AIMEE K. BRYANT
Aimee K. Bryant has built a lengthy resume performing on stages throughout the Twin Cities since she graduated from Howard University. Most recently, she appeared in Black Nativity at Penumbra, Two Queens One Castle with Mixed Blood Theatre, and Seussical at The Children’s Theatre. In addition to being an actor, Aimee is a songwriter and vocalist.
ANNIE ENNEKING
Annie has worked in the Twin Cities as an actor, dancer, and singer for over 24 years. In addition to having worked with Theatre de la Jeune Lune, Workhaus Collective and Walking Shadow Theatre Company, and CTC, Annie is a repeat offender with Frank Theatre. As a dancer, Annie trained with the Zenon Dance and toured with the renowned dance companies of Shawn McConneloug and Her Orchestra and Danny Buraczewski’s Jazzdance. As a songwriter, Annie has released two albums of original material and is working on a third. She has been recognized by the Twin Cities Critics Kudos Award, The Princess Grace Foundation, The Kristen Phaff Memorial Scholarship and The Minnesota Folk Festival.
JENNIFER J. HOLT
Jennifer has been part of the Bridges Team for the past few years. She has previously taught in the Junior Conservatory Program at The Children's Theatre Company and is an instructor at The Dance Institute and the Dance XChange. She has produced full evening works under her dance theater company, Vroom - Vroom Group and has performed with Stuart Pimsler Dance & Theatre and Gerry Girouard. Jennifer also shares her love of stories through her music and songwriting, which she performs in her alternative country band, The Wranglers.
MATT JENSON
Matt currently teaches Modern Dance 1 for the University of Minnesota Dance Program and also dance and storytelling at CTC. He has choreographed commissioned works for CTC, The Rose Ensemble, Minnesota Dance Theatre, composer Libby Larsen, and the Weisman Art Museum. His choreography has been supported by The McKnight Foundation, the Minnesota State Arts Board, and the Jerome Foundation. He also does graphic design, project coordination, and classroom visits for the Minnesota Association for Children's Mental Health.
LEIF JURGENSEN
Leif has worked in the Twin Cities as a performer for over 15 years. Since moving to Minneapolis from Milwaukee, WI, Leif has appeared in numerous productions at The Children’s Theatre Company and has also performed with 15 Head - a theatre lab, Frank Theatre, Ten Thousand Things Theater Company, The Guthrie, The Red Eye, Theater Mu, Stages Theatre Company, and James Sewell Ballet. Leif graduated from Marquette University with a BA in theater arts and trained at the SITI Company's Summer Intensive at Skidmore College.
MICHAEL LEE
Michael has been with Neighborhood Bridges program since 2001 and frequently collaborates with CTC’s Saturday Junior Conservatory program, the Educational Outreach program, and Summer Conservatory Program. Michael also instructs theatre to junior high and high school aged students, as a part of Park Square’s Theatre Immersion days. Michael is a freelance actor, currently performing in three separate roles in Actor's Theatre's interactive '"We Gotta Bingo". He has also performed with several theaters throughout the twin cities some of which were The Children’s Theatre Company, Theatre de la Jeune Lune, and the Hennepin Theatre District. He received a degree in theatre from Saint Olaf College in 1990.
KATY MCEWEN
Katy was born and raised in Dayton, OH. She attended college at Wright State University where she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting. After graduating and moving to Minneapolis, Katy began work as a performing apprentice at the Children’s Theatre. Since then, she has been lucky enough to continue her relationship with CTC as a company member, teacher, and guest artist. For the past eight years she has been working as a company member, writer, and teacher at the Brave New Workshop and was recently promoted to the position of Associate Artistic Director.
