Guest Artists

Bernard Brown (Guest Choreographer) – is an award-winning Los Angeles-based performer, choreographer, arts activist, and educator who situates their work at the intersection of Blackness, Queerness, and belonging. With an extensive performing career, Bernard now serves as Executive Artistic Director of Bernard Brown/bbmoves – a social justice dance company, choreographing for stage, specific sites, film, and opera presented globally. Brown has received invitations, residencies and commissions from On The Boards (Seattle), The Getty Museum (Los Angeles), the Centre de Développement Chorégraphique la Termitière (Burkina Faso), Dance Italia (Italy), The Music Center (Los Angeles), The Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater (Los Angeles), Dance Mission Theater (San Francisco), danceBox (Japan), Johns Hopkins University, National Immigration Law Center, California African American Museum, among others. Brown conducts lectures, workshops, and master classes internationally, namely in Korea, Panama, Israel, Burkina Faso, Canada, Puerto Rico, Malta, and Brazil, and across the US various educational institutions and community-centered organizations. A first-generation college graduate, Brown earned his MFA from University of California, Los Angeles and BFA from Purchase College. He is an Assistant Professor of Dance at UC San Diego, a Certified Katherine Dunham Technique Instructor, and a California Arts Council Established Artist Fellow. The Los Angeles Times has called him “…the incomparable Bernard Brown…”

Jean Issacs (Guest Choreographer) – is a critically acclaimed, award-winning choreographer whose work has been presented in Switzerland, Germany, China, Mexico, Guatemala, Canada, and Poland, as well as on both coasts of the US. Isaacs is the former Artistic Director of San Diego Dance Theater, the originator of the annual site-specific project Trolley Dances and the co-founder of the San Diego Dance Alliance, Three’s Company and Dancers, and Isaacs/McCaleb & Dancers. Her work has been commissioned by the San Diego Opera, The La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe Theater, Goodman Theater, The San Diego Repertory Theater, the Berkeley Repertory Theater, Long Wharf Theater, and for the “New Wave” Festival at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Isaacs collaborates frequently with numerous cross-border partners, creating the Festival of Mexican Contemporary Dance at San Diego State University and earned awards from UC Mexus, the US/Mexico Fund for Culture, Arts International, and the UC Civic Collaborative for this work.

Mila Gonzales (Guest Dancer) – 

Mila Gonzales grew up in Elk Grove, California. She danced competitively from age nine throughout high school; training in styles such as hip hop, contemporary, ballet, tap, and jazz. She also taught classes as well as choreographed routines at the studio her senior year of high school, and the year after during the Pandemic while she attended her first year of college at home.
While attending college, Mila choreographed a contemporary fusion piece called “Title Vll”, which focused on social justice, for the dance programs spring dance concert. She also choreographed a hip hop piece for CSUF’s 12×16 performance called “One Way Mirror”, in collaboration with two other dancers. Additionally, she self-choreographed a contemporary solo called “Loss Aversion”. During her time at CSUF, Mila worked with faculty Macarena Gandarillas and Joshua Estrada-Romero in concert pieces, as well as guest artists such as Yoshito Sakuraba, Sadie Windberg, Jamila Glass, and Brad Beakes. She was also a part of the Dance Association, as a Publicist her junior year, and Event coordinator her senior year.  Mila graduated magna cum laude, from California State University, Fullerton, in May 2024 with a BA in dance and a minor in women and gender studies.
Since graduating, Mila has been working with the au.thenticity dance training company and has now been accepted as a guest dancer with Mounarath Powell Dance.

Jeremiah D. Jenkins (Guest Dancer) – earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Sam Houston State University. He has performed with numerous Dance Companies Across the U.S., Including Malashock Dance Company (CA), Urban Souls (TX), Gaspard Dance Company (NYC), Dulce Dance Company, Rosencrans Dance, CONDER|Dance, And Scorpius Dance Theatre (AZ/UK). As an independent artist, He has also served as a guest performer with multiple companies nationwide. 

His choreographic work has been featured at BETA Dance Festival, Multipurpose Dance Works, and The Las Vegas Dancing in The Desert Festival, among others. Jeremiah was awarded a full Scholarship to attend Dance Italia in Lucca, Italy, where he continued to deepen his artistry. 

