Meet The Artists

Born and raised in New York City, Courtney Ramm is a choreographer, dancer, and teaching artist. After training at the School of American Ballet on full scholarship, Courtney went on to pursue a performing career in both ballet and modern/contemporary dance. Courtney has danced professionally in New York City and Hawaii with companies including Dance Visions NY, IsadoraNOW and Dances Patrelle, as well as with Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, IONA Contemporary Dance Theater, Hawaii Opera Theater, and Onium Ballet Project. Alongside her ballet training, she studied and performed the Isadora Duncan technique and repertoire with her mother and aunt, both Duncan experts. In 2016, she founded the non-profit dance company, RammDance, to combine the discipline and beauty of ballet with the grace and aesthetic of the Isadora Duncan style to inspire, enliven and empower. Courtney holds a Masters Degree in Dance Education from New York University, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Dance from Indiana University, where she graduated with Highest Distinction. She is also a certified teacher of the ABT National Training Curriculum in all levels and has taught dance all over the world- Hawaii, Singapore, Dallas, New York, and currently in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her greatest joy is sharing the connection and humanity that dance brings us. In addition to her work in the dance field, Courtney is a published author of the memoir, Eris Rising.

Adrienne Ramm feels very fortunate to have trained since childhood in the Isadora Duncan Technique, through it’s direct lineage. A protégé of Julia Levien and Hortense Kooluris, she was also coached for several years in her youth by Anna Duncan. Adrienne was an original member of the Isadora Duncan Centenary Company and a soloist with the Commemorative Company for its duration. In the U.S. she has performed at universities, festivals, museums/galleries, conferences as well as several documentary and archive projects. She has also taught master classes and workshops throughout the U.S. and Europe including in Florence at The Piti Palace and Rondo di Bacco for the opening gala celebrating the restoration of Botticelli’s “Primavera.” Adrienne is a sought-after coach of the Duncan repertory for the current generation of dancers. She has presented masterclasses and performance showings for the Isadora Duncan International Dance Symposium (2013-2019). Adrienne has danced the Duncan repertory with Dance Visions NY, directed by her sister Beth Jucovy, since its inception in 1989, and is Artistic Advisor for her daughter's company, RammDance. Adrienne Ramm is also a composer and pianist for dance, and has always felt that the merging of music and dance expresses her innate creative spirit.

Léna Alvino is originally from Switzerland. She started ballet at 5 and modern and contemporary dance at 14. After graduating from an artistic high school, she joined Alonzo King LINES Ballet Training Program in San Francisco. She then moved to Santa Barbara, danced with State Street Ballet’s Professional Track Program and taught at Momentum Dance Company and Westside Dance. She is very excited to be back in the Bay Area, and to have joined eMotion Arts dance co. and Peninsula Ballet Theatre. Léna currently teaches at Petits Pas Studio and co-directs Peninsula School of the Arts.

Sierra is a dancer and attorney living in Berkeley, California. She graduated from Pacific University in 2019 with majors in Public Health and German and a minor in Dance. While at Pacific, Sierra danced for the Pacific Dance Ensemble and was a dance scholarship recipient. During law school, she was a member of Vytal Movement Dance, a professional contemporary dance company in Spokane, Washington. Sierra graduated from Gonzaga Law School in 2022. After law school, Sierra moved to the Bay Area where she has worked with and performed for numerous choreographers and companies including Aleno Dance Project, Sara Bush, Maggie Ogle, and Crescent Moon Theater Productions. Sierra currently has residencies with both SAFEhouse Arts and Mark Foehringer Dance Project. A few of her performance highlights include performing in the Young Choreographers Festival in NYC, the San Francisco International Arts Festival, and the American College Dance Association Festival, and Vytal Movement's 2022 Concert.

Ki' Shae was called to express herself with movement in her formative years. She first began traditional African Dance and Martial Arts until she was accepted into Classen School of Advanced Studies where she majored in Ballet and Modern Dance. She trained with Derrick Minter of Ailey II, Denise Vale from the Martha Graham Dance Company and Mary Margaret Holt of Houston Ballet at the University of Oklahoma Summer Dance Intensive for many years. She went on to join the University of Oklahoma Ballet Performance and Pedagogy Program, where she danced with the Oklahoma Festival Ballet. Ki' Shae is a Faculty Member for the ODC Youth & Teen Dance Program and Company Manager for the teen Hip Hop Dance Company, SEEDS. She has danced with the Kendra Kimbrough Dance Ensemble and is a company member for RammDance & Tim Rubel Human Shakes for their 2023-2024 home season. Ki' Shae's focus in her dance practice is inner peace and the advocacy of accessibility and equality.

