Christian Denice is a freelance dancer and choreographer originally from Los Angeles, California. His professional dance experience includes Odyssey Dance Theatre, River North Dance Chicago, and BJM Danse (Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal). As a choreographer, he has created new works for such companies and organizations as Chamber Dance Project, Odyssey Dance Theatre, DanceWorks Chicago, Interlochen Center for the Arts, the Los Angeles Contemporary Dance Company, Missouri Contemporary Ballet, Western Michigan University, Modern America Dance Company, Wylliams/Henry Contemporary Dance Company, Eisenhower Dance Detroit, Houston Contemporary Dance Company, Wright State University, Kit Modus, Dance Lab New York, Santa Barbara City College, Manhattanville College, and Dreyfoos School for the Arts. Christian has been on faculty with Modas Dance, Open Doors Dance Festival, EPIC Dance Utah, Eisenhower Dance Detroit NEWdanceFEST, Kansas City Jazz Dance Fest, DanceWorks Chicago Dance360, AXIS Connect Los Angeles, Peridance Center in New York City, and SALT Dance Link Festival. Christian was the 2015 winner of the University of South Florida's Echo Choreographic Competition and selected as one of the three choreographers for the Joffrey Academy's Winning Works Choreographic competition in 2016.

 

Christian had the opportunity to re-stage KOSMOS by Andonis Foniadakis on the dancers of the National School of Dance in Athens, Greece in 2019, and again on the dancers of Nationaltheatre Mannheim NTM Tanz in Mannheim, Germany in 2022. Christian worked with New York City based filmmaker Alexander Sargent on a dance film of his work “Dwellings” created on Chamber Dance Project which premiered at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC in October 2022. Christian is currently dancing in a production for Andonis Foniadakis Dance Company based in Athens, Greece called “Salema Revisited” and has been on faculty as Artist in Residence at the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland from 2021-2023. Christian most recently made his Broadway debut in “The Little Prince '' which opened in New York in 2022. Most recently, Christian staged and danced in a duet by Andonis Foniadakis and served as repetetor and rehearsal director for Texas based contemporary company ISHIDA Dance.

Andonis Foniadakis is from the small city of Ierapetra in the south of Crete, Greece. He began his early dance training with Niki Papadaki at a local dance school, and from 1990-1992 continued his studies at the State Dance School of Athens. Prior to his graduation he received the prestigious Maria Callas Scholarship which allowed him to train at Rudra Bejart Lausanne, Switzerland from 1992- 1994. As a dancer Andonis performed with Béjart Ballet Lausanne (1994-1996) under the direction of Maurice Bejart; Lyon Opera Ballet (1996-2002) under the direction of Yorgos Loukos; Saburo Teshigawara / Karas Company (2004) under the direction of Saburo Teshigawara; and his own dance Company, Apotosoma. He has also performed works by choreographers such as Maguy Marin, Jiri Kylian, William Forsythe, Dominique Boivin, Nacho Duato, Mats Ek, Maurice Bejart, Ohad Naharin, Frederic Flamand, Bill T Jones, Herve Robbe, Tero Saarinen, Lionel Hoche, Joachim Schlomer, John Jasperse and Saburo Teshigawara and many more. Foniadakis Formed Apotosoma-Andonis Foniadakis dance co, in Lyon in 2003 and has showcased his work in various countries, including France, Greece, Italy, Finland, Luxembourg, Germany, England, and the United States. To date, he has presented seven full-length evening works with his company, including Sensitive Screens Skins Intervals, USE, Rite of Spring, All Things Are Quite Silent, Romeo and Juliet, Priority, and Salema Revisited.

