SIMILAR TO THE RIVERA COURT STAGE HOWEVER ON AN OUTDOOR STAGE, SUMMER STAGE IS A SERIES OF SHOWCASES DESIGNED TO HIGHLIGHT LOCAL AND NATIONAL TALENT, SHARING DIVERSE STYLES OF DANCE ALL THE WHILE DDCF AUDIENCES ENJOY THE BEAUTIFUL SUMMER WEATHER.
Read about our 2022 summer stage Artists!
Alissa Heroux
Alissa Heroux is a company dancer and choreographer for Alluvion Dance Chicago. Heroux also does freelance choreography around the Chicago area and has had her work showcased in a number of festivals such as Trifecta Dance Festival, New Light Choreographers Festival, and Simantikos Dance Chicago's Choero Kickoff.
Ava Kowalewski - Next Step Broadway
Ava has been dancing since she was 5 years old. Dance is her 'happy place'!
Next Step Broadway’s mission is to provide an environment where all ages and levels can experience the joy of expression through dancing, singing, acting & much more. Instructors will introduce knowledge of technical, musical, creative, and performance skills, and will develop these skills for all levels. This developmental program builds confidence, self-esteem and coordination to create a well-rounded whole artist. We feel that by instilling these crafts in a positive, joyful way students will make it a part of their lives creating connection with the whole self – mind, body, and soul.
Dance Cat-alyst
Cat Manturuk is the founder and artistic director of DANCE CAT-ALYST, a soul-driven contemporary dance company collaborating dancers from New York City and Detroit. A native of Detroit, MI, she holds a BFA in Dance and BS in Exercise Science from Western Michigan University. After graduating, Cat was a scholarship student at Gus Giordano Jazz Dance Center in Chicago, later moving to LA, where she performed with LA Modern and Ballet Company, Blue13 Dance, Regina Klenjosky Dance Company, and Collage Dance Theatre. Upon her arrival in New York, she joined Dance 2XS and became rehearsal director to Decadancetheatre. Her music video credits lie with BET and MTVIndia, and she has been featured in Dance Spirit, Shape, and Elle magazine. DANCE CAT-ALYST outreach programs and performances: Nanjing, China; the NY Jazz Choreography Project; Battery Downtown Dance Festival; Brooklyn Dance Festival; Detroit Dance City Festival; Wellspring Cori Terry & Dancers; NYC’S Chelsea Piers Sports Center and Sky Rink; and Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival. Cat is a recipient of the ACDF Excellence in Performance and Choreography Award, a Harkness Scholarship, a National Dance Association Outstanding Scholarship, and Presidential Award. Her choreography has been noted as “creating heat…” by the LA Times and teaching role as “crisply alive…” by the NY Times.
CPR Dance: Inhale Movement
Carolyn Pampalone Rabbers is a dance-based artist and currently dances with Wellspring/Cori Terry & Dancers. She received her MFA in Dance at The University of the Arts under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield and Tommy DeFrantz, and graduated as the Presidential Scholar with a BFA in Dance from Western Michigan University. As an emerging choreographer, she is interested in spirituality, collaboration coalesced with improvisation and exploring permaculture and biomimicry in pedagogy and research creation approaches. Her dance based works as CPR Dance: Inhale Movement have been featured recently and upcoming with the Kalamazoo Nature Center, Pam Kirkland, Chamberlain Dance, GVSU Company Ensemble and have been fiscally sponsored as a KADI grant recipient. Carolyn has worked in NYC, Miami, and LA dancing and acting both on stage and on camera. She can be seen as “Abby” in Moondance (2020) and has performed for Coldplay, Omi, Starbucks, Jockey Bra, Kaplan University, Royal Caribbean, Diavolo EdCo, The Union Project, Clairobscur, LACDC, and Vox Lumiere. Her dance films have been featured at the KIA, Krasl Art Center, various national and international festivals, and Carolyn is the creator of Wellspring Through the Years documentary series. Carolyn has been a selected researcher re-imagining liveness as part of Yorkshire’s Dance Transports, and teaches adjunctly at Grand Valley State University and at Western Michigan University.
