Emily Haussler (she/her) is the Artistic and Executive Director of RESILIENCE Dance Company (RDC), founded in 2019 in St. Louis, MO. Overall, her work centers on building healthier, more sustainable dance communities by equipping dancers with resources for their mental health, physical wellbeing, and artistic success. She believes in the power of collaboration and in challenging the toxic norms of the dance world, seeking to create high quality, insightful dance works inside of healthy dance spaces. Her full-length choreographic works for the company include Instead of waiting, they weave (2025), Falling Forward (2024), Come With Me (2023), All Times At Once (2022), Making Room (2021), and Stanzas & Sculptures (2020). Her notable short works have been shown in St. Louis, MO (Washington University, The Link Auditorium), Kansas City, MO (The Gem Theater), Detroit, MI (Detroit Institute of the Arts), Cape Girardeau, MO (Southeast Missouri State University), Nashville, TN (The Looby Theater), and Durham, NC (American Dance Festival). Furthermore, her dance film, There Are No Rules, was shown at Exchange Choreography Festival 2020. She has danced professionally with Common Thread Contemporary Ballet (2017) and Emily Duggins (2020), and as a trainee with Nashville Ballet (2018) and The Big Muddy Dance Company (2019) prior to founding RDC.  She has taught master classes at St. Louis University, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Washington University, Southeast Missouri State University, Missouri Dance Organization Conference, and American College Dance Association Conference. Emily holds a B.A. in Dance and Biology from Washington University in St. Louis where she was the recipient of the Ian D. Cramer Prize for Dance (2018) and the Marcus Artist in Residence Award (2022).

Alice Anders is originally from Fort Smith, AR. After completing her Bachelor’s Fine Arts in Dance and minor in Technical Theatre she came to Saint Louis. She was a trainee for Saint Louis Dance Theatre and started working as a theatre electrician for COCA, Touhill Center for the Performing Arts, and the Skip Viragh Center for the Arts. She is also the production manager for Ballet 314. This is her third season working with Resilience Dance Company and she’s looking forward to another great season.

Founded by DMV-based (DC, Maryland, Virginia) movement artists Julianna Bramstedt and Chloe Conway, J&C Dance Project is a contemporary dance collective committed to exploring and expressing personhood through movement. With a deep-seated passion for collaboration, their work is rooted in a femme and queer centered ethos. J&C Dance Project aims to create dances that serve as a powerful medium for storytelling and social commentary. Their performances delve into complex themes such as intimacy, identity, control, and greed, challenging audiences to reflect on the world around them and their place within it.

Emily Duggins Ehling (she/her) is the Assistant Teaching Professor of Stage Movement and Dance at the University of Missouri. As a dance teacher and choreographer, Emily primarily draws from Horton Technique, Release Technique, somatic practices, and improvisation to encourage grounded, expansive, curious dancing. She researches the intersection of dance processes and theatre processes, with a focus on creating and maintaining ethical, care-based rehearsal spaces. Her choreographic processes strive to prioritize the humans involved, seeking to build genuine care and empathy among the collaborators that might be felt by the audience. Emily has independently produced five full-length contemporary dance premieres since 2019, most recently …and everything stays the same… She has choreographed original works for RESILIENCE Dance Company, the Saint Louis Dance Theatre trainees, Modern American Dance Company 2, Consuming Kinetics Dance Company, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, and Washington University Dance Collective. Her choreography has been shown broadly at festivals across the country. After dancing with Modern American Dance Company 2, The Slaughter Project, and Black Irish Contemporary Hip Hop Company, Emily was a founding company member with RESILIENCE Dance Company. She has served as the dramaturg for multiple new works by Emily Haussler.

