Animus Movement Presents: Colloquium
Company Dancer Bios
Alex Tenreiro Theis
Originally from Colorado, Alex Tenreiro Theis earned her BFA from Tisch School of the Arts at NYU. As a freelance performer in New York City for ten years, she had the pleasure of working on projects with Yoshito Sakuraba’s Abarukas, Jonah Bokaer, Pamela Pietro, Rohan Bhargava’s ROVACO, Eryc Taylor Dance, Asia Duo Dance Company, Angie Moon Dance Theatre, Netta Yerushalmy and Gregory Dolbashian to name several. She has had the opportunity to perform internationally at MASH International Choreography Festival (Israel), Masdanza International Contemporary Dance Festival (Spain), Avant Garde International Dance Festival (Mexico), ASWARA University Building Bridges Workshop (Malaysia) and the FIDCDMX Festival (Mexico). Additionally, she’s performed nationally at iconic venues and festivals such as The BAM Fisher (NYC), Kaatsbaan International Dance Center (NY), Palm Desert Choreography Festival at McCallum Theatre (CA), Rabbit Island Festival at Rozsa Center MTU (MI), Bryant Park Contemporary Festival (NYC), Jacob’s Pillow InsideOut Theater (MA) as well as others. She is thrilled to join Animus for their premiere of Colloquium!
Anna-Noel Imbriaco
Anna-Noel Imbriaco (she/they) grew up in North Carolina, receiving their early training at Wake Forest Civic Ballet. In 2023, they received a BFA in Dance with University Honors from Colorado State University. During their time at CSU, Anna-Noel was selected to perform as a featured dancer in works by guest artist André Megerdichian and various faculty members. Additionally, they were selected by faculty adjudicators to perform a selfchoreographed solo in a main stage concert for the dance department and produced a dance film for their thesis project.
Over the years, Anna-Noel has received additional training through summer intensives hosted by Richmond Ballet and Nashville Ballet, as well as some time spent in the preprofessional program at the School of Carolina Ballet and the second company of Canyon Concert Ballet. In addition to performing, they enjoy teaching and choreographing, and hope to spend more time doing both. Most recently, Anna-Noel has returned to Colorado and is currently dancing with Animus Movement.
Brianna Smith
Brianna Smith is originally from Broomfield, Colorado and is a DanceSpace Performance Company alumnus. She trained under the direction of Reagan Hoeft and Samantha Baker in ballet, tap, jazz, modern, contemporary, hip-hop, and more. In the Fall of 2024, she graduated from Colorado State University with a double major in Dance and Political Science. Through her time at CSU, she had the opportunity to work with industry professionals such as Judy Bejarano, Chung-Fu Chang, Christina Johnson, Tony Testa, Vincent Thomas, Urban Bush Women, Parsons Dance, and more. Brianna is currently dancing with Animus Movement and is a teacher at DanceSpace.
Christiana Wheeler
Christiana Wheeler is an interdisciplinary artist specializing in dance. She began her training at the age of two and graduated from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance spring of 2021. She has had the opportunity to learn and work with artists and choreographers such as Wade Madson, Kate Wallick, and performed with The Guild Dance Co in Seattle WA. Currently located in Denver, CO she dances with Wild Heart Dance, Animus Movement, and her own ensemble, CarnivalGlass Dance Theater where she directs, choreographs, and performs her work. Alongside live performance, Christiana creates dance films through her ensemble as well as collaborating with local artists, Sans Souci Festival Of Dance Cinema, Tom Wingerd and Michelle Bernier. She currently teaches a variety of dance techniques in the Boulder and Denver areas as well as choreographing Alexander Dawson middle school musicals.
Emmy Spaar
Originally from Finksburg, MD, Emmy Spaar grew up training at Studio Dans under the direction of Dana Keane and graduated from DeSales University in 2018. She has been honored to perform works by Antony Tudor, Doug Varone, Trinette Singleton, Colby Damon, Brandon Welch, and Celia Grannum Perarnaud. She was also seen in the 2016 and 2017 seasons of the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival in their productions of West Side Story and Evita. In New York City, she danced with the Chase Brock Experience, the Nathaniel Hunt Project, Neville Dance Theatre, and Alma Collective. Since moving to Denver in 2022, she performed with Hannah Kahn Dance Company and is currently a member of Animus Movement.
Faith Brock
Faith Brock is from a small mountain town in Colorado and fell in love with dance at the age of 8 when she stumbled into her first class at High Attitude Dance Academy. Brock quickly immersed herself in various dance styles, including ballet, jazz, contemporary, hip-hop, and tap, and went on to attend numerous competitions and conventions to further develop her skills. She continued her training at Colorado State University, where she performed in and choreographed multiple pieces, and traveled to teach and perform. She graduated in Spring 2024 with a Bachelor’s in Dance and an Associate’s in Nutritional Science. Since then, she has taught and choreographed at Studio West Dance Center and joined Animus Dance Company in Denver. She is currently performing in Animus’ “Colloquium” and in Grace Gallagher’s “There Is No Planet B,” a full-length show about turning climate awareness into action. Faith thanks her instructors, peers, and her mentor, Crystal Ashe, for their support and guidance. She is excited to pursue dance and all future opportunities with enthusiasm, a big smile, and determination.
Assistant Director: Larah Pamplin
Larah recently moved to Denver from NYC after dancing and teaching for 11+ years there. Since graduating from Pace University with a BFA in commercial dance, she has danced with companies such as SynthesisDANCE and CoreDance Contemporary to name a few. You might have seen her in the award winning documentary “Amy’s Victory Dance” on AppleTV and is currently the assistant director for Animus Movement. Larah has assisted choreographers such as Rhonda Miller at dance conventions and has worked with Michael Rooney and Jackie Sleight in LA. Some of Larah’s performance experience includes the New York Film Academy, Rising Stars at the Joyce Theatre and Synergy at New York Live Arts.
Artistic Director: Beck Allen
Rebecca, a New York City native, is a graduate of LaGuardia H.S., and the Dance Conservatory at SUNY Purchase. During her college years she performed works by Doug Varone, Ori Flomin, Mark Morris, and John Heginbotham. She also studied in Perth, Australia at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, focusing on contemporary dance and aerial circus silks. Rebecca has danced with AMS Project and was a guest artist in Doug Varone’s Choreographic Intensive where she had the opportunity to dance with Dance Householder, MATYCHAK, and Sum Bones Co. In NYC she was a member of CoreDance Contemporary, SynthesisDance, and Copy That Dance. She also created and is the artistic director of her own dance company, Animus Movement. Beck relocated to Colorado in 2022 where she started a second company, as well as dancing for T2 Dance Company, the Presenting Denver Ensemble, Brandon Welsh and Celia Perarnaud.
Animus Movement
The mission of Animus Movement is to inspire, educate, and engage the community through the art of contemporary modern dance. The company is committed to providing opportunities for diverse artistic expression, cultivating an appreciation for dance, and supporting the development of both emerging and established dancers. Through our second company, Animus II, and our youth program, Animus Iuventus, we provide preprofessional dancers with performance opportunities that foster creativity, discipline and artistic growth, preparing them for future careers in dance. The company loves to collaborate with their dancers, as well as other choreographers, musicians, visual artists and beyond.
Animus Movement is excited to premiere their second full length work, Colloquium. Colloquium explores the theme of dialogue through layered conversations, accompanied by an original score from Hymns for Wild Nature. This production marks a new chapter for Animus Movement, featuring the debut of our second company, Animus II, and a student piece that offers pre-professional dancers invaluable performance experience.
We hope you enjoy the show!
