Heidi Duckler | Collage Dance Theatre



		MERRIDAWN DUCKLER has published in Carolina Quarterly, Georgia State Review, and Main Street Rag among others with current work in Isotope, Green Mountains Review, Narrative and Night Train. She is a two-time winner of Society of Professional Journalists Award and was nominated for Best Creative Non-Fiction Anthology 2009 and a Pushcart. Reviews of her work have been in The L.A Times, The New York Times and NPR’s “All Things Considered”. Her original scripts have appeared at the NOW Festival at REDCAT at Disney Hall and other venues in Los Angeles, Stanford and New York in conjunction with Collage Dance Theatre. She has been in residency at Centrum, Caldera and Yaddo, among others. She was a non-fiction runner-up at Writers@Work in Salt Lake City and has won fiction fellowships to the Squaw Valley Writers Community, Wesleyan Writers conference and Summer Literary Seminar in St. Petersburg, Russia. She teaches at The Attic in Portland Oregon and is an Associate Editor at Story Quarterly.

		MARISSA LABOG has been a member of Collage Dance Theatre since 2003. She is a Lucille Morrison scholarship recipient and has received the Palm Desert Solo Award, an Ovation Award, and several nominations for Lester Horton Awards for Outstanding Performer and Outstanding Ensemble with Collage Dance Theatre. Having earned her BA in Dance and English from Scripps College, Marissa has gone on to perform with the John Pennington Dance Company and the L.A. Philharmonic, Fusion Dance Theater, Marie de la Palme, Assistant Choreographer and performer for J.O.B., and was Associate Director for the Regina Klenjoski Dance Company. She is currently Associate Artistic Director of Hassan Christopher’s Company of Strangers, a member of Rosanna Gamson Worldwide, and is founder and director of the performance group One Step Ahead, which works with inner- city youths. Commercially, Marissa has worked with such artists as Sean Paul, Christina Aguillera, Slum Village, L.L. Cool J, and N’Sync. She has appeared on the television shows The Drew Carey Show, Jimmy Kimmel Show, That’s So Raven, commercials Nike, iPod, Hyundai, Virgin Mobile, AOL; movies Time for Dancing, Bring It On Yet Again, Bratz”; and choreographed for The Naked Trucker and T-Bone Show, and dance films Knock Knock and Ring Ring.

		TINA FINKELMAN grew up in New York City. She attended Barnard College, Columbia University where she performed the works of Martha Graham, Jose Limon, and Paul Taylor and was a featured soloist in the works of Lila York, Ted Thomas, and Aszure Barton. Tina also performed with dance companies including The Notario Dance Company during their season at the Duke Theater and ASH Contemporary at The Jazz Dance World Congress. Upon graduation, Tina joined the ASzURe & Artists Dance Company as a soloist and has performed throughout the United States, including at the renowned Jacob’s Pillow and Spoleto Festivals. In Los Angeles, she has danced with Evolution Dance Company and Strange & Elegant. Most recently, Tina was a founding member of Hell’s Kitchen Dance, Mikhail Baryshnikov’s new contemporary dance company. While on tour she had the honor of performing a duet with Mr. Baryshnikov himself.

		RYAN HEFFINGTON is an accomplished choreographer, dancer, and designer. Ryan has been teaching contemporary movement in L.A. since 1995, and has taught all over the world including Japan, Germany, Canada, and Nicaragua. Some commercial credits include Legally Blonde, My Wife and Kids, the Academy Awards, and The American Music Awards. Ryan joined CDT in 2003 and in addition to performing has designed costumes for the company. Ryan is also a founding member of Hysterica Dance Company, in which he was nominated for best male Performance (2001) and best costume design (2004) by the Horton Awards. in 1999 he launched his clothing line "Rock 'N Sissy" and immediately clothed rock stars such as Gwen Stefani, Britney, J-Lo, Beck, Navarro, and Jagger. His other local design credits include Mizraney Dance!, Lisa Lock, recording artists Mount Sims, Young People and The Nervous Return.

		CHRISTOPHER KUHL is a designer based out of Los Angeles. Currently he is the resident lighting designer at REDCAT, and assists at Hartford Stage, Dallas Theatre Center, Portland Center Stage, the Kirk Douglas Theatre, and the Geffen Playhouse. Chris is originally from New Mexico and a graduate of CalArts. His recent work includes Lighting Design for My Beowulf, C’Opera receiving a Horton Award nomination (Collage Dance Theatre); Monster of Happiness (Theatre Movement Bazaar); Drums of the Waves of Horikawa (Theatre of a Two Headed Calf); Caddy! Caddy! Caddy! (REDCAT); Moonlight (Lost Studio); Because They Have No Words (Lounge Theatre); Trace (Hand 2 Mouth Theatre); Termen Vox Machina (Filament); The Cherry Orchard (evidEnce Room); and Associate Design for Mycenaean at BAM Next Wave; and Lighting Director for The Actors’ Gang National Tour of The Exonerated.

		CARLOS RODRIGUEZ, a native of El Salvador, was raised in California since the age of ten and started his dance training at age 17. He trained at Santa Ana College and at the ADF School in North Carolina. While at school he performed works by David Doorfman, Donald Mackayle, Gail Gilbert and Andrea Woods. Carlos also performed works by Heather Gillette as an American College Dance Festival Finalist. Other credits include performances with Dance Touring Ensemble from Orange County, Notoriety Inc., Pasadena Civic Ballet, APAP in New York City, Dancers Responding to AIDS in NYC and Fusion Dance Theater. Carlos teaches in residency with Regina Klenjoski Dance Company at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center in the city of Torrance and is currently also a member of Oni dance.

		EVA WILDER received a BA in dance and music history from UCLA. In addition to dancing with Collage Dance Theatre, she has worked with Maria Gillespie, Victoria Marks, Helios Dance Theater, and Cid Pearlman. She is a founding member of IN/EX Dance Project, and has presented her own work at UCLA’s Freud Playhouse, Highways Performance Space, and Jacob's Pillow. Eva is currently finishing her studies at the Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance.


		Other Performers & Collaborators Andre Andreev, Photographer Mecca Andrews, Dancer Paul Antico, Photographer Vivian Babuts, Photographer Lillian Rose Barbeito, Dancer Lou Becker, Dancer David Calderon, Technical Director Pamela Debiase, Dancer Robert Een, Composer Dan Evans, Designer Kerry Farmer, Lighting Designer Tina Finkelman, Dancer Mike Gend, Lighting and Sound Designer Nicholas Heitzeberg, Dancer Matt Henley, Dancer Amy Knoles, Composer BJ Krivanek, Designer Steve Moshier, Composer Mike Noice, Composer Nina McNeely, Dancer Taisha Paggett, Dancer Rawbzilla, Dancer Shannon Rodriguez, Photographer Daniel Rosenboom, Composer Chris Stanley, Dancer Jones Welsh, Dancer Austin Westbay, Dancer Terry Wolverton, Writer HK Zamani, Designer