With teaching experience in over six states, Jeremiah has worked with a wide range of studios and institutions, led numerous master classes, and served as a panel judge for eight national dance conventions. 

He is currently based in San Diego, CA, working as a local independent artist and educator. 

Kevin Jenkins (Guest Choreographer) – 

Dance Magazine has praised Kevin’s work as “riveting” and he travels throughout the country choreographing for State Street Ballet, St. Louis Ballet, San Diego Dance Theater, the School of Ballet Arizona, SUNY Purchase, CPYB, Island Moving Company, Dimensions Dance Theatre of Miami, and Big Muddy Dance among others. He has served on faculty at Boston Ballet School, Joffrey Ballet School, Walnut Hill School for the Arts, the University of San Diego, and Master Ballet Academy. His choreography has been performed on the Inside/Out Series at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and he has been awarded residencies with Djerassi and the National Choreographers Initiative.

Kevin trained in San Diego under Dave Mullen, Kathy Meyer, Teresa Wells, Kevin Patterson, and Ahita Ardalan. His diverse training led to working with a variety of companies including Mirable Ballet, Butterworth Dance Company, San Diego Dance Theater, and in productions of Guys and Dolls and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Outside the concert dance realm, he appeared in commercials for Allstate Insurance, Latinva Fitness, and Verizon Wireless, danced backup in Las Vegas for the band NRG, and performed in ballroom productions with Mary Murphy.

Stepping away from performing in 2006 he founded Garage Contemporary Ballet with Ryan Orion Beck and served as co-artistic director through 2012. The company was featured in festivals such as 4×4, Breaking Ground, Ignite, Celebrate Dance Festival, and San Diego Young Choreographer’s Prize, while also presenting their own annual season. During this period his work in dance film won him three Editors Choice Awards from Dance and Pointe Magazine. His films went on to be featured in the San Francisco Dance Film Festival, Greensboro Dance Film Festival, San Diego Asian Film Festival, and American Dance Festival.

Deciding to focus on freelance choreography instead of directing a company, Kevin moved to San Francisco where he choreographed for Western Ballet, Emote Dance Theatre, the Orchestra Institute of Napa Valley, and Bay Pointe Ballet. He began traveling as well, creating for Convergence Ballet, Terpsicore Dance Company, Southwest Classical Youth Ballet, as well as Darian Lane’s film At The Ballet.

After leaving San Francisco Kevin enjoyed a two-year tenure with Boston Ballet School. He now lives in San Diego and directs Ballet Counterpointe, which he founded in 2022. He still creates for companies and productions around the country including choreographing and directing Gayle Skidmore’s Hourglass music video and working under Jeremy Lapp at Musical Theatre Guild choreographing Minnie’s Boys. He has also choreographed opera singer Natalie Bancroft’s 2019 European tour and created for dance companies and universities such as Eglevsky Ballet, Ballet Dallas, Bellingham Repertory Dance, Columbia Repertory Ballet, Ketchikan Theatre Ballet, Muhlenberg College, Grossmont College, LITVAK Dance, Wanderlust Dance Project, Columbia Ballet Collaborative, Belhaven University, Ekklesia Contemporary Ballet, and Ballet 5:8.

Robert Todd (Guest Choreographer) – 

Todd, Regional Director of Grey Matters Rhythmic Movement and Music Program, is a dedicated professional in movement therapy for individuals with Alzheimer’s and dementia. His career spans over four decades, including ten years with the New York-based Lincoln Center Institute and eight years with the California Center for the Arts’ Suave program at Cal State San Marcos.

As a Fulbright-Hays Scholar, Todd toured India, exploring the role of dance and puppetry in education. He has collaborated with renowned dance companies, including Alvin Ailey Repertory Theater, Hamburg Ballet, and Jean Isaacs’ San Diego Dance Theater.

Certified in Minding Motion for Graceful Aging and Horton Pedagogy, Todd is an alumnus of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Currently, he choreographs for San Diego Dance Theater’s Aging Creatively program and leads Grey Matters’ innovative initiatives. Todd’s contributions have been recognized through the “Healing through the Arts” 2025 grant from the Prebys Foundation.