November 14-15th, 2025 - 7:30p.m. November 16th, 2025 - 3:30p.m. Wartburg Theatre
about the show
Everything You Touch brings to the stage layers of experience and perspective through new and legacy dance works created for and embodied by Carthage dancers. The program features works by regional guest artists and faculty, as well as Carthage’s very own emerging choreographers.
director’s note
Thank you for attending the Department of Theatre’s 2025 dance production, Everything You Touch. Tonight’s program explores the alchemy between embodied context and movement expression. Everything You Touch acknowledges that we are in relationship with our world. Through new and legacy works, Carthage dancers will embody current themes, and in so doing, uniquely transform them. This production features new dance work by Carthage dance faculty and guest artists, Elizabeth Harrison-Holmstrom, Jenna Jozefowski, Rebecca Crystal, Hilliary Vaccarello, and Dancing Legacy artists, Robert Battle and Erika Pujič. Additionally, we are proud to once again share our program’s most potent resource, the choreographic work and embodied expressions of our own emerging artists, including new work by Liz Duffy (‘26), Katherine O’Donnell (‘26), and Kyliah Vruwink (‘26). As always, we are grateful for the opportunity to share this work with you. We appreciate your support and welcome your thoughts afterward!
Stacy Pottinger, Artistic Director
talk back
For more insights into Everything You Touch works, please join the Artistic Director and choreographers in a Talk-Back immediately following the Saturday, November 15th performance. The Talk-Back will take place in the Wartburg Auditorium. We look forward to addressing viewer’s questions and hearing thoughts about the program.
program
For Billie Holiday
Choreography: Jenna Jozefowski
Music: Excerpts from Lady Sings the Blues, God Bless the Child, Spreadin’ Rhythm Around, Ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do, All of Me, They Can’t Take That Away From Me, Strange Fruit, and studio talk by Billie Holiday, with editing by Jenna Jozefowski
Featuring: Lydia Berryman, Makenna Case, Libby Donovan, Avery Jones, Kyra Lewis, Sarah Llewellyn, Madelyn Richardson, Addison Vreeman
Understudy: Piper Nelson
Lineãris
Choreography: Hilliary Vaccarello
Music: Protest by Philip Glass
Featuring: Abbey Keen, Blaike Mertes, Susana Alexander, Jizel Trujillo, Kyliah Vruwink, Liam Karth
Understudy: Hannah Donegan
Vivace
Choreography: Elizabeth Harrison-Holmstrom
Music: Symphony No. 1 in C Major, Op. 21:IV. Finale.Adagio-Allegro molto e vivace
Featuring: Leslie Manna, Addison Hagen, Ava McClure, Lydia Berryman, Madelyn Richardson, Sarah Llewellyn
You Tear Me Apart
Choreography: Liz Duffy
Music: You Tear Me Apart by Dev Lemons
Featuring: Susanna Alexander, Kyra Lewis
Understudy: Hannah Donegan
program
Continaure
Choreography: Katherine O’Donnell
Music: Experience (Starkey Remix) by Ludovico Einaudi
Featuring: Ava McClure, Evelyn Tomlin, Blaike Mertes, Magdalen Kolar, Lily Daly
Understudy: Lydia Berryman
Some Assembly Required
Choreography: Stacy Pottinger
Music: Jack Gets up by Leo Kotke
Light Design: Emma Gillman, in partial fulfillment of Senior Thesis requirements for Light Design
Featuring: Liz Duffy
Picking up the Threads
Choreography: Rebecca Crystal
Music: Ludovico Einaudi
Featuring: Madelyn Richardson, Magdalen Kolar, Susana Alexander, Sarah Llewellyn, Abbi Minneci, Kyliah Vruwink, Liam Karth
Jazz is for Ordinary People
Choreography: Kyliah Vruwink
Music: Jazz is for Ordinary People by berlioz
Featuring: Addison Hagen, Abbey Keen, Blaike Mertes, Lily Daly, Charis Whiting
Understudy: Kyliah Vruwink
production team and crew
Artistic Director ............................................................................. Stacy Pottinger
Production Stage Manager ............................................................. Liv Bissonette
Assistant Stage Manager ............................................................. Aiden Benewich
Costume Design ............................................................................... Kim Instenes
Light Design .................................................... Colin Gawronski, Emma Gillman
Technical Director ..................................................................... Grace Kirk-Lazar
Light Board Operator .........................................................................Philip Steger
Sound Board Operator.................................................................. Paige Hebbring
Deck Crew ....................................................... Brayden Follett, Mackenzie Pielin
