ANTOINETTE BRIM-BELL

Antoinette Brim-Bell (Antoinette Brim), Connecticut’s 8th State Poet Laureate, is the author of three full-length poetry collections:  These Women You Gave Me, Icarus in Love, and Psalm of the Sunflower.  She is a Cave Canem Foundation Fellow and an alumna of Voices of Our Nations Arts Foundation (VONA). Her poetry has appeared in various journals, magazines, textbooks, and anthologies, including Villanelles, 44 on 44: Forty-Four African American Writers on the 44th President of the United States, Not A Muse, and has appeared in Poetry Magazine and Poem-a-Day.  Additionally, Brim-Bell has published critical work, most notably, essays: “Living Behind the Numbers: A Statistic Muses about her Life” (National Association of African American Studies Monograph Series); “The Myopic Eye in Alice Walker’s ‘Flowers’” (Critical Insights: Alice Walker, Salem Press) and “Juxtaposed Dichotomies: the idealized white suburban pastoral, the surrealist tableau of black poverty & the women in between” (The Whiskey of Our Discontent: Gwendolyn Brooks as Conscience and Change Agent, Haymarket Books).    

A printmaker and collage artist, Brim-Bell exhibited both poetry and monoprints in Jazz: An exhibition of Poetry, Prints, and Photography at the Sumner McKnight Crosby Jr. Gallery in New Haven, CT, and Sheroes, in partnership with the Alliance of Women Veterans at the Grove in New Haven, CT.  She serves as Secretary of the Board of Directors of Indolent Arts Foundation based in New York City, is a past Board Member of OneWorld Progressive Institute, and a past President of the Board of Directors of the Creative Arts Workshop in New Haven, CT.

Additionally, Brim-Bell hosted a series of Black History Month television programs for the OneWorld Progressive Institute.  She is also a former guest host of Patrick Oliver’s Literary Nation Talk Radio (KABF 88.3, Little Rock), for which she interviewed a variety of entertainers, literary figures, political pundits, and community developers.  A sought-after speaker, editor, educator, and consultant, Brim-Bell is a Professor of English at Capital Community College in Hartford, CT. 

SARAH GRACE

Sarah Grace is a choreographer and dancer originally hailing from Pennsylvania and currently based in NYC. Grace received her initial dance training from Berks Ballet Theatre, and she went on to study at Mercyhurst University under the tutelage of Tauna Hunter, graduating summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in dance/choreography and English. Her choreography credits include works for New England Ballet Collective, Lake Erie Ballet, Erie Festival of Dance, Mercyhurst Ballet Theatre, American College Dance Festival, NTL Night Of showcases in New York, and contemporary solos performed at Youth American Grand Prix. Grace's performance credits include dancing with Mark Dendy Dance and Theatre for Lincoln Center Out of Doors, Ballet Bloom Project, Salvatore LaRussa Dance Theatre, The MoveShop, and performing as a Jet Girl (Clarice) in West Side Story at White Plains Performing Arts Center. Grace’s choreographic style blurs lines between classical and contemporary, pulling different influences from her experiences working in ballet, contemporary dance, and musical theater environments. She is thrilled to be joining New England Ballet Theatre of CT as a guest choreographer for their 2022-2023 season.

FREDERICK-DOUGLASS KNOWLES II

Frederick-Douglass Knowles II is a Professor of English at Three Rivers Community College in his native city of Norwich, CT. He is the inaugural Poet Laureate of Hartford,CT.

He is the recipient of the Nutmeg Poetry Award and the Connecticut of The Arts Fellow in Artist Excellence for Poetry/ Creative Non-Fiction. Knowles is a two-time Pushcart Prize nominee and the author of BlackRoseCity.

JACOB TAYLOR

Jacob Taylor received his formative training at Boulder Ballet School and in the summer programs of American Ballet Theater, the School of American Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, Kaatsbaan, and Perry Mansfield. Mr. Taylor is a graduate of the Ballet Performance Program at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music where he was coached by Violette Verdy and Michael Vernon. At IU he performed in works by George Balanchine, Martha Graham, Agnes de Mille, Dwight Rhoden, Paul Taylor, Twyla Tharp and Antony Tudor. His professional performance career includes dancing for such companies as Boulder Ballet, Christopher Caines Dance, Eglevsky Ballet, FJK Dance, Lydia Johnson Dance, New Jersey Ballet, Rebecca Kelly Ballet, and Staten Island Ballet. Mr. Taylor has taught ballet at Peridance Capezio Center, Colorado Ballet Academy, and Ridgefield School of Dance. He has been commissioned to choreograph new works for Boulder Ballet, Colorado Ballet Academy, IU Opera Theatre and the “Shut Up and Dance” festival with dancers of Philadelphia Ballet.

SEAN SHARKEY DIAZ

Sean Sharkey Diaz was raised by two ex-New Yorkers outside of Nashville in Bowling Green, KY. He turned to writing and painting early in life to cope and express his emotions, eventually minoring in Creative Writing. He recently finished writing an LGBT science fiction novel about machines capable of recording our dreams. And is currently working on the artwork for his first children’s book-Where do the sheep go? -which explores the secret lives of the sheep children count to fall asleep.

RACHAEL GNATOWSKI

Originally from Frederick, Maryland, Rachael began her dance training under the direction of Joyce Morrison at the Frederick School of Classical Ballet. While performing as a member of the Urbana High School Dance Company under the direction of Stephanie Weigelt, she was named a Maryland All-State Dancer. She furthered her dance training attending summer intensives at the Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, North Carolina School for the Arts, the Kansas City Ballet School, and Complexions Contemporary Ballet. Rachael then went on to graduate from Mercyhurst University in 2013 with a BA in dance. It was during her time at Mercyhurst where she was given the chance to perform with the Lake Erie Ballet and the Mercyhurst Ballet Theatre, allowing her to work with artists such as Thom Clower, Alethea Bodine, and Holly Anderson. Since graduation, she has danced professionally with Ballet Fleming, Fort Wayne Ballet, and Ballet Hartford. She has had the pleasure to work with artists such as Christopher Fleming, Silas Farley, and Cameron Basden. Rachael has also guested with the Albany Berkshire Ballet, Deos Contemporary Ballet, and Blacksburg Ballet.