FOUNDER & ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Kelsey Lee (she/they) is an interdisciplinary artist who expands the language of dance by embracing speech, visual art, and digital media to create strange yet familiar worlds. Her choreography has been presented all over the country and abroad, including Midwest RAD Fest (MI), Milwaukee Fringe Festival (WI), Cleveland Dance Festival (OH), the McGuffey Art Center (VA), and Ponderosa (Germany), to name a few. In 2024 they founded Dance PlayHouse to make more space for dance along the West Michigan lakeshore. She has taught a variety of dance styles to all ages for the past decade, and is a registered yoga teacher (RYT-200).

They began dancing at 8 years old at the Dance Factory in Delavan, Wisconsin where they studied ballet in the Cecchetti Method, modern, and jazz. She has a BFA in Contemporary Dance & Choreography with a double major in Psychology from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. There, they received two undergraduate research fellowships for somatic research under the mentorship of Maria Gillespie, and was the recipient of several dance scholarships, including the Ed Burgess Legacy Scholarship. After graduation, she completed a Meisner technique training program at The Acting Studio in NYC, New York. They are a company member with Currents Dance Theatre, and have danced professionally with Hixon Dance, Hyperlocal MKE, Columbus Modern Dance Company, Quasimondo Milwaukee Physical Theatre, Gina Laurenzi Dance Project, and Peter Stathas Dance.

COMPANY MEMBER

Kaleigh Estby (she/her) is an aspiring dancer, choreographer, and artist from Chicago, currently pursuing a BA in Dance Performance and Choreography with a Professional Writing Minor at Hope College in Holland, MI (graduating in 2026). She began her training at Dance in the Light in Illinois and took many classes with companies including Moonwater Dance Company, Chicago Tap Theatre, and Chicago Dance Crash. She was a member of Moonwater Youth Company in its inaugural year. She is currently a dedicated member of H2 Dance Company, directed by Matthew Farmer and Jasmine Meija, and was previously with Nicki Flinn-Culver’s StrikeTime Dance Theatre. In the Summer of 2024, Kaleigh served as Associate Choreographer alongside Lindsey Hanson for a site-specific dance film. She has participated in various intensives and conferences, including COMMON Conservatory CREATE AND PERFORM, Water Street Dance Festival, DACI, and NDEO, enhancing her dance education. At Hope College, she has contributed to the dance community through performances including Dance X, SDS, and Senior Capstone. Kaleigh’s diverse experiences and unwavering passion for dance reflect her commitment to artistic growth and expression.

COMPANY MEMBER

Caitlin Miller (she/her) was born and raised in Fenwick, Michigan. She started her training at Flat River Dance Company at age 4. In Spring 2024, she completed her B.A. in Dance and minor in Leadership for Social Change at Western Michigan University. During her time at WMU, she performed in works choreographed by Seyong Kim and Monique Haley. She also attended summer intensives such as American Ballet Theatre’s Intensive and Deeply Rooted Dance Theater’s Pre-Professional Intensive. Currently, she is a company member at Currents Dance Theater in Grand Rapids, Michigan and Dance PlayHouse in Grand Haven, Michigan. In the future, she plans on participating in nonprofit work supporting advocacy.

COMPANY MEMBER

Emily completed her B.F.A. in Dance at Western Michigan University in 2022. While at WMU, she performed in works choreographed by David Curwen, Seyong Kim, Kelsey Paschich, Cat Manturuk, and Francisco Gella. Emily also has a certificate of completion from Gibney Dance from their Gibney Professional Training Certificate Program. Emily started dancing when she was 4 and started competitive dance when she was 7. At the age of 16, she transferred to a ballet school, where she trained in the Vaganova Technique. She also attended multiple summer intensives such as the American Ballet Theater Intensive, Visceral Dance Chicago Intensive, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago Pre-Professional Intensive, New York University Tisch Summer Dance Residency, Francisco Gella Dance Works Seattle Dance Advance Intensive, and Peridance Blueprint Intensive. Emily is currently a part of Dance PlayHouse, Currents Dance Theatre, and CPR Dance: Inhale Movement. She is also teaching at BSD Dance Studio in Portage Michigan and guest teaching at studios in West/Southwest Michigan.

