September's Featured Artists

DAVID ARONSON (Painter) was born in the foothills of the great Catskill mountains. From an early age, David drew Batman and animals instead of scribbles. His mother, convinced this was a prophecy of greatness enrolled him in the prestigious, old lady in the woods academy for four year olds. Here he studied the ancient art of painting. After only a few short years studying with the greatest artistic minds of five to seven years olds in the lower upstate New York area, David’s parents uprooted his dreams and condemned him to the subtropical swamp known as somewhere between Miami and Boca Raton. With silicone implants and greasy spiked hair-dos all around, David’s creativity felt stifled and he vowed to one day return to the promised land. Now after fifteen grueling years of upper-middle-class-suburban hardship David Aronson has entered into New York City.

KELLY LIZ BOLICK (Actor) is a native of North Carolina where she began her training at North Carolina School of the Arts. She then went on to attain her Bachelor of Science in Biology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Since moving to NYC, she has assisted in choreographing a performance number for New York Fashion Week and just finished working as associate choreographer for the current production of The Boy From Oz in Peru. She has performed in the Steps Faculty Performance with Richard Pierlon, Choreoapher’s Canvas, and many other productions across the city. Most recently she was the assistant choreographer and swing on the award winning production of "Volleygirls" at this years New York Musical Theatre Festival.

AUSTIN COATS (Choreographer) is a BFA Commercial Dance Major at Pace University. He has been dancing since his freshman year in high school, and has worked with choreographers and teachers such as Scott Jovovich, Chloe Arnold, Cherice Barton, Paul Sutherland, Jackie Ford, and Rhonda Miller, among others. He was most recently seen in Pace University’s dance concert Dance Out Loud, and their fall showcase DancesPace. Originally from North Carolina, he choreographed and performed for the theatre group ‘The Talent Company’ of which he is a founding member.

JORDI COATS (Producer) has found herself filling many roles in the New York theatre community. Previously, she has worked with Binder Casting, Tara Rubin Casting, and Telsey + Company casting, as well as produced and directed several pieces in the area. Most recently, she assistant produced and assistant directed the award winning production of "Volleygirls" at this years New York Musical Theatre Festival (Best of Fest). She is a graduate of the Univeristy of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While in NC, she founded The Talent Company, a theatre company for middle and high school students in the Uwharrie region that is currently in its 7th season. Jabali.

CHRIS CASEY (Film Maker) is an independent filmmaker, founder of Silent Dog Pictures and an associate producer at Transient Pictures. He is the founder and former director of the Westport Youth Film Festival, the first international film festival for high school student filmmakers. silentdogpictures.com

FRANCIS DICLEMENTE (Film Maker) lives in Syracuse, New York, where he works as a video producer. In his spare time he writes and takes photographs. He is the author of three poetry collections, In Pursuit of Infinity (Finishing Line Press, 2013), Vestiges (Alabaster Leaves Publishing, 2012) and Outskirts of Intimacy (Flutter Press, 2010). His blog can be found at http://francisdiclemente.wordpress.com/

MATTHEW RAY ELLIOTT (Actor) graduated from Wichita State in 2012 and moved to New York that autumn. He made it through a hurricane on Staten Island, lived through an appendectomy, and even did his taxes for the first time. Things are really looking up. #CallYourParentsMoreOften

ASHLEY GUNSTEENS (Producer) is a Brooklyn-based actor and director with a penchant for movement and ensemble-based work. Her favorite projects include recent work on What Every Girl Should Know ("Best Ensemble" NY Fringe Festival 2013), Volleygirls The Musical (“Best of Fest” NYMF 2013), All My Children, Julius Caesar, andHow I Learned to Drive. She is a proud Tar Heel with degrees in Dramatic Art and Journalism & Mass Communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. ashleygunsteens.com

JULIA KNITEL (Actor) is a sophomore at Marymount Manhattan studying Acting and Musical Theatre. She made her Broadway debut at 16 inBye Bye Birdie. Most recently she performed as "Ingrid" in the award winning production of "Volleygirls" at this years New York Musical Theatre Festival.

JEREMY LARDIERI (Spoken Word Artist/Dancer) is an accomplished entertainer! With training in Acting at LaGuardia High School (The "Fame" School), dancing from years of studio work and competitions, and a BFA in Musical Theatre from University of the Arts, Jeremy has taken his talents and work all over the tri-state area. His choreography work has been seen at La Mama ETC & Theatre for the New City down in the East Village, and at several Regional Dance Competitions. He is currently an Adjunct Professor of Tap/Hip Hop/Modern dance at St. Joseph's College in Brooklyn, NY, and holds many master classes in said fields at many NY based dance studios. He is an active Queens community theatre director/choreographer, and is a member of the Greater Ocean City Theatre Company in Ocean City, NJ. In 2010, Jeremy released "What I Have Learned", a hip hop album, and goes by the hip hop name "Jerm-O-Mac". His film credits are mostly independent, but his voice over/Muppeteer career is just getting started. His life slogan "Fortitude. Reliability. Honor. Love." or "FRHL!" for short, is a code he teaches young children when doing interviews, panels, and anti-bullying workshops to teach them to truly never give up and be themselves. Check out Jeremy at YouTube.com/JermOMac to learn more before his revamped website, www.JeremyLardieri.com goes live again!

JULIA RIPPLE (Dancer) started dancing at the age of four at the Nancy Royce Studio of Dance in Matawan, New Jersey. In high school, she continued her training at the Red Bank Academy of Dance Arts and also served as captain for the MRHS Competition Dance Team. More recently, Julia has trained at Steps on Broadway and the Rockette Summer Intensive at Radio City Music Hall. Julia also has a passion for singing and acting, having performed in numerous school and community theater musicals and dramas. Her favorite styles of dance include hip-hop and street jazz. Julia is currently a B.F.A. Commercial Dance major at Pace University where she has worked with many renowned artists such as Rhonda Miller, Brian Friedman, and Scott Jovovitch.

ALLISON STRONG (Vocalist) Allison Strong is a 23-year-old singer-songwriter and actress from New Jersey. Broadway: Mamma Mia & Bye Bye Birdie. Other NY: Carmen & A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Metropolitan Opera. This summer, Allison had the honor of participating in the Johnny Mercer Songwriter’s Project in Chicago, performing in the sold-out NYMF production of Volleygirls starring Susan Blackwell, and debuting her first EP, Rewind, at Rockwood Music Hall in NYC. A proud 2012 graduate of Montclair State University’s Musical Theatre Department, Allison will be returning to Rockwood for another solo set on October 5th at 3 pm.