Sound Design ...................................................................................... Ro Longden
Wardrobe Crew Head ................................................................. Vivian Alexander
Costume Crew .............................................................................. Lorelai Amborn
cast biographies
Stacy Pottinger, Artistic Director/Choreographer
Stacy Pottinger directs the Dance Minor Program at Carthage College. She holds a B.F.A. in dance performance from Southern Methodist University, an M.A. in dance education from the State University of New York College at Brockport, and an M.F.A. in dance from the University of WisconsinMilwaukee. Ms. Pottinger has worked with many independent dance artists and companies based in Minnesota, New York, Wisconsin and beyond. She performed with the Christopher Watson Dance Company (1996-2009), Biodance (2006-2007), Kinetic Evolutions Dance Company (2009), Danceworks Performance Company (2011) and has worked with internationally known artists including Bill Evans and Juanita Suarez. Her choreographic work has included a variety of interdisciplinary projects and collaborations with composers, musicians, video animators and teaching professionals of varying subjects. In addition to her titles as Director of the Dance Minor, Professor, and Artistic Director of the Theatre Department’s dance productions, Ms. Pottinger is Faculty Advisor for Carthage’s NDEO Student Chapter and National Honor Society for the Dance Arts, she currently serves as President for the Wisconsin Dance Council Board of Directors, and she is a member of Dancing Legacy’s Educator’s Cohort.
Kim Instenes, Costume Design
In addition to teaching Costumes and Makeup at Carthage, Kim works as a freelance costume and makeup designer in the Milwaukee/Chicago area. Professional design credits include SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF THE JERSEY LILY, DOUBT and JEEVES INTERVENES at Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, MARY JANE at Forward Theater, THE GIVER, BIG; THE
MUSICAL and THE SNOW at First Stage Children’s Theater, ROMEO AND JULIET at Milwaukee Shakespeare as well as work at Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Renaissance Theaterworks, Utah Shakespearean Festival and the Racine Theatre Guild. As the faculty costume designer, she has designed SILENT SKY, A SEAT AT THE TABLE (new play by Regina Taylor) and INTO THE WOODS, to name a few. She holds an MFA in costume design and technology from Ohio University and a BA in theatre from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Grace Kirk-Lazar, Technical Director
Grace Kirk is the Technical Director at Carthage College in Kenosha, WI. Grace holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Peck School of the Arts at University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. She has been the Technical Director for Carthage’s productions of JESUS CHRIST SUPER STAR and THE BLUE BIRD, the latter of which she was also the Properties Lead. She has worked as a Shop Sub-Manager for shows such as TWELFTH NIGHT, THE RESISTABLE RISE OF ARTURO UI, FEMALE TRANSPORT, TROJAN WOMEN and A PIECE OF MY HEART. Grace was also the Sound Designer for TWELFTH NIGHT and A PIECE OF MY HEART. She has also been a prop artisan/master for WITTENBERG, WINTER’S TALE and IN THE NEXT ROOM (or THE VIBRATOR PLAY). Grace has worked at multiple venues in the City of Milwaukee through the I.A.T.S.E. Stagehand Union in positions focused on set up and strike of large scale productions.
Colin Gawronski, Light Design
Colin Gawronski, Light Design is a lighting designer native to Milwaukee who has worked extensively with Danceworks, Inc, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Sunstone Studios and Black Arts MKE/Bronzeville. They have worked with other local companies such as Renaissance Theaterworks, Milwaukee Ballet, Wildspace, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Studio K Flamenco, Aarambh Khatak, and In Tandem Theatre. Colin has also worked with Theatre Lila, Third Avenue Playworks and Forward Theater. Favorite productions include: Three Other Sisters, Stew, Out of Many One, Rusalka, ‘Neath the Hills of Bastogne, /ˌ maskә ˈ rād/, Dutchman, Black Nativity, Secrets from the Wide Sky, The Nether, A Room Shaped Story, Daddy Long Legs, Spalding Grey: Stories Left to Tell, Stories From a Life, The Glass Menagerie, Serendipity, Birds of North America, Romeo and Juliet: A Theatre Lila Invention, Lamps For My Family, and Vagabondare. Give Love Always.