Water Street Dance Milwaukee
Founded in 2019 by Artistic Director Morgan Williams, Water Street Dance Milwaukee is a contemporary repertory dance company created on the foundations of authenticity and collaborations.While maintaining a home based in Cedarburg, the company has expanded its reach nationally to major cities and dance festivals. Touring within the past seasons to St. Louis, New York City, Chicago, Columbus, Indianapolis & Madison. In 2019, Water Street Dance Milwaukee was named Overture Center Rising Stars Winner recognizing the company talent and potential on a national level."All I can say is go see this remarkable troupe as soon as there's another chance… They should be seen across the country." (Shepherd Express)
Moving Cities - Next Step Broadway
Next Step Broadway’s mission is to provide an environment where all ages and levels can experience the joy of expression through dancing, singing, acting & much more. Instructors will introduce knowledge of technical, musical, creative, and performance skills, and will develop these skills for all levels. This developmental program builds confidence, self-esteem and coordination to create a well-rounded whole artist. We feel that by instilling these crafts in a positive, joyful way students will make it a part of their lives creating connection with the whole self – mind, body, and soul.
Tori Stewart
Originally from North Carolina, Tori Stewart graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, receiving a B.A. in Dance, with a focus on Dance Performance, Choreography and Theory. During her time at UNC-Charlotte, she studied under Kim Jones, E.E. Balcos, Delia Neil, Rachel Tucker, Sybil Huskey, Gretchen Alterowitz, Rachel Barker, and Missy Coyle. She performed concert works from both faculty members and guest choreographers including Claudia Lavista, Matilde Demarchi, AGA Collaborative, and Marcus White. Additionally, Tori performed and choreographed works for the Charlotte Dance Festival, American Dance Festival, American College Dance Association, Loose Leaves, and Wake Forest Dance Festival. Internationally, she had the privilege to study, dance, and perform at Italian venues including the Palace of Venaria and Orsolina28. Following graduation, Tori moved to Chicago, IL where she joined Trifecta Dance Collective under the direction of Krissie Odegard Geye and Carrie Patterson in 2019. She currently is a principal dancer and choreographer for the company. Tori's passion for bringing awareness to and discussing mental health is brought to life in her choreographic works, in which she utilizes contemporary techniques and improvisational practices for movement generation.
Mrudani School of Performing Arts
Dr. Anuradha Murali, Artistic Director of Mrudani School of Performing Arts, had formal training in Bharathanatyam from Radha Srinivassan and Shanta and VP Dhananjayan (India) and Adyar K. Lakshman (India). She has also received formal training in Kuchipudi by P. Rajeshwari and Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam, Kuchipudi Art Academy, (India). As an Adjunct Professor of Dance, Anuradha has taught Bharathanatyam and Kuchipudi at Columbia College, Columbia, SC. As an Instructor of Dance, she has taught Bharathanatyam at the University of South Carolina, Dance Department. She has written several scholarly articles in teaching bharathanatyam and kuchipudi at community colleges and universities for dance majors. Anuradha, a recipient of numerous grants/awards for dance choreography and dance performance, has performed at prestigious national and international festivals including India, Japan, France, South Korea, Greece, Italy and Brazil.
