Melissa Younker・ 2022 ​ CONTEMPORARY

Melissa Younker is a movement artist with a multifaceted dedication to dance; performing as a dance artist, teaching extensively within a multitude of communities, choreographing, designing costumes, and collaborating in a range of mediums. She is Co-Artistic Director for Contemporary Dance Ensemble and Adjunct Instructor for the Department of Dance at Utah Valley University. Melissa is a founding member of Heartland Collective, a multi-disciplinary collective with collaborations in dance, visual arts, music, and performance. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from California State University, Long Beach and was a dance artist with Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company from 2014-2020. In 2018, Melissa travelled to Mongolia and South Korea as a cultural ambassador, participating in DanceMotion USA℠, a cross-cultural exchange program of the US Department of State, administered by BAM ® (Brooklyn Academy of Music). Melissa has worked with choreographers Ann Carlson, Daniel Charon, Molly Heller, Raja Feather Kelly, Joanna Kotze, Andrea Miller, Doug Varone, Netta Yerushalmy, Yin Yue, among others.

Melissa’s work as a dance and teaching artist is always an exchange of ideas - a sharing of wonder. Through every aspect of her work, she stays thoroughly curious.