Meet the Company
At Spectrum Dance Theater, we believe our dancers are the heartbeat of our work. For the 2025/26 season, we are thrilled to introduce a company of extraordinary artists whose talent, dedication, and artistry embody the spirit of our mission.
The dancers of Spectrum Dance Theater are a select group of unique dance artists individually chosen and trained in Donald Byrd’s singular approach to dance/theater – physically demanding and emotionally charged. They occupy the space where the classical, contemporary, intuitive, cerebral, visceral, right brain, left brain, control and abandonment converge. These are dancers exploring the boundaries of movement – inside and outside of the prescribed. They explore the known and the unknowns of movement with focus, enthusiasm, and an veracious appetite for the authentic and the truthfulness of movement. They are virtuosi of a new order.
Birdy Adler (they/them) was born in Colorado and began their dance training at the age of three at Canyon Concert Ballet.
During high school, they developed a special interest in contemporary styles and attended summer intensives with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Alonzo King LINES Ballet, NW Dance Project, and Countertechnique. In 2021, they moved to Israel to study in Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company’s 10-Month Dance Journey Program, performing works by Rami Be’er and Mats Ek. In June 2022, they joined Kibbutz’s main company as an apprentice under Be’er’s direction. In 2023, they relocated to Seattle and joined Spectrum Dance Theater under the direction of Donald Byrd. In fall 2024, they performed with the Chamber Dance Company at the University of Washington. In spring 2025, they co-founded the duo Now That We’re Alone and premiered their first full-length show that July. They are currently in their third season with Spectrum.
Colleen has been dancing since the age of three, particularly in ballet, contemporary, and jazz. She moved to Seattle to get her degree in dance and biochemistry from the University of Washington, and since graduating last spring, has joined Spectrum for her first season.
Colleen McKibben is a 23-year-old Seattle based dancer originally from Walla Walla, WA.
Isabella Smith is from Seattle, WA and began ballet at the age of 6.
She developed a love of a variety of dance styles – contemporary, jazz and world dance – as part of The School of SDT pre-professional Academy Program. She received additional training with the inaugural STG AileyCamp, the Donald Byrd Workshop, Northwest Dance Project, and The Ailey School Professional Summer Intensive. Isabella earned certificates from the Jose Limon Pro and Launch Dance Programs in NYC. She choreographed dance for film presented at the NASH at Nite Showcase and ACES Expo, and performed in Velocity’s Blossom Dance Festival. She returned to Spectrum Dance Theater as a Trainee with the professional company in 2022. This is her forth season with the Company of Spectrum Dance Theater.
Cody Krause (he/him), originally from the Philadelphia area, began his dance training at a very young age and was a Dance major at the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts.
Cody then attended The Ohio State University, where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance in 2019, focusing his degree on Composition and Choreography. Immediately after graduating, Cody moved to Cleveland, OH, where he became a full-time company member with Dancing Wheels, America’s first integrated dance company. From 2019 to 2023, he worked as a company dancer, teaching artist, company class teacher, and disabilities advocate while spreading awareness about disabilities and disability rights through performance and teaching. During this time, Cody was part of countless performances touring to places like New York City, Miami, Mexico, and China. Cody has taught Physically Integrated Dance classes for Dancing Wheels throughout the Cleveland area, as well as workshops at Point Park University and Mid-Atlantic Dance Initiative. Cody was also commissioned to choreograph a full-company piece, “Bonds of Actions,” for Dancing Wheels ‘Memories of Mexico’ concert in 2022. He has performed works by choreographers such as Dianne McIntyre, Doug Varone, Marc Brew, Donald Byrd, and Ohad Naharin, for whom he was the featured soloist in BalletMet and The Ohio State University’s Collaboration of “Minus 16.” September 202, Cody moved to Seattle to join Spectrum Dance Theater as a company dancer for the 2023-2024 season and has been dancing with the company since.
She has a strong passion for cultivating open and accepting dance spaces that foster and integrate healthier relation- ships with your art, your body, and your mind. She is deeply engaged in the environment of improvisational and performance work that shows appreciation for and values dancers’ self-worth. In doing so, Natalie has placed great emphasis on drawing inspiration from the artists with whom she surrounds herself, finding dance as a form of communication and an embodied practice. This is Natalie’s first year with Spectrum Dance Theater!
Natalie Johnson is a movement artist who has dedicated her life to dancing.
Serene Wong was born in Newport Beach, CA and began her early ballet education at Huntington Academy of Dance.
She received the majority of her pre-professional training at International Ballet Academy in Bellevue, WA before going on to Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s Graduate Program under the direction of Marjorie Grundvig and Janet Popeleski. During these years, she received additional training from Houston Ballet Academy, American Ballet Theatre School, the School of Philadelphia Ballet, and Oklahoma City Ballet School. After attending the Byrd Workshop in 2022, she returned to Seattle to join Spectrum Dance Theater. Serene holds BA in Linguistics from the University of Washington and has performed with International Ballet Theater, Chamber Dance Company, and Shana Simmons Dance. This is her fourth season with SDT.
From Crawfordsville, Indiana, Katarina began dancing at a young age. She studied at Grand Valley State University, where she graduated Cum Laude with a BA in dance and Minor in Business.
Upon graduation Katarina danced with Ad Deum Dance Company, in Houston and danced with Springs Dance Company in London for a stint. Later, Katarina danced in Cleveland, Ohio with Inlet Dance Theatre, undertaking the roles of Company Dancer and Costume Coordinator. There, Katarina premiered her first work, Hiheyhello, as a part of Inlet’s summer dance intensive. After moving to Seattle, Katarina began performing in projects throughout the city, and later joined Spectrum Dance Theater. Recently, Katarina returned to Grand Valley to set her newest work, Ardent. This is her third season with Spectrum
Cooper Sullivan is a dance artist from Texas and a BFA candidate in Modern Dance at the University of Utah, completing his senior year concurrently.
This is his first year with Spectrum, and he is thrilled to join the company. He has performed in works by Mike Tyus, Luca Renzi, Lauren Edson, Daniel Charon, James Gregg, and Rebecca Margolick. He continues to refine his training in modern and ballet and values performance as a space for artistic expression and connection.