Isaac Knuteson (Perm, Ru) was adopted from Perm Russia, & started dancing at a local competition studio training in multiple styles of dance. He then started training heavily in ballet/modern & trained with Madison Ballet as a pre professional/trainee, under the direction of Rachelle Fochs & Central Midwest Ballet with Marguerite Luksik. Isaac attended Nashville Ballet SI in 2021, then later became a pre-professional student for a few months, working with Nick Mulllikin, Anaïs Chalendard, Julia Eisen & Aeron Buchanan. In 2022 Isaac attended Miami City Ballet Si where he then became a pre-professional that year, where he worked with Lourdes Lopez & Herman Payne. Isaac then trained with Oklahoma City Ballet In the summer with Ryan Jolicoeeur-Nye, Oliver Muñoz, Jason Ambrose & Chloe Jenson, where he then became a Postgraduate student in 2023. He has attended multiple summer intensives including Milwaukee Ballet, Kanopy Dance, Des Moines Ballet, Point Park Dance, Visceral Dance Chicago, Symbiosis Arts under Braeden Barnes & Whirlwind Dance under the direction of Joshua Manculich. Isaac was an assistant for Dupree Dance in 2021-2023, where he got to work with Terrill Mitchell, Kobi Rozenfeld & Addison Holmes. During his time being an assistant he got the opportunity to sign with Go2talent agency in L.A in 2023. Isaac then danced professionally with Water Street Dance Milwaukee under the direction of Morgan Williams for a season in 2023-2024, where he got to perform & work with multiple choreographers. Isaac has performed at “APAP”, “Trifecta Dance Festival”, “Collective Contemporary Awards”, “Wisconsin Dance Festival”, “Midwest Arts Expo” & “World Of Dance Chicago”. He also danced professionally with Regenerative Beings in Texas under the direction of Brian Stevens, where he got to work with Alex Clair, Jennifer Milner & Tim Fox in 2024. He also danced professionally with Nova Linea Contemporary Dance in Milwaukee under the direction of Jared Baker for a season in 2024-2025. Isaac also danced professionally as a guest artist for Madison Contemporary Dance in 2021 & New Brese Dance Company in 2023. He is currently an assistant for Showstoppers Dance convention, & assisted for Arielle Elonys, Nathaniel Trasoras, Mary Ann Lamb, & Alexie Agdeppa. He is currently judging for Fly Dance Competition for their 2025-2026 season. He just recently danced for Coldplay at Camp Randall Stadium. Isaac choreography has been nominated for the “Industry Dance Awards” in 2023 & 2024 for his piece “Fade'“ & “The Sacrifice”. His work has been shown at “Trifecta Dance Collective” & “Oakland Dance Festival”. He choreographed for Suttle Dance in 2025 & his piece “The Memories That I Have” will be shown in 2026. His Piece “I Shift” will be shown at Fertile Ground in NYC in 2026. Isaac work was invited to perform at “Edinburgh Festival Fringe” with Chutzpah Dance in 2026. Isaac work will be shown in Ohio at ballet Legato Festival. Also his work was chosen to perform at Joel Hall Center In Chicago. His work will also be shown in San Francisco at Dance Mission Theatre & with Mashup Contemporary Dance Co at Choreography Open Mic Night. Isaac was chosen as a ChoreoLab artist, & his work will be seen at Terpsichore Collective (Works In Progress), & Dancing In The Summer Festival. Isaac has taught all around the Michigan, Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, Eau Claire, Chicago, Texas, & Indianapolis area.

​David Marchant specializes in aesthetic theory, technique, composition and improvisation in the concert art of contemporary dance. David Marchant is Professor of the Practice, on the faculty of Washington University in St. Louis since 1994, specializing in aesthetic theory, technique, composition and improvisation in the concert art of contemporary dance. He is the coordinator of the School of Continuing & Professional Studies Somatic Studies Certificate Program at Washington University, offering students a curriculum in integrative movement practices, complemented by theoretical knowledge from a wide variety of fields investigating the art, spirit, and science of human movement. Marchant is a certified teacher of the Alexander Technique and a member of the American Society of Alexander Teachers (AmSAT). He maintains a professional private teaching practice, instructing individuals in the methods of F.M. Alexander for re-pattering of fundamental movement coordination. David was a company member with the Utah Repertory Dance Theatre from 1989 to 1991. David was a recipient of the Iowa Arts Fellowship for excellence in choreography from 1991 to 1993, while earning a Master of Fine Arts degree from University of Iowa. He is Co-Artistic Director of ZoMotion Arts with his wife, Holly Seitz Marchant, performing site-specific installations in natural environments, including tree-climbing as dance art form. In addition to his work as a choreographic artist, David is a recognized professional improvisational composer and performer, including contact improvisation, and has performed with notable artists such as Andrew Harwood and Chris Aiken.

