Ballet of Holland, Netherlands
Stuttgart Ballet, Germany
Abigail Keyes
Abigail Keyes is a dance educator, performer, and writer. Her research investigates the transmission, codification, and standardization of belly dance through the Salimpour method as a means for preserving and innovating the form while challenging orientalist conceptions and practices. She holds an MA in Dance Studies from Mills College, and is an authorized instructor of the highly acclaimed Jamila and Suhaila Salimpour Formats of Middle Eastern dance. She also holds a BA in Near Eastern Studies from Princeton University, and worked as an intelligence analyst in Washington DC for eight years covering Iraq, Libya, and weapons proliferation. As an instructor, she believes in the potential of every student, and hopes to impart a greater understanding and love of movement through her courses.
Kevin Simmers
Kevin Simmers began dance training in Burlingame, CA at the Les Williams Dance studio where he studied Jazz and Ballet, with teachers Les Williams and Leslie Crockett. His studies continued at Peninsula Ballet Theater in San Mateo, CA under the direction of Richard Gibson, taking daily technique classes with Mr Gibson and Grace Doty, as well as Mens, Pas de Deluxe, Character, and Modern Dance with Welland Lathrop. Kevin also performed with the company under the Artistic Direction of both Richard Gibson and Anne Bena, dancing a diverse repertoire and featured roles in their annual production of The Nutcracker.
While training to be a professional dancer he attended San Francisco State University, after graduating with a Bachelors Degree in Art and a minor in Dance he headed for NYC. There he continued his training in Ballet with David Howard, Finis Jhung and with Maria Vegh and Margaret Swarthout at Harkness House (he would also work with them both at Marin Ballet in San Rafael, CA) and Modern Dance with Jose Limon.
As a soloist with the National Ballet of Ireland/Irish Ballet he toured the country extensively and opened the 1978 Dublin Theater Festival, at the Olympia Theater in the World Premier, Dance Version of John Milton Synges’ Playboy of the Western World with the Academy Award winning musical group The Chieftains. It would make its USA premier at City Center, NYC.
Kevin has been a guest artist with The Princeton Ballet, Cork Ballet, Marin Ballet, Forest Meadows Festival Ballet and was an artist in residence at Montalvo Center for the Arts in Saratoga, CA, dancing with Tioga Thunder Dance Theatre. He has worked with such diverse choreographers as Norbert Vesak, Stuart Sebastian, Leonide Massine, Ben Stevenson, Domy Reiter- Soffer, Joan Denise Moriarity, Peter Darell, Anne Bena, Job Saunders and Richard Gibson. He has been a featured dancer in productions of Unsinkable Molly Brown and Brigadoon at PCPA Solvang Theaterfest in Solvang, CA.
“Dance was always Theater for me’” Kevin says, “I decided that I wanted to open my mouth, so after auditioning and being accepted I attended The Drama Studio Londons’ - Actor Training Program in my early thirties.”
After graduating Mr. Simmers returned to the SFBA where he was cast as Pompei in Shakespeares Measure for Measure, the inaugural production of the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival. As an original member of the company he would also play Grumio in Shakespeare’s Taming of Shrew and Jeriah Jip in Bertolt Brechts’ Mann its Mann. His acting career would include roles with the Marin Theater Company, seven plays with San Francisco Rep, Antenna Theater, California Conservatory Theater, Pacific Conservatory Theater, Stanford Actors Project, Julian Theater, Playwrights Festival, Shakespeare San Francisco and Producing Actors Ensemble for which he was a founding member and played the title role in George Buchners’ Woyzeck.
After a career as both a dancer and an actor Kevin returned to the University to further his education obtaining a Masters Degree in Drama from San Francisco State University where he was Awarded the Faculty Book Award for Outstanding Achievement in Direction. Kevin began his teaching career at Dennis Waynes Dancer School in NYC, teaching Adult Ballet, Ballet for Actors and Advanced Ballet. He has taught Ballet at Berkeley Conservatory of Ballet, and Movement and Voice at San Francisco State University and conducted Acting/ Movement Workshops (2001- 2018) at Goethe University in Frankfurt, Germany. He also served as Rehearsal Coach for the summer productions of The Chaincourt Theater Company, that include Our Town, Golden Boy, Summer and Smoke,The Seven Year Itch, A Midsummer Nights Dream, The Scarecrow, The Last Mrs. Cheyney, The Cocktail Party. The Chaincourt Theatre Company is part of Goethe University’s Institut fur England-und Amerikastudien (IEAS) and is based in Frankfurt am Main.
Mr Simmers has been teaching at Skyline College for twenty-five years, teaching Jazz Dance, Dance 101, Aerobic Dance,Yoga,(certified by The San Francisco Yoga Foundation) Pilates, (certified by Balanced Body University) and Ballet. He also teaches Drama 200 201 202 and is the Faculty Advisor for the Skyline Theater Club and has directed plays for the club which include, The Laramie Project, You Can’t Take It With You, Time of Your Life, Middletown, The Match Maker, All My Sons, The Spoon River Project and Telling Stories- An Evening of Monologues, Scenes and A Song or Two 1 to17, benefit performances for the Skyline Theater Club.