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Kathy Allender

Performing Arts: Dance; Certified Pilates Instructor, Color Guard performer (spin flag, rifle, sabre)

Kathy LaChelle Allender began her dance training and performance career within color guard at North Central High School (1994-1995), Lawrence North High School (1995-1996), and Lawrence Central High School (1996-1998), spinning flag, rifle, and saber, and learning ballet and jazz dance. At Lawrence Central, under the direction of Greg Hagen and the late Tod Hinton, Kathy was awarded a plaque in 1998 for “The Most Outstanding Color Guard Member.” In 2002, she received her Bachelor of Arts in French and Associate of Arts in English at Indiana University Bloomington; however, it was being a member of the African American Dance Company (AADC) at IU, under the direction of Iris Rosa, where she discovered a passion equal to studying French – dance. With AADC, she studied jazz, ballet, Horton modern, Afro-Cuban, and contemporary dancing, as well as Mat Pilates. Kathy also studied jazz dance under the instruction of Fred Walton through IU’s Jacobs School of Music, in addition to have taken several ballet classes at the school. She continued her dance training at the Urban Arts Center of Indianapolis where she explored in West African and Middle Eastern dancing, an apprenticeship in L.A. Style salsa at IndySalsa, and beginning ballet at the Jordan Academy of Dance. Kathy also has danced in professional performance companies such as Sancocho Music and Dance Collage, Chatarabaan, The Undefeatable Beats, Nyama Drum and Dance Ensemble, Kenyettá Dance Company,People, Paint, and Percussion, the (Re)Collective Company, and the Nicholas Owens Dance Company. Abroad, Kathy has learned a traditional dance from Mauritius called “Le Sega” of which she choreographed a dance piece that was presented at the 2002 African American Dance Company Spring Concert. The Bloomington Herald-Times wrote “The sense of culture exhibited through the dance was creative and choreographically strong.” During the fall of 2004 in Tunisia, Kathy taught contemporary-jazz to Tunisian students at an English language summer camp sponsored by Bureau de Formation Technologie and Amideast-Tunis through AIESEC International. Kathy has also taken many Master classes from various AADC workshops in Bloomington, IN; the International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD) conference in Toronto, Canada; and a Professional Summer Intensive program in Chicago, IL through Deeply Rooted. In January of 2007 in Indianapolis, she had the honor of being a judge for the dance category of the Prelude Awards. In 2008, Kathy received her Mat I and Mat II Pilates certifications and her Mat with Props certification in 2009 from PHI Pilates in Monongahela, PA via the Mindful Movement Pilates and Yoga Studio in Indianapolis, IN. PHI trains with a scientific approach to Pilates. Since being certified in Mat Pilates, Kathy has taught at Organic Rhythms Dance Studio, Cityoga, The Earth House, NIFS, and L.A. Fitness. She also has taught “Dance! Pilates for Dancers” in 2008 and 2009 for a Youth In Arts Summer Camp, sponsored both by the Madame Walker Theatre and 100 Black Men, where she additionally set choreography on her students which was performed on the Walker Theatre’s main stage. Kathy has taught as well “Debut: Beginning Mat Pilates” and Intermediate Pilates at Cross Roads Martial Arts, and Beginning Mat Pilates at the Benjamin Harrison YMCA and at the Mapleton Wellness Center. In 2012, Kathy had the fortunate opportunity to set choreography on two models through LModelz, of which they, and Kathy, danced with the Aberdeen Project band as an opening act for the infamous Cameo, The Deele, and Steve Arrington. That following year in August 2013, she participated in the Indy Fringe Festival, choreographed and assisted directing “Harlem Nights Cabaret” with the late lyric pianist and carilloneur William E. Engle of Butler University. Kathy currently teaches Movement classes, Pilates and dance, for a new-model boot camp through LModelz Model Management, is a choreographer for the cultural dance group of the Haitian Association of Indiana, and is a Color Guard Staff member for the Marching Pride of Lawrence Township Band and Guard, teaching dance technique, Pilates, and conditioning.

