JEFFERSON
DANCERS
COMPANY MEMBERS
CONLAN SAVALLI-SMITH
Conlan Savalli-Smith is a 16-year-old Senior and a member of the Jefferson Dance Company. This is his third year with the company. At age nine, he started ballet and acro/contemporary for a year at Evo Gymnastics, in Florida. He took ballroom classes for two and a half years at Dynasty Dance Studio, and then started taking ballet, jazz, and contemporary classes at a different dance studio at age 11. At age 12, he left Florida and moved to Oregon. Since then, he has taken classes in Afro-Caribbean, Jazz, Ballet, Modern, and West African at Jefferson High School. After high school, Conlan plans to get his associate's degree at Portland Community College before transferring to the University of Oregon, taking the Pre-Med track while getting his bachelor's in Biochemistry. From there he plans to attend medical school at the University of Florida, in Gainesville FL, to become a Plastic Surgeon. He would like to give thanks to his Mom, Dad, and Stepdad for encouraging him and helping him in his dance career, as well as his grandparents, aunt, and uncle for supporting him and giving excellent advice in every aspect of his life.
SORREL MAURICE
Sorrel Maurice is a seventeen-year-old senior in his first year with the Jefferson Dancers. His passion for dance was sparked when he saw a Misty Copeland documentary in 2nd grade and realized that he wanted to express himself through movement. That year he began his dance training at Rose City Ballet Studio. Later he moved on to taking ballet classes OBT School while also studying under Sara Martins at DaVinci Arts Middle School. In high school he continued classes with OBT during covid. Once he returned to in-person classes was in the Dance at Franklin program before he transferred to Jefferson High School. He would like to thank his first ballet teacher, Miss Renée Meiffren for giving him a strong foundation at the beginning of his dance journey and for encouraging and supporting his love of dance. He would also like to thank his parents and family for taking him to dance classes and always being his number one fans. After high school, Sorrel hopes to continue studying dance in college and to dance professionally one day. He is new to Jefferson and is very excited for his year with Jefferson dancers and at Jefferson High School.
HENRY ROTH
Henry Roth started dancing at Oregon Ballet Theater at the age of six and danced there until the pandemic. There he found an amazing and hard-working community that shared his passion. He formed strong bonds with his fellow dancers. They became like a second family, supporting and pushing each other to reach their full potential. The camaraderie and shared passion for dance created a supportive and inspiring environment for Henry to grow as an artist. In addition to ballet, Henry later explored other dance styles at Steps PDX. He fell in love with contemporary dance, where he could express his emotions and push the boundaries of movement. Under the guidance of his instructors, Kathryn Harden, Olivia Orneas, Adrianna Audoma, and Lauren Smith, Henry honed his skills in ballet, contemporary, and tap. Each style brought its unique challenges and joys, allowing Henry to become a versatile and well-rounded dancer. Henry's dedication to his craft extended beyond the regular dance season. He eagerly participated in dance summer intensives at Ruth Page Center for the Arts, Open Space, Steps PDX, Idyllwild, and Oregon Ballet Theater. These intensive programs allowed him to learn from renowned choreographers, refine his technique, and connect with dancers from different backgrounds. It was during these intensives that Henry discovered new perspectives, expanded his artistic horizons, and grew as an artist. Henry's journey in the world of dance is a testament to his passion, talent, and unwavering commitment. Through hard work, perseverance, and the support of his mentors and fellow dancers he has and will continue to grow and learn.
PIPER BOTT
Piper Bott is a seventeen-year-old junior and this is her third year with the company. She started performing at the age of eight, learning to twirl baton under the instruction of Shannon Barker of Stites Performing Arts Center. By the age of ten, she was learning tap at Portland Metro Arts. There, her love of dance grew, and she decided to take ballet and jazz classes at Stites, studying under Amy Bonaduce Gardner. Simultaneously, she studied aerial arts at Echo Theater with various instructors. She was accepted into the Youth Performance Ensemble, the Tik Toks, where she was a member for two years before deciding to focus more exclusively on dance. After several years of both online and in-person jazz and ballet, she added contemporary, hip-hop, and gymnastics to her schedule. She has performed at various venues across Portland, including the Festival of the Trees, the Junior Rose Parade, the Echo Theater Company, and the University of Portland. She has also attended various summer intensives such as the NW Summer Dance Platform and the Ruth Page International Dance experience. Dance is a very important part of Piper's life and becoming a Jefferson Dancer is a dream come true! She would like to thank her amazing support system at home and all of her teachers who consistently encouraged and pushed her to grow and improve.
