APRIL 17 – 18, 2026 | 7:30 PM | LUMINARY ARTS CENTER
PAY-AS-ABLE MATINEE: APRIL 18, 2026 | 2:00 PM
Fishscale
World Premiere
Choreography: Shane Larson
Performed by: ARENA DANCES company- Nieya Amezquita, Alex Arce, Non Edwards, and Sarah McCullough with apprentice Holly Trenbath.Music: Sound composition by Shane Larson, with selections from Alex G
1. Overture
2. 10 years
3. Chess
4. Quick departure
5. Where am I gonna land?
6. Immunity
Commissioned by ARENA DANCES
The Fold
World Premiere
Choreography: Assaf Salhov
Performed by: ARENA DANCES company- Nieya Amezquita, Alex Arce, Non Edwards, and Sarah McCullough with special guest Timo Wagner.
Music: String Quartet No. 5 in B-Flat Major, Sz. 102: II. Adagio molto by Béla Bartók, Prague String Quartet; String Quartet No. 5 in B-Flat Major, Sz. 102: III Scherzo. Alla bulgarese by Béla Bartók, Prague String Quartet; 東京ナイト・クラブ (Tokyo Night Club); First Term at the Piano, Sz. 53: X. Folk Melodyby Béla Bartók, Jean-Michel Serres; Muziqa heyweteby Getatchew Mekurya; Dance Suite, Sz. 77: II. Allegro molto by Béla Bartók, Orchester Des Ungarischen Rundfunks, György Lehel; Ramer Sans Rame by Akofa Akoussah.
Commissioned by ARENA DANCES
– 10 MINUTE INTERMISSION –
DOGMA
World Premiere
Choreography: Wendell Gray II
Performed by: ARENA DANCES company- Nieya Amezquita, Alex Arce, and Sarah McCullough.Music: Elaine Radigue, Tarquin Manek, LA Timpa, Masayoshi Fujita & Jan Jelinek, Clarice Jensen, Klein, and the Mississippi River
Commissioned by ARENA DANCES
Dear Sisyphus
World Premiere
Choreography: Wynn Fricke in collaboration with the dancers
Performed by: ARENA DANCES company- Nieya Amezquita, Alex Arce, Non Edwards, Jake Nehrbass, and Sarah McCullough
Music: Half Life and Last Life by Ori Lichtik; Song of the Humbback Whale, recordings of the vocalizations of Humpback Whales produced in 1970 by Roger Payne.
Commissioned by ARENA DANCES
Please note: The use of photography or any form of audio/video recording is prohibited. Today’s performance may be documented by ARENA DANCES with photography and/or video. By being here, you consent to having your image and/or voice documented.
Other Events
FEATURED CHOREOGRAPHERS
Shane Larson
Shane Larson is a New York City-based movement and multimedia artist whose work explores the intersections of memory, identity, and physicality. Raised in Minnesota, he received his early training at the St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists under the direction of Maggie Bergeron before earning a BFA in Dance from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts under full scholarship, with a minor in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Studies. He also studied at the Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance in Austria.
Since moving to New York, Shane has collaborated across disciplines; punk musicians, filmmakers, improvisational music ensembles, and site-specific visual artists. In 2015, he joined the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, where he has performed over 20 works nationally and internationally, and lead workshops and educational residencies across the country. He is also a recipient of a Bessie for outstanding choreography for his collaborative work in 2021’s Deep Blue Sea. In 2024 he was a fellow at Jacob’s Pillow for its inaugural Choreotech AI Lab and part of the NYU Production Lab Artist Development Cohort in 2025.
Beyond movement, Shane is a passionate multimedia artist, using video and sound design to re-contextualize personal environments. His work explores the play between emotion and perception, creating visual and audio experiences that unravel and reconstruct feelings between imagination and expectation.