Julie Lyn Barber

Literary Arts; Performing Arts: Actor/Actress, Dance, Music, Theatre, Vocal

Dr. Barber is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Western Kentucky University. She has received IAC grants to perform with the Hot Jazz Preservation Society in Indiana State Parks, and to write and produce a new musical, Indiana Squirrel Stampede and two new children’s plays, The Elves and the Shoemaker and The Frog Prince. She has written many stage adaptations of fairy tales in the British panto style, which have been produced locally at the Minnetrista Faeries Sprites and Lights Festival (Muncie, IN), Nettle Creek Players (Hagerstown, IN) and IndyFringe (Indianapolis, IN). Two of her plays have won inclusion in the juried festival, DivaFest of Indianapolis: the ten-minute fable, Tamlane, and the one-act musical parody, Madwomen’s Late Nite Cabaret. As a stage director, her experience ranges from opera to children’s theatre, directing outreach productions for the Bloomington Early Music Festival of Indiana, and the Marjorie Lawrence Opera Theatre in Carbondale, IL. Other directing credits include Working (American Heritage Theater Project, Portland, OR), Clue: The Musical (Farmland Dinner Theatre, Farmland, IN), and Guys and Dolls (Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY) She has served as music director and choreographer for many schools and theatre companies in Oregon (American Heritage Theater Project, Cathedral School, Valley Catholic High School) and Indiana (Taylor Theatre, Muncie Civic Theatre, Monroe Central High School, Farmland Dinner Theatre), recently music directing Guys and Dolls at the Round Barn Theatre in Nappanee, IN, and choreographing The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at Western Kentucky University. She is an AEA membership candidate, and has performed the role of “Berenice” in Cabaret Poe every October since 2009 with Q Artistry (Indianapolis, IN). She has played numerous roles in theatre and musical theatre productions in Canada and the United States, including Vancouver B.C.’s Theatre Under the Stars, Portland Oregon’s Northwest Classical Theatre Company, and Portland Center Stage. While in Portland, she co-founded the American Heritage Theater Project.

Betsy Boxberger

Performing Arts

A graduate of the Indianapolis School of Ballet, Betsy Boxberger trained under the direction of Victoria Lyras. At ISB she performed roles such as Raymonda in Raymonda, lead girl in Valse Fantaisie, Odette in Swan Lake; Swanilda and Dawn in Coppelia; and Dew Drop Fairy, Snow Queen, and George Balanchine’s Sugar Plum in The Nutcracker. Betsy earned a double Bachelor of Arts in Dance and Environmental Science and Policy from Duke University where she was instructed by Tyler Walters and Julie Janus Walters. She performed featured roles with the Duke Dance Program, including the lead soloist in Gerald Arpino’s Reflections. She was awarded the Clay Taliaferro Dance Award and the Julia Wray Dance Award by the Duke Dance Program. While in college Betsy taught ballet and pre-ballet at Walltown Children’s Theatre. As a company member with Ballet Quad Cities, Betsy performed prominent roles in both classical and contemporary ballets and had the opportunity to work with choreographers Deanna Carter and Elie Lazar. Betsy also taught at the Ballet Quad Cities School of Dance and was selected to give a master class as part of the Wheaton College Artist Series. Betsy is currently a guest artist with the Indianapolis School of Ballet. In addition to performing, Betsy is on faculty at ISB and is a co-coordinator of Indy Ballet Classrooms education outreach program.

