Jonah Carrel is a choreographer and scholar from Raleigh, North Carolina. He is a current MFA student and Graduate Assistant at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. His research focuses primarily on topics in dance history and theory. By investigating dance’s past through archival research, movement practices, writing, and choreography, Carrel seeks to better understand practices in the present and ways in which to make dance more exciting and inclusive in the future. A dance notation student, Carrel completed two certification courses in Motif Notation in 2022 through the Language of Dance Center and is currently working towards his first certification in Labanotation. Carrel has choreographed for numerous concerts at UNC Greensboro, Weaver Academy, and Weatherspoon Art Museum; he staged an evening-length dance work at UNC Greensboro through the 2023-24 Dance Project Inc. and NCDF Artist-in-Residence Program. He has performed in works choreographed by Jordan Llyod, Helen Simoneau, B.J. Sullivan, Chelsea Hilding, ShiYu Liu and Carrie Plew among others.

Tiffany Moss is an MFA student and graduate assistant at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Born in South Carolina, Tiffany graduated Cum Laude with BA in Dance / K-12 Certification from Winthrop University. Throughout her time at Winthrop, she received multiple Modern Dance Awards and had her choreography showcased at the American College Dance Association Regional Conference. Post-graduation, Tiffany taught public school dance at Central Academy of the Arts, a Title I magnet arts school in the upstate, where she infused core curriculum with dance to increase student engagement. While located in the upstate, Tiffany served as Regional Coordinator for the South Carolina Dance Association as well as directed for the Easley High School Color Guard Program.

Liz Stillerman Anderson is a dancer, choreographer, and educator from Covington, GA. Liz holds a BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography from Elon University in North Carolina. In her professional career, Liz has performed with Elements Ballet, Chicago Repertory Ballet, Chicago Civic Ballet, and Kit Modus, as well as served as Artistic Director for Georgia-based pre-professional company Covington Regional Ballet. Liz is an MFA student and Graduate Assistant in the School of Dance at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Ashlyn Hall is a dance educator pursuing an MFA at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. She has spent the last decade teaching dance in private, public, and non-profit settings in both Middle Tennessee and the San Francisco Bay Area. As a performer, Ashlyn has appeared throughout the Southeast at festivals like Nashville Fringe and Kindling Arts, and events like Nashville Ballet’s ‘Emergence’. Ashlyn graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in Spanish and minors in Dance and Journalism from Belmont University, and she joined the dance faculty at Belmont in 2015. Ashlyn hopes to enrich students’ ability to make connections among styles in service of developing their unique artistic voices. She also aims to equip students with anatomical fluency, prioritizing physical longevity alongside evocative movement capacity.   

Kate Gupton holds a BFA in choreography and a k-12 teaching license from the UNCG School of Dance. Since graduating Kate has worked as a dance teacher at a Title 1 elementary school, taught at studios, choreographed and presented her own work throughout North Carolina. She performed professionally as a residency artist in schools across the state through the United Arts Council and Black Box Dance Company. She is now an MFA student and Graduate Assistant in the School of Dance at UNCG. Kate believes dance is a powerful tool to enhance the lives of the people around us and society; she strives to bring joy to others through her performance, teaching, and choreography.  

Leslie Fitzpatrick hails from Boston, Massachusetts where she performed, choreographed, and instructed at studio level. She holds a BA in Dance with a concentration in Pedagogy from Dean College, where she was the recipient of the “Artistic Excellence Award”. She has a well-rounded dance education with extensive training  in ballet, pointe, hip hop, tap, and acrobatics as well as her strong passion to create and perform contemporary dance, improvisation, modern, and jazz styles.  She is a Certified Personal Trainer who believes cross training is vital for dancers and wishes to implement her knowledge of strength training and anatomy into her classes. She is an MFA student and Graduate Assistant in the School of Dance at UNCG. 

