Jean Nelson

Jean Nelson was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. After taking tap class as a young girl, Jean rediscovered her love of tap at Carleton College, where she received a BA in Art History in 1982. She danced with Shirley Jenkins’ Seattle-based modern dance company STRONG WIND WILD HORSES from 1984–1986, then moved to Eugene to begin the Graduate Program in Dance. While working on her Masters Degree (1986–1989) at the University of Oregon, Jean began to tap again in earnest with the late, great Janet Descutner. She was a founding member of the Northwest Tap Consort in 1990, and performed with the company until 1992. Jean is currently a Non-Tenure Track Faculty in the UO Department of Dance, where she teaches Tap, Yoga For Dancers, and Looking at Dance. She is also a yoga instructor at Eugene Yoga and the Downtown Athletic Club, and is a Certified Gyrotonic® Trainer. Jean has been teaching tap at the Shedd Institute since January 2015, and has recently choreographed several tap numbers for their musicals.