Title: Vita Viva (2025)

Description of work: A playful ode to our shared humanity — the quirks, the joy, and the connections that keep us dancing through life’s obstacles.

Choreographer bio: Michaella Barron, a Detroit native, began her artistic journey at Interlochen Arts Academy before graduating summa cum laude from the Ailey/Fordham BFA program in NYC, with a double major in International Political Economy and an Italian Language concentration. Founder of Forza Dance, she fosters artistic expression and community collaboration. Michaella's choreographic repertoire spans staged works, music videos, and dance films like “Maria” and “Outside In,” featured at distinguished festivals including Booking Dance and DUMBO Dance. Her works have graced numerous NYC venues such as Teatro Latea, Triskelion Arts, Arts on Site and The Tada Theater. Forza Dance's acclaim extends nationally, with recent performances at the Luminaria Arts Festival in San Antonio. Michaella annually produces Forza’s evening-length show, “Shindig,” showcasing diverse new works to sold-out audiences. She is dedicated to sharing her art to cultivate empathy and inspire societal connection.

Performed by Forza Dance company artists: Michaella Barron, Gabrielle DiNizo, Maddy Hall, Araya Morris, Micah McKee

Music: “Ma Quale Idea” by Pino D’Angiò

Title: Babel

Description of work: In this compelling work, Sofía Forero and Nicolas Fiery embark on a journey to explore the depths and needs of relationships, weaving together Pablo Neruda’s poem “El Sueño” in the two languages they share. Babel captures the delicate interplay of hope, love, and the mysteries of the mind, illustrating how each unique relationship thrives through nurturing and care. At times, this nurturing requires stepping back to create space for growth and healing — offering a profound reflection on the intricacies of human connection.

“[…] mi decisión se encontró con tu sueño,

y desde la ruptura

que nos quebraba el alma,

surgimos limpios otra vez, …

…Sellados por el fuego”

— Pablo Neruda

Choreographer bio: Sofía Forero (Colombia) and Nicolas Fiery (France) are NYC-based choreographers and performers whose collaborative practice bridges cultures and disciplines. Their work fuses ballet, modern, contemporary, hip-hop, and Latin influences to create immersive, interdisciplinary performances that examine human connection through movement, music, and visual design.

Graduates with Honors from The Ailey School, they have performed works by iconic choreographers including Merce Cunningham, Paul Taylor, Alvin Ailey, and Darrel Moultrie. Their choreography has been presented at venues such as Sony Music Hall, Dixon Place, and the 14th Street Y, with performances throughout the United States and Europe.

In 2024, they co-directed, produced, and choreographed Mosaïque, a critically acclaimed immersive production that premiered in Paris. Both are dancers with Pajarillo Pinta’o Dance Company and certified GYROTONIC® trainers, bringing a somatic and interdisciplinary approach to their work.

Choreographers: Nicolas Fiery & Sofía Forero

Poem: Pablo Neruda

Poem Adaptation: Sofía Forero & Nicolas Fiery

Voices: Alejandro Téllez, Valentina Roa

Sound Engineer: Jairo Paz

Music: Gustavo Santaolalla, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Jaques Morelenbaum, Everton Nelson

Music Adaptation / Producer: Arturo Angarita

Commissioned by Théâtre Antoine Watteau, Paris (2024)

Title: hey. it's over now.

Description of work: "hey. it's over now." is a perpetual work in progress. The dynamic movement and exaggerated expression mirror one's stream of consciousness. Within our minds, we hold universes. The capacity and potentiality to feel everything and anything: euphoria, depletion, joy, doubt, anxiety, confidence, etc. Our thoughts will never stop and this continuous monologue can either destroy us or empower us. While it can often feel as though our thoughts are in control, it is us who decides what we give our focus, power, and energy to.

Choreographer bio: NY native. NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts BFA graduate. NASM-certified personal trainer & freelance contemporary artist. Lil has had the privilege of performing works by Paul Taylor (restaged by Richard Chen See), Sonyah Tayeh, Manuel Vignoulle, Alessandra Corona, Seán Curran in notable venues ie. Alvin Ailey, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Skirball Theatre, & more. Dance has taken her abroad: Austria, training at the Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance under Anton Lachky, South Korea, an invited artist of “Incheon Contemporary Dance Festival,” touring Sardinia, Italy, and Israel, after being accepted into Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company’s International Program. Her solo “hey. it’s over now,” premiered in KCDC’s Zichri Theatre, and has since been presented in NYC’s “Emerging Artist Theatre” &  "STEPS Beyond Foundation Lab.”  She has performed as a soloist for ChaShama’s Immersive Gala and ArtBath’s “Artist Curation.” Lil continually develops her artistry through exploration of  authentic, intuitive, intentional movement of humanity.