Assaf Salhov
Assaf Salhov is a New York City-based choreographer, dancer, and therapist, and the Artistic Director and Choreographer of Le Ballet Fou and creator of Cardinal Movement. He began his career with Vertigo 2 Dance Company and later studied Choreography and Performance at SEAD Salzburg and SNDO Amsterdam. Following his studies, Assaf performed at the Cameri Theater and was assistant to the director/choreographer Yehezkel Lazarov.
In 2015, Assaf moved to New York, where he joined Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More and created Cabaret evenings for The McKittrick Follies. He performed with Sleep No More through their closing shows in 2025. As a director and choreographer, he has developed over fifteen works showcased in Israel, Europe, and New York. With Le Ballet Fou, Assaf’s work has been presented at Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Shed in NYC, LA Dance Festival, Fondation Etats-Unis (Paris), Suzanne Dellal Centre (Tel Aviv), and on international tours to Sweden, Denmark, and Spain. He also choreographed for Grammy-winning artist Silvana Estrada.
Recently, Assaf premiered an immersive theater show at the former Beaux Arts Studios in New York City and completed a residency with Le Ballet Fou at the Nordisk Teaterlaboratorium in Denmark. In 2025, the company performed at Movement Research at Judson Church, WestFest, and 92Y. In 2025 the company presented their newest pieces The Birth of the Ghost and Feathers for Flesh.
Wendell Gray II
Wendell Gray II is a dancer, choreographer, and educator currently based in New York City, situated on Lenapehoking land. Wendell’s artistic journey has led him to perform with choreographers and artists including Juliana May, Miguel Gutierrez, Tere O’Connor, Joanna Kotze, Jordan Demetrius Lloyd, Pavel Zustiak, Christal Brown, and Kevin Beasley, among many others. Wendell is a 2025-2028 Jerome Hill Fellow, a 2024-2025 Movement Research Artist-in-Residence, and was recently nominated for Outstanding Breakout Choreographer at the 2024-25 Bessie’s. His choreographic works have been shown at Danspace Project, PAGEANT, Coffey Street Studios, Kinosaito Arts Center, Gibney, University of the Arts, Movement Research at Judson Church, Center for Performance Research, Chez Bushwick, and Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance. He has additionally been supported by residency programs, including Sightlines Dance Festival (2023), STUFFED Artist in Residence at Judson Church (2021), Work Up 6.0 Artist at Gibney (2020), and Chez Bushwick (2017). Wendell is an alumnus of the University of the Arts, where he graduated with a BFA in Dance under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield. Originally hailing from Atlanta, GA, his artistic journey has been enriched by his upbringing in the performing arts. For more, visit wenings.com.
Wynn Fricke
Wynn Fricke has been called a “choreographic shaman” who creates “timeless works that comment on the human condition with muscular choreography and primordial power.” (Star Tribune) Her choreography has been produced nationally, in Russia, and Micronesia, and includes commissions from Zenon Dance Company, Ragamala Dance, James Sewell Ballet, Ballet Arts Minnesota, and Frank Theatre. She served for two years as Resident Choreographer for Minnesota Dance Theatre, and is the founder of Borrowed Bones Dance Theatre.
Wynn is the recipient of seven McKnight Fellowships in Choreography and Performance, and two New York State-funded grants from Arts International and Trust for Mutual Understanding. She has been named “Best Choreographer” and one of the “Artists of the Year” by Minneapolis City Pages, and has been honored with two Sage awards for “Outstanding Performance”. She has also received support through the American Composers Forum, the Jerome Foundation, and Minneapolis Regional Arts Council.
