Welcome!

We are a student-led production team from the University of Minnesota's Dance Program.
Click here to learn more.

Production Team

Rachel Kaisler

Stage Manager

Rachel Kaisler is a first year student at the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities. She is majoring in Child Psychology and Sociology, and minoring in Theatre Arts. Rachel worked in her high school’s theatre program for four years, where she found a passion for stage management. Recently, she worked on the stage run crew of FML: How Carson McCullers Saved My Life, and as the Assistant Stage Manager of Pippin, both through the University of Minnesota Department of Theatre and Dance. She is very excited to work with the talented artists of Blueprint and expand her theatre-making horizons!

Ellie Simonett

Lighting Designer

Ellie (Lighting Designer) is a Junior in undergrad in the theater department. She has been involved in countless productions at the Rarig center, the most recient being Love's Labour's Lost directed by Steve Cardamone, and Eko Supriyanto's piece Cry Jailolo in this past winter's dance concert. She is excited to be involved with Blueprint and to help artists navigate how lighting can affect their work in a collaborative setting.

Artists' Bios

La Viva

Dance Artists

La Viva is a co-ed urban dance team created by an all Asian-American influence. Located in the Twin Cities, they started in the fall of 2017 and are a leisure dance team that perform at local community events. Some of their big yearly performance goals include Pan Asian Arts Festival, and Generation Z. Project. Currently with eight active members, they strive to always find room for improvement and new opportunities. La Viva is a creative outlet for the members to utilize as a platform for inspiration. Their purpose is to impact and influence the urban dance community through media, dance workshops and performances.

Lily Conforti

Dance Artist

Lily Conforti is an artist from the twin cities, currently pursuing degrees in Dance and Physiology at the University of Minnesota. Lily has 13 years of dance training from Escalate Dance Studio where she competed both locally and nationally. Since then, Lily has performed in and choreographed works around the twin cities, as well as, shows within the university dance program. As an artist, Lily is interested in articulated movement. Seeing and feeling the groove is an important aspect of her work. Her interest in science informs her movement and allows for the portrayal different scientific concepts in her work. Lily hopes to cultivate an art experience that is new to the audience, and to continue creating knowledgeable work that provokes thoughtful conversation.

Rajine Williams

Visual Artist

My artwork is what I like. I make drawings, paintings, and I am also getting really into videography. When I draw, I use Prismacolor pencils, Copic and Ohuhu markers. I love the way each of the different mediums look together on paper because it gives a lot of depth and color to the drawings. With my paintings, I get more extravagant and utilize different textures, materials and techniques. I paint on canvas with acrylic paints. I love adding 3D elements to my paintings because drawings, no matter how much shading or detailing you use, they still are flat. I either use cardboard to paint my images or I draw it on regular paper and adhere the image to the cardboard then glue the cardboard down. In this way the images take a on‘3D’ look. I add textures with paint using a multitude of mixing mediums like glue, distilled water, or rubbing alcohol to get different viscosities of ‘liquid’ base materials. I also implement texture with things around me like newspapers, fabric, or magazines.

Robert McGrady

Visual Artist

Robert McGrady is a multidisciplinary performer and visual artist, working with cartooning, printmaking, and theatre. His work often explores the relationship between patriarchal power structures and queer identities. He attends the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, where he is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Art, and a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre.

Elise Bonnes

Printmaker

Elise Bonnes is a printmaker who makes linocuts exploring the process of overcoming sexual trauma, mental health and wellness, and finding joy and fulfillment amidst struggles. These explorations are specific to her own experiences, and heavily focus on portraiture and the body. She is currently pursuing her Bachelors of Fine Arts from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Her art was featured on the 2018 shirts for the U of MN’s Dungeons and Dragons club, and on the pint glasses from Gleeman and the Geek’s Tuesday Taproom Tour from 2017 and 2018.

Elise Bonnes was born in Minneapolis, MN. She tried to move to Indianapolis in Indiana in 2015 to study Operatic Performance, but when she decided to instead pursue visual art she returned to the larger printmaking studios in the Twin Cities. She enjoys playing Dungeons and Dragons, and no, she will not DM for you and your friends. Her favorite color is yellow. She’s currently working to add to her collection of tattoos (don’t tell her grandparents).

Madelyn Kapheim

Visual Artist

My name is Madelyn Kapheim and I am a sophomore at the University of Minnesota studying art and applying for the BFA program at the U this semester. I spend most of my time in the ceramics studios handbuilding and creating pottery. I find a lot of my inspiration from natural forms such as flowers, plants, trees, animals and humans. I am attracted to the idea of growth, weather that be in plans and animals or my personal growth as an individual i use art as an outlet to express my growth and the way I experience growth around me. Art has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. From a young age I knew that art was the career path for me, after undergraduate schooling I plan to go onto grad school and eventually be a college professor of art.

Romero Cannady

Dance Artist

Romero Cannady is a 21-year-old junior at the University of Minnesota. He has trained in many forms of dance but he especially enjoys praise dance. At the age of six, Romero started dancing under his mother Tanya L Eubanks. And at that time is when he fell in love with dance. He plans to continue his education at the University of Minnesota, while double majoring in youth studies and dance. He has enjoyed assisting and is now teaching classes in hip-hop and contemporary at the Boys and Girls Club.

Events

Blueprint Productions will have three showings at The Barbara Barker Center for Dance.

Date Time Students General Admission
April 12th 7:30 PM $5 $11
April 13th 7:30 PM $5 $11
April 14th 2:00 PM $5 $11

To find out more about ticketing, please click here. Should finances be a barrier for anyone, please contact the team at their email address blueprintproductions1819@gmail.com and accommodations can be made.

We would like to hear from you!

Click on the link to find out more.