Avis Hatcher Puzzo, founder/choreographer of Koffee Dance Company
Avis Hatcher Puzzo, is known regionally for her work as a choreographer for numerous dance venues and musicals however in August 2012, she founded her own dance/theater company, Koffee Dance Company (KDC), which premiered in March 2013, at North Carolina School of Math and Science in Durham.
An NC resident since 2008, this Connecticut-native holds a BA in Dance/Theater from Trinity College, an MFA in Theater Arts and Dance from Case Western Reserve University, and a MS in Higher Education from Capella University. Previously having trained and performed in New England, New York and the Midwest, her choreographic emphasis is in Horton, Cunningham and Graham modern dance techniques as well as jazz, hip-hop cultural and contemporary movement styles. Avis has developed a hybrid dance style which incorporates the grace of Ailey based modern (Horton) with highly rhythmic and athletic gestures. Studying at Ailey, in addition to Garth Fagan, Ned Williams, and Elisa Monte she founded Wette Paint Dance Theater, in Connecticut a contemporary dance and theater company which toured the east coast.
Winner of the North Carolina Dance Alliance Annual award 2013, Avis most recently performed with Ronald K. Brown / Evidence Dance Company & Community Dancers of Durham for the ADF LifeTime Achievement Award Concert and is also the Associate professor of dance/theater at Fayetteville State University.