Staff
Threads Dance Project Staff are critical to our success daily. Our staff members commit themselves to assuring that their work allows Threads to realize its mission.
Meet the Team
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Karen is a versatile, multi-talented choreographer, educator, and founder of Threads Dance Project.
Karen’s passion for dance began at the age of five in Atlanta, GA at Jacob’s Dance Academy, Atlanta Ballet, and summer study at North Carolina School of the Arts. Karen graduated Magna Cum Laude from Texas Christian University with dual degrees in Ballet and Computer Science. Karen also earned her M.Ed. in Administration from Georgia State University.
Karen’s worked as a computer programmer at Westinghouse Credit Corporate (Pittsburgh, PA) and Hallmark Cards (Kansas City, MO). Karen left the corporate world and danced professionally with the Pittsburgh Choreography Continuum, Susan Warden Dance Company (Kansas City), and Room to Move Dance Company (Atlanta). She traveled to NYC as a Fellowship Recipient at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre. She opened her own dance school – Discovering Dance, and taught dance, computer science, and mathematics in the Atlanta Public School System for nine years.
Karen founded Threads Dance Project after the passing of her father from cancer in 2010. Her father’s death and a small bequeath from him prompted Karen to take a risk and create the dance company she had planned on paper years earlier – Threads Dance Project. In 2011, Karen founded Threads Dance Project with the mission to examine, expose and celebrate the Threads that connect us.
Karen has created over 40+ works that have been performed locally and nationally. Her work,
The Secrets of Slave Songs, was nominated for MN SAGE Dance Award (2015 ) and her company was selected to host the McKnight International Choreographic Fellow (2017). Threads has been twice featured in Dance Magazine’s What to Watch. Karen has been featured on TPT MN Originals and has been recognized for her contribution to the Black Arts community – receiving the Archousa of the Year Award from Omicron Boule (2017) and the 2020 Celebrating the Sistas Award recognizes the excellence and contributions of Black women in the Twin Cities. Charles’s dance film,
Out of the Ashes won the New York City Film & Television Best Performance Award (2022), and Best Dance Feature Film at the Experimental Film Festival (2023). Karen opened Threads Dance Nexus (2021) to serve a community dance space where people can create, learn, and experience dance.
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Rae is a quintessential multi-hyphenate with over ten years of professional experience in dance performance, choreography, nonprofit management, and education, spanning higher education, K-12, and the independent sector. She is an award-winning scholar whose published research explores dance history and education, racial equity in education, Black feminist epistemologies, and the ongoing development of her unique arts-based research methodology, Empathetic Embodiment. Rae has taught at leading institutions across Minnesota and is currently a Visiting Professor at Macalester College.
In 2024, Rae founded RAEdance/s Arts & Equity Consulting, LLC, where she serves as Lead Consultant and draws on her diverse expertise. She is currently enthusiastic about returning to her "professional home" at Threads Dance Project, where she previously held several roles, including Company Member, Community Engagement & Education Manager, and Managing Director.
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Before joining Threads, his background experience was in inclusion and belonging initiatives and transportation equity. With a foundation in social responsibility, grants management, and mission advancement, Nurudin is dedicated to community development, equity-centered programming, and grounding his work in integrity and justice. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of Minnesota and is currently pursuing a Master of Human Rights degree at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs.
Nurudin is committed to centering community in his work, and he plans to continue these efforts to advance the mission of Threads Dance Project while fostering an accessible and welcoming space for all.
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Born and raised in Minneapolis, Angela studied dance with Lirena Branitski and Bonnie Mathis at Ballet Arts Minnesota. She completed her training at the San Francisco Ballet School before dancing professionally with BalletMet Columbus and the Louisville Ballet. After a successful career, she returned home to Minneapolis, where she earned her B.A.Summa Cum Laude
in PR/Journalism from the University of Minnesota. She currently combines her extensive dance experience with a deep passion for arts education, writing, and fostering inclusive communities. Angela is a committed faculty member at Ballet Royale Minnesota where she teaches pre-professional dancers and hopes to engage more people through dance and strengthen community through her work with Threads Dance Project.
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Maddy Harper grew up in Hampton, Minnesota. She took her first dance class at the age of 3 and has been dancing ever since. She studied at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities where she received a BFA in dance with honors. Since then she has performed with Concerto Dance and Analog Dance Works, and has danced with Threads since 2022. Maddy is also passionate about dance education and teaches youth classes at Creo Art and Dance Conservatory.