Julie Davis Veach

Graphic Arts; Multi Arts; Performing Arts: Dance; Visual Arts: Functional and/or Decorative, Graphic Arts, Illustration, Media and Visual Communications, Mixed Media, Murals, New Media/Technology, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Visual Arts Instructor, Works on paper

I am an abstract expressionist artist. I primarily use water-based media because of the versatility and freedom they provide. I explore art’s healing potential. I choose to express states of being that inspire self-reflection, joy, healing, gratitude, and connection. I decided to become a full-time artist in 2019 but I’ve been creative for much of my life. Some of the great artists of our past including Claude Monet, Joan Mitchell, Frida Khalo, and Gustav Klimt are inspirations for my process. In every painting, my objective is to use color as a tool for self-evaluation and healing. I want my work to be both confronting and comforting. I am inspired by nature, and the ability it has to heal and connect us all. With the information age upon us, at times, there is an imbalance ofs hyper-connectivity and yet loneliness all at once. We can always return back to art, however, for solace and reflection. Art for me is a reminder of my humanity, my connection to all that is, and my power to choose how I want to feel and how I want to create my life. No matter how busy and chaotic life around me may feel, my mental health requires me to stop what I’m doing and enjoy making art on a regular basis. I want people to feel that soul connection when they look at my work. I want them to feel the promise of a brighter future. we can make a positive difference in our world- for ourselves and each other. This is why I paint and this is why I am an artist today.

Vandi Enzor

Performing Arts: Actor/Actress, Dance, Music, Radio/Television, Storytelling, Theatre, Vocal; Visual Arts: Crafts, Film, Performance Art, Performers and Writers, Photography

Vandi Enzor recently moved to the Indianapolis area after graduating with a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from The University of Akron. Prior to pursuing a graduate degree with a focus on opera, Vandi attended Shorter College and graduated with a BFA in Musical Theater and minored in theater and piano. Vandi has performed professionally as a classically trained opera singer, in church and sacred music, as a jazz musician, in musical theater and straight theater, and as a stage combatant. She has done some film, and hopes to continue exploring film more in the future. Vandi has narrated over 40 audiobooks and currently teaches private voice and piano lessons at Meridian Music School in Carmel, Indiana. Vandi enjoys working with sound, lighting, hair and makeup design, in PR, stage managing, and many other technical aspects of live theater. She has been Artistic Director for M3 Theater Camp for the past two years and has written 3 plays. Some of Vandi’s favorite roles have been Gretel in Humperdinck’s Hansel und Gretel, Bastienne in Mozart’s Bastien und Bastienne, Gaby in Romberg and Eysler’s The Blue Paradise, Jill in Bradshaw’s The Worst One Ever, and Penelope in the short film Penelope’s Revenge. Vandi also greatly enjoyed performing at the Vianden International Music Festival in Luxembourg in 2016, at the Crittenden Opera Workshop in Washington DC in 2017, and singing in the world premier of the ballet Snow White and the Magic Mirror. Vandi hopes to continue growing as an artist and performer in the future; her greatest passion is a collaboration of all aspects of the arts and sharing something with the world that connects with people and creates a lasting impact.

Taylar Green

Performing Arts: Dance

Taylar began her dance training in Mobile, Alabama at Carol Graham School of Dance. Later she attended Alabama School of Fine Arts as a dance major. She had the opportunity to train under Maria Berica Dalla Vecchia in Vicenza, Italy before relocation to Indianapolis. In 2009, Taylar began her dance journey with GHDT as a student of the Academy. Taylar was also a member of G2, the pre-professional company, for 3 year before graduating from high school in 2012. In the spring of 2016, she graduated from Texas Christian University where she had the opportunity to work with choreographers such as Jacques d’Amboise and Charlotte Boye-Christensen. Taylar is excited to be dancing with GHDT once again. She would like to thank her family and friends for their continued support.

Heather Helene King

Performing Arts: Actor/Actress, Dance; Visual Arts: Photography

Heather has worked as a professional dancer, actress, and musician for the majority of her career. She set out to learn dance photography, but she realized that by attending events and scheduling photo shoots, she was also improving her own work by studying dance. “I am becoming a better dancer, a more supportive patron of other arts organizations, a more connected artist, and a refreshed and revitalized person.”

