OUR MISSION

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Michael founded DanceKerr & Dancers in 2015 and has been self-producing his choreographic works since. He founded Dk&D with a mission to promote equality and inclusion through performance and community engagement projects. He holds permanent NYS K-12 Teacher Certification in Dance and after a stellar twenty-five year teaching career with NYCDOE retired from his teaching post in Brooklyn, New York to pursue new career opportunities. In 2015 Kerr was awarded the Diana Domoracki-Kisto Dance Educator Award by the New York State Dance Education Association (NYSDEA) at the 17th Annual  NDEO Conference. He is also a Dance Education Laboratory (DEL) Ambassador. Mr. Kerr has performed for a variety of choreographers and dance companies in the United States and Europe including Maher Benham's Coyote Dancers, Deborah Damast, Gemini Dance Theater, Floorplay Contemporary Dance Theater, Amy Kail, Dance Consort: Mezzacappa-Gabrian and Deanna Losi while teaching dance throughout the Tuscany region of Italy for several years. During his tenure, Mr. Kerr has served as Chair of UFT/NYC Dance Educators, as a cooperating teacher for Columbia University Teachers College and New York University, served on the faculty of the Dance Education Laboratory (DEL), the Dance Department at Mason Gross School of the Arts and Graduate School of Education at Rutgers. Mr. Kerr is furthering his education and pursuing doctoral studies as an Arnhold Fellow Recipient in the Ed.D Dance Education Program at Columbia University, Teachers College. Mr. Kerr is also an aspiring film actor and is thrilled to be choreographing contemporary dance once again.

Ashley is so excited to be dancing with DanceKerr & Dancers!  Born and raised in upstate New York, Ashley began her endeavor as a life-long dancer at the age of 2 ½.  She continued her dance studies as an undergraduate at The College at Brockport, SUNY where she earned a BFA in Dance, a BS in Psychology and a minor in Music.  After graduation she made the move to the Big Apple to pursue her MA in Dance Education with a PreK-12 Dance Certification from New York University.  Ashley continues to perform in NYC, holds certifications in Zumba, Strong Nation, Mobility Specialization and Yoga, and keeps up to date on dance research and education by attending and presenting yearly at national conferences.  Currently she teaches dance at Poly Prep Country Day School to Middle School students in grades 5 through 8.

Laura is from York, PA, and she recently earned a BFA in dance and a minor in writing from Slippery Rock University in 2021. After graduating, she continued her training through Broadway Dance Center’s Independent Training Program in the fall of 2022. Laura has performed in various student works at Slippery Rock University in addition to works by Pearl Primus, Cameron McKinney, Ursula Payne, Samantha Baker, Jennifer Meckley, and Francine Ott. Presently, Laura is performing with NYC-based companies: Chutzpah Dance, and DanceKerr & Dancers. She is also a selected choreographer to present work through the Digging in Group choreographic mentorship program at Green Space this year. Laura’s choreography has recently been featured in Spark Theatre Festival, Spring for Spring dance festival, Broadway Dance Center's Performance Project, and Koresh Artist Showcase. Her short dance film was also featured in the Quarantine Screen Selection of the 2020 92Y Mobile Dance Film Festival. Additionally, Laura has presented her undergraduate research project, "Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences Applied to Choreography" at the 2021 National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) and at the Slippery Rock University Student Research Symposium in 2021.

Lindsey Jones, Rehearsal Assistant for DK & D, has been dancing with Michael since 2017. She began her dance training at O’Connell's Dance Studio in Toledo, Ohio, and later continued as an apprentice at the Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles. Lindsey holds a BA in Dance and Performance Studies from UC Berkeley and an MA in Dance Education from New York University. She has also taught dance at Bay Ridge Prep and performed for Deborah Demast, Aries in Flight and Roza Dance Company in NYC. 

Guest Dancer: Skylar Matos (she/they) is a New York–based dance artist and recent B.F.A. graduate from Shenandoah

University. Versatile in a variety of classical, commercial and street styles they have performed in festivals and

productions across the U.S. Skylar brings curiosity, creativity, and joy to every space they contribute to, and is

excited to continue their artistic journey through performance and choreography.

