EDUCATION PROGRAMS FACULTY

Elisa Marie Reed of Phoenix graduated from Arizona State University with her MFA in Dance in May 2020 and holds a BFA in Dance from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA. She has worked as performer and teaching artist in Seattle, Chicago, Indianapolis, New Orleans, Phoenix and Flagstaff and as an Adjunct Professor at Scottsdale Community College and Graduate Teaching Assistant at Arizona State University. Over the past decade she has choreographed over 30 works produced around Phoenix. She has performed with Momentum Aerial, Scorpius Dance Theatre, Halo Movement Collective, Liliana Gomez, Mary Fitzgerald, Halley Willcox and Nicole Olson/Movement Chaos. She has had the privilege of performing numerous times in England and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. In Flagstaff, she served as the Dance Department Chair at Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy from 2021-2025 teaching Tap, Hip-Hop, Ballet, Modern, Jazz and Aerial and has taught at Momentum Aerial, Lyra and Silks since 2022. Her work has been seen in Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy’s Department shows and at Momentum Aerial’s Hungry Hearts Cabaret and Frightful Fete.

Her training encompasses a wide range of forms. Her first experiences with dance were in a “non traditional” setting. In other words, she would go to raves and dance her heart out. The form that began her journey of dance was waving. Her training in a collegiate setting began with hip hop and breakdancing. This led her to modern dance as well as ballet and jazz. Over the years she has trained in several methods, forms and aesthetics. In the modern/contemporary realm she has studied Graham, Lewitzky, Cunningham, Taylor, Skinner Release Technique, Counter Technique and Limon. In African diasporic forms, she has studied Capoeira, Hip-hop, Jazz, Tap, Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian. In ballet she has studied, Cecchetti and the School of American Ballet. In the realm of somatics, she has studied the Alexander Technique, BodyMind Centering, Ideokinesis, Laban Movement Analysis, Bartenieff Fundamentals and Yoga. In improvisational structures, she has studied from several teachers that include task based or image based improvisational structures, contact improvisation as well as Gaga movement language. She began studying aerial dance in 2010 and has since trained with Nicole Crist, Gavin Sisson, MoNika El, Joanie Garcia, Laurel Combs and Heather Elliott performing featured aerial roles in Scorpius Dance Theatre and her own work. She also serves as the Artistic Director for Hungry Heart’s Cabaret. The amalgamation of all of these influences can be found in her aesthetic. Her work is described as captivating, nuanced, dynamic and rigorous.

Leslie Ptak Baker, a native Arizonan, began RAD ballet studies at age 4. However, eventually, musical theater and jazz dance lured her away. Outstanding ASU BFA Graduate in Modern Dance Performance and Choreography, she performed professionally in New York, Los Angeles , Montreal, and Japan, then sailed eight years, worldwide, as an entertainer and cruise director with Princess Cruises. She has studied with Luigi, Jaime Rogers, Joe Tremaine, Bill Evans, Martha Graham dancers, Cynthia Gregory, David Howard and others.

Leslie has performed in and choreographed countless shows for Theatrikos, Theatrikids, Flagstaff Music Theater (FLOC), Stargazer Collaborative Theater, and Fountain Hills Community Theater.

Leslie taught dance (Tap, Jazz, Modern, Dance History) for 16 years at FALA. Prior to moving to Flagstaff, she lived 9 years at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon and created fitness, creative movement, and children’s theater programs for the community. Leslie is most proud of her two grown children, Kieran and Kinzer, and is ecstatic to be a grandmother of two future dancers, Carson and Beau! And, she hopes that EVERYONE dances fearlessly everyday!

Newton McDaniel is a 2025 graduate of Northern Arizona University with a Bachelor’s degree in Theatre Studies and a minor in Psychology.

With a lifelong dedication to the arts, Newton has been immersed in theater since 2003 and trained extensively at Sierra Vista Ballet from 2003 to 2019. Their creative focus spans special effects makeup, physical movement, and the joyful art of clowning. Newton is deeply committed to expanding access and inclusion in the arts, particularly by creating space for disabled communities to participate fully in theatre.

Molly Parafiniuk is a theatre educator with a deep passion for helping students discover their voices through the performing arts. With several years of experience in the classroom, she brings fresh energy, creativity, and a student-centered approach to theatre education.

Molly holds a degree in Theatre Arts from Westmont College, where she trained in acting, directing, voice, movement, and theatrical design. Since entering the field, she has directed school productions, led acting workshops, and developed engaging lesson plans that foster confidence, collaboration, and self-expression in young performers. Her teaching philosophy centers on creating a supportive space where students feel safe to take creative risks, explore new ideas, and grow both artistically and personally.

Whether in the rehearsal room or the classroom, Molly strives to cultivate curiosity, empathy, and a lifelong appreciation for the arts. When not teaching or participating in other theatre endeavors, she enjoys traveling, reading, video games, and can be found at her sewing machine most days.

John Propster moved to Flagstaff in October 2015 when he retired after 30 years as a theater teacher and director at George Washington HS in San Francisco. He studied and performed with BATS – Bay Area Theater Sports – to hone his improv skills.

Since moving to Flag he started improv classes for seniors and the multi aged Theatrikos’ improv group the UFOs. His philosophy is “Improv for Life”