The Company

Photo by Shasti O'Leary Soudant

Melanie Aceto is a modern dancer, choreographer and educator. Her work has been performed in Toronto, New York, New Jersey, Florida, North Carolina, and Ohio. Ms. Aceto has worked with New York City based contemporary choreographers including Barry Blumenfeld, Ellis Wood, and Monica Bill Barnes. She earned her Master of Fine Arts degree in Dance from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and is currently Assistant Professor at the University of Buffalo.

Elyssa Byrnes graduated with honors from Hofstra University with a BA in Dance. While living in NYC, she was a scholarship student at the Merce Cunningham studio and a member of Anita Cheng Dance from 2002-5. She also performed with Jeffrey Bauer, Tysan Dance, Elka Rindfleisch, Jennifer Morley's Figments Dance Ensemble, and Richard Decker. Ms. Byrnes recently moved back to Buffalo where she is a yoga instructor at East Meets West and is studying to be a chiropractor at D'Youville College.

Kerry Ann Ring, a native of Buffalo, trained in the Cechetti Method of ballet under Norma Gelose. She also studied at such schools as the Joffrey Ballet School, the American Dance Festival as a "Young Artist" scholarship recipient, and the Paul Taylor School. Ms. Ring earned her BFA in Dance from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque and her MFA in performance and choreography from Mills College in Oakland, CA. Currently, Ms. Ring teaches dance courses at the University of Buffalo, The Nichols School, and D'Youville College. She is a member of the Cecchetti Council of America, and recently began teaching for Dance Masters of America.

Elizabeth Schreier graduated in 2003 from SUNY Brockport with a BFA in Dance. She has performed with the Kista Tucker Dance Company, Hallmark Dance Works, and Notes in Motion. Her choreography has been seen in Buffalo, Maryland, Rochester, and New York City. As a member of BCD, Ms. Schreier has performed in the Elan Awards in NYC in 2003 and the Dancing Rebels Gala Concert at a conference honoring the founders of the New Dance Group, sponsored by the American Dance Legacy Institute in 2005. She is the co-director of the Nu Dance Studio in Lackawanna, NY.

Jenna DelMonte has a BA in Dance from SUNY Potsdam. As a college student, she performed in three American College Dance Festivals and danced with guest artists Richard Heisma, Wally Cardona, Elizabeth Streb, and the Troika Ranch. As a student she was Performer of the Year twice and received the Creative Achievement Award for her choreography. Ms. DelMonte received her early ballet training in the Cecchetti Method of ballet from Lisa Taylor and has passed all four student grade examinations, professional elementary and Grade One Teachers from the Cechetti Council of America. In New York City she studied at the Paul Taylor and the Jose Limon studios, performing often in in-studio concerts. She currently teaches a dance course at the Oracle Charter School and she teaches ballet, modern, jazz, and lyrical at various local studios.

Kim Knieriem is an Adjunct Professor at Niagara County Community College (NCCC) teaching classes in jazz, tap, ballet and modern along with the responsibilities of directing the college’s dance company, Tanzen. Knieriem holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and is currently pursuing an MFA in choreography and performance both from SUNY College at Brockport. Ms. Knieriem worked with dance companies, H.T. Chen and Dancers as a dance captain and with Doug Elkins Dance Company through residencies at SUNY Brockport. Knieriem’s recent achievement has been the organization of a one week residency with the Zephyr Dance group at NCCC.

Angela Lopez has returned to Buffalo after three years of attending Marlboro College in Southern, Vermont where she studied dance, visual art and performance theory. In recent years she has trained at the American Dance Festival and Bates Dance Festival on Merit Scholarship, and in 2006 was invited to apprentice with the David Dorfman Dance Company. Ms. Lopez hopes to continue her studies in performance theory and the combination of dance and the visual arts.

Kara Mann graduated from the University of Buffalo with a BA in Dance. She has danced and choreographed in UB's productions of Dancers Workshop, Young Choreographer's Showcase, and Zodiaque Studio Ensemble. She began her early studiesat Performing Arts Dance Academy in Hamburg and also performed with Buffalo City Ballet in annual productions of The Nutcracker. Ms. Mann has taken classes at Broadway Dance Center as well as Point Park University. She teaches ballet, jazz, pointe, and hip-hop at a number of local studios.