Melissa Riker is Artistic Director and Choreographer of Kinesis Project dance theatre. She is a dancer and choreographer who emerged as a strong creative voice in the NYC performance world. Riker is the Executive Producer of the EstroGenius Festival, Founder and Co-Director of Women in Motion and Founder and Collective Member of Dance Rising. Riker’s dances and aesthetic layer her training in ballet, modern dance, martial arts, theatre and circus. She invents large-scale out-door performances and spontaneous moments of dance for public spaces.

In 2022 Riker was the Artist in Residence for the Progressive Failure of Brittle Rocks Conference (PRF22) an international conference of Geologists, Geomorphologists and Mechanical Engineers, convened by Dr. Missy Eppes and her colleagues. In 2023, Riker’s work as a dance advocate is through Dance Rising and Dance/NYC as a community organizer and master facilitator of the Dance Industry Census Roundtables.

Audiences and critics have called Riker’s work “a Marx Brothers’ routine with soul,” “A movable feast.” And from The New York Times, her choreography is: “comically acrobatic, gracefully classical, visually arresting.” Her work has been seen and supported nationally, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, Boston, Philadelphia, Vermont, Florida and in New York City at such venerable venues as Danspace Project, Judson Church, Joyce Soho, The Minskoff Theatre, The Cunningham Studio, West End Theatre and Dixon Place.  The company dances outside in sculpture gardens, universities, and annually since 2006 in Battery Park’s Bosque Gardens and The Cloisters Lawn as well as hosting over 30 surprise performances all over New York City and the tri-state area as an element of the company’s earned income and outreach programming with volunteer populated flashmobs. Residencies include: Earthdance 2006, Omi International Arts Center 2008, Kaatsbaan International Dance Center 2011, TheaterLab 2014, Adelphi University 2014. Ms. Riker is a 2016 and 2017 CDI Residency Fellow, 2015 LMCC Community Arts Fund grantee and was commissioned by The Brooklyn Botanic Garden for a surprise large-scale work. Performances of the Company’s work Secrets and Seawalls were seen at Omi International Arts Center, LongHouse Reserve, Gateway National Park in partnership with Rockaways Artist Alliance and The South Street Seaport Museum. Ms. Riker has received commissions from Carson Fox and the Ephemeral Festival in 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 for large-scale outdoor events, NYU in 1998, for an outdoor work long before “flashmob” was coined, 2006 and 2008 grants from the Puffin Foundation for her work Community Movements, a dance work with community volunteers, Fellowships from the Dodge Foundation, Space Grant Residencies from 92nd St Y, The New 42nd St Studio, Gibney Dance Center, and The Joyce Theatre Foundation, and grants from The Bowick Family Trust and John C. Robinson to support the continued work of Kinesis Project dance theatre. Kinesis Project’s home studio is part of the Nord Anglia International School NY 5th Floor Artist in Residence program on Second Street in the East Village.

Jorgie Ingram (Dancer/Collaborator) (she/her) uses movement, imagination, and sensing to facilitate an expansion of what we believe to be possible of us and the space around us. We imagine and create tangible environments that support us; with emphasis in somatic practice and mindfulness, Jorgie enacts this through dance research and performance, choreography, writing, multimedia art-making practices, creative consultation, and project management. Based in New York City, Jorgie is an alumna of The University of The Arts, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude with her BFA in Dance. Most recently, Jorgie has been invited to perform with Jungwoong Kim & collaborators at Studio 34 in Philadelphia, in Jungwoong’s improvisation score, improvising home, has worked as a guest artist with Eva Dean Dance Company in Brooklyn, and has acted as a design correspondent and cinematographer for Jason Vu’s multimedia dance work, THROUGH NOISE, commissioned by The Asian Arts Initiative. She currently works with Kinesis Project, Daria Faïn, and freelances in New York City + beyond.

Stephanie Shin (Dancer/Collaborator/ she/her) is a New York City based dancer, choreographer, producer, and arts administrator originally from Ames, Iowa. She creates and presents movement based work in live performance and film mediums. As a dancer, she has performed work by Brandon Coleman, Marc Nuñez/Gotham Dance Theater, Lindsey Leduc among others. Stephanie founded Synchronous, a creative lab and performance group motivated by a shared desire to collaborate and perform. With this collective she has choreographed and premiered pieces at various venues, including the Nimbus Arts Center, Mark O’Donnell Theater, and Arts on Site. Synchronous was the first movement artist in residence at Twenty Summers in Provincetown, MA in May 2024. Alongside her work with Synchronous, she has presented work at the 2023 AAPI We Belong Here festival presented by J Chen Project and has choreographed and produced films with artists such as Middle Sattre. Stephanie is a Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Creative Engagement grant recipient and a 2024 inaugural 14 Street Y Dance Artist in Residence. In addition to working as a freelance artist, she produces and curates The Craft: Performances & Cocktails, a performance series in an informal bar setting, and works for Asian American Arts Alliance (A4)