Emma Gillman, Light Design
Emma is a senior Majoring in General Theatre with a focus on technical and a minor in film and new media. She can’t wait to be Light Design for the
first time. She was involved in Summer Place Show - Little Shop of Horror in summer light and sound run board on light board, Summer Place ShowLegally Blonde: run crew in summer. Carthage College: She was involved in JCS operator spots, Dance show “Away from the Mirror - help light design, Terminal Exhale -soundboard operator, 24-hour play Peter Pan- prop maker and run crew, Xanadu - run crew, On-the-Verge Prop crew and Light Board Operator -Memento Mori. Thank you all, friends, family, and teachers in the theater program.
Rebecca Crystal, Choreographer
Rebecca Crystal is delighted to continue on faculty at Carthage for her second year and to be choreographing for Everything Youth Touch. Rebecca completed a Master of Dance Education program through the Royal Academy of Dance in London in 2022. She holds a BFA in Dance with minors in English and Music from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as well as Dance Education PK-12 licensure from the University of WisconsinMilwaukee. Rebecca is also a dancer, choreographer, and co-director of the modern dance project Delve Dance Chicago. Rebecca taught dance full-time in Chicago Public Schools and also worked in schools as a teaching artist with Hubbard Street Dance Center’s education program. She has taught on faculty at Interlochen Arts Camp and Blue Lake Arts Camp. Additionally, she has taught at The Chicago High School for the Arts, Joel Hall Dance Center, The Old Town School of Folk Music, and Glenwood Dance Studio. She has presented her research at dance education conferences and delivered guest classes to high schools and colleges in the greater Chicago area. Rebecca has also studied and performed as a trainee with Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company and has studied Gaga with Ohad Naharin/Batsheva Dance Company.
Elizabeth Harrison-Holmstrom, Choreographer
Elizabeth Harrison was born in Hong Kong, where she began dancing at the age of four. She trained at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, where she performed in Les Sylphides, Flower Festival in Genzano, Paquita, The Four Temperaments, and Persistent Memory. She also danced with Hong Kong Ballet in The Nutcracker, The Sleeping Beauty, and Romeo & Juliet. A two-time winner of the Hong Kong Open Dance Competition (2007 and 2009), she has received numerous awards for her artistry and technical skill. Harrison earned dual undergraduate degrees in Ballet Performance and International Relations from the University of Oklahoma, where she performed featured roles in The Nutcracker, as well as appearances in Someday Sideways by Jock Soto, La Bayadère, La Vivandière, Cinderella,
Swan Lake, Raymonda, and Lakmé. In 2015, she toured internationally with Oklahoma Festival Ballet, performing at the Haydn Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria. Following a season with Cincinnati Ballet, she joined Milwaukee Ballet, where she danced for seven seasons. Her repertoire there included leading roles in Michael Pink’s Beauty and the Beast, The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, La Bohème, and Dracula, among many others choreographed by a diverse array of artists. After an injury took her off the stage, Harrison relocated to the Boston area, where she has spent the past two years teaching ballet. Her focus has been on nurturing the next generation of dancers through a healthy, inclusive, and technically sound approach rooted in her extensive performance experience. She recently earned her Master of Fine Arts in Dance from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, further deepening her commitment to education, research, and evolving the art form.
Jenna Jozefowski, Choreographer
Jenna Jozefowski graduated from The University of Akron with a BA in Dance and a minor in Business Administration. Professionally, she has performed with Joel Hall Dancers II, RASA Dance Chicago, Chicago Dance Crash, and Chicago Tap Theatre. She has worked as an independent performance artist and choreographer; performing and presenting her work in Rebound Dance Festival, Dance Chicago, the Inaside Choreographic Sponsorship Event and Chicago Freelance Dance, to name a few. She is a member of the Midwest Committee of the Cecchetti Council of America and currently holds a Grade IV Teacher’s Certificate. She has completed her iTap Teacher training as well as the Tap Teacher Training Program with American Tap Dance Foundation in NYC. She has been an adjunct faculty member at Carthage College and several Chicago area studios, where she also serves as director of the tap performance companies. Jenna is also an E-RYT 200 yoga instructor and a NASM certified personal trainer, and loves using her knowledge of strength & conditioning to help her students improve their dancing. She is excited to be back choreographing at Carthage this season!
