Our mission
The mission of Mannakin Theater & Dance is to expand the world of the performing arts by inviting new individuals and demographics to rich experiences in the theater seats, inside the learning studio and underneath the stage lights. We believe that by opening the tent of the premier performing arts to the broadest swath of people and cultures possible that new audiences are created, fresh voices are heard and all people are lifted to ever greater heights of human creativity and achievement.
The production credo of Mannakin Theater & Dance focuses on works that spontaneously gather a racially and ethnically diverse audience by engaging creators and artists from a wide range of communities, including Latin, Chinese, Indian and African American.
Mannakin Theater & Dance follows an artistic vision that may place professional talents alongside students and enthusiasts. This mingling of the virtuosic and the lay represents a hearkening to the roots of dance, when everyone in the village moved together.
Board of Directors
- Eric Alexanderson – Board President
- Nathan Cottam
- Walfred Solorzano
- Carly Lodge
- Antonio Lopez
- Ruth Leung
- Courtney Gordon
- Linnea Alexanderson
Our Locations
iMPACt Center for Art & Dance
1625 Bush St, San Francisco
Mannakin Theater & Dance is excited to announce the opening of two new centers for art and dance in the Bay Area!
The 5,400 sq.ft. iMPACt Center in SF is the new headquarters of Mannakin Theater and Dance, housing administrative offices and providing space for local MTD youth outreach and education programming. It serves as a venue for creation, rehearsal and performance for Mannakin and other Bay Area arts organizations.
en Avant School
1841 Bay Rd, East Palo Alto
en Avant School is the new home of Mannakin Theater & Dance’s longstanding ballet outreach program “Cultivating Ballet Culture,” as well as a reduced cost rental venue for other dance and arts organizations local to East Palo Alto.
Until just before MTD signed the lease in February 2022, the space had been a church for over two decades. The new center for dance is already home to more than 100 youth! In the coming months, MTD plans to remove the interior median wall. One support will need to be placed at the side of the main dance space, and the studio will be transformed into a perfectly apportioned single large room, with dimensions of 18’ x 40’.
Mannakin Theater & Dance is excited to announce the opening of two new centers for art and dance in the Bay Area!
We need your help for renovations and support of these two new cultural hubs. Please donate today to support the iMPACt Centers.
Our Leadership
Nathan Cottam
Artistic and Executive Director
Nathan Cottam is a dancer and choreographer devoted to welcoming more people into the appreciation and performance of dance and theater arts. Raised in Buffalo, New York and the Mountain West, Nathan was exposed early in life to music and drama, finally joining them together in the study of ballet at Brigham Young University.
After completing a BS in sociology, Nathan went on to earn a Master of Fine Art in Dance from the University of Arizona. He has performed with many companies including Oakland Ballet, Bay Pointe Ballet, Northern Ballet Theatre and the Serbian National Ballet in Belgrade. In 2013 Nathan founded Mannakin Theater and Dance to showcase his own choreography and artistic vision. With his company, Nathan has created many new dances, produced three tours of Serbia, and conducted outreach with Syrian and Afghani refugees in Bulgaria and young children in East Palo Alto, CA.
Mannakin Theater and Dance is based in San Francisco, CA, and Nathan continually seeks opportunities to travel as part of his company’s performance and outreach focused mission.
Walfred Solorzano
Co-Executive Director
Walfred Solorzano joined the team at Mannakin Theater & Dance and en Avant School in 2019. He is passionate about youth development and quality arts programming for underserved communities.
He is the City of Sausalito’s new City Clerk. In his previous position, Solorzano was Assistant City Clerk for the City of Half Moon Bay. His past work experience includes stints in San Mateo, Alameda, and Los Angeles counties.
In 2021, the City Clerks Association of California presented Solorzano with the Special Award of Distinction for Communications, Organization and Administration.
As City Clerk, Solorzano’s responsibilities include providing support for the City Council and the City’s boards and commissions, overseeing local elections, responding to public records requests, and updating the municipal code.
Solorzano is a graduate of Azusa Pacific University and is married with two daughters. In their spare time, he and his family enjoy going to parks, riding bicycles, and taking weekend trips.
Traci Cottam
Assistant Director
Mannakin Theater & Dance welcomed Traci Cottam as Assistant Director in 2019. Traci has performed in MTD productions since 2018, and has led dancers from the education in every subsequent production. Traci hails from NYC, and has danced for The Suzanne Farrell Ballet, Les Grands Ballet Canadiens, New Chamber Ballet, and CelloPointe.
Her passion for teaching the youth at en Avant School of Dance grows every season, and she is proud of the hard work and dedication that the students and faculty bring to the studio. Traci looks forward seeing the school and company grow as new programming, faculty, and students join the school.
Originally from Utah, Traci graduated from Brigham Young University with her BA in Dance. She has presented her choreography in NYC at The Secret Theater and at LeFrak Concert Hall in Queens and at South Oxford Space in Brooklyn. Her first choreographic took place at Marie Chouinard in Montréal, Quebec. Following this, her work has been seen at The Corridor Festival in Seattle, with artist, City and at Lake Tahoe Dance Festival.