The Bessies Steering Committee
The Steering Committee provides input to The Bessies with longstanding historical knowledge of the organization.
Charmaine Warren
Mother/Wife/Performer/Curator/
Producer DanceAfrica & Associate Producer BAM
Craig Peterson
President and CEO, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council
george emilio sanchez
Performance Artist, Writer and Social & Indigenous Justice activist
Nicky Paraiso
Actor, musician, writer, performance artist and curator; Director of Programming for The Club at La MaMa; Curator, La MaMa Moves! Dance Festival
maura nguyen donohue
Director, MFA in Dance, Hunter College – Writer, Performer, Choreographer, Installation artist (she/they/bruh/mom)
Stanford Makishi
Vice President & Artistic Director, Dance Programs, New York City Center
Tiffany Rea-Fisher
Artistic Director EMEREGE125, Bryant Park Dance Curator, Teacher, Community Organizer
The Bessies Selection Committee
The Bessie Selection Committee is responsible for choosing work to be awarded from the season. If you wish to invite the Selection Committee to your show, please email the committee via the button “Email The Bessie Committee.”
Gregory English
Kate Thomas
Kyla Gordon
Nami Yamamoto
PeiJu Chien-Pott
Raelle Myrick Hodges
Rakia Seaborn
Sangeeta Yesley
Suzzanne Ponomarenko
Tyler Ashley
William Isaac
Yoshiko Chuma
ALEX SMITH
Alex Smith, Jr. was born in Montgomery, AL. His parents, both veterans of the Montgomery bus boycott, migrated to Brooklyn, NY when he was 3 years old. Smith is the Executive Chairman of Thelma Hill Performing Arts Center (THPAC) since 1995. Under Smith’s continuing tenure, over 300 artists have been presented in performance including: Ron Brown, Camille Brown, George Faison, Louis Johnson, Marlies Yearby, Fred Benjamin, Urban Bush Women, and Philadanco, among many others; seven new programming formats have been added; At present, Smith is spearheading the production of a documentary on THPAC’s 47 years on the dance scene On October 18, 2016 Smith was the recipient of Bessie Award for outstanding service to the field of dance. Smith is also a graphic designer and visual artist.
Celia Ipiotis
CELIA IPIOTIS is the creator, producer and moderator of the nationally recognized education TV series EYE ON DANCE (EOD) and curator of the EYE ON DANCE Archive. Singled out for her expertise, Ms. Ipiotis lectured and served on college faculties including Hunter College, Rutgers University, Harvard Summer Dance Program, Wright State University, OSU, Antioch College, NYU, Marymount Manhattan, Aegina Arts Center. A panelist on local, state and national performing arts selection panels; Ipiotis advised, WNET’s Dance In America, and led arts forums at institutions like BAM, Lincoln Center and Harlem Stage.
A former dancer, choreographer, dance company director and videographer, Ipiotis oversees restoration of the EOD Legacy Archive recently designated “an irreplaceable national dance treasure” and “a core dance archive for universities.” Along with videodance artist Jeff Bush, Ipiotis created the award-winning videodance library. After receiving her BFA in Dance at OSU and MA in Arts Media Studies at New School, Ipiotis secured choreographic fellowships, and held artist-in-residence positions throughout the USA. Invited to join the Bessie Awards nominating committee, Ipiotis is a member of the Columbia University Dance Scholars Seminars, Drama Desk, and served as a Research Fellow at Jacob’s Pillow. Ms. Ipiotis also manages the on-line cultural journal EYE ON THE ARTS and produces lectures coupled with EYE ON DANCE 30 – minute programs that interface with course curricula and current events.