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He collaborated as choreographer with various prestigious dance companies worldwide, including the Lyon Opera Ballet, National Dance Company of Spain, Philadelphia Ballet, Royal New Zealand Ballet, Martha Graham Dance Company, Geneva Ballet, Ballet of Flanders, Rambert Dance Company, Introdans, Hannover Staats Ballet, Kassel StaatsTheater, Basel Ballet, Bern Ballet, Ballet de Lorraine, Luzern Ballet, Gauthier Dance Company, Gärtnerplatz StaatsTheater, Ballets Jazz de Montreal, Augsburg Ballet, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, Ballet du Rhin, Sydney Dance Company, Florence Ballet, National Dance Company of Wales, Dansgroep Amsterdam, Ballet HNK pl. Zajc Rijeka, Cia Sociedade Masculina, Balé da Cidade de São Paulo, Helsinki Dance Company, National Ballet of Greece, National Theater of Northern Greece, Benjamin Millepied Dance Company USA, Washington Ballet, Bejart Ballet Lausanne, Ballet Junior Geneva, Hellenic Dance Company, CNSMD Lyon, Copenhagen International Dance Festival, MDT Istanbul and others. He has also been commissioned to choreograph three operas including Theatre de Champs Elysees - Castor et Pollux by Rameau, Opera National du Rhin’s Les boreades of Rameau, and GRAME Lyon Il canto de la pelle by Claudio Ambrosini.

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In 2012, he received the Danza and Danza Award for Best Choreographer 2012 in Italy for the  creation of Les Noces in MaggioDanza-Florence Ballet. He was awarded the Critics Union of Music and Theatre Award in 2018 for Best Production in Greece for the full-length creation Galaxy for the Greek National Ballet and Greek National Theatre. Foniadakis served as the Artistic Director of the Greek National Ballet and programmed their seasons for 2016-17 and 2017-18. Andonis also collaborated on films with Darren Aronofsky on NOAH for Paramount Pictures Vassilis Kekatos on the publicity campaign for KORRES. He also collaborated with the Palais de Tokyo and Pavillon Neuflize OBC, in collaboration with Foundation Fluxun/Fluxum Laboratory for the project Prec(ar)ious Collectives. Andonis developed a unique dance technique and taught seminars at various schools and studios, including the CND and CNSMD Lyon in France, Codarts Rotterdam, Dansgroep Amsterdam, Henny Jurriens Studio Amsterdam in the Netherlands, Kuopio Dance in Festival Finland, DOCK 11 in Germany, State Dance School, DAN.C.CE, Metaneira, Baile de Barrio in Greece and many more. 

Born in São Paulo / Brazil 

Gabriel Lorena started his ballet training at the Municipal Theater of São Paulo at age 13. In 2016, he received a full scholarship to train as a pre-professional student at Miami City Ballet School under the direction of Arantxa Ochoa. In 2019, he joined Sarasota Ballet as an apprentice and in 2020 he joined Boston Ballet II. Gabriel Lorena is currently a company dancer with Kansas City Ballet.

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 He has choreographed works for Kansas City Ballet New Moves, Boston Ballet II, Boston Ballet School, Miami City Ballet School, and  for the Sarasota Ballet Trainee Students. Lorena has also choreographed a work for BB@yourhome: The Gift 2020.

Chicago-based choreographer Stephanie Martinez moves her audiences along a journey guided by the kinetic momentum of her award-winning work spanning over 12 years. With original creations for Joffrey Ballet, Ballet Hispanico, Luna Negra Dance Theater, Charlotte Ballet, Sacramento Ballet, Bruce Wood Dance, Nashville Ballet, Tulsa Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, BalletX, and Milwaukee Ballet, among others.  Theatre credits include Chicago Shakespeare Theatre and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Martinez’s versatility expands the boundaries of contemporary ballet movement. Martinez has created over 70 ballets on companies and collegiate programs across the country. Martinez has received numerous grants for her work and is continually recognized for her work as female artist of color. Dubbed “a chameleon” of choreography by the Chicago Tribune, Martinez’s psychologically revelatory works challenge the viewer’s notion of what’s possible.

 

Martinez is the founder and artistic director of PARA.MAR Dance Theatre in Chicago, IL established in July 2020.