“It is good to love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is well done."
- Vincent van Gogh
GRETA BAKER-HODGE was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, where she began dancing at the age of four. After graduating high school, she moved to Las Vegas to pursue her education in the arts. Greta earned her BFA in Performance and Choreography from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Following college, she worked with Avree Walker at Live Art Collection in Las Vegas. Greta has performed works by choreographers Erick Hawkins, Jason Hortin, Abdiel Figueroa Reyes, Chelsea Thedinga, and Avree Walker. Greta joined DanceWorks Chicago in August 2025.
“You have to love dancing to stick to it. It gives you nothing back, no manuscripts to store away, no paintings to show on walls and maybe hang in museums, no poems to be printed and sold, nothing but that fleeting moment when you feel alive. It is not for unsteady souls.”
- Merce Cunningham
CLAIRE BINGUIT, from Canton, MI, holds a BA in Dance from Western Michigan University, where they performed works by Seyong Kim, Kelsey Paschich, and Penny Saunders. They were a member of the school’s traveling student company, Western Dance Project, under the direction of Kelsey Paschich. In 2023, Claire moved to Chicago, dancing at Visceral Dance Chicago as a trainee under the direction of Cait Cucchiara, performing works by Braeden Barnes, Mónica Cervantes, Tina Diaz, and Nick Pupillo. Claire also works with Symbiosis Arts under the direction of Braeden Barnes. Claire joined DanceWorks Chicago in September 2024.
“The purpose of art is to lay bare the questions that have been concealed by the answers.”
- James Baldwin
MIKEE ELLIS, from Montclair, NJ, began their dance training at Sharon Miller’s Academy for the Performing Arts. They graduated from New York University Tisch School of the Arts, earning a BFA in Dance. While at Tisch, they performed in work by Laja Field and José Limón; they spent summer semesters studying with companies Sidra Bell Dance NY; David Dorfman Dance; Evidence, A Dance Company; and Gibney Dance. In 2024, Mikee moved to Chicago to dance with Cerqua Rivera Dance Theater II, performing in works by Shannon Alvis, Monique Haley, Noelle Kayser, and Wilfredo Rivera. Mikee joined DanceWorks Chicago in August 2025.
“To dance is to feel the resonance of your life, to feel delight in your existence. To be human is to be danced by experience, energy, and emotion.”
- Crystal Pite
MIKAYLA HEINRICH-WONG, from Kahalu’u, Oahu, Hawai’i, began her dance training at Mid-Pacific Institute School of the Arts. She received a dance scholarship to attend Case Western Reserve University, where she earned BAs in Dance and Computer Science, and an MFA in Dance. Mikayla has attended intensives with b12, DanceWorks Chicago, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, NW Dance Project, Whim W’him, YinYue Dance Company, and more. She has performed works by Nicole von Arx, Ethan Colangelo, Martha Graham, Joseph Hernandez, Dor Mamalia, and Pascal Rioult. Mikayla joined DanceWorks Chicago in August 2025.
"We are never more truly and profoundly human than when we dance."
- José Limón
ELLA KIM, from Seattle, WA, began her classical ballet training at a young age. She graduated summa cum laude with a BFA in Dance from George Mason University, where she performed works by Rafael Bonachela, Shaun D’Arcy, Karen Reedy, Christina Robson, Susan Shields, and Doug Varone. Ella has attended intensives with Alonzo King LINES Ballet, B12, DanceWorks Chicago, Doug Varone and Dancers, and Whim W’Him. She has also collaborated with choreographers Robert Priore and Ethan Pak Rome. Ella is inspired by the communicative power of dance. Ella joined DanceWorks Chicago in September 2024.
“The purpose of truly transcendent art is to express something you are not yet, but that you can become.”
- Ken Wilber
J STEPHENS, from Buffalo, New York, began their dance journey at an early age with tap, jazz, hip-hop, and musical theatre training. They earned a Bachelor of Arts in Dance summa cum laude from Columbia College Chicago, during which time they adopted a Contemporary, Street Dance fusion movement style. They are inspired by storytelling with the body, creating characters and worlds, in addition to activism through art. J has had the pleasure of performing in works by Bevara Anderson, Aaron Choate, Kiki King, Maleek Washington, and Ching Ching Wong, as well as training at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago’s Create Intensive.
