Vaught Contemporary Ballet was founded in January 2015 by artistic director, Katie Vaught. VCB creates original story ballets meant to represent, reflect and reveal the triumphs and failures of modern society. The company is based in Baltimore, MD and has shown work at Baltimore Theatre Project, Dance Place, The Jack Guidone Theater and Joe’s Movement Emporium.
The Company
Iren Chashper
Iren graduated from George Brown College (Toronto) with a degree in dance performing studies. She has danced with Goshen Theatre- 2002-2018 (Israel) and Ballet Panov Theatre- 2015-2018 (Israel). Currently, she’s performing with CRDE- Classical repertory Dance ensemble, and Vaught Contemporary Ballet. VCB is very happy to have her join the ranks this year.
Chelsea Genser
Chelsea (Glen Burnie, MD) began dancing at the age of 4 in her hometown of Oakland, New Jersey. Chelsea competitively danced along the east coast with Robin Horneff’s Performing Arts Center until age 17. She studied dance at Towson University and has performed at The Collective’s Open Marley Night in Baltimore. When she’s not dancing, Chelsea is a Production Coordinator at Advanced Productions in Baltimore. She’s excited to be dancing again, and very grateful for the opportunity to be a part of Vaught Contemporary Ballet.
Sofie Massa
Sofie Massa is from Towson, Maryland where she began her training in Towson University’s Pre-Collegiate Program. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance and a minor in kinesiology from George Mason University in May of 2018. While at GMU she was chosen to work with and perform pieces choreographed by Andrea Miller, Mark Morris, Christopher D’Amboise, and Durrell Comedy. She also attended the University of South Florida’s Dance in Paris program where she worked with multiple international choreographers. She has previously worked with Zoe/Juniper and performed their work in July of 2018. She has participated in workshops by Robert Moses, Larry Keigwin, and Mark Morris.
Katie Vaught, Artistic Director
Katie Vaught is originally from Winchester, Virginia and trained at Vostrikov’s Academy of Ballet, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and Shenandoah University. She currently resides in Baltimore, Maryland and is the artistic director of Vaught Contemporary Ballet. Her work has been shown at Baltimore Theatre Project and Joe’s Movement Emporium. Vaught previously danced with Mich-Mash Productions and Deviated Theatre and has worked as a dance instructor in the DMV for the past 12 years. She recently received the Marc Ryder Choreography Grant and will begin work on this new piece in the fall of 2017.
Aimee Moran
Aimee Moran received her BFA in Dance Performance from East Carolina University in May 2008. She began training at the age of three at Ballet with Cindee Velle in the Baltimore/Washington area, where she was also a member of the Columbia Chamber Ballet for nine years. She has received training in a variety of dances styles including, ballet, jazz, lyrical, pointe, tap, and modern. She performed in the Baltimore Opera’s production of “Aida” and with Royal Caribbean as a dancer on the Enchantment of the Seas. Most recently she performed with DEVIATED THEATRE, based in the Washington D.C./Baltimore Metro area. Aimee has also taught children and adults of all ages in multiple areas of dance since she was fifteen, and is currently teaching at Ballet with Cindee Velle. Aimee is very passionate about her dancing and hopes to continue growing in her professional career, along with her teaching.