Stephan Laurent

Literary Arts; Performing Arts: Dance

STEPHAN LAURENT, Professor and former chairman of the Department of Dance at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana, joined the Butler dance faculty in 1988 after six years as the artistic director of the Des Moines Ballet, for which he produced and choreographed a number of full-length classical and contemporary works. He was the recipient of the 1986 Iowa Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award. Many of his ballets are now on the repertoire of the Butler Ballet, for which he continues to choreograph actively, including the award-winning original full-length contemporary ballet The Willow Maiden: a Fantasy Dance Adventure. His areas of teaching expertise include ballet technique, choreography, dance history, theory/philosophy of dance, and dance production. Prof. Laurent also teaches a First-Year Seminar in the Core Curriculum of Butler University, entitled Spellbound: The Quest for Magic in Speculative Fiction and the Arts. Prof. Laurent was for many years a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Schools of Dance and has worked both nationally and internationally on accreditation matters. He also served as an adjudicator and master teacher for a number of organizations nationally and internationally, including the National High School Dance Festival, the National Society of Arts & Letters, the Overture Awards, the Prelude Awards, the Hong Kong Academy for the Performing Arts, and the Newtown High School for Performing Arts in Sydney, Australia. He has also served as a consultant.

Dara G. Lewis

Performing Arts: Dance; Visual Arts: Graphic Arts, Illustration, Printmaking, Visual Arts Instructor; Drawing

Dara G. Lewis has always bee a visual learner. Growing up it was quickly understood that she needed greater visual reference than most to excel. But as she grew up if there was no visual reference provided she made her own which also started to help those around her understand concepts given. Growing up she had multiple artistic interests including ballet, visual art and horseback riding. Ballet and horses too precedent since being homeschooled prevented finding any good art teacher. She excelled in both and moved onto becoming a horse trainer in Dressage and other training disciplines. Still dancing she remained a ballerina and choreographer into her early twenties. Listening to her parents’ desires for her to gain a non-artistic education in hopes for a more “lucrative” career at age 19 she attended nursing school at the local community college in Sanborn, NY. She excelled within this field as well, although still sketching the human body during A&P classes to satisfy her artistic itch. One year into the two year RN program there was a problem. The college had ignorantly left open the formaldehyde vat the dissected cats were being stored during A&P classes. Dara’s station was right next to the vat and caused severe brain damage. Needing to drop out of college and plagued by seizures she spent the next 8 months in and out of doctors offices and hospitals waiting for an answer. The only thing she had was her art so she started drawing….a lot. After finding a medicine that worked things returned to a relative normal; but left side brain damage remained. She found certain things like coordination, language, memory and math very difficult. Professional possibilities narrowed greatly for her. She decided to cut the nonsense and go for what she originally wanted to go for…Visual Art. Showing a few times before finally building the courage and ability to drive she signed up for classes at the University of Buffalo, NY at the age of 22. Attending art classes gave her hope back. She graduated Magna cum Laude within three years and was asked to return for the Noncommittal show at the beginning of 2013. She moved to Indianapolis that year after a year long of Skype dating her soon to be husband. They met at the yearly Messiah Conference for Messianic Jews and Believers and fell in love quickly. After a second terror bout of seizures she married Nick Lewis later that year. Even more damaged she spent the next year on sabbatical from everything trying to recover; in 2015 she started making art again. Now a year later she is working on a new body of work with a specific range of themes.

