Brenda Way KT Nelson Kimi Okada

Brenda Way is Founder and Artistic Director of ODC Dance, and creator of the ODC Theater and ODC Dance Commons, a community performance venue and new training facility in San Francisco's Mission District. Way launched ODC and an inter-arts department at Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music in the late '60s before relocating to the Bay Area in 1976. She has choreographed some 76 pieces over the last 35 years. Way is a national spokesperson for dance, has published widely, and has received numerous awards and 30 years of support from the National Endowment for the Arts. Way holds a PhD in aesthetics and is the mother of four children. KT Nelson (co-artistic director) joined ODC in 1976 while attending Oberlin College. She danced with the Company from 1976 to 1997. Since 1976, Nelson has choreographed more that 60 works as well as composing and commissioning numerous sound scores. In 1986, she created and directed ODC's first full-length family production, The Velveteen Rabbit, which has since toured across the country reaching an audience of over 350,000. She founded ODC's youth company, the ODC Dance Jam and is a critical player in the development of ODC's Educational Outreach Program. Kimi Okada, Associate Choreographer and ODC School Director, is a founding member of ODC and has choreographed over 20 company works. Ms. Okada has choreographed for theater, opera, film, television, and circus across the country. She is Co-Director of the teen dance company, the ODC Dance Jam.