Halie Bahr (she/hers) is a dance artist, educator, and scholar who researches the socio-political implications of trauma in the creative process. She loves creating both performances and educational communities that are playful, sincere, candy-colored bright, visceral, over-the-top spectacles that pull at our heartstrings or make us re-think our world.

She has presented work and performed nationally in venues such as Movement Research at the Judson Church (New York, NY), The Walker Art Center (Minneapolis, MN), Links Hall (Chicago, IL), among many others. Halie is a Professor of Dance at Hamline University, and is the Associate Director and Editor of loveDANCEmore, a dance publication committed to forwarding the professional work of experimental dance artists. She has held professorships within a variety of higher education contexts, including Davidson College, University of Kentucky, Southern Utah University, and the University of Utah Prison Education Project, which provides higher education to students currently incarcerated in the Utah State Prison. Halie holds her MFA from the University of Utah, BFA from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, and is a Certified Laban/Bartenieff Movement Analysts (CLMA). She recently published scholarship with Dance Studies Association (2025, vol. 43), and was awarded the Utah Division of Arts & Museums Performing Arts Fellowship (2024) for her distinguished professional career advancement within the State of Utah. For more information, visit www.haliebahr.org.

Mike Esperanza is a multifaceted creative force, celebrated for his transformative contributions to the world of dance and choreography. With an innate ability to merge contemporary aesthetics with authentic storytelling, Mike has captivated audiences worldwide.

As an accomplished dancer, choreographer, and artistic director, Mike has choreographed for renowned educational programs and companies such as WhimW’him, Noble Motion, LACDC, Urbanity, and Dark Circles Contemporary Dance, leaving an indelible mark on the dance landscape. Mike’s work has been described as “bold, athletic movement and theatricality – the latter clearly the coming together of Esperanza’s many talents – the company epitomizes the dance of the new millennium: shape-shifting, vernacular-blending with a prescient focus on the brave new world in which we live.” ~ Jessica Abrams, Explore Dance. Mike recently danced for Ariana Grande at the 2024 Met Gala as well as her music video “Yes, and?”

Mandy Herrick makes art with her moving body.  She is a certified Global Somatics® Practitioner with a B.A. in Theatre/Dance from Luther College. She co-creates site-responsive work with WEdances Movement Collaborative, recently performing at Wormfarm Institute's FarmArt D'Tour, the Minnesota Marine Art Museum, and a commissioned work through Springboard for the Arts in Fergus Falls, MN.

She is the founder of Bodies of Water Movement Arts, a creative dance program based in driftless Wisconsin. Her artistic vision is rooted in how the body materializes relationships with the wild, the forgotten and the unknown.

Amy Wilson is a dance artist, choreographer, dance educator and the Artistic Director of Dance in the Annex (DITA) - a Grand Rapids based modern dance collective. DITA produces and creates live and dance-film works that are site-specific with an emphasis on process. Amy has served on faculty at Grand Valley State University, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, Michigan Ballet Academy, Grand Rapids Community College and Grand Rapids Civic Theatre and is a regular guest artist and choreographer for professional dance companies, dance academies and universities around West Michigan. She is currently choreographing for the Martha Graham Lamentations Variations Project with Deos Contemporary Ballet. She has presented live performance and screendance at the Midwest Regional Alternative Dance Festival (RADFest) hosted by Wellspring/Cori Terry & Dancers and is excited to be back on the Steering Committee for RADFest 2026. 

Marisa Bianan (she/her) obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Western Michigan University in April 2018. Through her studies, Marisa had the privilege to work with leading choreographers, including Jeremy Blair, Monique Haley, Carolyn Pavlik, and Brendan Duggan.

Since graduating, Marisa has presented various choreographic works in the Midwest, including at the 2019 RADFest and Inaside’s Summer 2022 in-person/virtual hybrid concert. Recent accolades include becoming a finalist for the 2021 Maggie Allesee Choreography Competition; receiving a commission to create a new work for Western Michigan University’s First Year Performance class, which premiered in February 2022; and, being accepted into the 2023 + 2024 Detroit Dance City Festival Choreographer’s Showcase. Most notably, she received the 2024 Detroit Dance City Festival's Best Choreographer Award and was invited to present at the 2025 Festival. Marisa stepped into the role of Artistic Director with Wellspring/Cori Terry & Dancers in 2024, and is excited to impart her artistic vision within the Southwest Michigan dance community. 2025-2026 will be Marisa’s eighth season with Wellspring.

Benjamin Cheney is a performer, designer, and massage therapist from Northern Michigan. He is the founder and Artistic Director of The Croft Residency, a dance residency in Horton Bay, MI. His personal movement practice centers on moving meditation, with a focus on somatic, intentional, and metaphoric improvisational movement. He uses the tools of Body Mind Centering (BMC) and the Tamalpa Life Art Process (TLAP) as lenses and languages to engage in his explorations and facilitations.

Alyse Kazimierczuk (she/her), originally from South Lyon, Michigan, is a fourth year student at Western Michigan University, where she is pursuing a BFA in Dance with a minor in Marketing. This past summer she served as an intern for Wellspring/Cori Terry & Dancers with the role of Marketing for RADFest 2026. She currently serves as a Social Media Specialist for WMU’s Department of Dance, where she collects, creates, and edits digital content. 

During her time at WMU, Alyse has performed in works by guest artists including Mike Esperanza, Kia Smith, Christa Smutek, and Kaitlyn Pollock, and has choreographed and performed in multiple student dance concerts. She was also a member of the university’s student performance company, Western Dance Project, under the direction of Kelsey Paschich in the 2023–2024 academic year.

Alyse is active in several student organizations, serving as Co-director of Move ‘n Groove, Digital Marketing Coordinator for Orchesis Dance Society, and General Director of 269 Crew. She is passionate about bringing innovative ideas to the arts community and is excited to be a screendance adjudicator.

Stephanie Rankin is a dancer, choreographer, administrator, and educator. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Hope College (MI) in Dance Performance/Choreography and Communication, and a Master’s in Arts Administration from Drexel University (PA). Stephanie has produced and choreographed shows throughout Chicago and across the U.S., has served as a guest dance professor at Hope College and Yuma High School, and participated in an international dance program in Israel.

Currently, she is working with Strike Time Dance Company at Hope College, Steven Iannacone, Jessica Kick Dance, and Currents Dance Theater as Board Secretary. She is also developing a dance film series centered around the concept of home—all while working her day job as Program Coordinator at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Stephanie lives in Chicago (right by the lake), and enjoys upcycling furniture, visiting thrift stores, collecting ’70s folk rock vinyl, traveling, and muffins.