Jonathan "JayWAN" Pattiwael is an Indonesian-American dancer, teacher, and choreographer from the global Hip-Hop civilization—a bohemian adventurer in love with the pursuit of knowledge through movement. JayWAN embodies a wellspring of knowledge in motion, weaving an ancestral tapestry at once ephemeral and eternal. Their artistic destiny is rooted in a celebrated Indonesian lineage; the Pattiwael name is synonymous with performance artistry, with their grandfather a revered ballet master and their aunt a national prima. This inheritance forms the foundation of a journey that unfolded across the urban landscapes of Indonesia, moving through cities like Banjarmasin, Makassar, and Semarang before settling in Jakarta. It was in that sprawling metropolis that they discovered the raw, expressive power of Hip-Hop, a cultural language whose rhythmic, groove-based knowledge resonated deeply with the Sundanese traditions of their heritage. JayWAN's artistic research navigates the intersection of Hip-Hop/House dance culture and contemporary concert dance. Their practice, rooted in the marginalized Black and Latin Queer communities that birthed these forms, investigates how embodied knowledge shapes identity and community. Through a methodology of "remixing" breaking, house, and indigenous dances with contemporary forms, their work challenges canonical boundaries and creates new frameworks for understanding the immigrant experience and the social body. As the director of Organi City, JayWAN has developed a distinct artistic philosophy that emerged through their practice—one that treats performance as physical excavation and emotional endurance. Their work investigates the architecture of the unspoken, where the "void" becomes a space for what cannot be uttered, and "mournings" pluralize to encompass the layered griefs of relationships, identities, and shared realities lost. In pieces like "a void of mournings"—presented at international venues from Finland's FinFringe Festival to the Fayetteville Movement Festival—JayWAN employs sand as a co-performer and living archive, recording the traces of movement much like memory preserves the echoes of experience. Their approach transforms the performance space into a ritual ground where confession, intimacy, and the weight of care become physically manifest through athletic duets, breathy tantrums, and the stark evidence of bodies moving through granular landscapes. This philosophical framework, while resonating with the traditions of Pina Bausch's Tanztheater and Allan Kaprow's Happenings, remains fundamentally emergent from JayWAN's own transcultural negotiation. They are a master in turning potential creative trainwrecks into dynamic ecosystems that engage abstract and narrative encounters between the physical body and the emergent themes of marginalized peoples. Their work has been presented across more than a dozen countries and numerous prestigious venues, including the Festival Entrelaçados in Portugal, b12 Festival in Berlin, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, and the Texas Woman's University Department of Dance. As an educator and tradition bearer, JayWAN’s work extends into the academy as a vital practice of somatic historiography. In their role as an Assistant Professor of Dance, they bear AfroAesthetic traditions, guiding students to define their identities by developing strategies to integrate themselves into a larger social world. Their teaching, a direct extension of their core philosophy, posits that the body in motion is a body thinking. They masterfully tap into the raw, innate body through a polyrhythmic, kinesthetic awareness, revealing the embodied scripts inscribed in our spaces, experiences, and physical memory. In workshops from "Postmodern Breaking" to "Groove as a Somatic Practice," they create an environment where these non-verbal, visual, and aural stories—the stories only the body can tell—are honored as vital ways of knowing and world-making. JayWAN remains a dedicated community leader and active street dancer. They are a co-founder of Heroes Rise Street Dance Academy, an organization dedicated to preserving and promoting Black Vernacular dance, and host "Enter the Cypher" in Austin, a jam series that applies hip-hop's community-building principles to support unhoused artists. You can still catch them in a cypher at hip-hop jams or competing in high-level battles, ensuring their teaching remains a living, breathing practice. JayWAN ultimately serves as a vital synthesizer: bridging the Pattiwael artistic legacy with the cypher, the groove of West Java with the pulse of the hip-hop nation, and the theoretical frameworks of the university with the embodied knowledge of the street. Through their work across Hip-Hop, street dance, contemporary, contact improvisation, and theatre communities, they continue to create performances that challenge cultural forces and initiate social action, tirelessly working to deepen our understanding of humanity through the kinetic language of movement. Recently, JayWAN has maintained a rigorous international touring schedule, completing summer European tours from 2023 through 2025. A highlight of this period was their 22-minute solo at the Festival Entrelaçados in Portugal, where they were recognized among the top eight emerging choreographers. This sustained global presence, coupled with their continued competition in events like the Gathering in Seattle and the Bashville Stampede, solidifies their unique position as a street dancer and scholar whose pedagogy is directly informed by active, international practice. JayWAN’s choreographies and performances have been commissioned and presented by a wide spectrum of national and international venues, including the FinFringe Festival (Finland), Festival Entrelaçados (Portugal), b12 Festival (Germany), IUGTE Conference (Austria), the Cleveland Dance Festival, Fayetteville Movement Festival, REST Fest by the Theorists, the Ohio Dance Festival, Texas Woman’s University, KH FRESH Festival (San Francisco), Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Heroes Rise Street Dance Academy, Tesla’s SpaceX Station, and the Contemporary at Laguna Gloria, among others.

