PROGRAM

Ancestor’s Voices is an evening-length work. There is no intermission.
Please join us for a post-performance discussion.

Artistic Director: Donna Sternberg
Choreography: Donna Sternberg developed in collaboration with the dancers as well as former dancer Meri Bobber Strauss
Dancers: Rebecca Aguilar, Alexandria Paige Amstutz, Robert Huerta, Anna Kazwell, Alyssa Milligan
Live music performance and composition: Carisa Bianca Mellado, Andrew Dalziell
Poetry: Carol V. Davis
Music: Klezmer Juice, Peer, Zelinski, Edh, Dimmock, Emel, Levi, Coates, Frankel, Kent, Gregson, Harwood, Zielinski, Hancox, Boyd, Stewart, Mellado, Dalziell
Costumes: Danica Martino
Consulting scientists: Devavani Chatterjea, Kathy Sanders-Phillips
Dramaturge: Julie Bour

Lighting Designer/Technical Director: Evan Nie
Production Manager, Skirball Cultural Center: Denisse Cruz

This performance is made possible by grants from the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs, Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, National Performance Network (NPN) Artist Engagement Fund, with funding from the Doris Duke Foundation, and the Mellon Foundation, and DS&D donors. Thank you.

Special thanks to Benina Stern, the Skirball Cultural Center, and all the participants of the program.

My interest in inherited ancestral trauma was piqued by an article entitled “Do Jews Carry Trauma in Our Genes?” by David Samuels that was passed on to me by a friend and colleague. The topic fascinated me, thinking about how our DNA can be encoded and subsequently altered by trauma that is passed down through generations. I subsequently began researching and found an entire field of science, epigenetics, that studies the alterations on genes that change the way they function.

I read articles and was fortunate to connect with scientist Kathy Sanders-Phillips and several trauma therapists who graciously shared their knowledge and expertise with me. It was evident during my research that intergenerational trauma applies to all groups of peoples who have a history of marginalization and oppression, and this made the topic particularly relevant.

Material for the work was developed in several ways. The dancers participated in many exercises focused on various aspects of trauma guided by books by Anna Halprin (Making Dances That Matter) and Resmaa Menakem (My Grandmother’s Hands). We used material generated by these exercises to develop the dance, each dancer contributing to what you will see in the performance. I also conducted community workshops with therapist Mastaneh Moghadam and sound healing practitioner Jasmine Goldford and some of the themes that came out of the workshops were incorporated into the dance. I knew I wanted to include some sort of text and found the evocative poetry of Carol V. Davis which added another layer of complexity and imagery. I had the good fortune to work with dramaturge Julie Bour who helped refine the dance with suggestions and comments. Finally, I was truly graced to find musicians Carisa Bianca Mellado and Andrew Dalziell. They developed the score by working with us in rehearsal, responding to the movement and refining the music from rehearsal to rehearsal. They were a dream to work with and have added so much to the work.

I presented this first as a work-in-progress in 2024 because I want to get audience feedback. I asked the audience to look at the work as witnesses rather than mere audience members, they are different in nature. A witness participates by watching and then sharing their experience of what they saw rather than being a critic. Being a witness involves giving us, as creators and performers, an understanding of how the work affected you without adding value judgements, with the goal of opening up a dialogue. When a witness offers a window into their subjective experience, they communicate a piece of their own humanity rather than their capacity to judge or separate themselves, allowing us to break down our personal isolation and make genuine connections with each other. This is my goal for these performances. I hope that you will find this subject and the performance as fascinating as I do and I welcome your feedback in person or through email at dsdancers.com

Donna Sternberg 
Artistic Director

Celebrating its 40th year in 2025, DS&D is a non-profit interdisciplinary dance company. Our mission is to discover, transform, connect. DS&D uses contemporary dance to discover connections between dance, science, and humankind. We connect scientific inquiry and discovery to human life, opening new areas of awareness and plumbing the emotional and psychological aspects of STEM. We work collaboratively with scientists, artists, organizations, and other key stakeholders to enrich arts ecosystems and expand community engagement, guided by the belief that learning is a life-long pursuit. At its core we strive to elicit awe and wonder through experiential and participatory events. We celebrate the differences as well as the commonality of artists, audiences and associates as a means to fulfill our mission to transform through discovery. DS&D has premiered over 95 works, including 13 full-length performances throughout California and Mexico. The company has been presented in both traditional and non-traditional venues and in 2016 performed at the Venice Biennale in Venice, Italy. DS&D has received funding from national, state and local governments, corporations, foundations and individuals.

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• DS&D is available for master classes, workshops and educational programs. Email us at contact@dsdancers.com
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DS&D is a non-profit organization dedicated to sharing our passion for discovery and love of movement. Many of our performances are free to the public, enabling audiences to see us without any economic barriers. Through our life-long learning programs we provide a wide range of programs to audiences of all ages with the belief that learning is a life-long joy and pursuit.

Your support will enable us to continue our programming and expand into new communities. Tax-deductible contributions can be made quickly and safely on our website, www.dsdancers.com or contact Alaya at contact@dsdancers.com.

