K rain Leander

I began studying dance at fourteen years of age - following a discussion with a dance instructor wherein I was informed that a thirteen year old who has never had any training would never be a dancer. Years of training began with the Holliman School of Ballet where I studied during and after school for two years straight; such was my stubborn streak.
I have been exploring choreography and technology since a very early age. At eight, with absolutely no dance training, I choreographed my first duet to Michael Jackson’s Human Nature. Around the same time, I taught myself the joy of programming TI Basic on a TI 99/4A.
Since then, I have studied at the Jordan Academy of Dance, the Tupelo Academy of Dance Arts, several American College Dance Festivals, the University of Southern Mississippi where I earned my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance, and Durham’s own American Dance Festival.
Since college, I have danced with Memphis Dance Theatre, Kris Cangelosi Dance Project, Beacon Dance, Ondine and Company, Duende Dance, Choreo Collective, and Jwalk to name a few. I began producing my own work in 2001 as part of One-Third Productions, founding Rain’s Dance Group a year later as a creative outlet for new and young dance and art professionals.
In 2002 I earned my Master of Information Technology, complimenting my undergraduate creative degree with a technical degree. Since then, I have been joyfully using both halves of my brain, one half technical, logical, and mathematical; the other creative, artistic, and emotional.
As I continue to experience life, I discover new methods and approaches to choreography. Since my involvement with Fly-By Theatre, as a dancer and an actress, I have used Tadashi Suzuki Methods to synchronize large groups of dancers so that they can move as a single unit during performance. As I continue to develop, I find more ways to integrate the hard logic of form and efficiency with the flow and elegance of creative dance.