Christopher Lingner

Performing Arts: Actor/Actress, Dance, Theatre; Visual Arts: Film

Chris Lingner began his career joining the 2009 National Tour of Twyla Tharp’s Moving Out, dancing the principal roles of Eddie and James, making him one of the youngest performers to ever dance these roles. Lingner has been a featured guest artist with Gregory Hancock Dance Theatre, Indianapolis School of Ballet, Peoria Ballet, in the Young Stars of Ballet Gala, presented by Indianapolis City Ballet and Chamber Dance Project in D.C. In 2012, Sonya Tayeh created a new work on him for an NFL Super Bowl-Super Cure event fighting breast cancer. Lingner studied ballet in the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University where he danced principal roles in works by Twyla Tharp, George Balanchine, Paul Taylor, Dwight Rhoden, August Bournonville, Josh Bergasse, Antony Tudor, Nicolo Fonte, and Peter Martins . Lingner joined Cincinnati Ballet in the 13-14 50th Anniversary Season in the Corps de Ballet. Since joining Cincinnati Ballet, Lingner has performed in works by Adam Hougland, Victoria Morgan, Trey McIntyre, Septime Webre, Viktor Plotnikov, Jessica Lang, Jennifer Archibald, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Yuri Possokhov, and Kirk Peterson. As a producer, Lingner was also nominated for a Tony Award as a member of the producing team for Broadway’s “On the Town” and “Best Show of 2016” for his production of the first Ballet Royalty Gala in Havana, Cuba.

Joann Loftus

Performing Arts; Visual Arts: Mixed Media, Painting, Works on paper

Allowing my subconscious to guide me, I paint intuitively, generally without a plan. Many layers of paint are applied in bright, clear glazes, intermixed with a collage of textures, papers, ink, gesso and gels. These layers create depth and dimension, inviting viewers in and enticing them to take a closer look. Viewers who closely examine my paintings pull memories from their own life experiences, enabling them to draw their own interpretation.

Nataly Lowder

Performing Arts: Dance

Since Nataly’s retirement from the stage, she has become an arts administrator, choreographer, director, and teacher. Most recently she had dancers examined by Franco DeVita, Principal Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre. Following the examination, Nataly received her Affiliate Status. This is a level of distinction for ABT® Certified Teachers that successfully present their students for examinations. She also had dancers attending the Youth America Grand Prix International Ballet Competition National Finals after competing in the regional competition. She has also had the pleasure of being selected to work with the new Indianapolis City Ballet as a ballet mistress for their Grand Défilé in their upcoming performance “Young Stars of Ballet” choreographed by Carlos Dos Santos.

Victoria Lyras

Performing Arts: Dance

Ms. Lyras founded the Indianapolis School of Ballet in August 2006. Since opening, the Indianapolis School of Ballet has performed eight seasons of repertoire choreographed or staged by Ms. Lyras. The schools distinguished production of The Nutcracker includes the magnificent Victorian parlor from the Historic Morris-Butler House Museum in Indianapolis for its Act I Party Scene setting, Robert Rodham’s Snow Scene and the “Grand Pas de Deux” from Mr. Balanchine’s production of The Nutcracker. Beginning the semester of 2011, she has been teaching the ballet majors at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music as Adjunct Lecturer with Michael Vernon, Chair – Ballet Department and Violette Verdy, Distinguished Professor of Music (Ballet).

Caitlin Negron

Performing Arts: Dance

Caitlin Negron began her dance training in her hometown of Fort Wayne, IN at Fort Wayne Ballet. She continued her studies at Southern Methodist University and graduated summa cum laude with degrees in Dance Performance and Anthropology. Other training includes the Martha Graham School, Thodos Dance Company, American Ballet Theater and Richmond Ballet. Caitlin has danced with several choreographers in Chicago and LA, and performed with Kybele Dance Theater. In 2008 Caitlin co-founded and currently serves as the executive director of The Indy Convergence, a pop-up arts residency program for professional artists held annually in Indianapolis, Toronto, and Jacmel, Haiti. Caitlin is also a BASI certified pilates teacher and teaches classes throughout Indianapolis, she received a 2015 Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis and a 2015/16 Individual Artist Program Grant from the Indiana Arts Commission. This is Caitlin’s 8th DK season.

