Summer Intensive | LA Contemporary Dance Company

Faculty

Spenser Theberge

Collaborator

Kate Hutter Mason

Board Member

Artistic Director 2005-2015
LACDC Co-Founder

Kate Hutter Mason is founder and owner of Stomping Ground L.A. – a community arts complex founded in 2020 on the native lands of the Kizh, Chumash, and Tongva Nations known as El Sereno/East L.A. As a foundational experience for this next step in her artistic and entrepreneurial career, Kate co-founded the L.A. Contemporary Dance Company (LACDC) in 2005, and held the Artistic Directorship from 2005 - 2015. Today, she serves as the President of the Board of Directors. Additionally, Kate works in the corporate sector applying her skills learned in non-profit arts as Director of Strategic Initiatives for the aerospace design and manufacturing company, Click Bond, that was founded by her parents and is in its 2nd generation of leadership as a family-owned and operated company. Kate is thrilled to hold many careers in balance and see how each is informed by the other including continuing to instruct dance, choreograph, and be the mother of two spirited and wonderfully free willed children, Charley and Rory, with her husband Eric.

Kate is an alumnus of the Walnut Hill School and a graduate of the University of Southern California with a BFA in Theatrical Design. Kate also holds an MFA in Dance and Choreography from Purchase College, SUNY. Kate has presented her choreography at prestigious venues throughout L.A. including the Broad Stage, Celebrate Dance at the Alex Theater, Ford Amphitheatre, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, L.A. Theatre Center, Diavolo Dance Space and Highways Performance Space. Kate was also the movement director for the band Foster The People on their 2013 Summer Tour and part of the Move campaign by indie clothing retailer Alternative Apparel. Kate has been a visiting artist at USC, UCLA, California State Long Beach, Santa Monica College, Scripps College, Chapman University, Ohio State University, Wayne State University, and Loyola Marymount University.

*Photo by Malachi Middleton

Jamila Glass

Artistic Director

Founding Company Member in 2005
Artistic Director in 2021

Filmmaker and Choreographer Jamila Glass is known for creating cinematic journeys of movement, shaping characters, and building worlds that reflect what make us human. In addition to creating work as the Artistic Director of L.A. Contemporary Dance Company (where she joined in 2005 as a founding member), she has choreographed extensively in film and television. Her choreography work includes projects on Netflix, HBO, Hulu, BET, and PRADA and garnered mentions in NY Times, L.A. Times, Essence Magazine, Ebony Magazine, and Mashable. She recently choreographed and co-directed two commercials for Splice, the music industry's highest quality, royalty-free sample library.

Glass began her formal training as a nine-year-old scholarship student at The Discovery Dance Group in Houston, Texas. She continued dancing in her spare time as a vocal music major at the multi-Grammy award-winning High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. Jamila graduated from the University of Southern California with a B.A. in Cinema-Television (Film & Video Production) and a Minor in Advertising.

As a performer, she has worked with Ryan Heffington, Galen Hooks, Nina McNeely, Kathryn Burns, David Dorfman, Adam Parson, and Mecca Vazie Andrews. Other credits include Netflix Original film Mascots from Christopher Guest, American Horror Story, Paul McCartney, Colbie Caillat, Foster the People tour, Mastercard, American Apparel, Samsung, & the NY Times Best Selling photography book Dancers Among Us.

Beyond the stage, Jamila, a director/screenwriter, has produced films through her production company The Cutting Room where she has directed 20 critically-acclaimed short dance films, a television pilot, and 2 music videos that have garnered international praise, including film screenings in London, Paris and Lebanon. Her previous work as a freelance editor includes documentary shorts, national radio commercials, and an award-winning independent television network. Her directorial work for LACDC includes and then life was beautiful, INSECTOS: arte y vida (commissioned by the Cultural Office of the Embassy of Spain), and SUMMON (featuring the music by Emmy and Oscar award-winning and Grammy-nominated Kris Bowers). She previously served LACDC's Media Director and Summer/Winter Intensive Director, elevating the company's visibility across continents.

