Dancers

Assistant Director

Sara Kausch is a Kalamazoo-based dance artist and educator dedicated to arts education, choreography, and administrative leadership. Sara graduated as Presidential Scholar for Western Michigan University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance, Nonprofit Leadership Minor, and Dance Studio Management Certificate. At WMU, she was a member of Western Dance Project (2019/20), a student touring ensemble, under the direction of Whitney Moncrief. She has also worked with notable choreographers such as Seyong Kim and Jackie Nowicki, performing in WMU’s Winter Gala Dance Concert (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022). Sara’s choreography has been showcased at the Women’s Arts Exchange in Jacksonville, FL, and she is a recipient of the Maggie Allessee Choreography Award from the Michigan Dance Council. She is currently a Teaching Artist with Education for the Arts, Instructor at Academy of Dance Arts, and Assistant Production Manager at Western Michigan University’s School of Theatre and Dance. Sara is an ABT® Certified Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.

Company Member, Choreographer, &
Production Coordinator

Dennis Davis is a Michigan native and lover of all the arts. He trained at Spotlight Dance Academy (Grand Haven, MI) in various styles of dance before graduating from Orchard View high school and attending Point Park University (Pittsburgh, PA). While at Point Park, Dennis trained under the tutelage of Kiesha Lalama, Garfield Lemonius, Peter LeBreton Merz, Kwang Suk Choi, Douglas Bentz, Judith Leifer-Bentz, Susan Stowe, and Jason McDole. Dennis had the opportunity to work with directors and company members of Bill T. Jones’ “D-Man in the Waters”, Deeply Rooted Kevin Iega Jeff’s “Sky”, and Trey McIntyre’s “Blue Until June Suite” performing at the Byham Theater in Pittsburgh. Soon after studying at Point Park University Dennis joined Disney Cruise Lines as a mainstage performer and tumbler aboard the Disney Wonder. Following his contract with Disney, Dennis toured the states as a stage manager and MC for Legacy Dance Championships based out of Long Island, NY. When he returned to Michigan after years away, Dennis was blessed with the opportunities, communities, and family that allowed him to continue pursuing his love of dance and the arts. He currently works with populations of the Berrien County ASD and EI students in his fourth school year at Lighthouse Education Center.

He has been a company member since its first season in 2022, as well as a company choreographer for the past 4 seasons. Dennis is so very grateful for the unconditional support, love and understanding that comes with this community.

Company Member

Abby Marchesseault hails from northern Virginia, where she first studied classical dance at The Fairfax Ballet. She trained in ballet and modern dance at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, LINES Ballet, Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre, and Paul Taylor Dance Company; and holds a BFA in Dance Performance from Southern Methodist University, where she was awarded Outstanding Achievement in Dance.

Abby has danced with, toured with, and choreographed for a variety of contemporary companies in NYC, including Tina Croll + Company, ARIM Dance, Adams Company Dance, Artists By Any Other Name, ShadowDance Productions, and others. She was a long-standing member of The Connecticut Ballet, where she performed both solo and ensemble roles in works by Michel Fokine, Anna Sokolow, Lila York, Darrell Grand Moultrie, and Aguibou Bougobali Sanou; and performed and served as dance captain for works by Joe Locarro, and Bob Fosse. Other notable credits include appearing in Julian Fellowes' The Chaperone with Elizabeth McGovern, Mirando Otto, and Robert Fairchild; performing alongside Kenny Loggins in concert; serving as dance consultant for the Bach Cello Suites Festival at Carnegie Hall; and sharing a NY Dance and Performance Award (“Bessie”) for Best Revival in 2020.

Her own choreography has been presented in multiple venues across New York City, Detroit, South Bend, Indiana, Chicago, and Dallas, as well as internationally in Sydney, Australia, and Ubud, Indonesia, and Abuja, Nigeria. Most recently, her work has been presented at Dumbo Dance Festival and St. Louis Contemporary Dance Festival. She continues to choreograph and perform both in the Midwest and New York, and enjoys collaborating with filmmakers, visual artists, musicians, actors, and fellow dancers. Abby is a faculty member at Southold Dance Theatre and an adjunct professor at the University of Notre Dame.

Company Member

Grace Minard is a Michigan based dance artist originally from Grand Rapids whose movement practice is rooted in technical precision, dynamic musicality, and expressive performance quality. Her early training in competition dance and ballet cultivated a strong technical foundation while shaping her versatility across contemporary and commercial movement forms.

A graduate of Western Michigan University with a Bachelor of Arts in Dance and minors in General Business and Communications, Grace has performed in a range of collegiate and pre- professional works throughout her training. During her time at Western, she had the opportunity to work with and perform repertoire by distinguished faculty and guest artists including Seyong Kim, Jae Man Joo, Whitney Moncrief, Mike Esperanza, and Anna Kate Hermanson.

As an artist, Grace is drawn to movement that fosters emotional resonance, immersive storytelling, and human connection. Her movement vocabulary blends expansive fluidity with nuanced texture and intention, allowing her to approach performance with both athleticism and vulnerability. She is passionate about collaborative creative processes and continues to explore opportunities that challenge her artistry while contributing meaningful to the evolving dance community.

