Rich Ashworth
Rich Ashworth (he/him) is an educator, choreographer, and performer whose interest in technical foundation and corresponding social cultures have made him a resource in the social and percussive African Diaspora dance communities. Richard attended the University at Buffalo, receiving a BFA in Dance in June 2007. After graduating, Rich performed aboard Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas and upon returning to the States, danced in several crews for live performances and industrials including for artists such as Flo Rida and The Goo Goo Dolls. Rich has performed, choreographed, and toured with several internationally celebrated dance companies including Lehrerdance (dir. Jon Lehrer), Chicago Dance Crash (dir. Jessica Deahr), Be The Groove (dir. Stephanie Paul) serving as educational director, and Chicago Tap Theatre (dir. Mark Yonally), where he served as a choreographer and rehearsal director. As an educator Rich has been on the faculty of several dance based organizations including Dance Masters of America, Flow 40 Dance, Beyond the Stars dance convention, and Interdanza of Mexico. Rich has served as a choreographer and lecturer at Hope College and Salve Regina University. Rich most recently attended the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, achieving a Masters of Fine Arts in Dance in May 2021. He now teaches courses at UWM, Carthage College, Danceworks Milwaukee, and guest lectures around the country.
Lynn Celek
Lynn Celek wasn’t sure how she ended up in a Brazilian zouk class in China in 2019. She thought she was signing up for salsa. Thankfully, the instructors insisted she learn both dances, as they were in desperate need of more students. Fast-forward to today, and Lynn studies zouk with Gabriel Carvalho and, more recently, bellydance with instructor/goddess Jocelyn Fait. She dances purely for funsies, but loves the physical and mental challenge, the connection it creates with her dance partner, and the endless opportunities for humility. She’s still not entirely sure how she ended up in this performance.
Sabrina Lina Conchi
Sabrina Lina Conchi is a first-generation Mexican American dancer and choreographer from Milwaukee, Wl. Being a recent graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a BA in Dance, she is also currently a dancer with Ballet Folklórico Xanharati. Her dance training is primarily Mexican Folk Dance, also known as Folklórico. She has an additional background in West African, Hip Hop, and Modern/Contemporary dance. Sabrina Lina has had the privilege of dancing for Los Tigres Del Norte- while performing in the streets of Milwaukee with pride in her roots. Other choreographers she has worked with in the past includes: Alfonzo Cervera, Gina Laurenzi, Maria Gillespie, Ishmael Konney, Dan Schuchart and Karlies Kelley. Her choreographic works share elements of personal experiences, family tradition and culture, and awareness of current social issues. With Sabrina Lina’s focus in Folklórico Mexicano, her goal is to proudly pay homage to her culture through dance, while merging modern movement ideas from Contemporary dance and the African Diaspora. She hopes to share her Mexican, Chicano, and Indigenous roots with her students, dancers, and those who accept her art with open minds and eyes.
Kerensa Demars
Kerensa DeMars is an internationally acclaimed choreographer, performer, and educator committed to preserving the cultural integrity of Flamenco. Of Romani heritage, she lived and trained in Spain for over a decade before founding the San Francisco Flamenco Dance Company. Her artistry has graced stages worldwide, including London’s Royal Festival Hall, Madrid’s Teatro Calderón, and Barcelona’s Tivoli Theater. Kerensa is the recipient of major choreography commissions from the San Francisco Arts Commission, Theatre Bay Area, Azahar Dance Foundation and Madrid’s Teatro Pradillo. Since returning to Milwaukee in 2019, DeMars has served as Artistic and Executive Director of Studio K Flamenco, a nonprofit she has grown into Milwaukee’s home for the Flamenco arts. Under her direction, Studio K offers a full slate of programs, including the annual Flamenco Nutcracker, the Compás Youth Project, the MKEFlamenco performance series, and the (W)here in the World Festival – new program that uplifts the work of Wisconsin’s traditional dance artists.
Courtney Dorzok
Courtney Dorzok (she/her) is a Milwaukee-based dancer, educator, and administrator. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance and a degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee in 2020. Courtney performed with Danceworks Performance MKE during the 2021–2022 season and has trained and collaborated with artists including D. Sabela Grimes, Melanie George, Caitlin Mahon, Bernard Brown, and Jade Charon. In addition to teaching youth and adult dance classes at Danceworks, she is currently the DYPC Creative Coordinator. Courtney also serves as Program Manager at Gan Ami Early Childhood Education in Whitefish Bay, where she supports educators, curriculum development, and families within a Reggio Emilia-inspired learning environment. Passionate about the intersection of dance and education, she is committed to integrating movement into everyday learning and creating spaces where creativity, curiosity, and community can thrive.
