past dancers
Jamie Arnold is a local dance and yoga educator and performing artist. She currently teaches at the Lincoln School, FestivalBallet, and Chance to Dance and is choreographing Hendricken High Schools spring musical. She is a performing artist in Aerplaye's dance company, as well as with, Betsy Miller and Stephanie Turner's dance works. Jamie received her B.A. in Dance from Rhode Island College in 2011.
Shura Baryshnikov is a Rhode Island-based multimodal artist who works broadly as a dancer/actor/improviser, somatic movement educator, director, and choreographer for projects across dance, theatre, opera, and film. She co-founded the Contact Improvisation research and performance ensemble Set Go and the acclaimed company Doppelgänger Dance Collective. Upcoming projects include release of a dance film directed for Boston Lyric Opera and collaborations with cellist/composer Adrienne Taylor as well as Daniel Bernard Roumain and FirstWorks. Shura is Head of Physical Theatre for the Brown/Trinity Rep MFA Program in the Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies at Brown University and maintains an active international teaching practice at festivals and training institutions. She employs work in the Viewpoints Technique, Safety Release Technique, Action Theater, and Contact Improvisation to create deeply-sensitized, collaborative spaces for learning and making. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association and the American Guild of Musical Artists.
Meghan Carmichael Bousquet is a dance artist based on Cape Cod. She began her dance studies on the Cape and throughout New England, and received her BFA in Contemporary Dance from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2012. Her career has brought her to work in New York City, around New England, California, and Europe. She has continued her studies with AXIS Dance Company in Oakland CA, at Gibney Dance in NYC, The Cunningham Trust, Bates Dance Festival in Maine, and Impulstanz International Dance Festival in Vienna, Austria. As a teacher, she has been on faculty at Festival Ballet Providence, Providence Ballet Theater, and an adjunct at Brown University, Dean College, and the Moses Brown School. She has danced for Ali Kenner Brodsky & co since 2014 and has also danced for: Betsy Miller, Heidi Henderson, kamrDance, Workhorse Dance Project, and Amorphous Dance Collective. She has produced and directed multidisciplinary art events on Cape Cod called Near & Far Collaborative Art Project, and has presented her work at AS220 (Providence), the Dance Complex (Boston), at Festival Ballet Providence, and Brown University. Meghan is passionate about art advocacy and is dedicated to inclusive dance and movement practices.
Danielle Davidson is a dance artist currently working in Boston, Providence and Montreal. She graduated from L’Ecole Superieure de Ballet du Quebec and later trained in theater at George Brown College. Upon graduation, she was invited to join Le Jeune Ballet, where she danced for three years touring Europe and North America, performing in new pieces by Thierry Malandain, Louis-Martin Charest, Denise Biggi and repertory works by George Balanchine, Roland Petit, Francoise Vaussenat, Jean Louis Morin and Brian Macdonald, among others.As an independent dancer, Danielle has worked in Canada with Ballet West, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, The Banff Festival Company, Opera Ontario, AmpleMan Danse, Ballet Espressivo, Debra Brown and Productions Fila 13/Lina Cruz. In August 2014, Danielle and her husband moved to Providence, RI. As a choreographer, Danielle has been commissioned to create works for Compagnie FDanse, SBDC, Danse SainteJulie, Dance Extension/Brown University, Endicott College Dance Ensemble and she will be creating a new work for Providence College this fall. Her choreography has been presented at the fFIDA in Toronto, at Le Festival International de la Danse in Montréal at La Place des Arts and in theatres in Montreal, Providence and Beverly, MA. She is recipient of le 1er Prix du Jury from Le Festival International de Danse Encore. Her most recent project has been co-founding a duets performance project company Doppelgänger Dance Collective (DDC) with Shura Baryshnikov.
Amanda Del Prete attended Columbia College in Chicago before graduating from Rhode Island College in 2008 with a degree in dance. While in school, Amanda had the pleasure to work with many choreographers including Jennifer Nugent, Paul Matteson, Bridgman/Packer, and Chris Elam. She has danced with Fusionworks Dance Company and currently dances with Lostwax Mulimedia Dance Theater and Ali Kenner Brodsky. Amanda teaches dance to children and adults in public school and private studio settings and is the artistic director and owner of Inspire Dance Academy in Medway, MA.
Kim Johnson Gardiner is a 2008 graduate of Rhode Island College with a BA in Dance Performance. In 2004 she graduated from the Boston Dance Teachers Training Program. Kim was a recipient of the RIC dance performance Special Talent Scholarship and a 2004 recipient of the Rosemary H. Medeiros Scholarship for the Performing Arts. Throughout her four years at RIC, Kim was a member of the Dance Company. Since 2004, Kim has been a faculty member at Rosemary’s School Dance Education in Warren and Tiverton, Rhode Island where she teaches modern, jazz, tap, ballet and hip-hop. In 2008 Kim attended and received a scholarship to study at the Bates College Dance Festival. She has also participated in the 2009 Frazier Festival. Kim performed in the 2010 Rhode Island College Faculty/Alumni show with choreographer and former RIC faculty member Olase Freeman. Kim has been dancing with Lostwax Dance Company since 2010. With Lostwax she has performed in BLINKING, SEVEN VElLS and PARTICULAR.