Dancer/Choreographer: Lil Aronoff

Music: 212" Azaelia Banks, Lazy Jay, "22 Over Soon" Bon Iver, Spoken Word by Lil Aronoff

Title:Waking in the Dark (Excerpt)

Description of work: Waking in the Dark is the first section of Lawton Dance Collective’s new evening-length work, inspired by Adrienne Rich’s poetry collection: Diving Into the Wreck, set to premiere Fall 2026.

Company bio: Lawton Dance Collective is a women-led contemporary dance company based in New York City. Directed by Julia Lawton, LDC's focus is on the development and presentation of new choreography, through research-driven creative investigation. LDC is committed to fostering a positive creative environment for dance artists, emphasizing collaboration and open dialogue throughout every process. 

Choreographer: Julia Lawton, in collaboration with the dancers

Dancers: Sarah Baghdadi, Erica Caruso, Isabella Gamba, Abby Garcia, Katie Jaffie, Casey Leyden, Emelia Sikorsky

Music: “Memoria” by Murcof, “Host” by Plaid, “Gongs and Bells Sing” by Kronos Quartet, Laurie Anderson, “Hysm” by Vincent Peirani, Emile Parisien, “Drops” by Pascal Schumacher, Maxime Delpierre

Title: Subconscious Control

Description of work: "Subconscious Control" is about the mind's battle for dominance over the body. The two entities continue to operate in tandem, while ultimately fighting for control.

Choreographer bio: Jazlyn Tan and Lily Santana are dance artists, trained in various genres such as ballet, contemporary, modern techniques, jazz, street styles, etc. Jazlyn is a recent graduate and Lily is a Senior both in the BFA Program at Temple University's Boyer College of Music and Dance. Jazlyn is a graduate from LASALLE College of the Arts, is a guest artist at SHARP Dance Company, and also trains with Philadelphia-based Hip Hop Company, Creative Reaction. Lily is a graduate from the Steps on Broadway Pre-Professional Program and is a company member of the Jim Bunting Dance Company in Philadelphia. Jazlyn and Lily look forward to expanding their professional careers in dance performance and choreography.

Choreographers: Jazlyn Tan and Lily Santana  

Dancers: Jazlyn Tan and Lily Santana

Music:  “Comfortable” by Victor Ray

Title: BRINK

Description of work: This dance is about being overprepared but still anxious about change. Using athletic and percussive movement the protagonist battles each challenge in her new environment. 

Choreographer Bio: Caroline Voultepsis (she/her) is a performer and choreographer based in NYC. Her work has been featured by Spark Theater Festival, $3 Bill, Borne Dance Company, and Estia Creative Collective. In addition to her work as a choreographer she has performed works by David Parsons, Paul Taylor, Yin Yue, Shany Dagan, and José Limón. 

Choreographer: Caroline Voultepsis

Dancers: Lilly Menendez, Lauren Mobley, Molly McCaffery, Zoe Scotto, Zoë Springfloat

Music: Can’t Hold the Night and Since You Asked Kindly by BADBADNOTGOOD

Title:‍ ‍REBIRTH

A special collaboration performance highlighting Forza Dance and Dance of Persia’s shared passion for unity and hope for peace.

Forza Dance: Michaella Barron, Gabrielle DiNizo, Maddy Hall, Araya Morris, Micah Mckee

Dance of Persia: Leila Montazemi
Music: “Dobareh Misazamat Vatan” by Dariush Eghbali

Title: IN:TIME

Description of work: When faced with uncertainty, time can feel distorted, either speeding up or slowing down, effecting how we think, feel, and act. This work reflects the tension between urgency and the unknown, and how those forces influence our decisions, emotions, and sense of control.

The choice is always yours.

Choreographer Bio: TJ Warren was raised in Camden, SC, where he first developed a passion for dance. He is a recent graduate from the University of South Carolina, obtaining a B.A in Dance Performance and Choreography with a cognate in Education. He is a company member of Unbound Dance Company located in Columbia, SC, under the direction of Caroline Lewis-Jones and Morgan Holton. As well as a dancer in Gaspard and Dancers, based in Durham, NC. Warren aspires to continue spreading joy and conveying important messages through his artistic mediums of dance and choreography.

Choreographer: TJ Warren

Dancers: Alana Averett, Elizabeth Bailey, Maddie Barry, Sie Hamilton-Thibert, Mary Catherine Matthews, Mikayla Radermacher, Claire Mee Eun Schiffer, Sarah Ullery

Music: Jed Kurzel, Thomas Newman, Julia Newman, Mark Isham, and Prison Experiment

Title: Points that Bind

Description of work: Navigating how the choices of others affect our individual agency.