GUEST PERFORMER, 2024
GUEST CHOREOGRAPHER, 2025

Kendra DeFazio (she/her) is a contemporary dance artist and choreographer based in Grand Rapids, MI. She began her training at South Coast Conservatory and Orange County School of the Arts in Southern California at age 13. Kendra then earned her Bachelors of Arts in Dance Performance and Choreography from Hope College in 2018. While at Hope, she was a member of H2 Dance Company, performing in annual concerts, festivals around the midwest, in Chicago Tap Theatre’s annual concert, and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. After graduating, Kendra relocated to Chicago, IL where she performed and choreographed with Joel Hall Dancers, Lucid Banter Project, Simantikos Dance Chicago, and Inaside Chicago Dance's Choreography Competition. In 2022, she relocated to Grand Rapids to create Currents Dance Theatre, which is currently beginning its second season. Kendra is also a co-founder of West Michigan Dance Festival and teaches adult open level dance classes at Midwest Movement Collective, where she is passionate about making dance training accessible to all backgrounds and abilities.

GUEST CHOREOGRAPHER, 2025

Emma Kent graduated from Grand Valley State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree. During her time at Grand Valley, she majored in dance and was a member of Momentum dance club. She has performed choreography by artists such as Renaldo Maurice, Rachel Abrahams, Leslie Scott, and Deborah Lohse. She has trained at summer intensives hosted by American Ballet Theatre, Ballet Met, Joffrey New York, and Grand Rapids Ballet. She is currently a company member at Currents Dance Theatre and Wellspring - Cori Terry & Dancers.

GUEST CHOREOGRAPHER, 2025

John grew up in Portland, Michigan, and began dancing as a hobby after being inspired by the likes of Michael Jackson and the “Step Up” movie series. After graduating high school, John attended Columbia College Chicago and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in dance. He performed professionally with Mordine & Company Dance Theatre and Khecari, while also teaching dance at Studio of Performing Arts Jump. In 2018 John moved to Japan to attend Japanese language school, and the following year he passed an audition to become a member of Hattori Hanzo and the Ninjas, a performance group that puts on shows all over Japan and occasionally in other countries as well. John is now in the midst of pursuing a degree in physical therapy, and is happy to be back in the Michigan dance scene.

GUEST PERFORMER, 2024

Abby Mains graduated from Hope College in 2024 with bachelor’s degrees in Dance Performance/Choreography and Psychology. At Hope, she trained in jazz, modern, ballet, hip hop, yoga, world dance, tap, and improvisation with instruction from Sharon Wong, Heather Cornell, Matthew Farmer, Julie Powell, Lindsey Hanson, Jasmine Mejia, and Kara Brems. Mains also studied at the London Contemporary School of Dance in ballet and contemporary under the instruction of Vivien Wood, Anna Helsby, Blue Makwana, Amarnah Osajivbe-Amuludun, Hannes Langolf, Tom Afiyan-English, James Olvio, Luca Braccia, Luke Birch, and Jonny Vieco. Mains has performed numerous times at Hope (both live and filmed) with choreography by Sharon Wong, Stephen Iannacone, Matthew Farmer, William Crowley, Jasmine Meijia, Nicole Flinn, and Kristen Farmer. Mains was a member of StrikeTime Dance Theatre, directed by Nicole Flinn, for its 2021-22 season and joined H2 Dance Company, co-directed by Matthew Farmer and Jasmine Mejia, for its 2022 and 2023 seasons.