MOVING ARTISTS
Nieya Amezquita
Choreographer, performer, and founder of Amez Dance, exploring the connection between movement and psychology. Nieya Amezquita is a Minnesota-based artist currently working as a company member with Arena Dances, Black Label Movement and Corpus Dance Works. She has also performed with Threads Dance Project, Rhythmically Speaking, Elayna Waxse Movement Projects, Concerto Dance, Off-Leash Area, and Doma Dance Theater. In 2019, Nieya earned a Bachelors in Dance and Psychology from the University of Georgia. During undergrad she had the opportunity to perform nationally and internationally with founding company CADE:NCE before studying in Portugal with the Addo Platform where her passion for choreography was ignited. She discovered the perfect merge of her two fields of interest: using dance as an artistic medium to explore, understand and discuss human psychological concepts. Now Nieya’s work has been presented in the Blackness Is Arts festival produced by the Guthrie Theater, the CandyBox festival produced by Arena Dances, commissioned by Threads Dance Project, Rhythmically Speaking, Alternative Motion Project and Ballet Co’Laboratory. In 2023, Nieya furthered her professional development by founding and leading Amez Dance, a project-based dance company committed to cultivating reflective and reparative experiences through movement. Nieya strives to participate in works that not only create a space where authenticity is celebrated but deeply understood.
Alex Arce
Alex Arce is an Ecuadorian American artist born and raised in Minnesota has been dancing since the age of 5 culturally and socially as well as technically. He focuses his practice within the street dance and Latin diaspora dance forms as well as contemporary/Modern Dance. He is a graduate of Larkin Dance Studio and Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists. Upon his high school training he has also been a part of a pre professional dance program known as the Cli Conservatory in Massachusetts where he got to learn from different choreographers all around the world and further pursue his career as a movement artist, choreographer, and educator. After graduating from this program, Alex was accepted as a member of the Cli Company, working as both a choreographer and instructor with Cli Studios. Most recently he has focused his career in collaboration with other companies such as Meridians movement company and Black Label Movement where he has got the opportunity to further develop his craft and continue his love for creation and performance. Currently, Alex works as a Freelance Artist, Teacher, and Company Member.
Non Edwards
Sage Award nominee and McKnight Dancer Fellow performing nationally in modern, postmodern, and performance art spaces. Non Edwards is a dancer, choreographer, and GYROKINESIS® Method trainer, located in the Twin Cities since 2009. Working across a range of style and genre, Non performs modern, postmodern, improvisation and performance art in galleries, theaters, videos, and DIY and public spaces including the Seattle Art Fair, Walker Art Center, Nelson-Atkins Museum, Jacob’s Pillow, and Maui Arts & Cultural Center. Non is an Outstanding Performer Sage Award nominee, and a McKnight Dancer Fellow. Additional credits include Katie Brennan, Doma Dance Theater, Jess Forest, Jennifer Glaws, Hatch Dance and Honeyworks, HIJACK, Ellen Mueller, Valerie Oliveiro, Kerry Parker, April Sellers, Anna Marie Shogren, D Jinza Thayer, Morgan Thorson, and Laurie Van Wieren. Sarah McCullough is a Minneapolis-based dance artist, educator in contemporary forms, and Company Manager of Shannon Hummel/Cora Dance. She is a highly collaborative artist who is passionate about aliveness in performance, and seeks to perform works that center humanity, vulnerability, and play.
Sarah McCullough
Sarah McCullough (she/her) is a Minneapolis-based dance artist and educator in contemporary forms. She is a highly collaborative artist who is passionate about aliveness in performance, and seeks to perform emotionally resonant works that center humanity, vulnerability, and play.
Originally from Virginia, Sarah attended James Madison University as a Madison Achievement Scholar, and earned her BA in Dance and Mathematics. Since moving to Minneapolis in 2018, she has enjoyed a vibrant and dynamic dance career, having performed with companies ARENA DANCES and Black Label Movement, and in projects by choreographers Elayna Waxse, Taja Will, Alexandra Bodnarchuk, Berit Ahlgren, Helen Hatch, Zoë Koenig, and more. With roots established in Minnesota, Sarah began working with VA/NYC-based company Shannon Hummel/Cora Dance as a collaborating dance artist in 2024. She is currently a member of ARENA DANCES, a repertory company led by Mathew Janczewski.
Sarah has recently led contemporary classes at The Arena, Hothouse Studios, Zenon Dance School, and Minnesota Dance Theater. Sarah has offered workshops at the Limón/Black Label Twin Cities Intensive, ARENA DANCES’ Instinct Intensive, The University of Winchester (UK), North Carolina State University, and several high school dance programs throughout the Twin Cities. She is also a 200-hour accredited yoga teacher and offers a holistic approach to mindful movement as a personal and artistic practice.