Nicholas A Owens

Performing Arts

Nicholas A. Owens is most known throughout the Indianapolis area as a dancer, free-lance choreographer, photographer and co-founder and former Artistic Director of Kenyettá Dance Company. For the past 3 years he has been directing his own professional modern dance company, NODC (Nicholas Owens Dance Company). He began dancing at age thirteen, studying at Kenyettá Dance Studio. His training includes modern, classical ballet, jazz, African Dance forms, tap and hip-hop dance. He has attended major dance workshops such as the International Association of Blacks in Dance Conference and the African American Dance Company workshop in Bloomington, Indiana. He has traveled and performed nationally and internationally. He currently teaches modern and jazz dance classes at the Indiana Ballet Conservatory. He has also taught 2 full semesters of Freshman jazz as an adjunct professor at Butler University.

Mara Phelps

Performing Arts: Actor/Actress, Dance, Music, Radio/Television, Theatre, Vocal

Currently a Student at Jacobs School of Music pursuing a Vocal Performance and Musical Theater Degree

Books, the SoulScholar

Media; Multi Arts; Performing Arts: Actor/Actress, Dance, Music, Theatre, Vocal; Visual Arts: Media and Visual Communications, Performers and Writers

Originally from Nashville, TN, Books draws her inspiration from a blend of gospel, soul, funk, and blues. Ever eclectic, she enjoys, and draws inspiration from, a variety of music artists and genres, including Donny Hathaway, Sarah McLachlan, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Billy Joel, Yussef Lateef, J. Dilla, John Legend, Maurice White, Ella Fitzgerald, Ledisi, Hiatus Kaiyote, Jill Scott, and many more. Books has shared her music with audiences in the US and abroad for over 15 years. She credits her parents and close friends as inspirations, motivating and encouraging her evolution, growth, and continued journey as an artist. Ever the scholar, Books has always been studious and hungry to learn whatever she can, which led to her embrace of the nickname “Books.” She adopted the title of the SoulScholar later, as early collaborators felt her passion and energy and hunger to constantly better herself musically. Before diving completely into her artistry, Books formerly blessed stages as Brandi Nicole and regularly lent her voice as a guest feature with ensembles and choirs that opened for musical acts like Con Funk Shun, CeCe Winans, Kelly Clarkson, and Pentatonix. In the early 2000s, her voice was the melodic backbone for the Regal Records camp, which included collaborations with Yung Nawlege, Big Flex, and Daniel Hayes. Books is a classically trained musician and dancer. She was a regular feature for Jazz celebrations in middle Tennessee. The original BB King’s and the Funnybone comedy club on Historic Beale street were home to her in the mid 2000s. Books’ voice has taken her as far as Germany, as a featured soloist at the SACCRA International Music Festival. In the few years leading up to her full-time artistry as Books, the SoulScholar, she was an original member of the “Women of Rock and Soul” trio that successfully toured across the Midwest. Once she fully embraced the power in her voice and distinctive style, she began her journey full time and started work on her first projects as Books, the SoulScholar. Books then joined Planet Boom Bap on their debut album “Parallel Universe” as musician, songwriter, and lead vocalist. In 2016, Books, the SoulScholar decided that the world needed her original music and has since been focused on building her audience as a solo artist. Books has performed for packed audiences at highly anticipated events like the Women:317 series, The Underground, and The Green House Affect. Her music, including 2017’s “Charm Bracelet,” is on regular rotation across radio outlets like the IndiePennedIt Radio Show, Nuu Beat Radio, Brother, Brother Beer Cast, and the Subjective Comedy Podcast. An “old soul,” but a child of the 90s, she continues to mix in her love of jazz, hip-hop, singer-songwriter, and R&B. Her debut EP, “Songs in the Key of June” hits all major music outlets October 2018 and her full-length project, “the SoulScholar” will debut early 2019. Her singles, including “Charm Bracelet” are streaming across all music platforms.

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