Trifecta Dance Collective
Trifecta Dance Collective is a professional contemporary dance company in Chicago, Illinois. The company engages in performances and educational initiatives, empowers artists through its numerous opportunities to use art as a catalyst for change, and seeks to expand and share stories of others to ignite community dialogue through an artistic lens. Tori Stewart is a professional dancer, choreographer, and instructor based in Chicago, Illinois. Originally from North Carolina, Tori Stewart graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, receiving a B.A. in Dance, with a focus on Dance Performance, Choreography and Theory. During her undergraduate studies, she furthered her dance education studing under Kim Jones, E.E. Balcos, Delia Neil, Rachel Tucker, Sybil Huskey, Gretchen Alterowitz, Rachel Barker, and Missy Coyle. She performed concert works from both faculty members and guest choreographers including Claudia Lavista, Matilde Demarchi, AGA Collaborative, and Marcus White. Tori has performed and choreographed works for the Charlotte Dance Festival, Trifecta Dance Festival, American Dance Festival, American College Dance Association, Loose Leaves, and Wake Forest Dance Festival. Internationally, she had the privilege to study, dance, and perform at Italian venues including the Palace of Venaria and Orsolina28. She currently is a principal dancer and choreographer for Trifecta Dance Collective and divides her time between dancing, instructing, and choreographing. Her passion for bringing awareness to and discussing mental health is brought to life in her choreographic works, in which she utilizes contemporary techniques and improvisational practices for movement generation.
Cocco & Co
Breena Cocco graduated from the University of Florida with a B.A. in Dance Studies and a B.S. in Advertising, earning highest honors for both degrees. Her movement language, which is built from modern and contemporary techniques, is idiosyncratic, athletic, and elastic. Cocco had her NYC choreographic debut at the Young Choreographer's Festival at Symphony Space. Cocco's works have also been presented at the NewGrounds Festival, Boston Contemporary Dance Festival, Small Plates Choreography Festival, Richmond Dance Festival, Southeast ACDA Conference, and the Harn Museum of Art. Cocco studied under Tzveta Kassabova, Nita Little, Trent D. Williams, Jr. and Ric Rose. She has had the pleasure of being cast in works by Pat Graney, George Staib, Doug Gillespie, and Iyun Harrison. Outside of dance, Cocco works for the nonprofit Action for the Climate Emergency, which educates youth on the climate crisis and empowers them to fight for their future through advocacy and civic engagement.
Meghan Allen, Maggie Gates, Annie Dingwall
Meghan Allen, Maggie Gates, and Annie Dingwall are students at Wayne State University where they extensively study Modern, Contemporary, Ballet, and African technique. These three choreographers started working on this piece in September of 2021 and have continued to collaborate on the work over the last 5 months. Their choreography will be featured in the Maggie Allesee Department of Dance’s Spring Dance Concert in April. As second year students they look forward to continuing to develop their diversity as dancers and choreographers. This includes seeking out opportunities to perform and learn from those in the community. All three choreographers are from metro-Detroit and are proud to represent Detroit in everything they do.
Annalise Toma
Annalise Toma is a competition dancer on the Next Step Triple Threat dance team. She has been dancing since the age of two, and competing for four years. Annalise performs many dance styles, her favorites being Contemporary and Ballet.
Rebecca Otmanowski
Rebecca Otmanowski will be graduating from Oakland University in December 2022 with a BFA in dance performance and a BA in Psychology. Throughout her four years she has had the pleasure of working with many talented faculty and guest artists such as Eisenhower Dance Detroit, Take Root, Sandra Torijano, Russell Tanenbaum, and more. She was a member of Oakland Dance Theater for her first three years, and was a member of Oakland’s Repertory Dance Company under Thayer Jonutz for her last year. Rebecca’s work "the rise & ruin" premiered at the American College Dance Association East-Central Conference in March of this year. Her dance on film Morning Coffee was selected to be included in the Midwest Regional Alternative Dance Festival also in March of this year. She currently teaches and choreographs at Rochester Avon Recreation Authority.
