Gisela Baldwin began her early dance training in Racine, WI, first under the direction of Danelle Davies and later under the instruction of Linda Bennett and Marc Darling. She continued her study of dance at the University of Iowa, earning her BA in Dance as well as a Certificate in Performing Arts Entrepreneurship. Following college, Gisela moved to Madison where she danced with Madison Contemporary Vision Dance for several years. She currently serves as a dance instructor, the Dance Team Coordinator, and an administrator at A Leap Above Dance in Oregon, WI. Gisela is looking forward to continuing to expand her knowledge of dance and is excited to be a part of Kanopy.

Miye Bishop began dancing at the age of eight in Hiroshima, Japan. After moving to Washington State three years later, she started dancing intensively at Northwest Ballet Theater and attended workshops at American Ballet Theatre, Ballet Bellevue, and International Ballet Theater. She also studied with the Kirov Academy and Dance Open in Russia. After high school, Bishop danced with Bellingham Repertory Dance for four seasons, where she performed works by Molly Scott, Mark Haim, Josh Beamish, and Cyrus Khambatta. She also performed professionally with Ballet Bellevue, Seattle Opera and Skagit Opera. In the past few years Bishop has performed in Japan, Korea, India, Taiwan, and various cities throughout the U.S. She is now a faculty member at Dance Wisconsin and Central Midwest Ballet Academy, as well as a freelance yoga instructor.

Darwin Black started dancing as a teenager. In 2006, he graduated from Newark Arts High School, under the direction of Ronnie D. Carney and Kim Richardson. Black furthered his training under Nancy Turano, at the New Jersey Dance Theatre Ensemble. After a year of training at Alvin Ailey American Dance, he began his professional career with the Miami Contemporary Dance Company, performing repertory by Ray Sullivan. Black later joined the Sacramento Ballet, performing works by George Balanchine, Twyla Tharp, Trey McIntyre, and Matthew Neenan. After three years with the Sacramento Ballet, he joined Rioult Dance NY, dancing and touring throughout the United States. Black danced for Alaska Dance Theatre, Lustig Dance Theatre, Montgomery Ballet, and Nimbus Dance Works. He also toured throughout Europe with Momix. Black later joined TU Dance, under the leadership of Toni-Pierce Sands and Uri Sands. Black is now spreading his wings as a choreographer. His first original work, Off the Base, was performed by the Saint Paul Ballet in 2017.

Sydney Rose Enzler is from Minneapolis, where she began dancing at age three. She attended the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, earning a BA in Dance in 2017. She trained under Shapiro and Smith, Gus Giordano, Hubbard Street, and BoSoma Dance Company, and danced with Crash Dance Productions 2. She is very excited to be in Madison and dancing with Kanopy Dance!

Brienna Kemmeter began her dance training at the Makaroff School of Ballet in Appleton, WI. At age 16, she attended the North Carolina School of the Arts to rigorously study ballet under renowned instructors. She received her BFA in Modern Dance from the University of Oklahoma on scholarship, where she was a member of Oklahoma Festival Ballet and Contemporary Dance Oklahoma. She had the opportunity to study under Austin Hartel, Derrick Minter, Dudley Williams, Betty Jones, Nancy Allison, Fritz Ludin, and others. Additionally, she attended summer programs at the Milwaukee Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Boston Ballet, Ballet Magnificat!, and Ad Deum. She joined Kanopy Dance Company in 2010 and is currently a licensed Physical Therapist Assistant in Madison, WI.

Hannah is originally from Seattle, WA where she started her early dance training under the guidance of Anne Green Gilbert with Kaleidoscope Dance Company and Marie Chong with Arc School of Ballet. In 2015 Hannah received a B.F.A. in Dance and the Excellence in Choreography Award from George Mason University in Fairfax, VA. During her college career she was generously funded by grants from the Undergraduate Research Scholars Program and her choreographic research was presented at the 2014 National Conference on Undergraduate Research. Hannah also attended summer programs at San Francisco Conservatory of Dance, Alonzo King LINES Ballet, Mark Morris Dance Group, Keigwin + Company, and Paul Taylor Dance Company. After college, she taught dance classes for the Maryland Public School District and performed with Metropolitan Ballet Ensemble. Hannah spent last year training with Kanopy 2. This is her second season with Kanopy Dance Company.

Michael Knight began his professional dance career with Madison Contemporary Vision Dance where he held the position of Associate Artistic Director. He has performed a wide range of contemporary modern dance and classical ballet, and has taught for companies throughout the United States and internationally. At the age of 21, Michael was invited to instruct collegiate level dancers in Sichuan, China for an international education program at Sichuan University. In 2016 Michael started the Transcendence Dance Company, a preprofessional training program in dance. His students have been accepted to prestigious professional companies for both summer and year-round study including School of American Ballet, Ballet West, and Pacific Northwest Ballet. He is honored to have been awarded numerous choreographic and technical execution awards for his dances, including the Outstanding Choreographer at the Taoli World Dance Competition and the Youth American Grand Prix Outstanding Choreographer award.
 Michael joined Kanopy Dance Company in 2018.

Cryssanne Wittlief, received her undergraduate degree in Dance Performance/ Choreography from Hope College, where she also performed with the H2 Dance Company. She began dancing at the Kehl School of Dance in Madison at age 4, taking ballet, jazz, and tap classes. She was introduced to Martha Graham technique in college, by instructors William Crowley and Matt Farmer. Wittlief also worked with guest choreographer Sharon Wong, and performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. She is thrilled to represent Madison’s very own professional Kanopy Dance Company.