Allison Smith (she/her) is a dance artist newly based in the Philadelphia area, recently graduating with a BFA in dance at The Ohio State University. While studying in the Dance Program, she worked closely with and received heavy influences from faculty members Momar Ndiaye, Eddie Taketa, and Abby Zbikowski, with whom she honed her interests in breath, weight, power, release, rhythm, and risk. Her current artistic pursuits revolve around storytelling, organic expression, multifaceted conversations, and in distorting perceived boundaries within the current concert dance world. Kayliani Sood (she/they) is a queer, femme dance artist, educator, and maker based in Philadelphia. As a multidisciplinary artist and somatic researcher, their personal work ranges in expression from movement to vocal, written, and visual arts and moves to articulate rich, personal narratives of neurodivergence and femmehood. They hold a BFA in Dance from the University of the Arts, and have performed with Brian Sanders, Curt Haworth, and Vincent Johnson, among others. Sood recently premiered the dance film “Sugar and Blue” at the 20/92 film festival, with collaborator Daniel Krantman, and in September of 2024 will present her solo, “Valerie” as part of the Cannonball Festival.

Carly Vanderheyden is a St. Louis based contemporary dance artist and educator. She holds a BFA from the University of Iowa and is currently pursuing an MFA at UW-Milwaukee. Following her performance career with Saint Louis Dance Theatre, she has performed internationally with VIM VIGOR and FLOCK. Carly has presented choreography on the Saint Louis Dance Theatre Trainees, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, among others. She is an adjunct lecturer at Washington University in St. Louis, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, and UW-Milwaukee. As a versatile collaborator, multidisciplinary creator, and artistic consultant, Carly is passionate about supporting the regional arts ecosystem in St. Louis.

Holly Seitz Marchant  is a dancer, performer, educator, choreographer and co-founder of Zo Motion Arts with collaborator, David Marchant. She is currently on faculty as an Assistant Professor of Dance in the Department of Fine and Performing Arts, Theatre and Dance Program at Saint Louis University.  Holly is thrilled to be serving on the board of directors for RESILIENCE Dance Company and to support their mission of putting the health and well-being of the dancers at the center of their work.  She believes that empowering dancers will foster creativity in artmaking processes and authenticity in performance practices which is evidenced in the stunning work she has already seen from RESILIENCE Dance Company.

Maddy (She/Her, Cincinnati, OH) is constantly challenging herself in her movement quality and creative process and incorporating her passion for authenticity into her work.

