MEET THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Annie (She/Her) is very excited to dance with Dancekerr & Dancers! Originally from Rochester, NY Annie graduated from Adelphi University with a B.F.A in Dance and a concentration in voice and theater. Annie has performed with many dance companies and choreographers throughout New York: 32nd Pack, The Xavier Theater Company, Linda Diamond +Company, Troy Ogilvie, Marie Zvosec, Orion Duckstein, Juan Rodriguez, Adelheid B. Strelick and others.

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.

Jacob is a dance artist originally from Huntington Beach, California. He began his training at the Huntington Beach Academy of Performing Arts. He is currently pursuing a B.F.A. in dance at Hofstra University and is an apprentice with the Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company. Jacob has performed with the Forces of Nature Dance Theater and performed works by Robin Becker, Jannis Brenner, Yoshito Sakuraba, and William Isaac. He is beyond excited to be a guest artist with DanceKerr & Dancers.

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. Laura’s choreography has recently been featured at Broadway Dance Center, Adrienne Theater, Sprout Your Awareness, Artistry Unfolded, 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. Presently, Laura is in rehearsals with Chutzpah Dance and DanceKerr & Dancers, and she is also a faculty member at Alternative Synergy the Studios in Brooklyn, NY. 

Lexi began her training in Calgary, AB, Canada at Dance Explosions and at Central Memorial High School, where she graduated from the Performing Visual Arts Dance program. Lexi also pre-professionally trained with Alberta Ballet, National Ballet of Canada, Joffrey Ballet, and Hubbard Street.  She is a graduate of The Ailey School Certificate Program, class of 2021, where she was a member of the Ailey Student Performance Group and participated in the New Director’s Choreography Lab in New York. Since graduation, she has become a member of a few companies around New York.  She has performed in Carnival Choreographers Ball, Fertile Ground, 7MPR, and Licon Center. Lexi is excited to be working with DanceKerr and Dancers.

Lilianne is a dancer, choreographer, dance educator, certified Pilates instructor, and arts administrator. She grew up training on Long Island, New York, and continued her training at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA. In 2021, she graduated magna cum laude from Muhlenberg College with a BA in Dance Choreography and Performance, and a BA in Arts Administration. Some of her credits include work with Monica Bill-Barnes, Heidi Cruz-Austin, Jeffrey Peterson, and Shelley Oliver. Lilianne is currently in her second season with DanceKerr & Dancers. 

Lindsey is the Assistant Rehearsal Director of DK&D. She received her early dance training at O'Connell Dance Studio in Toledo, Ohio and later trained as an apprentice at the Performing Arts Center in Los Angles. Lindsey received her BA in Dance and Performance Studies from UC Berkeley and her MA in Dance Education with a concentration in Teaching in the Professions from NYU Steinhardt. She has performed with Aries in Flight in NYC  and was previously involved with the Mandalone Project, Berkeley Dance Project and MixMatch Dance Festival in California. Lindsey was also the recipient of the Mask and Dagger Ward for extraordinary student contribution in Dance and Performance Studies. 

Marianna is an emerging dance artist based in New York and New Jersey. She attended the dance program at Mason Gross School of the Arts where she graduated Summa Cum Laude with her BFA in Dance Performance. During her time at Mason Gross, Marianna performed in several works by renowned guest and faculty choreographers including Chuck Wilt, Dawn Marie Bazemore, John Heginbotham, and Abby Zbikowski. More recently, she has performed for Ani Javian and John Evans, OcampoWang Dance, and Friends Who Dance Collective. With a focus in modern and contemporary based movement, Marianna looks to create and perform material that explores dance as an art as well as a part of humanity. 

Matilde trained in her native Portugal, studying ballet, modern and contemporary at Contemporary Dance Academy of Setúbal. She moved to NYC in 2019 to attend the Martha Graham School where she completed the Two Year Certificate Program and the Teacher Training Program. In 2021 Matilde won the Ooi Meland International Student award for her artistic achievement and promise. She is currently working as a freelance dancer as well as dance administrator, teacher and social media assistant at the Martha Graham School.

Mireille is a graduate scholarship student from The Ailey School. She has been dancing ballet since she was 6 at Dance Theater Manille, Philippines in affiliation with The Australian Conservatoire of Ballet, Melbourne. She is currently an apprentice at the Nai Ni Chen Dance Company, DanceKerr & Dancers, and is a ballet teaching assistant for the Junior Division at The Ailey School. She is an ABT Certified Teacher for ABT's National Training Curriculum in Levels Pre-Primary to Level 3 and certified Horton teacher by Ana Marie Forsythe.

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. 

Rian (on leave) is a dance artist with an emphasis on performing. A native of Palm Beach County, Florida, Rian began her training at Dance Unlimited Studio of Dance Arts and trained at Alexander W. Dreyfoos Jr. School of the Arts, where she graduated as a dance major. She received scholarships to train at the Ailey School and with Big Muddy Dance Co. She went on to graduate summa cum laude from Florida State University with a BFA in dance and as a recipient of the honors medallion. Some of her credits include work by Tim Glenn, Francisco Graciano, and Peter Chu among others. Rian is so excited to join DanceKerr & Dancers this season.