Simon Eichinger
Simon Eichinger earned his BFA in Dance from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. He performed with Danceworks Performance Company for three seasons and has worked with numerous Milwaukee arts organizations, including Your Mother Dances, Wild Space, Ko-Thi Dance Company, Rhema Dance, the Milwaukee Chamber Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Skylight Music Theatre, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Present Music, Quasimondo Physical Theater, and The Paris Business Review. His career has also included collaborations with Concerto Dance and Rhythmically Speaking in Minneapolis, as well as opportunities to work alongside Pilobolus in New York and Balé Folclórico da Bahia in Brazil. A lifelong theater artist, Simon has experience performing, choreographing, directing, and working behind the scenes in production. He is excited to bring Brazilian Zouk to the Milwaukee stage.
Colin Gawronski
Colin Gawronski is a lighting designer native to Milwaukee who has worked extensively with Danceworks, Inc, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Sunstone Studios and Black Arts MKE/Bronzeville. They have worked with other local companies such as Renaissance Theaterworks, Milwaukee Ballet, Wildspace, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Studio K Flamenco, Aarambh Khatak, and In Tandem Theatre. Colin has also worked with Theatre Lila, Third Avenue Playworks and Forward Theater. Favorite productions include: Three Other Sisters, Stew, Out of Many One, Rusalka, ‘Neath the Hills of Bastogne, /ˌmaskəˈrād/, Dutchman, Black Nativity, Secrets from the Wide Sky, The Nether, A Room Shaped Story, Daddy Long Legs, Spalding Grey: Stories Left to Tell, Stories From a Life, The Glass Menagerie, Serendipity, Birds of North America, Romeo and Juliet: A Theatre Lila Invention, Lamps For My Family, and Vagabondare. Give Love Always.
David Roman
David Roman returns to Danceworks after their spring concert, 8th House. Marrying commercial jazz with flavors of his LatinX heritage has been a joy. You may also have caught his most recent choreographic work in Reefer Madness with Outskirts Theatre. He will also be returning as choreographer for Purse String Productions, 10th anniversary Golden Girls parody this December. Other credits include Laughs in Spanish – Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Beehive – Milwaukee Rep & Newsies – Skylight Music Theatre. David has also spent over two decades with Royal Caribbean as both performer and wig stylist working on such shows as Saturday Night Fever and Back to the Future.
Alex Vanissaveth
Alex Vanissaveth (he/him) is a graduate of UW-Milwaukee, where he received his degree in Elementary Education. He began his journey into dance early on while learning traditional Lao and Thai dancing from his mom. This journey continued while attending university when he took his first dance class after attending the UWM Hip Hop Showcase. From there, he gained new connections and experiences from joining the Milwaukee dance community. He took that likeness for dance and continued to grow as a dancer by taking classes at the university and studios like Danceworks. He was able to dance with different groups and learn the necessities of preparing for a performance. His true passion for dance comes from the performance styles that K-POP has to offer. In 2017, Alex joined his first K-POP performance team and gained new experiences that challenged him in learning dance styles and performing choreography from popular Korean artists. In 2019, Alex began teaching at Danceworks as a K-POP Instructor and is currently teaching Adult K-POP classes for Danceworks. Alex has taken this experience and begun a K-Pop Performance Workshop that made its debut at the 2023 Rhythmworks’ show. Alex is currently a leader of the Milwaukee K-pop Performance group, MkeMe Crew.
MkeMe Crew
MkeMe Crew is a performance-based dance crew that aspires to spread K-pop and more to the greater Milwaukee community through local performances, competitions, and workshops. The group is fast-paced, focusing on pushing themselves and reaching the goals they have set. MkeMe Crew’s members strive to develop one another’s growth in dance technique, stage presence, and creativity. The group is grateful for the opportunity to perform at the 2026 Rhythmworks: Ritmo Vivo.
Cyenthia
Vijayakumar
Cyenthia Vijayakumar is a Kathak (North Indian Classical Dance) performer, teacher and choreographer from the Milwaukee area. She has undergone her training in Lucknow gharana from Guru Murari Sharan Gupta and Guru Hari and Chetna from Bangalore India. She is currently undergoing her training under Guru Sujatha Banerjee from London. She founded Aarambh Kathak Dance School in 2019 in Milwaukee which is the only ISTD (Imperial Society for Teacher of Dance) certified school in WI. She has performed extensively in India and the US across various prestigious platforms.
Christal Wagner
Christal Wagner (she/they) is an Alumna of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee dance department (BFA) where she is also adjunct faculty. She is a screendance artist and has produced work as a cinematographer, performer, editor and director for Joe Goode, Josh Halverson, Maria Gillespie, Danceworks Inc, Milwaukee Dance Theatre Network, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, UWM Dance, The Saint Kate Arts Hotel, The Cactus Club, and Li Chiao-Ping Dance where she was a 2020 SEED Creation Fund grant recipient. Christal is the artistic director of Danceworks Performance MKE and has danced for Your Mother Dances, Gina Laurenzi Dance Project, Dawn Springer Dance Projects, Skylight Music Theatre and spent 14 years as a company member with DPMKE. Christal is a co-founder of the music and dance trio Cadance Collective. She is the recipient of 8 Wisconsin Jerry Awards for her work in musical theatre and has choreographed over 25 musicals in the city of Milwaukee. Christal’s mission is to support and elevate the voices of her community, collaborators, and fellow artists.