Katie Ballard is a lifelong mover, creator, and educator from Winston Salem, North Carolina. Katie graduated Summa Cum Laude from Appalachian State University with a BA in Dance Studies and a minor in Somatic Sustainability. While at Appalachian, she was a departmental and university honors student whose research focused on dance as a form of communication across history, cultures, and generations, as well as the applied properties to social activism. She has been a dance instructor from a young age, working across multiple communities in North Carolina to foster dance connections in young lives. She is passionate about accessibility within the arts and previously served as the director of Anyone Can Dance, a pay-what-you-can dance program. Katie is an MA student and Graduate Assistant in the School of Dance at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. 

Tiffany Bailey was born and raised in Charlotte, NC, where she began her dance training studying ballet at the Harris YMCA. While attending the University of North Carolina at Asheville, she was a member and Co-Captain of the Cheer and Dance Team and took numerous dance courses. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, a minor in Classics, and received an Interdisciplinary Certificate in Contemplative Inquiry. After receiving her degree, she began her experience in dance administration at Charlotte Ballet, found a new passion for aerial arts, and expanded her experience in the perinatal health field. Tiffany is interested in combining her passions of dance, health and wellness, and community engagement through research and movement. She is a graduate student in the MA in Dance Theories and Practices program in the School of Dance at UNCG.

Anna Clymer (she/they) is a dancer, choreographer, biologist and movement artist based in Greensboro, NC. She graduated from UNCG in 2024 with a BFA in Dance and a BS in Biology. She performs professionally in the community with various companies and individual artists and teaches classes at local studios. Growing up, Anna trained in a variety of different genres, though the ones that are most influential of her movement style are ballet, jazz, release techniques, and breaking. She has been honored to work with artists from different backgrounds at intensives and training programs, including Jessie Young, Jordan Lloyd, David Dorfman, and members of UNCG dance faculty. Anna’s choreographic interests often align with her curiosities in the human body and biology, focusing on artistry through an anatomical lens. Anna is an MFA student and graduate teaching assistant in the School of Dance at UNCG.

Shekinah Brown is an interdisciplinary artist from Prince George’s County, Maryland. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Dance from the University of Maryland, College Park, and an Associate of Fine Arts from Prince George’s Community College. Her passion for teaching has flourished through her work at local dance studios and her role as an Artist-in-Residence at Georgetown University. While studying at the University of Maryland, College Park, Shekinah had the opportunity to perform internationally in Elefsina, Greece, where one of her original poems was integrated into the development of a collaborative dance piece. At Georgetown University, she contributed multiple choreographic works, further shaping her voice as an emerging choreographer and educator. As an MFA student and graduate teaching assistant in the School of Dance at UNCG, Shekinah seeks to deepen her artistic practice, expanding her creative reach, and exploring new dimensions of movement and expression.

Dajanique Rorie-Alston is a dancer, choreographer, and communicator from Raleigh, North Carolina. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Journalism and Mass Communication with a concentration in Public Relations from North Carolina A&T State University. With experience as an educator for immigrant and refugee children, she has developed a deep commitment to inclusivity and cultural awareness in teaching. Her work blends storytelling and movement, focusing on community engagement and self-expression. Currently, she is pursuing her MFA and serving as a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the School of Dance at the University of North Carolina Greensboro.

Carrie Plew holds a BFA in choreography and performance from UNC-Greensboro; after several  years working as a dance professional—teaching, choreographing, and performing—she returned to UNCG to pursue her MFA in Dance. Carrie is proud of the early dance education she received at Walkerdance Ballet Theater and Burlington Academy of Dance Arts in Burlington, NC. She also trained at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts in Perth, Western Australia. As a choreographer, Carrie enjoys the challenges of site-specific work and has created and performed installation dances for several NYC organizations: No Longer Empty, Flowers Art Gallery, Dance New Amsterdam and FIGMENT NYC. Her musical theater choreography has been seen in the New York Fringe Festival (The NEW Hopeville Comics), through Broadway Training Center (New York) and on several stages across North Carolina. Carrie holds a certification in Laban Movement Analysis through the Laban/Bartenieff Institute for Movement Studies in Brooklyn, NY, and she is also a licensed massage therapist.