GUEST CHOREOGRAPHER, 2025

Lachan Niedbala is a professional dancer, choreographer, and educator based in Kalamazoo, Michigan. With 23 years of dance training and nearly a decade of experience in choreographing, Lachan has established herself as a versatile force in the dance community. She has choreographed for a wide range of platforms, with her work being performed in Chicago (Illinois), Paris (France), and various cities in Michigan, including Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids, Detroit, and Holland. Lachan’s choreography has been featured in prestigious festivals such as RADfest (2021, 2022, 2024), Detroit Dance City Festival (2023, 2024), Emergence Dance by Alluvion Dance Chicago (2019), DaCi USA (2023), and Oakland Dance Festival (2024), cementing her place as an influential voice in the midwest dance community.

As a passionate educator, Lachan has been teaching professionally for 6 years after almost a decade of experience as a student/assistant teacher. Her masterclasses have been featured at organizations such as Young Dancers Initiative, Oakland Dance Festival, Wellspring/Cori Terry & Dancers, and Ballet Kalamazoo. In 2022, Lachan founded Movement Reservoir Dance Company, where she serves as the Artistic Director leading the company in its creative endeavors, while facilitating exploration through dance as creative expression. Through MRDC, she has been curating and producing innovative dance concerts, performing and collaborating within the Kalamazoo community and beyond, and sharing space with local dancers in their dance journeys. 

In addition to her work with Movement Reservoir, Lachan is a co-founder of the West Michigan Dance Festival and serves on the board of Dance Playhouse. She also has been the director of the Wellspring Youth Performing Ensemble since 2021. She has been involved in festival and event productions, having volunteered for the Wellspring Community Outreach Committee in 2019 and interned for the Brighton Dance Festival and RADfest. Lachan has choreographed for dance companies including Chamberlain Dance, Wellspring/Cori Terry and Dancers, Atelier Dance Company, and the Novi Dance Program. She has also performed with companies like CPR Dance: Inhale Movement, Wellspring/Cori Terry & Dancers, Chamberlain Dance Company, Atelier Dance Company, and Tapestry Dance Company.

Currently, Lachan is pursuing certificates in Horton Modern Dance Technique, PBT (Progressing Ballet Technique), and Yoga 200, continually expanding her expertise. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Dance Performance and Choreography from Hope College (2019) and plans to pursue an MFA in Dance. Lachan aspires to create a dance community that is authentic, intentional, and encouraging of each individual's pursuit in their dance journey. Dance is truly a vulnerable act and can only be explored in its fullest capacities within a supportive and empowering community. Dance is meant for anyone and everyone and Lachan seeks to help people discover how dance plays a role in their lives and to see movement from new perspectives. 

GUEST PERFORMER, 2025

Izaiah Ramirez is an actor based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He earned his BFA from UW-Milwaukee Peck School of the arts and is an incoming 2025 MFA Theatre student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. With a background in stage performance, he has appeared in numerous productions, specializing in storytelling and immersive theatre. In addition to acting, he is passionate about voice work and narrative-driven projects. Izaiah is thrilled and honored to lend his voice and be a part of moths are afraid of the dark, and would like to thank Kelsey Lee and the entire creative team for this opportunity.

GUEST PERFORMER, 2024

Madeline Williams is a graduate of Hope College with a Bachelor of Arts in Dance and Business and a concentration in Dance Pedagogy. During college, Williams was a Company Member of Matthew Farmer and Jasmine Mejia's H2 Dance Company, an Apprentice with Kendra Defazio's Currents Dance Theatre, and a Company Member of Nicole Flinn-Culver's StrikeTime Dance Theatre. Through her time in these companies, Williams has had the pleasure of working with and performing works by Sharon Wong, Heather Cornell, Matthew Farmer, Steven lannacone, Jasmine Mejia, and William Crowley. Madeline is passionate about dance education as well and currently teaches at studios in the West Michigan area. Her choreography has been showcased at the Centre de Danse du Marais in Paris, France, Detroit Dance City Festival, and ACDA's East-Central Conference, along with multiple Hope College Choreography showcases.