Artistic/Executive Director: Donna Sternberg
Managing Director: Alaya Oni
Dancers: Rebecca Aguilar, Alexandria Paige Amstutz, Robert Huerta, Anna Kazwell, Alyssa Milligan

Board of Directors

Ken Phillips, President
Danny Kramer, Vice-President
Chris Bradford, Secretary/Treasurer
Jill Jacobson-Bennett
Meri Bobber Strauss
Eileen Forbes-Hill
Donna Sternberg

Donna Sternberg, Artistic Director for Donna Sternberg & Dancers, has professionally premiered over 100 works since 1975 throughout the United States, Europe, Canada and Mexico; frequently collaborating with artists of other disciplines as well as scientists. Her work has been commissioned by institutions such as the California Science Center, festivals, schools, colleges and dance companies. She participated in the 2016 Venice Biennale, was chosen for the first artist/science residency at Djerassi, received the Artist-in-Community award from the Santa Monica Arts Foundation, is featured in the documentary LA Woman, published in the journal Leonardo (MIT Press), featured on KCET’s Life and Times program and is the recipient of numerous grants.

Rebecca Aguilar began her dance journey at the age of four. She graduated from the University of Utah in 2023 with her BFA in Modern Dance and BS in Psychology. During her time in Salt Lake City, Rebecca performed works by renowned artists such as Laja Field, Eric Handman, Natalie Desch, Daniel Clifton, Melanie George, and Darrell Moultrie. Upon graduating, Rebecca moved to Los Angeles where she has shared choreographic works, performed, and started a Masters in Psychology at California State University, Los Angeles. She is interested in the intersection of mind and body, exploring how movement can serve as a powerful tool for well-being. Rebecca continues to merge her extensive knowledge of psychology with dance, striving to bring her perspective to the Los Angeles dance community.

Alexandria Paige Amstutz performed with several companies including VISIONS Contemporary Ballet and Bryce Dance Company, and was the Rehearsal Director for both companies in New York before relocating to Los Angeles. She has performed throughout the United States in live stage performances and video projects. Alexandria is a graduate of Marymount Manhattan College with a BFA in Dance. When she isn’t dancing, Alexandria is the General Manager and a fitness teacher at YogaSix Culver City.

Robert Huerta (he/they) began his training at East Los Angeles College and is a graduate of California State University, Long Beach where he completed his BA in Dance Science and his BFA in Dance. During his time at Long Beach, he danced for artists such as Marjani Forté, Rebecca Lemme, Issa Hourani, and Brenna Monroe-Cook, with whom he performed a restaged work from Jose Limon, Crucifixus. Robert was also mentored by the Costume Shop Manager/Designer, Kelsey Vidic, where he discovered his love for costume design. Presently, Robert works as a freelance artist dancing in projects for artists such as José Argueta, Sarah Stanley, and Janelle Gonzales. He is also a teacher’s assistant for the dance classes at East Los Angeles College, and as a costume designer where he’s had the opportunity to work with artists such as Roderick George for Los Angeles Contemporary Dance Company, Justin Morris, and CSULB’s Dance Department.

Anna Kazwell is originally from Ames, Iowa and continued her dance training in Chicago with A&A Ballet’s Youth Company and Visceral Dance Chicago’s Studio Company. She graduated from the University of Utah in May 2023 with her BFA in Modern Dance and BSc. in English. Since moving to Los Angeles as a freelance dance artist, Anna has performed for artist Preston Douglas for his multidisciplinary project Repurposed Religion, presented her own work in collaboration with Rebecca Aguilar, and performed as a dance fellow for Carmel Dance Festival’s Dance & Choreography Fellowship. Her artistic interests lie in human connection, shared experiences, and the abstraction of narrative. Anna is co-founder of Tanz Tanz Revolution dance company.

Alyssa Milligan is a formally trained movement artist whose work blends classical ballet technique with an expansive range of stylistic influences. She thrives on collaboration across disciplines, seeking common ground among diverse modes of expression. For Alyssa, performance is both a structured and spontaneous act—rooted in a clear framework, yet open to the organic unfolding of movement through interaction with environment, collaborators, and audience. As both a mover and movement director, Alyssa leads with authenticity and vulnerability. A graduate of the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA program, she has continues to expand her practice since relocating to Los Angeles. She has appeared in music videos with artist Allie X, trained actors using her personal movement methods, and created original work for events such as the Art Share L.A. Comeback Festival in 2021 and 2023. Alyssa has worked as a company member with Donna Sternberg & Dancers since 2023 and she continues to investigate the interplay of improvisation, structure, and emotional resonance across new performance platforms.

Los Angeles based composition, songwriting, and orchestration duo Carisa Bianca Mellado and Andrew Dalziell have been working together in a musical partnership since 2016 based on shared aesthetics and a love of film, experimental art and mythology. Together they have scored many short films, operas, plays, and feature films. Some recent credits include the feature Kapō, produced by Chelsea Winstanley (Jojo Rabbit); Pea'hi, a coming-of-age feature starring legendary pro surfer, Kai Lenny; the documentary Nature Humaine, Pele Pictures; the award-winning short film Miniature Life directed by Stevie Cavalier, and French short film Une Promenade Gâchée directed by Michael Salerno. They also write and perform songs in their darkwave art band Night Tongue, they are founders and hosts of The Night Temple events, conference, and podcast, and are producing the documentary The Power of Sad Music.

Carol V. Davis is the author of numerous books of poetry and included in various poetry anthologies. Her poetry has been read on National Public Radio, the Library of Congress, and Radio Russia. She has received many honors including two Fulbright scholarships, the 2007 T.S. Eliot Prize for Into the Arms of Pushkin: Poems of St. Petersburg, a Fulbright Specialist grant, the Sandburg-Auden-Stein Poet-in-Residence at Olivet College, Michigan, and the Barbara Deming Memorial/Money for Women grant.