Hilliary Vaccarello, Choreographer
Hilliary Vaccarello is an adjunct instructor of dance at Carthage College, where she teaches multiple ballet courses. She holds a B.A. in dance from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, is certified in Progressing Ballet Technique, and completed the Chicago National Association of Dance Masterers Training. Hilliary spent most of her professional career as a dancer and choreographer with the critically acclaimed contemporary dance company Thodos Dance Chicago. TDC allowed her to perform throughout the United States and work with renowned choreographers, including
Melissa Thodos, Ann Reinking, Lar Lubovitch, and numerous local artists. She was also an educator for their outreach program with the Chicago Public School district. Following her professional career with TDC, she freelanced for multiple dance companies and performed as a soloist for local productions and industrial events. She has utilized her expertise as a master teacher and guest choreographer for high school dance programs and universities, including Stevenson High School, Highland Park High School, Shattuck-St. Mary’s Prep, and Millikin University. Her choreography has also graced numerous gala events, including Draft Advertising and the American Diabetes Association. In 2022, she established a first-of-its-kind performing arts enrichment program for St. Viator Elementary in Chicago, an opportunity for students to explore performing arts and perform in the annual showcase. Currently she serves as a senior director for Lake Forest Dance Company and prepares selected dancers for the prestigious Youth America Grand Prix competition. She is honored to be choreographing for Carthage this year.
Erika Pujič, Dancing Legacy Guest Artist
Erika Pujič was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio where she began her dance training at the School of Cleveland Ballet. She went on to receive a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from the Juilliard School where she was the recipient of the Martha Hill Award. Upon graduation, Ms. Pujič danced with Gloria Marina’s Spanish Dance Ensemble performing in New Jersey Opera’s “Carmen”. She was a principal dancer and rehearsal director for Henning Rubsam’s SENSEDANCE for seven years. Ms. Pujič was a founding member and rehearsal director for Battleworks Dance Company during its 10 year span (2000-2010). She has been an integral part of the creation of many works for Robert Battle and she has been dancing and setting his works for over 22 years.
Robert Battle, Dancing Legacy Artist
Robert Battle’s journey to the top of the modern dance world began in the Liberty City neighborhood of Miami, Florida where he showed artistic talent early and studied dance at a high school arts magnet program. From there he attended Miami’s New World School of the Arts and then the dance program at The Juilliard School where he met his mentor Carolyn Adams. He danced with Parsons Dance from 1994 to 2001, and set his choreography on that company starting in 1998. Mr. Battle founded his own Battleworks Dance Company in 2002 which performed extensively at venues including The Joyce Theater, American Dance Festival, and Jacob’s Pillow. A frequent choreographer and artist in residence at Ailey Ailey American
production team biographies
Dance Theater since 1999, he set many of his works on the Ailey Company and Ailey II. In July 2011 he was personally selected by Judith Jamison to become Artistic Director of Ailey, making him only the third person to head the Company since it was founded in 1958. During his 12 years as Artistic Director he expanded the Ailey repertory with works by artists as diverse as Kyle Abraham, Mauro Bigonzetti, Ronald K. Brown, Rennie Harris, and Paul Taylor. He also instituted the New Directions Choreography Lab to help develop the next generation of choreographers. He stepped down from the position in 2023.
Mr. Battle was honored as one of the “Masters of African American Choreography” by the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in 2005, and he received the prestigious Statue Award from the Princess Grace Foundation-USA in 2007. He is a recipient of the 2021 Dance Magazine Award and has honorary doctorates from The University of the Arts, Marymount Manhattan College, and Fordham University. Mr. Battle was named a 2015 Visiting Fellow for The Art of Change, an initiative by the Ford Foundation. He was appointed Resident Choreographer of the Paul Taylor Dance Company in Fall 2024.
https://paultaylordance.org/leadership/
Liz Duffy, Choreographer
Liz Duffy is a Senior Finance major with a minor in Dance. She is from Fairbury, Illinois, and started dancing at The Dancenter in Pontiac, Illinois, when she was five years old. There, Liz studied several dance styles, mainly focusing on jazz, hip-hop, and lyrical. In high school, she participated in her school’s theater program and helped choreograph and teach choreography for the spring musicals. While at Carthage, Liz has continued her dance education and has led several dance classes for NDEO. This is the sixth dance show she has performed in at Carthage, and You Tear Me Apart is the fourth piece Liz has choreographed for a Carthage Dance Performance.
Katherine O’Donnell, Choreographer
Katherine O’Donnell is a Senior Psychology major with minors in Business and Dance. This is the fourth piece for a Carthage Dance Performance she has choreographed.. She has trained in classical ballet and has performed in ballets such as Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, Coppelia and several other classical ballets. Katherine would like to thank Stacy Pottinger for her support and guidance. She would also like to thank her parents, brother, grandmother and friends for the love and encouragement they give her.