Duke Dang
Starting as a paid intern in 2003, Duke Dang is now the executive director of Works & Process, a performing arts organization that champions creative process from studio-to-stage with a commitment to providing artists with living wage fees. Works & Process partners with 12 residency centers across 7 counties and presents in New York City at the Guggenheim, Lincoln Center, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, and serves as dance curator for SummerStage. Annually Works & Process presents over 70 performances and produces over 250 days of fully-funded residencies, in total supporting over 500 artists. During his tenure, the organization’s budget has tripled, and a board designated endowment fund and cash reserve were created. Works & Process programs have frequently been selected “Best of” by The New York Times and commissioned works have been honored with a Bessie Award. Swiftly responding to the pandemic, in March 2020 Works & Process launched WPA Virtual Commissions, supporting over 300 artists and 85 virtual works described by The New York Times as “one of the most powerful artistic responses yet to the Covid-19 crisis.” During spring and summer 2020, Works & Process pioneered and produced the field’s first bubble residencies, where artists could safely gather to create and perform together. The residencies resulted in the first permitted live outdoor performances during the pandemic in New York, taking place in August 2020 at Kaatsbaan Cultural Park. Many of these bubble residencies culminated in filmed video performances, as part of the Works & Process at Lincoln Center initiative and were featured in the Works & Process produced and NY Emmy-nominated docuseries Isolation to Creation, which was licensed and broadcast on WNET’s All Arts and nationally on PBS. On March 20, 2021, Works & Process re-opened the first permitted indoor performances in New York State, which took place in the rotunda of the Guggenheim. In 2020 and 2021, Duke was nominated for the Association for Performing Arts Professionals’ William Dawson Award for Programmatic Excellence and Sustained Achievement in Programming. In 2021 Works & Process was honored with the Dance Magazine Chairman’s Award. Duke was born at a UN refugee camp, and grew up with the assistance of Section 8 housing vouchers, food stamps, welfare, while attending Head Start. As an inaugural Gates Millennium Scholar, he earned his B.A. in Art History at Boston University, where he studied abroad in Australia, Brazil, England, India, and South Africa. At New York University he earned his M.A. in Performing Arts Administration. Prior to Works & Process, Duke worked at the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Glimmerglass Festival, Sydney Theatre Company, and Boston Symphony Orchestra. In 2013, Duke with his husband, co-founded and continue to serve on the steering committee of the Hudson Valley Dance Festival, benefitting Dancers Responding to AIDS a program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Now in its 11th year, the event has raised over $1 million dollar to support social service organizations in the Hudson Valley and nationally.
Farren Wood
Farren Wood is a South African/Australian arts manager, creative professional and fierce community advocate. An inherent and culturally inherited love of storytelling has seen her dedicate her career to either telling the story or cultivating a place and space for stories to be told. Farren has worked as an actor, writer, performer, producer, event and artist manager. She currently serves as the Manager of Programs and Community Engagement at 651 ARTS.
Gregory English
Gregory English is a performing arts administrator in New York City focusing on cultivating, advocating and supporting emerging dance artists. Gregory was a scholarship student in the professional program at both The Ailey and Joffrey Ballet schools, then later worked with Complexions Contemporary Ballet artistic directors Desmond Richardson and Dwight Rhoden, the Washington National Opera, Peridance Ensemble and a host of other dance companies and notable choreographers. To further support the arts after a career onstage, Gregory attended and received an M.A. in Arts Administration from Baruch college and applies this knowledge to support dance-making. Gregory has worked as a Curatorial Associate at The Joyce Theater under the leadership of programming director Danni Gee and currently works for Bill T. Jones New York Live Arts as Operations Manager. Gregory has also been an AGMA (The American Guild of Musical Artists) union member since 1999.
Kate Thomas
Kate Thomas, Artistic Director of Ballet Neo creates ballets that encompass sophisticated motifs of intimacy and loneliness, classical narratives, and refined responses to experimental music. Her company, Ballet Neo, performs regularly in venues such as the 92St Y, Ailey Citigroup Theater, Downtown Dance Festival, Manhattan Movement and Arts, and Dancers Responding to Aids. Thomas collaborated with Grammy Award winner, violinist, and composer Mark O’Connor on The Appalachian Suites Project, Flowers of Darkness. The company produced biannual New York City seasons at Manhattan Movement and Arts. This year, Thomas launched Ballet Neo Young Professionals, a summer dance intensive and apprenticeship program.
Thomas was the Director of The School at Steps, a Division of Steps on Broadway. She restructured the academic year curriculum-based program into three divisions: Young Dancers, Technique, and Pre-Professional. She created all Summer Programs for the School.Thomas teaches Advanced Ballet Repertory. Dedicated to dance education, Thomas developed an approach to movement for young children for many studios and pre-schools throughout the city. Thomas founded B.Muse Inc., a not-for-profit corporation, providing dance programs, lecture demonstrations, and performances to schools in Harlem, the South Bronx, and Upper Manhattan.