Aryanna Allen (Dancer/Collaborator /she/they) is a Brooklyn-based dancer, choreographer, teacher, and arts administrator. They attended Emory University, where they performed works by Kendra Portier, Dafi Altabeb, George Staib, and Gregory Catellier. Throughout her freelance career, Aryanna has choreographed and performed in festivals like the Alabama Dance Festival, Modern Atlanta Dance Festival, and Modern Moves (NYC). During their time with Kit Modus in Atlanta GA, they performed works by Mark Caserta, Marco Palomino, Yoshito Sakuraba, and Christian Denice. Over the past 5 years, Aryanna has led classes in modern, contemporary, ballet, jazz, and tap, to students ages 7-18 across the east coast. Currently, they dance with Kinesis Project, RogueWave, and KTCO Company. They serve as Administrative Manager for MBDance, Administrative Director for Lyrric Jackson Dance Company, and work as Research Assistant for T. Lang Dance.

Gioia von Staden (Dancer/Collaborator / she/her) is a Brooklyn-based artist whose work encompasses performance and choreography. She is currently performing with 32nd Pack Dance Company, and has most recently performed works by Joey Anderson, Claire Goldes, and Olga Rabetskaya. She’s danced in films and music videos for artists Kate Grahn and Been Stellar. Gioia graduated with her BA in Dance and American Studies from Barnard College, where she had the pleasure of training with Jess Smith and Chelsea Ainsworth of Dual Rivet, Shannon Gillen, Wesley Ensminger and Thuy Wyckoff. After graduation she danced with Salt Contemporary Dance's Second Company, performing works by Alice Klock, Garrett Smith, Sloan Caldwell, and Amy Gunter-Lolofie. Outside of dancing she is a Pilates and yoga instructor, and loves finding new places to eat and drink wine! She is so excited to be joining Kinesis Project dance theater.

Ryan Smith (Dancer/Collaborator / He/Him) is a multifaceted artist, educator, and certified personal trainer based in New York City, originally from Prince George’s County, Maryland. With a deep-rooted focus on fitness, wellness, and mindful movement, Ryan’s work spans strength and conditioning, mobility, and flexibility training, with an emphasis on sustainable movement patterns and the mind-body connection. Drawing from his personal somatic journey through dance, yoga, and fitness practices, he creates a holistic approach that enhances both physical performance and overall well-being.

Ryan’s experience in the fitness industry, alongside his background in dance and wellness practices, allows him to offer a balanced approach to training. He integrates principles of functional movement and injury prevention, helping clients and students develop strength, mobility, and flexibility while promoting longevity. In addition to his personal training work, Ryan’s collaborations with Pearson Widrig Dance Theatre, Kinesis Projects, and various film projects explore how movement interacts with space, blending performance with fitness.

Committed to advocating for emerging dancers and athletes, Ryan fosters inclusive spaces that prioritize health, healing, and empowerment. Through his work, he helps individuals build strength both physically and mentally, using movement as a tool for education and personal growth across diverse communities.

Yang Sun (Dancer/Collaborator / she/her) is an award winning dancer, choreographer, and director, working in the intersection of movement, color, and poetry. Her strong bond with movements started with improvisation practices in the field, cafeteria, corridor, riverbank and other non-traditional spaces. Grew up in China and later found her path in the U.S., Yang holds a Summa Cum Laude Bachelor of Arts from Amherst College. She is also an alum for Trinity/LA MAMA Performing Arts Program in New York as well as NUOVAX Professional Dance program in Torino Italy. As a dancer, she is the 3rd place winner for ImpulsTanz Freedom is a Dancer Dance Battle in 2023, Vienna. Yang has worked with choreographers including Shen Wei, Jonathan Frederick, Alleyne Dance, Jordan Demetrius Lloyd, Jenna Riegel, Elena Puchol Sola, Michael Getman, etc. She is currently performing with Yoshiko Chuma and The School of Hardknocks.

As a creator, she has curated a series of public interactive installations Project 2020 in the town of Amherst spring 2021. From 2021-present, she presented choreographic works at Arts on Site, Kirby Theater, American Dance Festival Informal Concert, ACDA Northeast Regional Gala, La MaMa ETC etc. Her most recent solo work Poet was selected as one of the 16 finalists to be considered for New York Live Arts Fresh Tracks Residency 2024. In 2024, her dance film Poet was selected by numerous international exhibition & festivals.

