Biography

The Director—Nina Abuliz Foster

Since she was a little girl, Nina’s dream was to become a beautiful dancer like her mother. At the tender age of ten, Nina packed her bags, kissed her loving parents good-bye and began her journey.

Beijing

She would travel more than two thousand miles from home to attend the prestigious People’s Liberation Army Art College in Beijing. For six years, she dedicated her life to rigorous training at China’s finest dance school. Nina first gained national recognition at the age of fourteen when she won first place in a national dance competition. The following year, Nina hosted and performed to great acclaim a solo dance on national television during the Chinese New Year Celebration program. During these school years, Nina also represented China on tour in Japan and Canada. At the age of sixteen, Nina graduated with a B.A. in dance, already an accomplished professional dancer. After graduation, Nina danced professionally in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous region (Turkic region located in western China) with the Xinjiang People’s Liberation Army Dance Troupe.

When she was seventeen, Nina choreographed a dance called “Butterfly” which won her another first place medal. “Butterfly” was subsequently broadcast in more than fifty countries.

Florida

Because of “Butterfly”, Nina received a phone call from Splendid China, a large theme park that would open just west of the main entrance to Disney World in Florida. They wanted Nina to be their star dancer. For the next two years, Nina was the solo dancer for the Splendid China dance troupe. During this time, Nina danced all over the United States and Canada, including a dance performance at BYU Hawaii.

Windows of the World

Nina’s next six years were spent working at Windows of the World, China’s largest theme park located in Shenzhen near Hong Kong.

Nina continued dazzling large audiences with her solo performances. She also emceed the Night Show at Windows of the World. Every night, 500 performers would entertain 10,000 guests.

Hawaii

In 2000, Nina came to Laie to be a dance teacher and a full-time student. Nina graduated from BYU Hawaii in 2004, and for fifteen years, Nina has been teaching beginning, intermediate and advanced dance classes.

Nina has choreographed and directed 7 dance concerts since coming to Brigham Young University Hawaii. When asked what she loves most about dance, Nina says, “I love watching students smile, laugh, jump, and through dance, discover what they are capable of achieving.

Nina is married and blessed with three beautiful children, Evan Nalu Foster (13), Sophia Hansa Foster (10), and Gordon Emmitt Foster (7).

To enjoy a fuller version of Nina’s story, search “Butterfly Voyage” on www.youtube.com.