Nina Deno
Nina Deno is the artistic director and primary choreographer of Deno Dance Company. Nina originates from Grand Rapids, Minnesota, where she trained at the Reif Performing Arts Center in classical dance including ballet, jazz, tap, and modern. Her early professional training included performing with the Reif Center Dance Company and summer ballet intensives at the Joffrey Ballet School and Burklyn Ballet Theater. Nina earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance from Gustavus Adolphus College where she focused her training on post-modern dance, jazz, and contact improvisation. Nina performed with the Gustavus Dance Company from 2006-2010 and choreographed multiple works including her senior composition piece that was showcased at the regional American College Dance Festival. After college, Nina was hired by Walt Disney World where she performed as a variety of Disney characters in parades and other performance settings. While pursuing her Ph.D. in Biochemistry at Purdue, Nina danced with the Purdue Contemporary Dance Company and had the opportunity of dancing with Amy Cadwallader of Dance Uprising and Amberly Simpson of Ambo Dance Theatre. In 2016, Nina started training adult dancers of all technique levels in classical ballet, jazz and modern. In 2017, Nina founded Deno Dance Company. Deno Dance Company is a proud member of The Arts Federation where the company rehearses and performs. Deno Dance Company’s mission focuses on providing an outlet for adult movers that are open and willing to create expressive dance pieces to share with the the artistically starved local community.
Christy Carr
Christy’s movement journey began in Augusta GA with gymnastics, ballet, cheerleading & climbing. At UGA & OSU she pursued a variety of extreme sports that also influence her dance works. In 2002, she began Modern Dance & Contact Improvisation at Purdue where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Interior Design with a Minor in Dance. She danced and choreographed for Purdue Contemporary Dance Company (PCDC) as a student, and continued to practice dance post-graduation with Purdue-related opportunities at home & abroad. This past fall Christy danced for faculty member Renee Murray in her multidisciplinary collaboration “In Motion” at the Robert L Ringel Gallery in Stewart Center. She is a current member and choreographer with Deno Dance Company (DDC) in Lafayette. The company was selected to perform at the Indy Fringe Festival in August 2024, and has upcoming collaborations in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Louisville, Kentucky. Christy is a board member for Civic Theater Lafayette and also a regular collaborator with Acorn Players. She has supported numerous theater endeavors by choreographing, set building, prop crafting and teaching & was recognized for her designs by the American Association of Community Theater & the International Masonry Institute. Christy has taught dance locally and guest taught and choreographed for Augusta Ballet. She is currently choreographing with DDC & as an Alumni Artist in Residency for Purdue Contemporary Dance Company. Her athletic physicality and creative spirit drive Christy to pursue dance as an artistic medium for life. She is elated to work with Deno Dance again and looks forward to another rich collaboration in building and sharing community arts!
Kayla Gurganus
Kayla is from Hammond, Indiana where she began her performing career on dance team and dance competitions in high school. She also has experience in theater and show choir. Kayla joined DDC in early 2020. She has performed in DDC’s shows including Resurgence in 2023 and The Choreographer’s Gallery and Indy Fringe Festival in 2024.
Brianna Johnston
Brianna is from Hot Springs, South Dakota where she began her performing experience in dance and theater as a high school freshman. She has a diverse dance background including pole dance and modern dance. Brianna has been a member of DDC since the start in 2017.