Heidi Erickson (they/she/he) is a performer, choreographer, arts administrator, and community organizer. They are originally from Colorado and have a degree in Performing Arts and Social Justice from the University of San Francisco. They have performed and collaborated with companies like the Dance Generators, MovingGround, and SAFEHouse Arts. Currently they are the Productions Coordinator for Fresh Meat Productions and create immersive dance works with other close collaborators. They first performed with Ramm Dance in May 2023 for the 26th Annual Dionysian Festival.

Christy, a life-long dancer, began studying dance at the age of 2. Christy began intensively studying Isadora Duncan dance in 1999 with Mary Sano. She attended and performed at the International Isadora Duncan Dance Festival in Budapest, Hungary in November 2002. In 2003, Christy began taking classes with Ann Cogley and Christina Fessenden. She has taken several workshops with Lori Belilove and worked with Lori Belilove as a performer and children's rehearsal director during some of Lori's performances in California. She is currently studying with Lori Belilove to obtain a teacher certification.  Christy has performed extensively in musical theater and burlesque, performing throughout California, the U.S., and internationally. Christy is a prolific choreographer and can frequently be seen performing solo work in San Francisco and at many shows around the Bay Area. She previously served as a director of DIVAfest, a non-profit supporting women in the arts; and is currently co-artistic director of the “DIVA or Die” burlesque show (a production of the EXIT Theatre). She is also the co-creator, choreographer, and costumer for the burlesque plays “Rebel Without a Bra: A Burlesque Cabaret," At the White Rabbit Burlesque," "Hotel Burlesque," "Just Another Zombie Holiday Burlesque Show," and "Dollhouse Monsters," full-length theater/burlesque productions. Christy has won several awards for her burlesque performances. In addition, Christy directs a can-can troupe, The Velvettes, and periodically dances with award-winning dance troupes, including The Hot Pink Feathers and The Flaunt Follies.  Christy has taught both adult and children's Duncan dance classes. She currently teaches adult classes for Duncan dance, cancan, fan dancing, and burlesque. In her day job, Christy is a bank regulator specializing in the deterrence and identification of white collar crime and money laundering.

Noelle Tham is from Livermore, CA and trained in ballet at Tiffany’s Dance Academy under Cesar Degollado and Hannah Varga. She continued her dance education at Saint Mary’s College of California, learning modern dance styles from Dana Lawton and Cathy Davalos. She attended ACDA Northwest Conference in 2022.

Grace Shaver has studied dance since age three, fostering a deep appreciation for her body and the movement it’s capable of. Her fondness for movement developed into a deep love of yoga, and in December 2019 she completed a 200-hour yoga teacher training. In the fall of 2020 she became a trauma-informed yoga instructor, and today her dance and movement work focuses on the connection between mind and body. Grace is a contemporary dance performing artist and holistic and whole-bodied ballet educator. In the spring of 2023 she launched the ongoing research project Dancers as People (dancersaspeople.org). Grace is intrigued by how the body can move in the most comfortable and natural way, and her current class offerings focus on connecting her research surrounding trauma and the body to real-life practices. She aims to offer a safe space for one to feel joy and appreciate their abilities. Aside from dance and yoga, things that bring Grace joy include hiking, swimming in the ocean, sharing home-cooked meals with friends, and attending live-music gigs. She grew up on the Jersey Shore and briefly lived in Boson before moving to San Francisco in August 2021. She’s found a wonderful community in California and is grateful for the lovely people she knows on both coasts. In addition to her experience in dance and the arts, she writes in her spare time and has worked both as an editorial assistant and a music journalist.

Adrian Started dancing at the age of 17 at Melodic Remedy Dance Studio. While there he trained in Jazz, Ballet, Contemporary, Modern, Tap, Musical Theater, Jazz Funk, and Hip Hop. He then went to Chapman University to further continue his training in Jazz, Ballet, Modern, Contemporary and Ballroom and simultaneously obtained a degree in Business Administration with an Emphasis in Finance. After college he was a mentee with the IAF dance company in LA run by So You Think You can Dance winner Chehon Wespi-Tschopp. Since then he has performed in San Francisco with Stacy Printz on a few of her projects as well as a music video for a local artist. He is excited about being a new company member for RammDance Company.