Nami Yamamoto
Nami Yamamoto, from Matsuyama, Japan, holds an MA in Dance Education from New York University and a BA in Physical Education from Ehime University. Nami is a Bessie awardee (The New York Dance and Performance Award) for the outstanding production of Headless Wolf which was presented at Roulette in 2017. Her work has been funded by Creative Capital, Jim Henson Foundation, Creative Engagement by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, City Artist Corps, Foundation for Contemporary Arts and others. She has been nurtured and inspired by her residency experience at Movement Research, Brooklyn Arts Exchange, New Dance Alliance, Maggie Allesee National Center for Choreography, Gibney DiP Resident Artist, CPR – Center for Performance Research and most recently Baryshnikov Arts Center. She has taught dance workshop/master class at various places such as, Ohio State University, UC Irvine, Long Island University, Florida State University, University of Penang, Malaysian Dance Festival, and Contemporary Dance Festival Free Dance in Ukraine.
Nami enjoys teaching dance at NYC public schools through Dance Makers Program at Movement Research and Together in Dance. She has been a faculty member at New School and Lehman College. She is currently a core member of Artists of Color Council at Movement Research.
PeiJu Chien-Pott
PeiJu Chien-Pott, an internationally acclaimed award-winning contemporary dance artist and choreographer from Taiwan, celebrated particularly for her work as a Principal Dancer for the Martha Graham Dance Company. Described as “one of the greatest living modern dancers” and “”the most dramatically daring and physically chameleon-esque Graham dancer of her generation””, Ms. Chien-Pott has interpreted the iconic lead roles of Martha Graham’s repertoire. She holds a BFA in Dance from Taipei National University of the Arts, where she is honored with “Outstanding Alumni Award”. Ms Chien-Pott has received many prestigious international recognitions, including Bessie award for “Outstanding Performance”, POSITANO PREMIA LA DANZA “LEONIDE MASSINE” for “Best Female Contemporary Dancer”, an honoree of the ”Women’s History Month” by Hudson County, named “Best Performers” in 2014, 2017 by Dance Magazine, Capri International Dance Award 2018. Ms. Chien-Pott is selected as a young influencer in Performing Arts by The Generation T List of Asia Tatler in 2018, 2019 and as “Ten Outstanding Young Persons” of Taiwan by Junior Chamber International. She was named one of the “Best Dance of 2021” in Richard Move’s “Herstory of the Universe” by the New York Times.
Her recent choreography includes “REBIRTH” in collaboration with renowned sculpture Kang Mu-Xiang for Taipei 101, “ISLAND” created during the pandemic commissioned by the Iron Rose Festival of Taiwan, “UNITY” completed for the late choreographer Nai-Ni Chen premiered at the New York Live Arts and “SPLIT” commissioned by Periapsis Music and Dance, and she was one of the collaborating choreographers for the evening length work The Threads Project #1 “Universal Dialogues” of Buglisi Dance Theater premiered at the Chelsea Factory. She has recently premiered her work “Lion in the City”, a hip hop Chinese Lion Dance for Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company’s Lunar New Year program celebrating the Year of the Water Rabbit. Ms Chien-Pott’s appearance in a short film NALA, directed by British filmmaker and choreographer Darshan Singh Bhuller, has received ten international film awards. Ms. Chien-Pott awarded a 2023 Choreography Fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. She is a faculty at The Ailey School and Martha Graham School.
Rakia Seaborn
A native of Detroit, MI, Rakia Seaborn is a writer, choreographer, educator and performer whose work has appeared at JACK, Dixon Place, La Mama E.T.C., The Tank, AUNTS, chashama and Brooklyn Studios for Dance. Seaborn has worked with Kathy Westwater, Dianne McIntyre, Rashaun Mitchell, Jodi Melnick, and Meta-Phys Ed. She graduated from Oberlin College in 2007, earning a Bachelors of Art in Dance with a concentration in Choreography, and in 2014, she gained an MFA in Dance from Sarah Lawrence College. Seaborn teaches Movement for Trinity College’s Experimental Performing Arts Program at La Mama, Etc. She will join the Dance Faculty at Sarah Lawrence College in Spring 2024. She is a 2018 Mertz Gilmore Late Stage Creative Stipend recipient. Seaborn’s latest work, A RUIN had its world premiere at JACK in May of 2022.
William Isaac
William Isaac, award winning Artistic Director, Choreographer and Dancer, was born on the island nation of Antigua. His project-based company Kymera Dance is dedicated to making new work in the artistic discipline of dance, collaboration within other arts & entertainment fields and the development of future dance artists.
Yoshiko Chuma
Yoshiko Chuma (conceptual artist, choreographer/artistic director of The School of Hard Knocks) has been a firebrand in the postmodern dance scene in New York City since the 1980s. She has consistently produced thought-provoking work that is neither dance nor theater nor film nor any other predetermined category.