DanceFORT Summer Workshop

Michelle Bernier  (MFA, CU Boulder) has served as Executive Director and Artistic Co-Director of Sans Souci Festival since 2015, and she currently serves on faculty  in the Dance program at MSU Denver. Her scholarly work with dance cinema has been presented at Universidad de Campinas (SP, Brazil), Texas State University, California Institute of the Arts, ATHE, CoDEO, NDEO, and DSA and in the journal Studies in Musical Theatre; her choreographic residencies include Texas State University, Colorado Mesa University, and Jack’s Solar Garden; her films have been screened at various international festivals. Recently she was honored with the inaugural Emerging Leader in Dance Award from the Dance Archive.  

Jesús Muñoz is a dancer, choreographer, educator, percussionist, a current ensemble dancer at Cleo Parker Robinson Dance, and recent MFA in Dance Graduate from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Born in Mexico, Muñoz functions within the contexts of Mexican Folkloric, Afro-Cuban, Cuban Folkloric, Cuban Popular, Cuban Contemporary, Ballet, Modern, and Contemporary Dance and Latin Percussion. He holds a BFA in Dance Performance from the University of Central Oklahoma. Being informed by his Mexican-Indigenous heritage, he explores dance through a cultural lens to celebrate Latinidad.

Brandon Welch is a dancer, teaching artist and creator with a passion for utilizing movement as a catalyst for social change. He holds a BFA from SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance with a semester on exchange at the Western Australian Academy of the Performing Arts. His performance career includes being a company member of Momix Dance Illusionists, Doug Varone and Dancers, Hannah Kahn Dance Company, Helanius J. Wilkins/SALT and Gibney Dance Company. During his time with Doug Varone, Brandon participated in Dance Motion USA’s cultural diplomacy program to South America and performed in Les Troyens at the Metropolitan Opera.

Brandon currently resides in Fort Collins, Colorado and is a dancer, co-conspirator and community engagement coordinator forThe Conversation Series: Stitching the Geo-Political Quilt to Re-Body Belonging with Helanius J. Wilkins. His guest artist teaching includes DOCH University (Stockholm), Mimar Sinan University (Istanbul), HIGHFest Masterclass (Yerevan), MuDa Africa (Dar Es Salaam) and Dance Ensemble Singapore. Recent creative commissions include the Lamont Opera Theatre, Mariposa Collective and Whitney Center for the Arts.

Michael is currently the Artistic Director of Canyon Concert Ballet, delivering his fourth season with the company in 2024 - 2025. He is also Choreographer for Cincinnati Opera, recently collaborating on the world premiere of Paul McCartney's staged version of Liverpool Oratorio.

He began his classical training in Brisbane, Queensland, and was accepted to study at the Queensland Dance School of Excellence. In 2002, Michael was accepted into the New Zealand School of Dance, where he completed his dance training and joined the Royal New Zealand Ballet. During his time in New Zealand, Michael worked with the Royal New Zealand Ballet and was privileged to perform in works by Val Caniparoli, Jiri Kylian, Frederick Ashton, Stanton Welch, and George Balanchine.

After returning to Australia, Michael worked with Queensland Ballet before taking a break from dance to expand his skills in design. However, his love of dance led him to return to the arts industry, training in contemporary dance with the Australian Dance Collective and Australian Dance Theatre. He then launched a successful career as an independent dancer, working with Leigh Warren and Dancers, Melbourne Ballet Company, Victoria State Ballet, and Opera Victoria.

Michael’s passion for creating ballets came to the forefront in 2011 when he choreographed for the Victoria State Ballet and the Melbourne Fringe Festival. Recognizing his talent for choreography and artistic direction, Michael was appointed Artistic Director of Melbourne City Ballet in 2013 and promoted to Artistic Director/CEO in 2016. There, he leveraged his design and dance talents to build the organization into Australia’s largest classical touring company, performing over 100 shows annually across Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. During his seven years as Artistic Director, Michael’s works were nominated for numerous dance awards.

In 2016, Michael was invited to work as co-director with Niconomiel Dance Company in Osaka, Japan. There, he produced full-length ballets and contemporary works, showcasing local Japanese dancers in collaboration with guest dancers from Australia and Brazil.

Michael joined San Jose Dance Theatre in January 2020 as an Artistic Associate and also worked with Opera San Jose as a choreographer for the critically acclaimed "Dido and Aeneas" and continued to work with the company on "West Side Story." Michael was appointed Artistic Director at Canyon Concert Ballet in January 2022 and later that year choreographed "Aida" for Cincinnati Opera, and in 2023, choreographed "Ariodante" for Pittsburgh Opera.

Owner, Pilates Connection
Certified through Power Pilates since 2004
BFA Dance Performance, SUNY Purchase

Pilates has been a part of my life since I was 12 years old.  I had the unique opportunity of training on a Pilates reformer and studying the technique while attending a pre-professional ballet program at the Cincinnati Ballet.  From that young age and throughout my adult professional dance career I experienced the difference Pilates made in my overall ability to connect to and create balance in my body.  After my professional dance career came to a halt due to arthritis, it was a natural transition to begin a career sharing all I had learned over the years and helping others connect to their bodies through the systematic training of classical pilates. I got my certification through Power Pilates and began teaching in 2004.  I had my own business in New York for 10 years, moved to Colorado and had the honor of initiating and managing a successful Pilates program at the Fort Collins Country Club from 2014-2021. In 2021, I was given the opportunity  to open up my own studio, Pilates Connection, here in Fort Collins. It has been a joy over the years witnessing how "pilates works" for so many different people.  From young aspiring athletes to clients in their 80's, seeing clients through pregnancies, helping rehabilitate clients post spinal, knee, and hip surgeries, seeing clients improve their overall health and physique, I have seen how pilates can and has changed lives!  It is truly a gift to connect with others through sharing this special practice!

Born in Quito, Ecuador, Francisco moved to the United States at the age of 5 and began dancing in Louisville, KY at the age of 7. Francisco went on to train in New York at 16 and graduated from the School of American Ballet.

He has danced with New York City Ballet, Boston Ballet, Barcelona Ballet and most recently as a Principal Dancer with the Colorado Ballet. He enjoys teaching ballet to students of all ages and has also coached and choreographed for a number of students in preparation for Youth American Grand Prix, Denver Ballet Guild, the Jackson IBC Competition and ADCIBC.

Francisco believes in training the future generation of dancers to be open minded while focusing on developing a strong, basic technique with an emphasis on performance quality and artistry.

Francisco is also the Co-Artistic Director of the Denver Ballet Guild Young Dancers Competition.