Grace Sinke
Grace Sinke hales from Grand Rapids, Michigan. She has appeared with The Mercyhurst Dancers, Deos Contemporary Ballet and SoMar Dance works. Grace has trained and performed with The Grand Rapids Ballet School under Patricia Barker, and with Complexions Contemporary Ballet under Desmond Richardson and Dwight Roden, as well as with The Mercyhurst Dancers under C. Noelle Partusch. She has set choreography on The Mercyhurst Dancers, the Mercyhurst Liturgical Dance Ensemble, and for the Deos Contemporary Ballet Children’s Club show of Little Red. Grace attends Mercyhurst University on both academic and dance scholarships and will graduate with a B.F.A. in Dance and a minor in Psychology. While at Mercyhurst, Grace has filled many leadership roles including being an active member of the Dance Department Leadership Team, Co-President of the Liturgical Dance Ensemble, and Co-President of the Yoga Club. Grace plans to pursue a career as a professional dancer and choreographer. In her free time Grace enjoys drawing and painting, baking, and spending time with her family.
James Felton II
James Felton II is a recent graduate from Western Michigan University where he earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance Performance and Choreography. Originally from Lapeer, Mi, James started his training with Sandra Brewer and Kathleen Slezak at Dance Connection before joining the Flint Youth Ballet under the direction of Karen Jennings. At WMU, James has had the pleasure of performing staged works by nationally recognized faculty in addition to guest choreographer’s Jennifer Archibald, Darrel Grand Moultrie, Mike Esperanza, as well as “Themes” from George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments.
Rhythm Pointe Dance Academy
Maria Huber is the proud owner of her Shelby Twp. dance studio, Rhythm Pointe Dance Academy. Maria is entering her 19th year in business but has been in the industry since she can remember. Mrs. Maria danced professionally nationwide, touring the Country with Sesame Street Live International Tour "Let's Be Friends". Maria enjoyed costume work so much she went on to portray Angelica from the Rugrats. Maria was invited to dance for Disney in Japan and has appeared on "Entertainment Tonight" dancing for well-known actors and actresses and their families. She's danced, modeled, and narrated for the North American International Auto Shows, danced and sung in Off-Broadway Musicals, danced for cable music videos, and has instructed Master dance classes at Oakland University, Wayne State, and Macomb Community College. Maria is a former member of the Macomb Ballet Company. She danced with MBC in such classic romantic works as Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Les Sylphides. Ms. Huber has studied dance throughout the country, primarily in New York and L.A. She trained under the intense instruction of Joe Tremaine and associates at the studio, formerly named, Tremaine Dance Center. Maria presently sits on the General Board of the Cecchetti Council of America. She has studied Cecchetti levels I-VII. You may have seen Maria in the commercial for World Gym & Fitness Center or Sesame Street Lives' commercial as Roxy Marie or Prairie Dawn. Ms. Huber has also judged for dance competitions regionally and nationally. Ms. Maria directed RPDA dancers and teachers in the televised “Feature Act” for the Detroit Thanksgiving Day Parade. Her studio was voted best dance studio on Detroit's WDIV channel 4 "Vote 4 The Best" in 2014 and again in 2020! Ms. Huber-Mitchelson continues her studies today to remain a creditable dance teacher and studio owner.
Jennifer Meckley
As a performer, teacher, choreographer, and practitioner of hip-hop, street dance, club dance, and contemporary dance forms, Jennifer has made it her goal to emphasize the benefits of training in vernacular dance techniques and spread knowledge of appropriation in academia. Her concert dance choreography explores the fusion of movement from breaking, house dance, waacking, and vogue with contemporary dance while attempting to incorporate other live elements such as DJing and graffiti. Moreover, her identify as a gay woman motivates the content for her work. In 2010, Jennifer obtained a B.A. in Dance from Slippery Rock University and a M.F.A in Dance in 2013 from The Ohio State University. She has served as a faculty member at West Chester University, Cuyahoga Community College, Northampton Community College, and the University of Dayton. Jennifer currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Dance at Ball State University and actively pushes the boundaries of physicality through performance as a founding member of the modern dance company, Abby Z and the New Utility, directed and choreographed by Abby Zbikowski. The company has performed at well-known venues including Jacob’s Pillow, New York Live Arts, The American Dance Festival, Bates Dance Festival., Judson Church Movement Research, and more.