Will Brighton is a dancer, choreographer, and writer based in St Louis, MO. Will graduated Summa Cum Laude from Western Michigan University with a BFA in Dance and a BA in English, where he performed in works by Yin Yue, Christian Denice, BAIRA, Paul Taylor, and George Balanchine, as well as in concert alongside Peridance Contemporary Dance Company. Since graduating, Will has performed as a guest artist with Saint Louis Ballet, and is currently in his 5th season performing with Saint Louis Dance Theatre (formerly The Big Muddy Dance Company). Through SLDT, Will has originated roles in works by Joshua Peugh, Bradley Shelver, Norbert de la Cruz III, Sidra Bell, Brian Enos, Omar Roman de Jesus, Kirven Douthit-Boyd, and many others. In 2020, Will was selected as the winner of Young Dancers Initiative’s Emerging Choreography Project, and in 2021 was selected as an Emerging Choreographer for Eisenhower Dance Detroit’s NewDANCEfest. His choreography has also been presented through Space Station Dance Residency, The Big Muddy Dance Company’s Elevate Student Project, Chamberlain Dance, American College Dance Association, and MADCO’s Dare to Dance Festival. In addition to his work in dance, Will has been commissioned as a playwright by Queer Theatre Kalamazoo and The Kalamazoo Short Play Reading Series for their virtual play festivals.

Catherine graduated from the Toronto Metropolitan University dance program, earning a BFA with Honours (2005). Catherine has been a dancer with the DJD professional company (Calgary) since 2007. With DJD, she has performed in more than 30 original productions and created choreography for 6 of these productions. She was the Artistic Director of DJD’s dancer-choreographed shows Velocity (2017) and Borderland (2015). Catherine also works independently as a dance artist, choreographer, and producer. In 2023, Catherine produced Generations, a mixed-bill contemporary dance production and created her first contemporary dance short film, Everybody’s Heading for the Exit. In 2020, Catherine established the Bodied Indivisible ensemble with Shayne Johnson, and they presented their debut production, which consisted of four works. Catherine’s choreography featuring live music in performance includes The Depths of Radiance (2023), The Suit (2023), compositions by Jon McCaslin, Don’t Wake the Lions (2021, 2024), composition by Tom Richards, form, act, cease, ensue (2017) in collaboration with musician Jeremy Gignoux, and Tethered (2016), composition by Rubim de Toledo. Catherine completed five seasons as a choreographer with Alberta Dance Theatre for Young People, has 25 years of teaching experience, and continues mentoring dancers in DJD’s recreational school, Professional Training Program and Youth Training Program.

Abbi LeBaube, a native of St. Louis, Missouri, has spent the last twenty one years passionately researching and loving dance. Her experience began at Motion Express School of Dance and continued at Webster University where she graduated with her BFA. She is a believer that collaboration is the key to life and everyone can dance. This impulsive woman loves to move fearlessly and finds great strength in partner work. She is ecstatic to be entering her fifth year as a company artist with Resilience Dance Company! A few of her freelance experiences include performing in works through Space Station Dance Residency, PrideFest St. Louis, and Chew & Spit. Her own choreography has been presented at the St. Louis Contemporary Dance Festival, commissioned by Big Plate Dance where she collaborated with e-GoS music production, as well as Resilience Dance Company, and Space Station Dance. Her values in movement and creation include risk, storytelling, physicality, and interdisciplinary collaborations. Zoe (she/her) is a movement artist and creative from St. Louis, Missouri. Taught first by her grandmother, Judy Briscuso, Zoe went on to earn degrees in Dance and Journalism from Webster University, performing works by Pilobolus and Abby Z and the New Utility. She has trained and collaborated with artists Xi Zhao, Dawn Karlovsky, Maggi Dueker, Tayler Kinner and Eve Mason, and studied under artists Beckah Reed, Betsy Brandt and Kirven Douthit-Boyd, among others. Zoe has performed as a guest artist and collaborator with choreographer Tú Hóang at American Dance Festival, Ellie Harrsion in SpaceStation Dance Residency, Josiah Gunderson and Renée Austin in Resilience Dance Company’s Collective Realities, and with Marlee Doniff in Chew & Spit. Her choreography has been featured at the American College Dance Association (ACDA) conference, and her movement philosophy draws from somatics and subtle energy, social dance and the written word.

Abby Marchesseault is a freelance choreographer, performer, and teacher whose work explores human dependency—on ourselves, one another, nature, society, history, and the spiritual. She began her professional career in New York City, performing and touring with numerous artists and companies including The Connecticut Ballet. Since relocating to the Midwest, Abby has focused on collaborative dance-making with sculptors, musicians, painters, and textile artists. Her work has been presented across the U.S. and internationally in the UK, Australia, Indonesia, and Nigeria. Abby currently serves as an adjunct teaching professor at the University of Notre Dame, and a faculty member at Southold Dance Theater.