Jessica Howard is the Founder and Artistic Director of The Heron Dance Yoga & Meditation Studio. She is Steward of the P.O.T.E.G.P Spiritual Guidance center as well as apprenticing under Greg Squillante in the studies of spirituality, meditation and world religions. Jessica graduated with her Bachelor of the Arts in Theatre and Dance in 2009. As a theatre and dance undergraduate Jessica was privileged to study under Marcia Murdock, Cathy Nicoli, Candice Salyers, and William Seigh and was selected to work with guest artists such as Paul Besaw, Mark Dendy, Pilobolus, and Sara Sweetly Rabidoux.Jessica is also an independent performance artist & dance educator. She is on her third season performing with Lorraine Chapman, the Company and currently performing with Ali Kenner Brodsky of Rhode Island. Jessica has presented her own work in Cambridge MA, Keene NH, NYC, and Bethlehem NH. She has lead educational workshops for grades K-12 as well as higher education.She has continued education in various forms of healing and mind-body awareness through workshops and Festivals that include: Mark Morris Dance Group Dance for PD training, Ideokinesis, Bates Dance Festival, Southern Vermont Dance Festival, Cultivate! festival amongst other professional retreats.
Amanda Narciso is a graduate of Salve Regina University where she obtained her Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and minored in Dance. She is the reigning Miss Massachusetts 2013 and represented her state at Miss America held this past September in Atlantic City, New Jersey. She teaches dance and pageant preparation at three performing arts schools in New England. Amanda performed in last season's A+B show and is honored to once again work with Ali Kenner Brodsky and her talented dancers.
Ellen Oliver's work values cross-disciplinary collaboration. She enjoys summer dancing at Bearnstow, Maine, and her professional work has been presented at festivals and residencies in New England, NYC, and India. She was the 2020 White Mountain National Forest Artist in Residence and is currently working with the White Mountain Trail Collective and Museum of the White Mountains to co-create the upcoming White Mountain Film Festival, an interdisciplinary, site-specific art festival merging trail stewardship and art in Plymouth, NH. Ellen attended University of North Carolina School of the Arts for high school and received a BA at Hampshire College in 2016 with semester research at Universidad de las Artes in Havana, Cuba. She is about to pursue an Iowa Arts MFA Fellowship in Choreography at the University of Iowa. Ellen is also a dedicated teacher, living statue at TEN31 Productions, mixed media painter, filmmaker, and climbing enthusiast.
Sarah Osterhus is a New York based dance artist and has had the privilege to perform with Chris Ferris and Dancers, Dishman and Company, Mei/Co Dance, and Melissa Brading since moving to Brooklyn in 2015. She is excited to be dancing for 5thDigit Dance and ali kenner brodsky this season. Sarah grew up in Texas, spent a year with Ad Deum Dance Company, and was a founding member of Ingredients Dance Company that traveled with the Dance Revolution National Convention. She went on to Belhaven University where she graduated cum laude with a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Dance. While at Belhaven she danced in works choreographed by Dorris Humphrey, Ryan Corriston, Dorrell Martin, Cynthia Newland, and Dr. Emily Wright, among others. After Belhaven Sarah spent two years with Surfscape Contemporary Dance Theatre based out of Florida. She performed abroad in London, England at Sadler's Wells with SCDT and in various parts of South Korea with Belhaven. Apart from performing, Sarah utilized her education to teach as a full time Dance Instructor at University High School in Orange City, Florida.
Sasha Peterson currently lives and grew up dancing in the Boston area. In 2016, she completed a dance major at Connecticut College, through which she had the privilege of learning from and performing works by dance faculty as well as guests Kyle Abraham, Ronald K. Brown, Wendell Cooper, Nina Flagg of Rennie Harris Puremovement, Molly Lieber/Eleanor Smith, Kendra Portier, and Doug Varone. In addition to joining VLA Dance for their upcoming season, Sasha has danced with Ali Kenner Brodsky & Co., Betsy Miller Dance Projects, Jessy Zizzo & Dancers, and with Lisa Race, apprenticed at David Dorfman Dance, and is a company member at Grant Jacoby & Dancers and Ruckus Dance. She is also a licensed massage therapist.
Emily Sulock is a graduate of Salve Regina University with a BA in English Communications and a double minor in dance and theater. Originally from Haddonfield, NJ, Emily began her training at a young age with Mulford Dance Studio under the direction of Kim Mulford-Farmer and later trained with Donna Tambussi at Tambussi’s Studio. While at Salve she was a member and choreographer for the Extensions Dance Company as well as Public Relations Coordinator of Salve’s largest student run organization, SRU Dance. During her time with Extensions she worked with various choreographers such as Lindsay Guarino, Ali Kenner Brodsky, Jodi Leigh Allen, Joe Celej, and Melissa Gendreau. She also had the opportunity to perform in pieces selected for ACDFA, as well as choreographed pieces selected for the informal shows. Emily currently dances with Urbanity Dance and teaches at Boss Academy of Performing Arts and Newport Academy of Ballet.
Kyle Vincent Terry hails from Chicago Illinois. He formerly served as Artistic Director of Chicago Dance Crash and still works with a bunch of movement miscreants known as TheMASSIVE. He is currently an MFA candidate at Brown/Trinity Rep as an actor. He'll be released upon his own recognizance in 2016. He is excited to be working with AKB for the first time and has a blast!