Artistic Director / Choreographer
SARAH ZEHNDER (she/her) Zehnder is a New York- and Massachusetts-based artist, and passionately serves as director of dance at Springfield College. Zehnder’s choreographic research, rooted in feminism, aims to challenge, question, and surprise the mind through the power of the moving body, forming relationships that evoke emotion and attention to women's experiences.
Zehnder’s choreographic work has been produced internationally, performing in such prestigious festivals as Jacob’s Pillow Inside/Out, Reverb International Dance Festival, Florence Summer Dance (Florence, Italy), Pasadena Dance Festival, DUMBO Dance Festival, the Solo/Duo Festival, the MAD Festival, Midwest Regional Alternative Dance Festival, the Women in Dance Project (New York City and Chicago), the Evening of Contemporary Dance Performance Series (NYC), Utica Dance Festival, and Buffalo Dance festival. Her work has been presented at Dixon Place, Ailey Citigroup Theatre, Manhattan Movement and Arts Center, Gowanus Arts, Triskelion Arts, 92nd Y, Greenspace, and the Center for Performance Research (CPR).
Subsequently, she was awarded the Bossak/Heibron Charitable Foundation grant to support her research as well as a space residency at Chen Dance Center. Zehnder was also awarded the Appleton Grant as well as a Choreographic Fellowship from Mass Cultural Council to support the creation of her work, Permeating Voices that Linger, in collaboration with composer/vocalist Alexandra Ludwig. Most recently, Zehnder was awarded a Jacob's Pillow College Partner Research Fellowship for 2023-2024. Furthermore, she has shared her choreographic vision as a Guest Artist at Dance New Amsterdam, Gibney Dance Center, Steps on Broadway, Santa Monica College, Grand Canyon University, Scottsdale Community College, SUNY Brockport, Glendale Community College and Queens College. Zehnder received her BS in Dance from Bowling Green State University and her MFA from SUNY Brockport.