Dale and Nikki seek to reconnect art with the essence of nature, drawing deep inspiration from the waters of Mother Earth. Through careful observation of nature and its processes, they have developed a language grounded in intuitive, improvisational methods that gradually evolve into structured choreography and synchronized movement. Their style is a culmination of their training in Gaga and ballet. Their creative approach relies on a shared intuition through contemporary movement, fostering a natural flow between them that reflects nature in all its stages. The integration of poetry further enhances their movement, transforming the performance into a visceral experience for both the performers and the audience. By incorporating living props, such as flowers and contained water, they create a dynamic, multidisciplinary exploration of art, seamlessly bridging the realms of dance and other artistic forms.

Lorraine "Rain" Stippec earned her BFA from Webster University, graduating Magna Cum Laude and Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts Department Honors. Rain has performed and choreographed for Webster University’s Creations Concerts, LGCFA’s BFA Concerts, WUDE Concerts, the Central Region American College Dance Association, STL’s Dancin’ in the Streets, and her work has also been presented at the International Human Rights Conference held in St. Louis, MO. ​ After completing her degree, Rain toured China with hip hop group “The Famous Crew” through Sterling Plus Entertainment. She then returned to her alma mater as the Department of Dance Associate and was additionally commissioned to set choreography for an alumni centered New Works concert. ​ Theatrically, choreography credits include numerous productions for community and professional companies such as Bravo Theatre Group, Maryland Heights Theatre, and Insight Theatre, Co. and many more! Arts For Life has recognized Rain for Best Choreography, Featured Dancer, and awarded her with their inaugural Art Education Scholarship. Rain has thrived in St. Louis performing at The Muny as well as with The Fabulous Fox Theatre Tellerettes. Dancing for film, Rain can be seen in CMC Film’s “Le Ballet Quotidien” as Claudius and in Leah Robertson’s “Vows of Melancholy." ​ In 2017, Rain became a victim of a random act of gun violence in downtown St. Louis and since surviving to tell the tale of her recovery has performed for EKHO Entertainment, CommUNITY Arts StL, and Angel Band Project. Along with podcast, radio and news appearances, she has been invited as a keynote speaker for numerous events - appearing on Facebook Watch’s Red Table Talk interviewed by Jada Pinkett-Smith and a national commercial for The CW Network. ​ Rain continues to pursue a motivational speaking career in conjunction with teaching and choreographing for dance students throughout Missouri and Illinois while also on staff as the Assistant Director at MAC Dance.

Lian Long Xuan is a movement artist based in Singapore, and he is currently pursuing his Bachelor's of Fine Arts degree in dance at Temple University. Starting his dance journey as a b-boy in 2012, he had attended and contributed to community events, as well as won multiple competitions. In 2019, Lian discovered contemporary dance and had a paradigm shift in his craft. Since then, he has been expanding his craft beyond performance, delving into choreographing, screendance, and producing his own shows. Lian dedicated his artistic adventure into bridging the gap between street dance and concert dance, seeing value in both disciplines and their co-existence in the same space. His recent achievements include as of 2025/2026 are being the vice-president of NHSDA, one of the youngest selected finalists of choreographers for the Palm Desert Choreography Festival at Palm Desert, California, producing his own production “FOOTPRINTS”, founder and artistic director of the dance collective, Terraformers. Selected the choreographer of over 100 participants and 40 countries for WHITE WAVE soloduo festival in NYC/Seoul Lian Long Xuan Terraformers Founded in 2025 under the guidance of Artistic Director Lian Long Xuan, Terraformers arises from the idea of transformation and renewal. To terraform is to breathe life into barren ground, to shape what is empty into a place where being can unfold. In this spirit, Terraformers moves through a continuous act of cultivation, seeking motion born from stillness and meaning drawn from mystery. Through disciplined inquiry and the convergence of diverse inspirations, they weave clarity with intuition, forming landscapes of movement that invite both reflections and wonders. Their work is an offering, a shared space where exploration, connection, and becoming are allowed to take root. “Hearts and minds as one, no place we cannot call home, boundless we shall go.”