Olivia Kimes
Olivia Kimes is a recent graduate of Wayne State University from the Dance BFA program with a minor in musical theatre. She has performed extensively at WSU and in the greater Detroit Area, most notably in work by Dr. Biba Bell, Meg Paul, and BAIRA MVMNT PHLSPHY. She also created numerous original works in her time as a student, including recent collaboration GRASS STAIN, a site-specific research presentation funded by the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program. Kimes grew up playing folk music in northern Michigan, and creates work from the intersections of her talents as a musician, dancer, choreographer, nature-lover, and storyteller. Her philosophy is that dance is an act of service, and she seeks to use her artistry to serve every community she's in. She is most driven by love; love for the craft of dancemaking and love for humanity.
Rowan Junasiak
Rowan Janusiak is a senior dual-degree student at the University of Michigan studying Dance and Applied Exercise Science. They are an emerging choreographer and performer and look forward to creating thought provoking work as they move into the professional world.
Ariel Rivka Dance
Founded in 2008 by Artistic Director, Ariel Grossman, Ariel Rivka Dance (ARD) is an all-female contemporary company that shares stories that resonate with a broad audience. Through movement, the company creates a community of vulnerability and acceptance, providing opportunities for hope and connection. ARD has been presented at prestigious venues around the nation including, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, BAM Fisher, Gordon Center, Kaplan Theater, New York Live Arts and more. ARD's held collaborations with companies like Rioult Dance NY, Taylor 2, and Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company, and commissioned by Ballet Vero Beach, DanceLabNY NexusLab, and Konverjdans. ARD is the recipient of a Nathan Cummings Foundation grant, The Charles & Joan Gross Family Foundation, Mid-Atlantic Arts, Dance/NYC, Jersey City Council of the Arts, and New Jersey Arts and Culture.
Compañeros de Flamenco
Michelle is a dancer, choreographer and teacher. She has a B.S. degree in Education and an M.F.A. degree in Dance. In addition to Flamenco she has worked in Modern Dance, Folk Dance, Ballet and Musical Theater. She studied Flamenco with Christina Scott, Maria del Carmen, Karen Ostrovitz and the American Spanish Dance Festival in Chicago. She has performed as a soloist in many community events, schools and libraries in the state and previously, with Grupo España, the Festival Dancers, the Madame Cadillac Dance Theater. She is a master teacher of Pilates Body Conditioning with over forty years of experience teaching people of all ages and abilities how to move efficiently. She currently teaches Pilates in her home and Flamenco dance in Farmington.
Duoduo Wang
Duoduo Wang, dance practitioner, choreographer, and costume designer from China. In the past 15 years, she has studied, performed, and taught across the U.S, China, and Australia. Her current research on dance and Asian studies has led her to engage and unmask the understated history and collective experiences of Chinese diaspora, while developing the sustainability of traditional Chinese culture with the vehicle of body, sound, video, painting, and fashion in the United States. She has served different leadership roles in the American, Latino, and Chinese communities, and collaborated with diverse bodies, organizations, and independent artists. Her works have been presented in the conference of Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Chicago, Links Hall, Ruth Page Center for the Arts, Western Michigan University, the Naperville Lantern Festival, 2018 YAGP, among others. Her choreography Surmount (2016) has won the Gold Award and Best Choreography Award in the Overseas Taoli Cup International Competition. She is currently completing her Dance MFA degree at the University of Michigan.
Embodied Arts Collective
Ari Mokdad is a Detroit-born, Traverse City-based choreographer, dancer, and writer. She is the artistic director of Embodied Arts Collective and is currently receiving her MFA from Warren Wilson College. Her work, When Water Moves, was the recipient of the Best Performance Award from the Vesuvius International Film Festival and was awarded the 2021 Michigan Arts and Cultural Affairs Grant.