PAYTON NABORS-HILBURN
Payton Nabors-Hilburn is a sixteen-year-old junior in their 3rd year with the company. Since they learned to walk, Payton has been dancing with their mom and grandma, who both trained at Jefferson Middle College. They started cheer at Central Catholic and danced at Beaumont at age two and continued in school dance lessons through middle school. They performed in musicals with Portland Drama Club, starring as Nala in The Lion King Jr. and Dorothy in The Wizard Of Oz Jr. Payton also trained at YMA with Sara Martins and Sakou Soumah, in modern, tap, and West African dance. Payton would like to thank their baby cousins ReRe and Leah for inspiring them to keep dancing, even when they felt like they couldn't, and for allowing them to share their love for dance and teaching with them. They would also like to thank their mom for going out of their way to expose them to new dance opportunities. They are so grateful for everyone who has helped them grow as a dancer. And they're very excited to share more of their art in the future!
AMIRA QUARANTO-AZIZ
Amira Quaranto-Aziz is a sixteen-year-old Junior and this is her third year with the company. She began her dance career at age four and studied at Portland Metro Arts for eight years, learning ballet from Nancy Yeamans, Russ Caps, Kadee Kall, Virgie Daigle, and Scott Trumbo. She studied tap from Carter Currie and Nancy Yeamans and hip-hop from Damien Rice. Amira aspired to be a Jefferson Dancer from a very young age. She is passionate about sharing her creative expression and love for dance with the community. Amira is excited to grow in her dance career as a JD. She would like to thank Steve Gonzales and all of her dance teachers at Jeff for this amazing opportunity. She hopes to further her education by studying dance in college.
HARLOW KLEFFNER
Harlow Kleffner is a sixteen-year-old junior in her second year with the company. She started dancing when she was 3, doing ballet at the Aspire Project under Sue Darrows until 2020. She did hip-hop at Ockley Green with Damon Keller for all three middle school years. She was lucky enough to be part of the Jefferson Dancers II freshman year and started doing jazz, tap, African, modern, and ballet again. 2023-24 was her first season with the Jefferson Dancers and hugely impacted her growth as a dancer in all styles and as a human. Over the summer she danced at Open Space. She has been going to see the Jefferson Dancers since she was little, and being a part of the company is a dream come true. She is excited to push herself to new limits and grow as a dancer. She wants to thank her mom, Sue Darrows, Damon Keller, Cynthia Tosh, and every dance teacher at Jefferson for their continued teaching and support.
JAY'QUAN LEWIS-PRICE
Jay'Quan Lewis-Price is the youngest among six siblings, He grew up in a lively household with five sisters and one brother. His early years were filled with the excitement of attending his sisters' dance performances, although at the time, he had no idea that dance would become his true passion. After 2 years of being a JD, he has learned and discovered so much about himself. Dancing became a healing of Jay’Quan’s mind, heart, and soul. It has helped him get through a lot of daily stress and keeps him motivated to keep going. Jay’Quan not only made new friends but became a part of a supportive family who all share the love of dance. Jay’Quan has a personality that will always light up the room so imagine him on the dance floor!
VIVIAN PROCTOR
Vivian Proctor is a 16-year-old junior at Jefferson High School. She's been dancing since the age of 4, starting off doing ballet and tap at Peninsula Park’s community center. She then danced at Oregon Ballet Theater School for 9 years. She also had Damon Keller as a dance teacher both at Chief Joseph Elementary School and at Ockley Green Middle School which inspired her to try more styles than just ballet. For the past two years, Vivian studied ballet at City Ballet San Francisco and has recently moved back to Portland for the school year. She is very grateful to join Jefferson Dancers and expand her skills in other dance styles. She is appreciative to Steve Gonzales for this opportunity and thankful to her family and everyone who has supported her education. Her goal is to eventually dance for a professional ballet company.
LILA WENDROFF
Lila Wendroff is a fifteen-year-old sophomore and this is her second year with the company. Lila started dancing at age three at Miss Pam’s Ballet School in Los Angeles, California. When her family moved to Portland she joined The Children’s Gym competitive dance team and danced with them for two seasons. She started dancing at the Center for Movement Arts doing ballet, jazz, and modern with Tim and Sherie Ryan. While also attending DaVinci Arts Middle School learning tap and jazz under the instruction of Sara Martins. She danced ballet, hip-hop, and contemporary and at various intensives with Northwest Dance Project. Lila now dances with Open Space Dance in North Portland on the weekends.
NIMAH CREWS
Nimah Crews is a 14-year-old freshman, and this is her first year with the company. She began her dance career at 6 years old at Boise Elementary, dancing with Ms. Shelton. At 11 years old she joined the African dance company Sebekaun, learning under Sekou Walker. The next year she began dancing at STEPS Pdx school, studying ballet, contemporary, and Jazz with Ms. Lauryn, Ms. Kathryn, and Ms. Olivia. While Dancing with SEI Elite Hip-Hop crew for two years under Ms. Nuni and Ms. Leslie. Nimah would like to give a special thank you to her family, Sekou Walker, and Ms. Lauryn for their support and contribution to her dance career. Nimah hopes to attend an HBCU after high school, continuing her dance education and career.