Artist Bios
H.T. Chen
H.T. Chen was born in Shanghai, China and raised in Taiwan. Mr. Chen’s background is in both Chinese and Western dance and theater. A graduate of the University of Chinese Culture in Taiwan, The Juilliard School in NYC, and New York University (MA), H.T. Chen worked for several years at La MaMa E.T.C. as an actor, dancer and choreographer with the Pan Asian Repertory Theatre. He has also been the recipient of NEA Choreography Fellowships, a CAPS grant, and a Jerome Foundation grant, and was choreographer in residence at THE YARD - A Colony for Performing Arts. Mr. Chen has taught at the Navajo Community College and the NYU Dept of Dance Professions. For the last several years, he has also been working with Dance Theater Workshop’s Artists Exchange Program of their International Suitcase Fund. Mr. Chen has been an Arts America Speaker for the U.S.I.A. to Mauritius, and serves on the Board for Dance Theater Workshop. If you would like to know more you can check out a full version of H.T.’s bio here.
Dian Dong
Dian Dong, a graduate of The Juilliard School, studied with Shirley Ubell, Vladimir Doukodovsky, Alfredo Corvino and Doris Rudko. She has worked with Anna Sokolow’s Players’ Project, Kathryn Posin, Janet Soares, Lance Westergard, Kazuko Hirabayashi, Lincoln Center Institute, the ADF 25th Anniversary Repertory Company, Walter Nicks and the national tour of The King & I. She has taught at NYU School of Ed., Montclair State College, the Center for Modern Dance Ed. and Chen Dance Center. Ms. Dong organizes and designs the education programs for CDC’s homebased and residency programs. She has also served on the board for the Martha Hill Dance Fund, LTD. Dian has participated in the Kennedy Center’s Capacity Building Program led by Michael Kaiser, and attended the Executive Program for Non-Profit Leaders - Arts at Stanford Graduate Business School.
Renouard Gee
Renouard Gee received a BA from St. Thomas Univ in Houston, TX before coming to NYC. He has toured in the U.S., Europe and Asia with numerous companies, including Laura Dean Dancers & Musicians, Senta Driver/HARRY, Michael Mao, and Catherine Turocy’s New York Baroque Dance Co. Having performed in HT Chen’s “Opening The Gate”, “Transparent Hinges”, “Warriors of Light”, & “Bian Dan”, Renouard is excited to be returning to Chen Dance Center’s 30th Anniversary season. It has been an honor & privilege performing & collaborating with HT & Dian and serving on the Chen Dance Center Board of Directors. Renouard is also a proud member of The La Mama ETC’s Great Jones Repertory Company which is founded & directed by Ellen Stewart.
Stephanie Chun
received her BA in Government from Dartmouth College and earned her MFA in Dance from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. She has danced for several New York-based companies and choreographers including Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance, Mariana Bekerman Dance Company, ESS/Danceworks, Nimbus Dance Works and others. Stephanie has worked as a piano accompanist for ballet classes at studios and universities in New York and has taught ballet in Washington Heights. She is currently also working with XDance Theater/Cynthia Xavier and Ariel Rivka Dance.
Bong Dizon
Mr. Dizon’s regional theatre credits include Miss Saigon, Hairspray, Music Men and Antigone. In New York he has danced with Amalgamate Dance Company as well as Six Degrees Dance Company. He has also re-staged selections of Alice in Love? with the Bleeding Toe Dance Company.
Amanda Hinchey
Originally from Winchester, Massachusetts, Amanda attended the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and received her BFA in 2009. Amanda has danced professionally with Loraine Chapman the Company, Mari Meade Dance Collective, Amalgamate Dance Company and is currently also dancing with WHITE WAVE Young Soon Kim Dance Company. She was one of the recipients of 2010-2011William R. Kenan Fellowship at Lincoln Center Institute for Arts in Education.
Takao Komaru
Takao Komaru began his training with Kenshi Nohmi in Tokyo, Japan. After graduated Tokyo School of Music, he came to the US to continue studying at The Ailey School in 2004. He has worked with Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance, Saeko Ichinohe Dance Company, Kennedy Dancers featured in Force of Circumstance by Sean Curran , Albano Ballet, Syracuse City Ballet, California Ballet Opera and others.
Jung-Hyun Lee
Originally from Busan, Korea Jung-Hyun (Ari) started dancing in 1995. She obtained her BA in dance from Kyoung-Sung University in Korea. She performed extensively with ZOOM, a Korean Modern company. In 2010, she graduated with an MFA in performance from the University of Iowa. She has worked with a number of great choreographers including Martha Clarke, Alan Sener, Jennifer Kayle, Carl Flink, and others.
Ari Someya
Ari Someya hails from Tokyo, Japan where she started dancing at the Michiko Shiona Dance Studio. After working with Michiko Shiona Company and various other dance artists in Japan, Ari moved to New York in 2004 to study at The Merce Cunningham Dance School where she received her certificate in 2007. Ari is thrilled to be dancing for H.T. Chen & Dancers, and Saeko Ichinohe Dance Company.
Dani Vialpando
A native of Denver, CO Dani began performing with Blue Knight Drum & Bugle Corps and Thin Air Trapeze Company. She received her BA from The New School University: Eugene Lang College and has been featured in Dance Spirit magazines “Higher Education Issue”. As a modern and classically trained dancer /aerialist, Dani has had the pleasure of working with such artist as Robert Whiteman, Alessandro Pellicani, Giada Ferron, Shaair+ Func and Chriselle Tidrick. She is currently a freelance dancer and working member of Vain Combat under the direction of Douglas Dunn & Dancers.