Haley Tarling and Dancers
Haley is a dancer, choreographer and teacher located in Chicago, IL. Her earlier training consisted of dancing as a member of Extensions Dance Company, under the direction of Lizzie MacKenzie. She is a graduate of Point Park University with a BFA in dance and a BA in psychology. While there, she worked with Kiki Lucas, Maree ReMalia, Jason McDole, Pearlann Porter and Kiesha Lalama. More recently, she has been a part of work crafted by Caili Quan, Lizzie MacKenzie, Jackie Nowicki and Sydney Jones. She was the Emerging Choreographer for Young Dancers Initiative's 2021 partnership with Brighton Dance Festival, has presented work at Dance Chicago and was commissioned by Simantikos Dance Chicago. As an artist, she strives to embody expansion, authenticity and grit, while telling stories that reflect human experience through the metaphor of intellectual ideas.
Zoe Lesser
Zoe Lesser is a Tap Dancer, originally from Los Angeles California. Her early mentors include Hiroshi Hamanishi, Denise Scheerer and Melinda Sullivan and is an alumna of the Jacobs Pillow Tap Program. She has performed with Chicago Tap Theatre and as a solo artist at Northlight Theatre, the Mayne Stage, the San Pedro Arts Festival, the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, and Zipper Hall. Currently she teaches Tap Dance at the National Dance Institute and creates and performs in immersive theatrical experiences with The Exodus Ensemble.
Sydney Jones
Sydney Jones (Chicago, IL) is a dancer, choreographer, and educator. She began her training at the Center for Dance and attended the Chicago Academy for the Arts for high school, where she worked with teachers and choreographers such as Randy Duncan, Nick Pupillo, and Lizzie Mackenzie. She graduated magna cum laude with her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance from Point Park University. There, she worked with choreographers including Aszure Barton, Kiesha Lalama, and Colleen Hooper. After graduation, she joined South Chicago Dance Theatre and Inaside Chicago Dance. She has had the privilege to work with Kia Smith, Monique Haley, Ron de Jesus, Stephanie Martinez, August Tye, Crystal Michelle Perkins, Robert McKee, and many others. Her performances include Dance for Life Chicago, South Chicago Dance Festival, Black History Month Series, Edinburgh Film Festival, and Inaside’s Fall Concert, to name a few. Her choreography has been presented at multiple concerts, including New Dances 2020 with Thodos Dance Chicago and DanceWorks Chicago, Simantikos’s Choreo Kick-Off, and Trifecta Dance Festival. In the spring of 2021, she won Inaside’s choreographic competition. Her choreography has been commissioned by Inaside Dance Chicago, Simantikos Dance Chicago, and Movementum Dance Project. She holds the position of Competition Coordinator at Dance on Broadway in Chicago and is on faculty at Artistic Pursuit in Westmont.
Katherine Gumbis - Next Step Broadway
Katherine Gumbis is a 13 year old dancer at Next Step Broadway Studio in Southfield, MI. Katherine has been a part of NSB's performance and competition dance company, Next Step Triple Threats, for four years. Katherine studies the following dance forms: ballet, contemporary, jazz, Afro-Brazilian, and acro. Both the long hours of hard work Katherine puts in each week and the sheer joy she feels while dancing shine through when she's performing.
Next Step Broadway’s mission is to provide an environment where all ages and levels can experience the joy of expression through dancing, singing, acting & much more. Instructors will introduce knowledge of technical, musical, creative, and performance skills, and will develop these skills for all levels. This developmental program builds confidence, self-esteem and coordination to create a well-rounded whole artist. We feel that by instilling these crafts in a positive, joyful way students will make it a part of their lives creating connection with the whole self – mind, body, and soul.
ArtLab J for Grown-Ups
Creating a healthy and artistic environment by exploring ways to develop and create movement motivating the participants to push their limits and to reach beyond by using a unique method which melds traditional techniques and aesthetic. Working as a team, we will aid participants in building confidence, trust, and developing their sense of self.
Summer Stage Memories