Kyliah Vruwink, Choreographer
Kyliah Vruwink is a Senior self-design Dance major with a minor in Studio Art. Her choreography displayed in this show is developed from her love of jazz music, and inspired by the musicality of well-known choreographer Molly Long. This is her fourth piece presented in a dance concert at Carthage College. When she is not choreographing, Kyliah also performs in shows such as the annual Away From the Mirror. She spends many hours painting, crocheting, and enjoying any art form she can.
Liv Bissonette, Production Stage Manager
Liv Bissonette is a senior majoring in technical stage management and minoring in both creative writing and French. Career-wise, Liv has stage managed twenty-five shows, eight of which were Carthage productions, and this will be her first time serving as Production Stage Manager for a dance show. Liv’s Carthage credits include THE BLUE BIRD (Costume Crew Head), JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (Assistant Stage Manager), LIFE CYCLE OF A STAR (Stage Manager) which in addition to its Carthage premiere in fall 2024 also performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival Summer 2025, HEAD OVER HEELS (Costume Crew), TERMINAL EXHALE (Stage Manager), NINE (Stage Manager), THE GENDERLESS PLAY EXPERIMENT (Light Board Operator), CARRIE (Stage Manager), LEGALLY BLONDE (Assistant Stage Manager), FML: HOW CARSON MCCULLERS SAVED MY LIFE (CoStage Manager), and IN THE MOMENT Fall dance show 2022 (Assistant Stage Manager). Thank you to her family, friends, and the theatre/dance department faculty for their constant kindness and support!
department of theatre faculty and staff
Heidi Amborn ..................................................................... Instructor Of Theatre
Breannin Beelow................................................................. Instructor Of Theatre
Melissa Benson ......................... Costume Shop Assistant, Instructor of Theatre
Maureen Chavez-Kruger ....................... Adjunct Assistant Professor of Theatre
Jessica Connelly .................................................................. Instructor Of Theatre
Kim Instenes ....................... Costume Designer, Associate Professor of Theatre
Herschel Kruger.................................... Department Chair, Professor of Theatre
Grace Kirk-Lazar ................................. Technical Director, Instructor of Theatre
Martin McClendon ............................................................... Professor of Theatre
Göran Norquist ................................................................... Instructor Of Theatre
Dr. Neil Scharnick ................... Honors Director, Associate Professor of Theatre
Jessee Todd .......................................................................... Instructor Of Theatre
dance faculty & staff
Rich Ashworth ......................................................... Adjunct Instructor of Dance
Rebecca Crystal ....................................................... Adjunct Instructor of Dance
Elizabeth Harrison-Holmstrom .............................. Adjunct Instructor of Dance
Stacy Pottinger .............................................................. Director of Dance Minor, Assistant Adjunct Professor of Dance
Hilliary Vaccarello .................................................... Adjunct Instructor of Dance
music theatre faculty & staff
Dr. Corinne Ness ...................................... Dean, Arts and Humanities Division, Director of Graduate Music Theatre Studies, Professor of Music
Melissa Kelly Cardamone ......................................................... Staff Accompanist
Yu-Mei Chang ........................................................................... Staff Accompanist
Matthew Hougland ....................................................... Music Department Chair, Director of Undergraduate Music Theatre Studies, Assistant Professor of Music
everything you touch
Any video and/or audio recording of this produciton is strictly prohibited.
Student Recital: Mi Wang - Piano
Saturday, November 15 • 7:30 p.m.
A. F. Siebert Chapel
Student Recital: Jana Paulsen
Tuesday, November 18 • 7:30 p.m.
H. F. Johnson Recital Hall
Concert Band / Percussion Ensemble Concert
Wednesday, November 19 • 7:30 p.m.
A. F. Siebert Chapel
Christmas Festival
December 4–6 • 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 7 • 4 p.m.
A. F. Siebert Chapel
Fine Arts at Carthage acknowledges that the land on which our building stands is part of the traditional Potawatomi, Sioux, Peoria, Kickapoo, and Miami peoples past, present, and future. These homelands reside along the southwest shores of Michigami, North America’s largest system of freshwater lakes. We honor with gratitude the land itself, and the people who have stewarded it throughout the generations. Many Indigenous peoples thrive in this place—alive and strong, and this calls us to commit to continuing to learn how to be better stewards of the land we inhabit as well.