Jake Nehrbass
Versatile performer and educator with deep roots in the Twin Cities dance community. Jake Nehrbassgrew up in Minneapolis and started his dance journey when he was three years old. Over the years, he has had the privilege of studying and performing various styles, including tap, modern, jazz, hip hop, international styles, and ballroom. Jake earned his BA in Dance and Exercise Science from St. Olaf College, which has allowed him to explore the physical and anatomical aspects of movement. His work as a performing artist, choreographer, and teacher in the Twin Cities is deeply rooted in a love for the art form and a desire to share it with others. Currently, Jake dances with ARENA Dances, Black Label Movement, Ruby Josephine Dance Theatre, and Rhythmically Speaking and has had or continues to collaborate with several wonderful local companies, including Contempo Physical Dance, Mixtape, Threads Dance Project, Flying Foot Forum, Hatch Dance/Honey Works, Katha Dance Theatre, Cheng “Technica” Xiong, Buckets and Taps, Eau Claire Dance, STRONGmovement, and in Stephan Koplowitz’s Northfield Experience. He is grateful for each of these experiences, which have allowed him to grow as an artist and connect with talented individuals in the community. In addition to performing and choreographing, Jake enjoys teaching at Prairie School of Dance and Ballare Teatro Performing Arts Center.
Holly Trenbath (Apprentice)
Holly Trenbath (they/she) is an interdisciplinary movement artist and performing arts facilitator from Richmond, VA who recently relocated to Minneapolis, MN after graduating with a BFA in Dance + Choreography from Virginia Commonwealth University. They have trained, worked, and performed along the east coast in the fields of dance performance, choreography, arts administration, and production at organizations/institutions such as Bates Dance Festival, Richmond Ballet, and Hopkins Center for the Arts at Dartmouth, among others. Holly is interested in movements – be they political or embodied – that connect self to body, body to peoples, peoples to their communities, and communities to conversations…and she thinks that dancing is possibly the most fun a person can have. Currently, Holly works administratively with Ballare Teatro and Off-Leash Area: Contemporary Performance Works. She is an apprentice with ARENA DANCES and freelances as a performer/dance maker across the Twin Cities. Learn more at hollytrenbath.com
Timo Wagner (Guest Artist)
After years of work with the company followed by years of hiatus, Timo Wagner is honored to return to ARENA Dances as a guest this spring. In addition to seven years with ARENA, Timo has worked with Scott Stafford, Val Oliviero, Blake Nellis, BodyCartography Project, Rosy Simas, Stuart Pimsler Dance and Theatre, Tamera Ober and others. Timo is grateful to revisit these forms, reconnect with this community, and to share in the continued evolution of ARENA’s artistic voice.
Land Acknowledgment
We acknowledge that the Minneapolis area, including the site of the Luminary Arts Center, stands on the ancestral and contemporary homelands of the Dakota people. This land holds deep cultural, spiritual, and historical significance, especially in light of the U.S.–Dakota War of 1862 and the forced displacement of Dakota communities from this region.
We honor the enduring presence, resilience, and contributions of the Dakota people and all Indigenous communities who continue to live, work, and create here. We recognize that acknowledgement is only a beginning, and we commit to ongoing reflection, learning, and action in support of Indigenous sovereignty, equity, and cultural vitality.
More About ARENA DANCES
Founder & Artistic Director: Mathew Janczewski
Creative Design Manager: Kate Sebes
Poster Design: Diane Waller
Board of Directors:
Steve Norlin Weaver (Chair)
Brandon Plombon (Chief Financial Officer)
Caroline Glawe (Administrative Director)
Marisa Baker
Betsy Maloney Leaf
Kelli Miles
Ricardo Torres Rivera
Elliana Vesely
Thank You
ARENA DANCES’ programs and commissions are made possible by donors and Community Giving Partners:
