About Us

VISIONS Contemporary Ballet is an ethnically diverse company committed to presenting spiritually uplifting contemporary ballet works in artistically excellent concert dance performances to a wide range of communities. It seeks to build new dance audiences and provoke thought and educate by creating and performing inspirational works which explore the human experience.

 

Our History

VISIONS Contemporary Ballet, established in 2007 under the direction of Ranardo-Domeico Grays, is an innovative contemporary ballet company, exuding strength and passion in every piece. Choreographically VISIONS' repertoire transcends any one culture. It relays universal messages of the human experience and can be enjoyed by audiences of any age. The company has performed in New York, Michigan, Virginia, and South Carolina. VISIONS has been presented by the Thelma Hill Performing Arts Center in the Souls of Our Feet People of Color Dance Festival/Dancing the Single Life and PEEKS/Works in Progress; Dixon Place in Under Exposed and Moving Men; Green Space in Fertile Ground; The Wassaic Project Summer Festival, American Cancer Society/Making Strides Walk in the Events Ceremony at The Bandshell in Central Park, New York City in 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2016; Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance in Blaktino Performance Series, Boogie Down Dance Series, and Out Like That! in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014; The Field/Lower Manhattan Cultural Council/Harlem Arts Alliance in the Uptown/Downtown Work-in-Progress performance development program at the Dance Theatre of Harlem and the Chen Dance Center; Forward Motion Theater as part of the Long Island City Arts Open Festival in Re:Vision; The Field and Abrons Arts in the Fall Fielday Performance at Abrons Arts Center Henry Street Settlement; and Town Sports International as special guest in New York Sports Clubs' Best Dance Crew Showcase at Harlem Stage/Aaron Davis Hall. VISIONS presented two evenings of original works in In Remembrance, dedicated to the lives lost and survivors of 9/11, at the Roy Arias Theater. VISIONS has collaborated with Blue Muse Dance in a presentation by The Flea Theater in Dance Conversations, in the Emo Project at Chashama and in a co-production of Reach at the Producers Club. VISIONS has also collaborated with Vangeline Theater, Damon White/Studio Green Penguin, Mikhail Torich and Micha. In addition VISIONS has performed at Tribeca Performing Arts Center, the Kabbalah Center, and other NYC venues. For VISIONS Contemporary Reel, click here.

who's who

Ranardo-Domeico Grays VISIONS Contemporary Ballet photo Andrew Williams (2).jpg

Ranardo-Domeico Grays (Founder/Artistic Director), native of Detroit, is an alumnus of The Juilliard School, California Institute of the Arts (BFA), the Alvin Ailey School and Interlochen Arts Academy. He has performed with Sensedance, Rebecca Kelly Ballet, Urban Wash Dance Company, the La Toya Jackson Tour, Garth Fagan, Zack Morris, and Celebrity Cruises, throughout the United States, Canada, the Caribbean and Europe. He is a member of SAG/AFTRA, AEA, and has acted in film (Slow Jam King, Shortcut to Happiness and State Property 2) and television (Law & Order, Gossip Girl, Canterbury’s Law and The Nanny), and was choreographer/co-host of VH-1’s Rock of Ages. He also was assistant choreographer in the Off Broadway musical, Hitgirls. He taught Master Class workshops in Contemporary Ballet at Marygrove College; Chicago, Sweet Charity and A Chorus Line workshops at New York Sports Clubs; Urban Fusion at Equinox and Ripley Grier Studios; and Afro-Latin-Funk at American Express' NY Corporate headquarters. As Dance Director of Morris High School, he staged/choreographed Bye Bye Birdie, West Side Story and Little Shop of Horrors. He was a panelist in “Queer Butoh – Transcending the Identity of Sex” presented by Howl Arts, the NY Butoh Institute and Vangeline Theater. Ranardo is a brain cancer survivor! http://www.ranardo-domeico.com

 

 

 

 

Vanessa Corwin (Production Manager) joined VISIONS in 2016. A native New Yorker, she is an award-winning TV/video and film producer. Her work has screened on broadcast and cable television, as well as in numerous film festivals and independent venues. vccpro@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

Connie Corwin Headshot.png

Connie Corwin (Marketing Director), a native of New York City, has been involved with VISIONS since its inception. She has a BA (Economics) from Queens College. She had a long career as a marketing executive for American Express and is currently running her own hairstyling business. Her interests include dance, fitness, music and travel. hairdesigneroncall.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

IMG_7711.JPG

Vir-Amicus (Resident Lighting Designer/Composer) is originally from Houston, Texas, and has been with VISIONS since its inception. He has a BFA (Dance) from CalArts and MA (Experimental Performance) from New College of California. He has danced internationally, was a member of ODC/San Francisco, and was a principal dancer in The Matrix 2. He is an interdisciplinary artist who has served as Technical Director/Lighting Designer for BAAD, Malcolm Low/Formal Structure, Arthur Aviles Typical Theatre, and others. He was a recipient of the Bronx Recognizes Its Own (BRIO) fellowship award in Vocal Performance 2009. He was commissioned for an original score for Ailey II (2012) for "One Moment Forgotten" - Malcolm Low/Formal Structure and lead lighting designer for "Shadow Lands" (2013) by Bx-Rated. In 2014 he was a recipient of the MapFund Grant for composition. He has created original sound designs for VISIONS and other companies. http://vimeo.com/greenpenguin

 

 

 

 

 

rebekah crop blazzer (2).jpg

Rebekah J. Kennedy (Special Guest Artist) was born and raised in New York City. She joined VISIONS in 2007 and is a founding company member. She holds an MFA in Dance (Choreography) from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a BS in Dance and Theatre from Skidmore College. She is also Artistic Director and choreographer of Urban Wash Dance Company. She has choreographed for and performed in various projects throughout the eastern United States, including Spiegel Tent, International Dance Festival at DiCapo Opera Theater, Joyce SoHo, Monkey Town, Dance New Amsterdam, Dancers Responding to AIDS Remember Project at St. Mark's Church, and additional venues. http://www.urbanwash.org/

 

raymell jamison vcb principal dancer (2).jpg

Raymell Jamison (Guest Artist) joined VISIONS in 2014. Hailing from Cleveland, Ohio, he is a Princess Grace Foundation award recipient and an alumnus of The Juilliard School, where he received a BFA in dance. He has performed with Cleveland/San Jose Ballet, Creative Outlet Dance Theater of Brooklyn, Donald Byrd/The Group, Les Ballets Trockadero, and Buglisi/Foreman.

 

 

 

 

Laura (2).jpg

Laura DeRubeis-Byrne (Principal Dancer) has been with VISIONS Contemporary Ballet since 2009. Originally from Philadelphia, PA, she studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet in Narberth, PA; at the Vaganova Ballet Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia under the mentorship of former PAB directors/co-founders, Margarita de Saa and John White, and character dance teacher, Tatiana Kudrjavcev; and at University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music. Laura has danced as an apprentice with New York Theatre Ballet; was a company dancer at New Generation Dance Company, which fused Argentine tango with neoclassical dance, and Neville Dance Theatre; and has free-lanced with other companies. She has also danced for television and a Lebanese pop music video. As a choreographer she has created two works, “Homage to Wood” and “Overshadow,” which were both performed in New York City. She has taught dance in New York City for Bridge for Dance, Hamilton Dance Studio, and for choreographer David Fernandez. She received her Yoga Alliance 200-hour RYT certification through ISHTA Yoga in the summer of 2015 and teaches yoga in the greater New York City area.

Shannon Maynor VISIONS Contemporary Ballet Principal Dancer 3.jpg

Shannon Maynor (Principal Dancer) has been with VISIONS since 2009. Originally from Los Angeles, she was trained at California Dance Theatre. Prior to moving east, she performed with San Francisco Ballet and Oregon Ballet Theatre. In addition to dancing with VISIONS she also currently works with Nomad Contemporary Ballet, Ballet Inc and CelloPointe and is a guest artist with Neglia Ballet Artists. When not dancing, she enjoys practicing Gyrotonics and traveling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alexandria Amstutz (Company Dancer) joined VISIONS in 2016. Originally from Shelby, Ohio, Alexandria began dancing at the age of four. She has trained at many schools including The Ailey School, Dance Theater of Harlem, and American Ballet Theater. She graduated Cum Laude from Marymount Manhattan College with a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in Dance with a Ballet concentration. While at MMC, she performed works by Paul Taylor, Murray Louis, Al Blackstone, and Tito del Saz, among others.

 

Wesley McIntyre (Company Dancer) joined VISIONS in 2016. A native of Jacksonville, Florida, he started dancing at the age of 10. He trained in classical ballet at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts under Rhonda Stampolia. He attended the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, where he received a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in Contemporary Dance, training and performing with choreographers and companies such as Alonzo King LINES Ballet of San Francisco, California and the Mark Morris Dance Group, Doug Elkins Dance Company, and Larry Keigwin, all of New York City.

 

 

 

Rodolphe Duquesne (Apprentice) joined VISIONS in 2017. A native of the south of France, he studies in New York City at Broadway Dance Center and Peridance. He studied at Epsedanse in Montpellier, France and has performed in Paris with Cie Vincent Ansart and at festivals and other events in France.

 

 

 

 

Manon Hallay (Apprentice) joined VISIONS in 2017. She has studied in the US at The Ailey School and Boston Ballet School, in her native country of France at the Biarritz Academie International de Danse, and in Belgium at the Royal Ballet School of Antwerp. She is Artistic Director of Les Ballets Nomades et Sonores, a dancer with the Amanda Selwyn Dance Theater and Teaching Artist for Notes in Motion Outreach Dance Theatre.

 

Collaborators

Jose' Rolon Events http://joserolonevents.com/

Studio Green Penguin http://vimeo.com/greenpenguin

Vangeline Theater http://www.vangeline.com/ 

Mikhail Torich Media Design http://vimeo.com/torich

Active Phaze http://promodj.com/activephaze

Blue Muse Dance http://www.bluemusedance.org/

Andrew Williams Photography

Kip Silva Costume Designer

Talla Designs

 

Press

Reviews/Articles

Out & About NYC Magazine http://outandaboutnycmag.com/thelma-hill-performing-arts-center-dancing-the-single-life-part-2/

Out & About NYC Magazine (Interview) http://outandaboutnycmag.com/o-a-nyc-thelma-hill-performing-arts-center-presents-peeks-works-in-progress/

The Juilliard Journal/Weathering the Economic Storm...and Flourishing http://www.juilliard.edu/journal/weathering-economic-storm-%E2%80%A6-and-flourishing

The New York Times/Three Ways to Burn Up Those Holiday Calories http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/23/fashion/23classyoga.html?pagewanted=print

Listings

The Wassaic Project http://wassaicproject.org/dance/

Out & About NYC Magazine http://outandaboutnycmag.com/thelma-hill-performing-arts-center-begins-spring-season-may-1/#more-1920

CAL Arts School of Dance Class Notes http://calarts.edu/alumni/notes/dance

Charmaine Warren Blog http://www.charmainewarren.com/blogspot/archives/05-2014/2

New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/02/arts/dance/dance-listings-for-may-2-8.html?_r=0

Broadway Baby http://www.broadwaybaby.com/shows/boogie-down-dance-series-bronx-centric/511454

Interlochen Center for the Arts http://www.interlochen.org/story/motifs-april-2014

The Juilliard Journal (May 2014)http://www.juilliard.edu/journal/1405/39019

The Juilliard Journal (Feburary 2014) http://www.juilliard.edu/journal/20707?destination=node/20707

Interlochen Center for the Arts http://wwwold.interlochen.org/crescendo/motifs-july-2012

Time Out New York (2012) http://www.timeout.com/newyork/dance/revision

The Juilliard Journal (Feburary 2011) http://54.225.247.164/journal/1102/alumni-news

Our LIC (2011) http://www.ourlic.com/calendar/index.php?eID=1347

The Juilliard Journal (September 2010) http://54.225.247.164/journal/14569?destination=node/14569

The Juilliard Journal (October 2009) http://www.juilliard.edu/journal/0910/alumni-news

The Juilliard Journal (November 2009) http://archive.today/XFLPG