She has taught at Schools: Pace University, UCLA, Cal State Long Beach, Cal State Fullerton, Texas Christian University, Hussian College Los Angeles and has created work for LACDC, Texas Christian University, Cal State Fullerton, University of Illinois Edwardsville, and Co/Motion Creation Intensive (Boston).

Recent News: Texas Christian University’s (TCU) dance students had such a wonderful experience with Jamila Glass during her Spring 2023 residency that their School of Classical & Contemporary Dance invited her to return in the Fall of 2023 to do another teaching & choreographic residency. She was honored to share the bill for their 2023 Fall Concert with world-renowned choreographer Sidra Bell.

Jamila is represented by Movement Talent Agency and is a member of the Television Academy, the Choreographers Guild and SAG-AFTRA.

Watch her teaching reel and check out her class schedule.

*Headshot by Zack Whitford

Myles Lavallee

Collaborator

Choreographer | 2023 Creative Residency

Myles Lavallee was born and raised in Phoenix, AZ, where he trained at various dance studios. He grew up competing in dance competitions and won many awards including JUMP’s Teen National Title and NUVO’s Teen 1st Runner Up. In high school, he attended Arizona School for the Arts before moving away to NYC to study at the School of American Ballet. In 2011 Myles joined Ballet Arizona where he danced for four seasons. In 2014, he moved to Canada to join Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal and in 2016, Myles joined Hubbard Street Dance Chicago for two seasons. Some of the choreographers he had the pleasure of working with and performing their works include, Crystal Pite, Ohad Naharin, William Forsythe, Jiri Kylian, and George Balanchine. He was commissioned twice to choreograph for Ballet Arizona's Innovations program, and created pieces in both LGBC and HSDC choreographic workshops. Myles now lives in Los Angeles as a freelance artist and choreographer and travels frequently to teach and work with dancers around the country. He has recently been seen guesting with Para Mar Dance, Post Ballet, Ishida Dance, Heidi Duckler Dance, & BODYTRAFFIC, as well as in several music videos and on Netflix and YouTube. He is extremely passionate about teaching, choreographing and sharing his love for dance! Myles was recently awarded the outstanding choreography award at YAGP’s Semifinals Phoenix and Boston in '22 & '23.

@myleslavallee
*Photo by Beau Campbell

Rebecca Lemme

SI Faculty

Rebecca Lemme is a choreographer, performer, educator, and visual artist. Founded in 2014, she is also Artistic Director of the performance group Acts of Matter. Her choreographic work has been commissioned for numerous universities and professional companies, and she teaches extensively in Release, Ballet and Improvisation. Significantly informed by both Release and Laban/Bartenieff techniques, she has created a unique movement style for the stage and the classroom that encourages investigation, problem solving, and versatility. Rebecca holds a BA from Princeton University in English and Theater and an MFA from California Institute of the Arts in Choreography.

Rebecca is an Associate Professor of Dance at California State University, Long Beach. She has been a full-time faculty member at California Institute of the Arts, where she also taught during her MFA candidacy. Additionally, Lemme has been on faculty at Columbia College Chicago, Roosevelt University, Hubbard Street’s Lou Conte Dance Studio, Visceral Dance Center, and Joffrey Ballet Chicago.

Rebecca has been commissioned and presented by LA Contemporary Dance Company, Heidi Duckler Dance Theater, Santa Barbara Dance Theater, Los Angeles Theater Center, River North Dance Chicago, Thodos’ New Dances, California Institute of the Arts, Loyola Marymount University, Columbia College Chicago, Loyola University Chicago, Grand Valley State University, The Harvest Chicago Contemporary Dance Festival, and was a finalist chosen to present choreography for The A.W.A.R.D. Show! 2010: Chicago. Her work with Acts of Matter has been performed throughout Southern California and Chicago and toured to New Mexico in Fall 2018. Thematically and physically, Rebecca’s work is grounded in an unfettered willingness to attempt something while accepting the possibility of its failure. This physical exertion—this act of trying—is the core of humanity in her work.

