
The Company
Dancers

Cody Brunelle-Potter
Cody Brunelle-Potter

Fausto Rivera
Fausto Rivera

Luke Dakota Zender
Luke Dakota Zender

Megan McCarthy
Megan McCarthy

Miche’ Smith
Miche’ Smith

Sasha Rydlizky
Sasha Rydlizky
Executive Team

Artistic Director
Artistic Director
Leslie Kraus
Leslie Kraus

Leslie Kraus
Artistic Director
She/Her
Leslie Kraus is a choreographer, performer, and educator with a distinguished career spanning performance and academia. From 2006 to 2014, she was a principal dancer with the Kate Weare Company, contributing to over ten of Weare's creations and serving as Assistant Director. From 2012-2015, Kraus performed with Punchdrunk in both Sleep No More (NYC) and The Drowned Man (UK), and has continued with the company as both performer and guest rehearsal director through 2024. From 2020-2025, Kraus coordinated the Five Moons Dance Festival, which honors and celebrates the legacies of the five renowned Native American ballerinas from Oklahoma. From 2018-2025, she taught at the University of Oklahoma, earning the rank of Associate Professor. Kraus is also a director for CONCRETE, an immersive theatre summer intensive under artistic director Stefanie Batten Bland. She holds a BFA from Virginia Commonwealth University and an MFA from the University of Washington. She is thrilled and honored to join Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company.

Executive Director
Executive Director
Thom Dancy
Thom Dancy

Thom Dancy
Executive Director
He/Him
Thom has worked in the arts non-profit sector for 12 years in communications, outreach, and leadership roles for dance companies across the United States. From 2019 – 2023, Thom worked for The Rosin Box Project in San Diego as the organization’s inaugural Executive Director. Through his work, the company grew from a $30,000 to $500,000 budget and engaged students across Southern California in numerous dance education workshops. Thom is most proud of TRBP’s outreach program success, as well as the integration of TRBP into its present home in Liberty Station, a historic naval training center and reclaimed arts district in the heart of San Diego. Thom has presented on the topics of social media and dance education to the Board of Directors at Arts for Learning, The San Diego Arts Empower Mega-Conference, and San Diego Unified School District. He has previously served on the communications committee for AERO San Diego, as well as on the executive committee for Rising Arts Leaders of San Diego. Thom currently sits on the advisory Board for Vanguard Culture, a cultural arts organization serving the San Diego/Tijuana region. Thom has also served on the Board of Directors for Smashworks Dance, a dance and social advocacy organization based in New York City. Thom has a B.A. in Organizational Leadership from The University of Oklahoma, and previous to his work in administration was a professional dancer for ballet and contemporary companies in the Midwest. In his downtime, he enjoys hiking and camping with his dog, Zoey.

Education Director
Education Director
Ai Fujii Nelson
Ai Fujii Nelson

Ai Fujii Nelson
Education Director
She/Her
Ai began dancing at the age of four in Tokyo, Japan, where she received several national dance awards. After coming to the U.S., she earned a BFA in Modern Dance at the University of Utah. Following graduation, Ai apprenticed for Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company in New York City, and danced professionally with Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company for eight seasons in Salt Lake City between 2000 and 2008. In 2009 she danced her way to New Zealand, where she acquired a Master of Creative and Performing Arts degree. Throughout her career, Ai has enjoyed teaching students of all ages and abilities, both nationally and internationally. In the state of Utah, she has served as Adjunct Faculty at Utah Valley University, taught creative dance for the University of Utah’s Tanner Dance, as well as modern dance technique for the Ballet West Academy. She is thrilled to have returned to Ririe-Woodbury in 2014 as Education Director, and looks forward to an adventurous future with the company.

Development Director
Development Director
Kirt Bateman
Kirt Bateman

Kirt Bateman
Development Director
He/Him
A life-long Utahan born and raised on a dairy farm, Kirt has been involved in the arts since his riveting performance of Lysander in his fourth-grade production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. A former member of Actors’ Equity Association, he has acted in or directed over 50 plays/musicals, readings, and fundraising performances. His favorite onstage moments have all been at Plan-B Theatre, where he also served as a pro bono graphic designer and marketing consultant. Kirt’s administrative career began with The Clements Group, one of the most successful non-profit advancement consulting firms in the country, where he spent 10 years learning the ins and outs and ups and downs of non-profit management and fundraising. He spent the next decade putting that knowledge into practice as Executive Director of Davis Arts Council which, during his decade-long tenure, quadrupled in size, becoming the largest multi-disciplinary arts non-profit between Davis County and the Idaho border. He has also worked as COO/Creative Guru of Dr. Pam Enterprises (a suite of pet care and veterinary businesses), Human Resources Manager of House of Hope, and Executive Director of Safe Harbor Crisis Center, as well as serving on the boards of Utah AIDS Foundation and Theatre Arts Conservatory. Kirt lives in Salt Lake City with his husband of many (many!) years, Jerry Rapier, their son Oscar, and their dogs Gus and Lulu. He is honored and humbled to join Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company.
Staff

Marketing / Public Relations Manager
Marketing / Public Relations Manager
Karessa Pitcher
Karessa Pitcher

Education Assistant
Education Assistant
Adeena Lago
Adeena Lago

Production Manager
Production Manager
Ken James
Ken James
Board of Trustees
Roberta Schlicher
Board Chairperson
Matrix Environmental Services
Cheylynn Hayman
Vice Chairperson
Parr Brown Gee & Loveless
Joseph (jo) Blake
Vice Chairperson
Program Director, Weber State University Dance
Alexandra Bradshaw-Yerby
Chair, Southern Utah University Dance
Pam Weisberg
Nonprofit Executive Director (Retired)
Lori Peterson
Government Contracts Specialist
Jennifer Pitt
Dance Teacher, Davis School District
Hannah Williams
Vice President, Zions Bank
Sophie Hanson
CEO, NewsLINK Group, LLC
Michael Andrew Currey
Director of Production - Ballet West
Joan Woodbury
Co-Founder
(1927-2023)
Zach Marquez
Associate, Par Brown Gee & Loveless
Shirley Ririe
Co-Founder
(Emeritus)
Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company is currently seeking new Board Members with fundraising, event planning, and administrative backgrounds. Please view our Board of Trustees Information Packet below and contact Thom Dancy at Thom@ririewoodbury.com with any questions. Thank you!
Info packet