Elizabeth O’Brien
Elizabeth (Liz) originates from Danville, IN, where she first fell in love with dance at the age of 2. Liz has extensive training in Ballet, Pointe, Modern, Hip Hop and Ballroom. She studied Classical Ballet and Pointe at The Children’s Ballet. During her study, she discovered her love of teaching by working as an assistant and student teacher under Deni Jacks. Liz continued dancing throughout high school and in other various activities, such as show choir, musicals and cheerleading. When she attended Purdue University, she was introduced to the world of Modern dance and received a Bachelor of Science degree with a Dance Minor. Liz was a member and mentor for the Purdue Contemporary Dance Company (PCDC). She was selected as a student choreographer her senior year and created a piece called “Exposed.” Liz was also a member of Dance 2XS (Purdue’s urban hip hop team) and performed all over the Midwest. She danced in two different American College Dance Festival (ACDF) pieces and was the Director of X Works her Junior year. While at Purdue, she also choreographed multiple works for different philanthropies and was a dance instructor/choreographer for the Morton Community Center. After college, Liz continued to teach dance as the Hip Hop Coach at Rage Athletics. One style of dance she always wanted to try was ballroom, which led her to Arthur Murray, where she was trained as a professional ballroom instructor/dancer. Shortly after, Liz had the privilege of performing in multiple modern dance festivals such as DUMBO, Bunker Project’s PAF15, and the Southern Vermont Dance Festival under Rebecca Bryant in her piece called “Suite Female: Parts II-VIIII.” Not long after, she took some time off from the dance scene and moved to Noblesville, IN to build a family and start her own business. Liz rejoined Deno Dance Company (DDC) in January 2024 and is looking forward to reclaiming her body postpartum and finding her love for dance once again.
Andrea Ridge
Andrea was born in Pennsylvania and grew up across various cities of Michigan. She started dancing when she was 7 and has extensive training in ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical and modern dance. She has also dabbled in gymnastics. Andrea performed throughout high school and college including dancing with the Purdue Contemporary Dance Company (PCDC). She was privileged to be selected as a student choreographer for three main stage performances, and one of those dances, Infrastructure, was selected for the regional gala performance at the American College Dance Festival. In 2022, Andrea was selected to be the inaugural Alumni Guest Artist in Residency for PCDC for the Fall 2022 semester. Andrea has continued to choreograph regularly for DDC and as an Alumni Guest Artist for PCDC (Winter Works 2024). Andrea joined DDC in the fall of 2018 and continues to choreograph dances for main stage performances.
Faythe Rush
Faythe is from Lafyatte, Indiana where she started her performing career in performance choir. She later joined color guard and began her lifelong love and training in ballet. Faythe joined DDC at the end of 2019. She has performed in DDC’s shows including Resurgence in 2023, and The Choreographer’s Gallery and Indy Fringe Festival in 2024.
Bird Thurman
Bird was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, where they started dancing at age 2. Bird trained in many styles including ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical, and contemporary, and fell in love with performing and dancing. At Purdue, Bird was incredibly involved in the Dance Division, from their consecutive roles as Secretary, Treasurer, and President of the Purdue Contemporary Dance Company (Spring 2020 – Fall 2023), to being President and Director of XSeries (Fall 2020 – Spring 2022). They earned their Dance Minor in December 2023, after countless dance works in XSeries and PCDC, and many good memories of collaboration and creativity. With PCDC, they performed in the American Dance Festival in 2023 and 2024, with both pieces gaining Gala recognition. In 2023, they also showed their work, Return to Mothership. Bird was chosen to represent Purdue at the 2023 International Council of Dance Festival in Vigo, Spain, where they performed the solo Possession, choreographed by Carol Cunningham-Sigman. Alongside performing with Deno Dance Company in 2024, Bird is the newest addition to Inlet Dance Theatre, in Cleveland, Ohio, where they will begin their professional dance career in August 2024.
Rachel Yurek
Rachel Yurek is from Kalamazoo, Michigan and has lived in Indiana since 2003. While pursuing her Bachelor’s degree at Purdue, she trained in ballroom dance and competed at the collegiate level for 5 years. Rachel started training in ballet and contemporary modern dance classes in 2016. Rachel has been with Deno Dance Company since 2017 and loves being a part of it. She is so excited that the company is growing because growth gives the opportunity for more dance pieces and exposing more people to the joy of dance.
Upcoming Performances
September 2025
Deno Dance Company Annual Concert
The Arts Federation
Lafayette, IN
Fall 2026
Fringe Festival & Deno Dance Company Annual Concert
Spring 2026
NACHMO Lafayette: Choreographer’s Gallery
The Arts Federation
Lafayette, IN