Guest Dancer: Meredith Pellon is a dancer and choreographer. She earned a BFA in Dance from The University of the Arts,

where she performed works by artists including Paul Matteson, Eiko Otake, Jillian Peña, and Mark Caserta. She has danced for several contemporary dance companies, including The Guild Dance Company, Good Grl Co, and SLOWBURN Dance. She has worked with many choreographers over the last few years including Mike Esperanza, Arinze Okammor, Laura Symth, and Beth Terwilleger.

Guest  Dancer: Tessa Flynn, originally from Southbury CT, is a NYC based freelance dancer. She holds a BFA in dance performance with a minor in performing arts management from The Hartt School - University of Hartford; earning the undergraduate senior regents honor award. In addition to dancing, Tessa is a certified Pilates instructor at Equinox, and has created social media content for John Cranko School summer programs. She has performed with Ballet For Young Audiences, CityDanceNY, and is excited for her first performance with DanceKerr and Dancers!

Guest Dancer: Carol Chapla, a versatile performer and educator, has danced in venues from Madison Square Garden to Disney World, and was recently a featured performer in the I Want My '80s MTV Tribute Show. Her choreography and teaching credits include Marymount School of New York, Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, and the American Ballroom Theater’s Dancing Classrooms. She has appeared on national television and in major print publications, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Dance Education at Columbia University’s Teachers College.

Guest Dancer: Morgan Jensen is an artist originally from the Tampa Bay area and a graduate of Troy University, where she earned her BFA in Dance. After college, she moved to New York City to work with the José Limón Dance Foundation. She has performed works by José Limón, Dante Puleio, Logan Kruger, Marcus Allen Cobb, Daryl Gray, Brianna Reed, Jared Allen, Dominique Palmer, James Boyd, Adrienne Hicks, Michael McBride, Take Ueyama, and many more. In 2023, Morgan performed and trained at the DAP Festival in Italy, where her choreography also premiered internationally, continuing her passion for creating and sharing dance across borders.

Guest Dancer/Understudy Courtney Murray is originally from Colorado, where she trained and danced professionally for six years in companies such as Rogue Dance CO, The Schiff Dance Collective, and Blue Moon Dance Company. Since moving to New York, she has made a name for herself as a versatile choreographer and dancer in the New York City area. She has danced with Borne Dance Company, Alma NYC, Guilty Pleasure Cabaret, and Sammy J.

Dance. She was a featured spoken word artist and dancer for Borne Dance Company’s recent 10 Year Anniversary benefit, and is currently a collaborator and dancer with the dance/opera fusion company MANX. She is a proud graduate of the Broadway Dance Center’s Professional Semester Program and has a degree in

Psychology from Hunter College.

Guest Dancer: Gemma Leary is a New York City–based dancer from Amesbury, MA. She earned her BFA in Dance and minor in Arts Entrepreneurship from Florida State University, where she performed works by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, Peter Chu, Gwen Welliver, and Tim Glenn. She has also appeared in festivals and performances across NYC, including The Craft, Alpha Omega Theatrical Dance Company, and the Young Choreographer’s Festival. Gemma brings a dynamic blend of technical precision and bold, musical movement to the stage.

Guest Dancer: Chynna Holder is a dancer and performer with a BFA in Acting from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, where she trained at the New Studio on Broadway and minored in Dance. She trains at Broadway Dance Center and Steps on Broadway in ballet,

contemporary, jazz, and hip hop. A former competitive gymnast of eight years, Chynna brings athletic precision and expressive range to her movement and continues her advanced ballet studies with professional ballerina Kat Wildish.

Olivia is a founding company member of DK&D who grew up in Stamford Connecticut where she has been studying dance since a young age. Olivia is a Hofstra University graduate where she received a B.S. in Dance Education K-12. She is a dance artist/educator who teaches ballet, tap, hip-hop, and jazz in a variety of studios in New York and Connecticut. Olivia also works with different studios to create outreach programs to bring movement classes into public schools. Olivia joined DanceKerr & Dancers in 2015 and is excited to continue to grow within the company.