Emerging Artist & Marketing Team

Emma Armijo is a performing artist local to Southwest Michigan. She began her training at 5 years old, and has continued her pursuits for the last 19 years. Emma is a graduate of Grand Valley State University in the class of 2025 with bachelor degrees in dance and journalism & broadcast media. Focused heavily on technical training and dance performance coursework, she performed in 10 Guest Artist works over those four years and was a Dance Excellence Scholarship recipient. Emma has a strong relationship to performing arts and storytelling media, maintaining the importance of emotional and artistic storytelling through dance performance, choreography and journalism. Emma is a two time prize recipient for short-form writing in the Music, Theater & Dance Department’s Writing Competition (2023, 2024) at GVSU, and a published journalist with several works pertaining to the importance of arts to the community.

Emerging Artist

Ellen Burks grew up in Granger, Indiana, where she trained in ballet and modern at the Conservatory of Dance and was a part of the pre-professional company, Aurinko Ballet. With Aurinko Ballet, Ellen took advantage of numerous opportunities to further her training and gain valuable experiences, such as taking part in master classes and workshops and joining the cast of EXODUS with Gregory Hancock Dance Theatre in Carmel, IN. Since graduating, Ellen has split her time between continuing her dance education and career and attending the University of Notre Dame. She has had the opportunity to attend a wide variety of dance classes in the US and internationally, as well as performance opportunities, most notably in the original cast of “Blueprint of a Point Ascending,” by Abby Marchesseault, which was commissioned for New Works by Allied Solutions Center. Ellen is excited to be joining CPR as an Emerging Artist this season!

Emerging Artist

Mackenzie (Mac) is a professional dancer and choreographer from Bangor, MI, and received her B.A. in dance and business from Hope College in 2022. Mac uses her dance knowledge and skills to dive deep into the human experience. She is currently based in the Detroit and Ann Arbor areas, working with Dance Uprising, CloudMoon Dance, Terpsichore Collective, and CPR Dance. Mackenzie is also a performance technician at The Village Theater where she has the pleasure of designing lighting for both dance and theater.

Emerging Artist

Chloe Kibler (she/her) is a current dance major at Western Michigan University and an emerging artist at CPR Dance: Inhale Movement. Dancing since age three, she completed four years at Berrien County Dancers, where she choreographed and produced multiple group pieces. During her senior year of high school, Chloe assisted Theresa Graziano in teaching BCD’s beginning dance class. She furthered her studies at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp and Giordano Dance Chicago, and has taken classes at Steps on Broadway and Broadway Dance Center. At WMU, she is obtaining a BFA in Dance. There, she has been selected for multiple faculty and student works as well as Western Dance Project '25-26. Chloe has had the opportunity to work with artists Peter Chu, Annalee Traylor, and Noelle Kayser. She has also stage-managed multiple shows within the dance department and currently serves as Production Manager for Orchesis Dance Society. Chloe is thrilled to return for her fifth season with the company.

Emerging Artist

Hannah McGrew (she/her) is a freelance dance artist and educator. Her passion for dance began in southwest Michigan with Berrien County Dancers, under the direction of Theresa Graziano. During her time with BCD, she had the opportunity to perform works by choreographers Cesar Salinas, Stephanie Martinez, Ron de Jesus, Jon Lehrer, and Nick Pupillo. It was also during this formative period that she discovered her love for performance and choreography, earning the Excellence in Dance and Choreography Award.

McGrew went on to study dance and psychology at Hope College in Holland, Michigan, where she trained with Matthew Farmer, Sharon Wong, Heather Cornell, Jasmine Mejia, and others. While at Hope, she performed with H2 Dance Company and Striketime Dance Theatre, with her performances reaching audiences throughout the Midwest, New York City, and Europe.

Throughout her academic and professional journey, McGrew has continued to nurture her passion for movement by performing and choreographing numerous works showcased at festivals and events in various cities. Committed to cultivating positive and inclusive dance communities, she remains devoted to continual growth, lifelong learning, and creative exploration.

Emerging Artist & Marketing Team

Allyson Miller is a performance artist from Columbus, Ohio. She recently received a BFA in dance at Sam Houston State University with collegiate training from Andrew M. Noble, Dionne L. Noble, Jennifer Pontius, Travis Lake, Adele Nickel, Rasika Borse, Andrew Smith, Tyler Orcutt, Colette Kerwick, and Jacob Regan. Allyson received her professional training from Marjorie Jones School of Dance under the Artistic Directorship of Stephanie Pritchard and additional faculty: Dara Berman-Cheung, Kylie Bonfonte, Sarah Bullen, Joshua Manculich, and Stephanie Doe Miller.

In addition, Allyson has trained with Salt Contemporary Dance (Amy Gunter, Chloe Crenshaw, Maxi Riley), Visceral Dance Chicago (Nick Pupillo, Braeden Barnes, and Abdeil Figueroa Reyes), the José Limón Dance Company (Dante Puleio), and with Giordano Dance Chicago (Nan Giordano). One of Allyson’s most formative artistic experiences was with Dance Italia’s Advanced Training Program in 2025 under the guidance of Stefanie Nelson, Glenda Gheller, Dages Keates, Emma-Lynn MackKay-Ronacher, Brian McGinnis, Andrew Noble, Dionne Sparkman Noble, and Yue Yin.

Allyson has performed in NobleMotion’s Free Rein, Artists for Hope Charity Dance Concert in Houston, Texas, the Real Collegio Summer Festival in Lucca, Italy, the Cry Gala with Karmagraphy Entertainment in Houston, Texas, and is excited and honored to perform with CPR Dance: Inhale Movement this season. @allysontmiller