The Board of Directors
Canyon Movement Company
2024 Board of Directors Biographies
Gina Darlington
Founder & Executive Director
Gina has traveled to Ireland, Italy, Cuba, and throughout the southwestern United States, where she and the company have performed and taught. She has performed in multiple dance companies in Utah, Missouri, Nebraska, and Arizona. Gina was an Artist-in-Residence for the state of Arizona for several years & was the Director of Canyon Dance Academy in Flagstaff, AZ for twenty years. She was on faculty at Coconino Community College for twenty-three years and was also a guest teacher at the American College Dance Festival. Gina choreographed for Northern Arizona University Theater. She received her dance degree from Brigham Young University. Gina is also on the board of the Arizona Dance Coalition. She served on the Arizona Department of Education (DOE) Committee to re-write the Arts Standards, and the Arizona DOE National Content Review Committee for Arts Assessments. Gina keeps busy with her family including her fifteen beautiful grand-kids.
Jayne Lee
Founding Co-Director, Emeritus
Jayne Lee has choreographed more than 100 dances for companies worldwide. Trained as a dancer in London at Julliard, she danced and choreographed for London Contemporary Dance Theatre for 10 years and toured internationally. Jayne co-founded and co-directs both Human Nature Dance Theatre and Canyon Movement Company. Jayne is an associate faculty member at Coconino Community College and she choreographs regularly for Northern Arizona University’s theatre department. Jayne is a Guild Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner® with a private practice in Flagstaff, AZ. She served on the Board of Grand Canyon River Guides for years & still works on the river in the summers.
Kristen McBride
Founding Co-Director, Emeritus
Kristen McBride is a founding member of Canyon Movement Company. She has danced with several modern dance companies & choreographers, including Funhouse Movement Theatre, Semaphore ZUZI! Move IT!, and with Liz Casebolt & Carly Condor. She was a guest choreographer for “Poetry in Motion” in Wexford, Ireland in 1997. Kristen received a Masters in Range Science and Management from the University of Arizona in 2001 and now works with her husband Scotty, for the US National Forest Service in Bend, Oregon.
Natalie Jones
President
Natalie Jones is currently a PhD student and graduate research assistant in the department of Astronomy and Planetary Science at Northern Arizona University. She grew up in Gainesville, FL and received her BA in Geology at the University of Pennsylvania. She started dancing at age 3 and trained primarily in ballet and jazz until college, where she fell in love with modern dance. She first joined Canyon Movement Company in 2017. In addition to acting as the President of the Board, she also dances and choreographs with CMC.
Breanna Lengyel
Vice President
Breanna Lengyel received her Bachelors of Arts in Research Psychology from the University of California, San Diego, where she worked as a Research Assistant specializing in developmental psychology. Additionally, she spent nearly a decade working as a Lead Behavioral Health Technician for adults & children with special needs and mental disorders, with a specialization in autism and related disorders. Since moving to Flagstaff, Breanna has moved into the field of Health & Wellness. She has managed a variety of yoga programs and studios around town, and provides private and small group mindfulness-based coaching sessions, in addition to her yoga and meditation services. Breanna is the Vice President on the Board of Directors for Canyon Movement Company, where she also dances and choreographs. She has been dancing a variety of styles off-and-on since she was fifteen years old.
Scott Sawyer
Treasurer
Scott Sawyer
more info coming soon…
Jennifer Kotalik
Secretary
Jennifer Kotalik
more info coming soon…