Ryan Dick (they/he) is a Chicago based dancer and choreographer. Since the start of their professional career in 2021, Ryan has had the chance to premiere their own work with Alluvion Dance Chicago and Concert Dance Inc. Ryan was a four-year company member of Noumenon Dance Ensemble, a part of New Dances 2023 and they currently dance with Alluvion Dance Chicago, Scription Dance Theatre, and Boykin Dance Project.

Laine Dunn is a choreographer and dance artist from the small city of Galesburg IL. They received training and taught at All That Dance in Galesburg and also had the opportunity to choreograph for Galesburg High School's theatre program as well as local events. After earning their Associate of Arts degree from Carl Sandburg College in 2024, they moved to Chicago to pursue their Bachelor of Arts in Dance (2026) at Loyola University Chicago. Past choreographic projects include their works Fall/Ascend (2025), Way Station (2026), and The Humanity of it All (2025) which was restaged for the 2026 ACDA Central Conference. Their passion for dance goes far beyond performance, and they are on a constant mission to discover new ways to utilize dance as a method of research, reflection, and social justice.

Haley Fort (she/they) is an artist, creative, choreographer, and performer from the United Stated, based in Oklahoma. She graduated from UCO with a BS in Forensic Science and BFA in Dance Performance, where they were a member of Kaleidoscope Dance Company. Here she trained with a number of guest artists and faculty members, in a multitude of styles. While she trained as a young adult, she also fell in love with choreographing. In recent years, they have visited Germany to train and perform alongside other dancers, choreographed for the Oklahoma Contemporary Dance Festival, teaches and performs with Race Dance Collective, performed in Cure-8, and much more. She plans to continue creating art and collaborating with artists as much as possible. They wish to keep moving in all ways possible and traveling around the world to explore dance in all spaces.

Sydney (she/they) began dancing at the age of 3 in the Chicagoland area, training pre-professionally in the competition and convection circuit. They continued in higher education at Point Park University earning a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Modern Dance under the direction of Garfield Lemonius and Dr. Colleen Hooper. While studying Sydney worked with choreographers including Kiesha Lalama, Jason McDole, Martha Nichols, Christopher Huggins, Rocker Verastique, Jess Hendricks, and many more. They also participated in numerous student choreography projects as well as choreographing their first full length piece. Graduating in 2022, Summa Cum Laude, Sydney moved back to Chicago to begin their career. Now working as a dancer, choreographer, teacher, and judge; Sydney has been seen in full length productions, commercials, state fairs, short films, and live theater improv groups. They’ve trained at Visceral Dance Center, Ruth Page Center for the Arts, Second City Theater, as well as multiple dance intensives and festivals throughout the Midwest. Sydney has been awarded the Artistic and Academic Excellence Award 2022 from their graduating class; as well as First Runner-Up Female Actor of the Year 2023 at IMTA (International Modeling and Talent Association). Sydney began judging for Indiana High School Dance Team Association under the direction of Kelly Berheide. And shortly after joining Precision Arts Challenge (PAC) in the fall of 2024, and One Rythymn Dance Convention in the Spring of 2026. Sydney is an aspiring choreographer, educator, content creator and so much more. Follow along on her socials to keep up with all they are doing! Instagram: @sydney_fugett

Greta Jenkins is a dance artist, choreographer, personal trainer and business owner based In Milwaukee WI. She received her BFA in dance performance from Ball State University. Greta is a company artist and rehearsal director with THREE POINT PROJECT. She is also a company artist with DanceWorks Performance MKE. Greta has performed with THREE POINT PROJECT artists in MashUp Contemporary Dance Company’s International Women’s Day Festival, Geometry Dance Company’s season show WALK ON, and Indigo Dance Company’s show HUSK; all performances in Los Angeles. Greta is also the owner and founder of her personal training business Lifted by Greta where she aims to create a space where every person can embrace their pursuit of improved movement, strength, and confidence in their body’s unique quality of life.

Nell Ritchey was born and raised in Walworth, Wisconsin. She earned her BFA in contemporary dance from Indiana University in 2024. Over the course of her career, she has had the privilege of working with notable artists such as Cameron McKinney, Alysia Johnson, and Lindsey Matheis. Nell is in her second season with Alluvion Dance Chicago.

Picabo Saunders (she/her) is a dynamic dance artist, educator, and choreographer from Wabash, Indiana, driven by a passion for movement, culture, and human connection. She holds a B.F.A. in Contemporary Dance and a B.A. in International Studies from Indiana University, with a minor in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures. Her dance journey has taken her across the globe, including to Jerusalem, Israel, where she studied at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance. Throughout her undergraduate career, she performed in works by renowned choreographers such as Stafford Berry Jr., Elizabeth Shea, Noa Tsuk, Alon Karniel, Noa Wertheim, Maya Orchin, and Stefanie Nelson. Picabo has continued her training at prestigious programs including Dance Italia and the LINK Audition Festival. Her choreographic work has been recognized in festivals such as Trifecta Dance Collective’s A New Light (2024) and Moving Memory: Next Generation (2024), a Dance Italia Alumni Festival. Currently, she is in her second season as a Company Artist with Solarium Dance Company and is excited to continue growing with the ensemble. Deeply inspired by her academic background in anthropology and dance studies, Picabo is committed to creating inclusive, nurturing spaces that honor diverse artistic voices and embodied histories.

Carly Vanderheyden (Green Bay, WI) is a contemporary dance artist based in St. Louis, MO. Carly graduated from the University of Iowa with a BFA in Dance-Pedagogy, BA in Health and Human Physiology, and a certificate in Arts Entrepreneurship. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Dance at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Carly performed with Saint Louis Dance Theatre, formerly The Big Muddy Dance Company, under the artistic direction of Brian Enos from 2017-2022 and Kirven Douthit-Boyd from 2022-2024. In 2024, Carly performed in Germany with Shannon Gillen and Jason Cianciulli of VIM VIGOR at B12 in Berlin, as well as with Alice Klock and Florian Lochner of FLOCK in Schwäbisch Hall. Carly has been featured in performance collaborations with the Pulitzer Arts Foundation, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, Jazz St. Louis, Resilience Dance Company, among others. Carly is an American Ballet Theatre National Training Curriculum certified ballet teacher for Pre-Primary through Level 5, 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher, and Certified Progressing Ballet Technique instructor. Carly works as a freelance photographer and graphic designer, as well as a teaching artist, choreographer, and rehearsal director at the Center of Creative Arts (COCA). Carly has presented her choreography at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Saint Louis Dance Theatre Trainees, Modern American Dance Company, among others. Carly works as an adjunct professor in dance at Washington University in St. Louis, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She is the founder of St. Louis Dance Headquarters and creative director of Dancers Making Moves, two projects partially funded by the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis Individual Artist Grants in 2024 and 2025. Throughout her creative pursuits, Carly has a passion for making the world a more thoughtfully connected place through the arts. www.carlyvanderheyden.com

Kristen Whalen (she/her) is a Chicago-based artist and a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she received her BA in Dance and BS in Industrial Engineering. During her time in college, she was fortunate to perform in works by Cynthia Oliver, Tere O’Connor, Roxane D’Orleans Juste, and Sara Hook among many others. In her last year of college, Whalen was selected as the recipient of the Lisa Carducci Memorial Scholarship. Whalen is currently Rehearsal Director for Alluvion Dance Chicago and continues to work on freelance projects with regional artists including KT Williams, Sarah Marks Mininsohn, and Kayt MacMaster.