Choreographer bio: Madaline Maravillas and Bayley Banks, or MadBay, met during their freshman year as undergraduate students, studying to receive their BFAs in modern dance. Madaline moved to NYC in 2023 and Bayley made the move to Brooklyn in 2025. They have worked on projects together since their first meeting in college and are excited to continue building their choreographic partnership together in New York.

Choreographers and Dancers: Bayley Banks and Madaline Maravillas

Music:  Piero Piccioni, Caterina Barbieri

Title: You Wrote the Role for Me

Description of work: "You Wrote the Role for Me" is a depiction of the struggle for power between family members, as we grow up and find that the holes in our hearts seem to have always been ripped open by the people we love the most. This piece explores the anger in discovering that the people and environments who raise us have so much control over who we become. This piece is about the pushback against becoming the person that feels predetermined. Yet it is also my intention through the piece that there is no specific individual at “fault.” Instead, we witness a group of people who all share a responsibility for making each other who they’ve become.

Company Bio: Garet&Co is a non profit professional dance company based in CT. Garet&Co's mission is to create a safe, sustainable and uplifting space for local dancers to train and perform at the highest level of contemporary dance. Garet&Co has created a home for contemporary dancers, where dancers can gain both training experience and paid work opportunities in a positive environment, while being supported as both dancers and humans. Garet&Co’s choreographic work dissects emotions on the stage, dealing with themes of struggling mental health and the search for peace within chaos. Pulling from her own experiences first and then collaborating conceptually and in movement with the dancers, Garet hopes that her work gives audiences the opportunity to fully experience the joy, devastation, and catharsis of contemporary dance. Garet&Co has performed across the Northeast, most notably at Jacob's Pillow, Symphony Space, Ailey Citigroup Theatre, The Warner Theatre, Dixon Place, and TADA Emerging Artists Theatre.

Choreographer: Garet Wierdsma in collaboration with the dancers

Dancers: Tori Aufiero, Emma Brockett, Tiffany Oltjenbruns, and Garet Wierdsma

Music: "You Wrote the Role for Me" by Kiki Rockwell

Title: Maybe, maybe not. (Excerpt)

Description of work: Maybe Maybe Not is a duet that embodies one person—one mind—exploring the intricate duality of human nature. Through the interplay between two bodies, the piece reveals the internal dialogue and tension we experience as we move through different phases of life, grappling with conflict, self-understanding, and transformation. This dance becomes a living portrait of the fluid, sometimes fragile relationship we have with ourselves: stepping in and out of clarity and confusion, certainty and doubt, connection and isolation.The duet invites the audience to witness these intimate shifts not as distant spectators, but as passersby sharing a fleeting, honest moment of human experience. Without elitism or barriers, Maybe Maybe Not offers a space to recognize the complexity of selfhood and the ongoing journey toward reconciliation within.

Company Bio: Hiraeth Movement Collective

Hiraeth Movement Collective, created by Megan McHugh and Fiona Thomas explores the unexplainable phenomena of human nature and the natural world. Their work emerges through improvisation and embodied research, delving into the intersections between movement and emotion. They strive to create performances that evoke deep sensory and emotional experiences, inviting audiences to reflect on their own inner landscapes and interpersonal curiosities.

Choreographers and Dancers: Megan McHugh and Fiona Thomas of Hiraeth Movement Collective

Music:The Man With The Horn by Harry James, Give Me A Call by Saada Bonaire, Claimstaker by Bjork and Arca

Title:

Description of Work: A dance of embodied knowing, in devotion to self and the power of the collective. Within a shared field of support and witness, the body becomes both boundary and bloom. Strength revealed as something deeply felt, deeply loved, and impossible to silence.

Choreographer Bio: VAULTA is a contemporary dance driven art collective based in Philadelphia and led by artistic director Tori Vincent. Composed of genre fluid dancers and multidisciplinary collaborators from across the U.S. and abroad, VAULTA creates visceral work that reflects both individual and collective states of being. Since its founding in 2023, the collective has presented work throughout the East Coast, including appearances in the InHale Performance Series with Kun Yang Lin/Dancers and the Artist Showcases at Koresh Dance Company, as well as festivals in New York, Chicago, Connecticut, Atlanta, Louisiana, and Pennsylvania. In 2025, VAULTA premiered its first evening-length production, Blue Écrevisse, an expansive and defining work featuring 15 original works choreographed by Vincent. Within this collective, artists gather across forms, traditions, and lived experiences to investigate the complexity of human behavior. Driven to nurture new choreographic languages, VAULTA aims to build inclusive spaces where exchanges and artistic risk flourish. 

Choreographer: Tori Vincent

Dancers: Vanessa Boutin, Em Godfrey, Jenn Kane, Gisele Luiz, Abigail Mosier, Val Peña, Arielle Ridley, Tori Vincent

Music: Blodfest by Danheim, Heldom