DEREK PHILLIPS
Derek is a native of Kansas City, Missouri and a 1977 graduate of Carleton College. He began his dance career with the Nancy Hauser Dance Company as a performer, instructor, outreach coordinator and board member and toured nationally with the Children’s Theatre Company. Derek has been a roster artist for the Minnesota State Arts Board’s Artists-in-Education Program, and continues to conduct annual residencies for the Montevideo, Minnesota public schools. He has taught as part of the Dance/Math program at Whittier Community School for the Arts in Minneapolis and also served as Development Assistant for Intermedia Arts’ capital campaign. Currently, Derek tours internationally with Katha Dance Theatre, explores contact improvisation with Mandance and performs English country dances with Minnesota Traditional Morris. Derek also serves as the Adjunct Dance Coordinator at the Perpich Center for Arts Education, where he assists in the coordination of Arts Courses for Educators (ACE~) Dance program, and the All State Dance Education Summit
JAY SCOGGIN
James (Jay) has worked as a teacher, performing artist, set designer/builder, writer and director in the Twin Cities for over a third of a century. With a BA (University of Minnesota) in Speech and Theater, a BS (Mankato State University) in Progressive Education and a Masters Degree in Liberal Studies (Hamline University) Jay has taught grades K-8 in social studies, theater and music for the Minneapolis Public Schools (33 years). Additional theater experiences include: Co-founder, actor and director with the Marcy Community Players (17 years), Director of Education and Special Projects with Youth Performance Company (2 years), Director of the Valley View Middle School theater program in Edina (2 years) and writer/director of the "Sky Blue Matters" immigrant education touring project sponsored by the Social Justice Fund of the Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P. Jay can also be found performing with his string band "Stealin' Home".
CHRIS GRIFFITH
Chris is one half of Circus Minimus Puppetry, a Minneapolis duo that combines physical comedy with puppetry. Circus Minimus Puppetry performs original shows throughout the Midwest that delight children and their adults. Chris has over 15 years of experience as a teaching artist. As co-founder and artistic director of Galumph Interactive Theater, he has received awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Minnesota State Arts Board, and COMPAS/United Arts for his unique approach to education. He has developed and taught curriculum for every grade K-12 in theater, puppetry, mask, improvisation, and street theater. At In the Heart of the Beast Puppet & Mask Theatre, Chris also edited and compiled “The Puppet Cookbook,” a manual for teachers and artists to use in building puppets. Additionally, he has worked as a freelance teaching artist in public schools since 1992, traveling throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Louisiana and Oklahoma. For over a decade, Chris has been a consultant and led teacher training programs for the Perpich Center for Arts & Education, the National Thespian Festival in Lincoln, Nebraska and the University of Wisconsin, Osh Kosh.
NICOLAS CARTER
Nicolas Carter has directed, acted and taught theater arts for theaters and schools in both Minnesota and Paraguay. Locally, he has directed at the University of Minnesota and has performed for The Science Museum of Minnesota, the Mixed Blood Theater, Teatro del Pueblo and Teatro Latino de Minnesota. He has been a mentor/facilitator for the Chicano/Latino Many Voices Program at the Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis. Carter has also worked as a puppeteer and director for the Friendship mission Puppet Theater in Asunción, Paraguay. In addition to his theater credits, Carter is an accomplished musician whose principal instrument is the Paraguayan harp. He has received a Master of Fine Arts degree in Directing form the University of Minnesota, and as a Fulbright Scholar he has done advanced research at the Theatre Center of the Oppressed in Paris, France.
BRIAN GRANDISON
Brian A. Grandison, has worked as an actor, director, writer, and educator, for over 20 years. Most recently, he was instrumental in creating Avant Garde, which is a student led acting company which performs and tours its original plays dealing with social issues to students in Elementary and Middle School students in the east metro-school districts in the Twin Cities. As a Director, Brian has recently finished working with Steppingstone Theatre in St. Paul where he directed the premiere of “Almost to Freedom” and will direct “Ruby Bridges” next season. As a Writer, his work has been produced at Stages Theater and the Great American History Theatre. As an Actor, Brian has worked at the Guthrie Theater (local and national tours), the Great American History Theater, Park Square Theatre, Mixed Blood Theater, Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, and Illusion Theater. Nationally, he also toured with the production of “Suite Saturday Night”, which premiered at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and has worked at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago as well as the Mark Taper Forum of Los Angeles. As an Educator, he has taught residencies and master classes all over Twin Cities, greater Minnesota, and the upper Mid-West. He has served on the faculty of the Summer Arts Conservatory at Plymouth Christian Youth Center in north Minneapolis for the past six summers, and in the Spring of 2008 was a teaching artist for the Children’s Theatre Company’s “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” tour.
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Neighborhood Bridges Teaching Artists 