Hendri Walujo, Dancer/Collaborator, born in Jakarta with happy feet, lived in Dallas where he started the dance, and ends up in Seattle where he has had the priviliege to study, collaborate and perform with the incredible talent of Mark Haim, Lucia Neare('s Theaterical Wonders), KT Niehoff, Jessica Jobaris (& General Magic), Ellie Sandstrom, Kristin Hapke, Carla Barragan/BQdanza, Vanessa DeWolf, Stephanie Liapis, Jurg Koch, Gender Tender, and many other dance luminaries.
​He is thankful to continue performing onstage, offstage and on films; on city sidewalks, parks and beaches; in museums, galleries, and warehouses; in Ecuador, Paris, and NYC. Hendri has been working with Kinesis Project in Seattle since 2016.

Kimberly Holloway, Dancer/Collaborator A North Carolina native, Kimberly is a creative soul who likes rich depth of connection, spontaneity, and adventuring to new places. This led her to earn her BFA at Belhaven University, then on to Kansas City where she spent three seasons with Störling Dance Theater, and finally westward to beautiful Seattle.

Kimberly is passionate about conveying specific narratives abstractly enough to allow audiences to translate the work through their own experiences. She pairs emotionally visceral movement with technical articulations, her movement infused with quirkiness and virtuosity. She desires to be part of seeing people become themselves fully. Her work has shown at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, The Folly Theater (Kansas City), Out on a Limb Festival (Olympia, WA), Waterfire Arts Center (Providence, RI), and in Seattle at Velocity Dance Center, Fremont Abbey, Studio Current, and Seattle International Dance Festival. Kimberly is the recipient of grants from the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture and Artist Life Guild, the Cornish Arts Incubator Residency, and is an artist in residence at the Fremont Abbey. She has been honored to perform with artists including Michelle Miller/Catapult Dance, Störling Dance Theater, Stone Dance Collective, Shannon Stewart, Alana O Rogers, Maya Soto, and Ashleigh Claire Miller/Faunix. Kimberly has been dancing and creating with Kinesis Project since 2016

Kimberly enjoys teaching and sharing movement through classes, and intensives. She teaches for workshops and intensives in NYC, Kansas City, Colorado, Bainbridge Island, and Seattle.

Prasti Purdum, Dancer/Collaborator is a Seattle-based dancer and received her B.A. in Dance and International Studies from the University of Washington. She has performed in various local dance festivals including Seattle International Dance Festival, and has had the opportunity to work with many stellar dance artists and choreographers in the Seattle area.

Margaret Behm, Dancer/Collaborator is a dancer and teaching artist with an affinity for improvisation. She takes pride in her own, and guiding others’ discoveries of their dancing bodies, and wants everyone to feel empowered to take up space in the world. Since graduating in 2013 from CU Boulder with a BFA in Dance and a Minor in Women and Gender Studies, Margaret has made a life performing and teaching in Colorado, her home state, with Keshet Dance Company in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and now in Seattle, since late 2016. Margaret is a member of AJnC Dance-Theater, directed by Amy J Lambert. Other Seattle artists she has worked with include Wade Madsen, Marlo Martin, Cameo Lethem and Corina Dalzell. As an educator, Margaret is passionate about creating community empowered through movement. She has taught people of all ages and abilities in both studio and community settings. In Albuquerque, Margaret taught adaptive dance, working with dancers with disabilities. She has been an instructor at American Dance Institute since 2016, and is a 2017 graduate of TAT Lab. Margaret has been dancing with Kinesis Project in Seattle since 2019.

Michelle Amara Micca “Micca” (Choreography Assistant/Past Dancer/Collaborator/Company Manager) is a Queens based movement artist originally from Winchester, CT. They began training in dance under their mother at Valley Ballet and later received a BFA from Elon University. As a choreographer Micca has presented work at the IRT Theatre, Queensboro Dance Festival, Greenspace Blooms, Elon University, Young Choreographers Festival, and many other venues over the past 10 years in NYC. MICCA is now a rigorous dance company known for out of the box and expansive community performance experiences. Micca has been part of Kinesis since January 2014.