Rebecca has toured nationally with contemporary repertory companies Luna Negra Dance Theater, River North Dance Chicago, Hedwig Dances, among others, working with and performing choreography by Jose Limon, Robert Battle, Daniel Ezralow, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Eduardo Vilaro, Frank Chaves, Gustavo Ramirez Sansano, and Alejandro Cervera.

Instagram: @actsofmatter
Website: rebeccalemme.com

Melissa Schade

SI Faculty

Melissa Schade is a Los Angeles based choreographer. With work ranging from stage to screen, her movement tells stories, excites audiences, and brings music to life. Some of her favorite projects include choreographing for artists like The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Arcade Fire, Benjamin Booker, and Big Dipper and brands such as Nike, Fiat, Covergirl, and Vivienne Westwood. She is a movement director for photographer Ryan McGinley and together they have shot for the New York Times, Vogue, Vogue Italia (cover), Vogue China (cover), Harper's Bazaar (cover), Vanity Fair (cover), Apple Music, and Samsung, just to name a few. Melissa teaches contemporary, ballet, jazz, tap, and modern all over the United States to students whose experience ranges from beginner to professional. Over the past 22 years, some of her favorite faculty positions have included Ryan Heffington’s The Sweat Spot, Harvard-Westlake Middle School, and LA Contemporary Dance Company Summer Intensive. She holds a BFA in Dance from the University of Arizona.

Instagram: @mlschade
Website: melissaschade.com

Spenser Theberge

Collaborator

Choreographer | 2023 Creative Residency

Spenser Theberge is a multi-hyphenate performer and creator, working across the fields of choreography, dance, movement direction, text, costume design, pedagogy, and installation work. He is a graduate of The Juilliard School and a former company member with the Nederlands Dans Theater I & II and The Forsythe Company, as well as a guest artist with Kidd Pivot, the Goteborgs Operans Danskompani, the ARIAS Company, RGWW, and Dimitri Chamblas.

Spenser's creations are multi-disciplinary and genre-defying, continuously exploring identity, authenticity, and spectatorship. His work ranges from proscenium performance to museum installation to site-specific locations, and whether solo or ensemble creations, the conventional expectation of dance performance and audience relationship is always challenged. Spenser's independent work, as well as collaborations with partner Jermaine Spivey, have been commissioned and presented by LA Dance Project, The Broad Museum, the Philip Glass Days & Nights Festival, MOCA Geffen, REDCAT, The Korzo Theater, Springboard DanseMontreal, Place des Arts, The Juilliard School, the Queer Biennial III in LA, NAVEL, and Gothenburg Opera Danskompani with co-creator Arika Yamada. These projects have been additionally supported by Hollins University, PACT Zollverein, Nuova Officina della Danza, and the CalArts School of Dance.

As a movement director and performer, Spenser has worked with artists, brands, and organizations such as Taylor Swift, UGG, Rami Malek, Matthew Peacock, Ryan Pfluger, the Tune-yards, Seaworthy Jewelry, and the New York Times Magazine. He has also designed costumes for Andrea Miller, the ARIAS Company, and performing artist Frances Chiaverini, and is the text writer behind Alexander Ekman's award winning "Cacti" and "Hubbub".

Spenser is on the dance faculty at California Institute of the Arts, and has been a guest teacher at The Juilliard School, USC's Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, Purchase College, Reed College, the Vancouver School of Arts and Academics, and the Hochschule fur Musik und Darstellende Kunst. He also teaches at workshops and intensives across North America, Europe, and Asia. Spenser is a YoungArts award winner, a Presidential Scholar in the Arts, and a Princess Grace Award winner.