Hilary Brown-Istrefi (Dancer/Collaborator / she/her ) is a Canadian-American director and choreographer. She is an alum of École de danse contemporaine de Montréal and over the last decade has performed in the works of Melissa Riker, Bouchra Ouizguen, Jillian Peña, Doug Elkins, Linda Tegg, and Candice Breitz. Hilary and her twin Briana Brown-Tipley are the co-founders of Same As Sister (S.A.S.), a New York- and Toronto-based performance collective celebrating 10 years of collaborative and interdisciplinary storytelling. Their performance and film commissions have been presented and screened internationally at The Citadel: Ross Centre for Dance (Toronto); Base: Experimental Arts + Space (Seattle); Archaeological Museum of Messenia (Greece); Centre d'Art Marnay Art Centre (France); Danspace Project, BRIC, and New York Live Arts (NYC), among other venues. S.A.S. is currently a commissioned collective in the HERE Artist Residency Program and a Guest Curator at Dancemakers, supporting the creation and development of Upstairs, In Our Bedroom, premiering in 2026. Hilary initiated HB² PROJECTS in 2017, as a choreographic platform to expand her collaborations in performance. HB² has presented work throughout NYC as a resident artist of Trisk’s 2023 Resident Artist Program at Triskelion Arts; Norte Maar’s 2018 Dance at Socrates Residency at Socrates Sculpture Park; and Exploring the Metropolis’ 2017-18 Choreographer + Composer Residency at JCAL.

Bree Breeden  (Dancer/Collaborator / they/them) is a freelance performance and media artist. They were born in Cheraw, SC, raised in NJ and now resides in Brooklyn, NY with their wife and son. They graduated from Montclair State University and is currently the managing director and artist with Proteo Media + Performance and is a dance artist with Kyle Marshall Choreography, Michiyaya Dance and Von Howard Project. Bree works primarily in collaboration with project based artists which includes Jessie Young, Janessa Clark, Jordan Demetrius Lloyd and joined Kinesis Project NYC 2022. Outside of performance Bree enjoys filming, baking and exploring new landscapes.

Madeline Hoak (dancer/collaborator) made her NYC debut with Kinesis Project in 2006 and has been a steadfast collaborator since. After many years as a core dancer, Madeline choreographed and produced numerous flashmobs and corporate marketing events with KP. She has also danced with Daniel Gwirtzman Dance Company, and choreographed for Netflix, Target, and Pixar/Disney+ with ImprovEverywhere.  

Madeline creates and researches with, through, and about circus. She has performed and presented at international venues and conferences. She is an Adjunct Professor of Aerial Arts (Pace University), a writer (CircusTalk, Cirkus Syd), Editor & Curatorial Director (TELEPHONE), and founder of the Aerial Acrobatics courses at her alma mater, Muhlenberg College, where she taught from 2012-2017. Madeline earned an MA from Gallatin (NYU), where she designed a Circus Studies curriculum focused on spectatorship. She is currently refurbishing her thesis into a full-length book and eyeing movement direction and dramaturgy opportunities. madelinehoak.com

Sabrina Canas  (dancer/collaborator) (she/her) is a first generation Argentine American artist based in Brooklyn, NY. She completed her BFA in Dance at the University of the Arts (UArts) in May 2019, where she performed works by Jesse Zaritt, Netta Yerushalmy, Helen Simoneau, Marguerite Hemmings, Beth Gill, Sidra Bell and others. In 2020, she presented a collaborative duet at The Craft that uses two female bodies as a conduit through which energetic currents flow to support deterioration, chaos, and regrowth. Sabrina was also featured in jazz musician Tony Glausi's music video, When It All Comes Crashing Down, in February 2021. She recently presented a collaborative duet with Indigo Sparks at Triskelion Arts that was an investigation on the many ways we experience loss. Sabrina is currently working with Kinesis Project in NYC and Hillary Pearson in Philadelphia while continuing to make her own work in Brooklyn.

Abigail Linnemeyer (she/they, dance/collaborator) is a Brooklyn based performer, choreographer and dance activist. She is physically invested in improvisation, partner work, and athleticism. Her queer identity inspires her research into gender in process and community outreach. She is currently working with, Johnnie Cruise Mercer/TheREDprojectNYC, m i c c a, and Kinesis Project. In recent years, she has worked on projects with Kayla Farrish, MICHIYAYA Dance, ChrisMastersDance, Elizabeth Dishman, Megan Flynn, Mark Dendy, Heather Dutton and Grounded Aerial Dance Company. Since Abigail’s relocation to NY in 2021 they have had the opportunity to perform at BAM, HereArts, Dixon place, TADA Theater, House of YES, 92nd St Y,  NoOSPHERE Arts, and Lincoln Center among other non-traditional spaces. In addition to Abigail’s creative efforts, she is part of Dance/NYC’s Junior Committee. Abigail is eager to continue to pursue her desire to work in environments that center collaborative values and actively work to uplift queer communities.