Jon Lehrer Dance Company

Friday, April 17th at 8:00 p.m.

An evening showcasing JLDC’s signature dynamic, powerful, athletic, and elegant style. 

Featuring works that span the company’s 18-year history. Including 2 Buffalo premieres, JLDC’s performance at BPAC will take the audience on a journey they will soon not forget. The Friday evening performance will include the following works, and much more:

Program

Murmur (2012)

The Way Within (2006)

Don’t miss your chance to see JLDC back in Buffalo, where it all began, and see why Dance Enthusiast proclaimed, "The warmth and generosity of Lehrer’s leadership radiates through his dancers. Lehrer proves that the full spectrum of the human experience—joy, love, comedy, pain, and mourning—does in fact belong in dance.”

Buy Tickets Here!

Saturday, April 18th at 2:00 p.m.

An afternoon full of laugh-out-loud comedic works suitable for the whole family.

JLDC’s mass appeal is in part due to their penchant for outrageous comedic works. Jon’s philosophy has always been, "Laughter brings us all together to a common ground. If we can laugh together, anything is possible!" 

Sunday’s matinee performance is full of humor, joy, and cartoonish celebration that will leave the audience laughing and smiling all the way home:

Program

Pulp (2016)

Music: “Rabbia e Tarantella” - Ennio Morricone
“Unchained” - James Brown & 2Pac Shakur
“Sister Sarah's Theme” - Ennio Morricone
“A Fistful of Dollars - Ennio Morricone
“I Giorni Dell’ra” - Riziero Ortolani
“Time Is Tight” - Booker T. & The M.G.’s

Murmur (2012)

Music: “Illinois Act III” - Budo
“Opening Titles” - The Cinematic Orchestra
“Regen” - Grey Reverend

Loose Canon (2004)

Mingos! (2023)

Music: 

Don’t miss your chance to see JLDC back in Buffalo, where it all began, and see why the Chicago Sun-Times said, "Lehrer and the dancers of his wonderfully game dance company were funny and brilliant at the same time.”

Buy Tickets Here!

Jon Lehrer Dance Company

Jon Lehrer Dance Company (JLDC) began in 2007 in Buffalo, NY and has received critical acclaim nationally and internationally. Jon moved the company to his hometown of NYC in 2019, where they have become a vibrant addition to the city’s dance community. Under Jon Lehrer’s artistic direction, the company showcases his unique choreography and definitive style. His extensive background in both the modern and jazz dance idioms fosters choreography that is organic, athletic, artistic, entertaining, and often humorous, reflecting human experiences. JLDC’s expressive style is based on three main elements of movement - Circularity,  3-Dimensionality, and Momentum - which combine to create a form that is best described as “Organically Athletic”. With creativity, athleticism, and the ability to make new and innovative modern and jazz dance accessible to all audiences, the company has made quite a name for themselves in the dance world. Striking the elusive balance between art and entertainment, JLDC showcases a dynamic, fun, and distinctive style which fuses jazz and modern dance, creating a true spectacle onstage which can be enjoyed by dance experts and novices alike.

JLDC tours extensively, receiving critical acclaim worldwide. Dance Magazine praised

“the company took the house not so much by storm as by quantum physics,” and Galerie Ortenau in Offenburg, Germany declared, “Dynamic, Powerful, Elegant – brings an absolute passion for the dance.” From 2012-2016, JLDC had the honor of touring to Russia, sponsored by the US State Department in order to, as they said, “bring the best in American modern dance to the people of Russia.” These cultural diplomacy tours brought the company to Vladivostok, Anadyr, Perm, Yekaterinburg, Chukotka, and Berezniki. JLDC has been touring to Europe since 2014, embarking on their 6th tour this past March 2026. For the company’s 2022 tour, they premiered “Bernstein Celebration" - a full evening set to the music of Leonard Bernstein. JLDC was honored and privileged to be one of only a handful of dance companies worldwide given the rights to use Bernstein’s music. At home in NYC, JLDC is a three time recipient of the prestigious CUNY Dance Initiative Award (2022, 2023, and 2025).

 www.jonlehrerdance.com

Company Bios

Jon Lehrer, who was raised in Queens, New York, took his very first dance class at age 19 at the University at Buffalo. While dating a dancer, Jon teased her about how easy it must be to get an A in a dance class. The girl dared Jon to try a beginning level modern dance class and his life was changed. Jon ultimately received his BFA in Dance from the University at Buffalo. 

As a professional, Jon has danced with the Erick Hawkins Dance Company, Paul Sanasardo, John Passafiume Dancers, in Merv Griffin's "Funderful" in Atlantic City, NJ, and the Radio City Rockettes Christmas Spectacular. In 1997, Jon was hired by Giordano Dance Chicago, the worlds’ preeminent jazz dance company. After only three years he was promoted to Rehearsal Director and then became the Associate Director two years later. During his ten years with Giordano, Jon also became the resident choreographer, creating seven original works on the company that received rave reviews all around the world.

Jon has choreographed for several professional dance companies and universities all over the country. He teaches master classes throughout the U.S. and around the world, having been on faculty at Dance Masters of America, Jazz Dance World Congress, Dance Teacher Summer Conference, Chicago National Association of Dance Masters (CNADM), Chautauqua Institution, Florida Dance Educators Organization, and Florida Dance Masters to name a few. Jon has received many awards and honors, including the University at Buffalo Zodiaque Dance Company Distinguished Alumni Award, CNADM’s Artistic Achievement Award, University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Alumni Award, and the “Rising Star” SPARK Award for being an integral part of Buffalo’s thriving arts and cultural community.

Mahalia Brookes is originally from the US Virgin Islands where she started her training at Caribbean Dance School. After moving to Tampa, FL she continued her training at All American Dance Factory, All American Classical Ballet School, and at Blake High School. She has competed in the NAACP ACT-SO national convention where she worked closely with choreographer Anthony Burrell. She went on to receive her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Marymount Manhattan College in NYC. While there she performed works by Earl Mosley, Jessica Lang, Anthony Morigerato, John Heginbotham, Sidra Bell, and Pascal Rioult. This is Mahalia fourth season with JLDC.

Cristiana Cavallo is from Utica, NY and began dancing at the age of 3. She received her training at the Dancenter and at Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute School of Dance. Cristiana graduated in 2014 from the University at Buffalo with a BFA in Dance and a BA in Sociology. As a UB student, she was a member of the Zodiaque Dance Company, performed in several musicals, choreographed for many student productions and acted as Director of Dancer’s Workshop. She attended numerous summer programs, including NYSSSA, Thodos Dance Chicago Intensive, and Steps Summer Study. During her senior year, Cristiana was chosen for the Jon Lehrer Dance Observership, allowing her to train with the company and gain valuable insight into the professional world of dance. In 2019, Cristiana was invited to choreograph as part of the Barn Dance Project at the Theater at Woodshill, curated by Caitlyn Schrader. She is also the interim Executive Director of JUNTOS Collective. Cristiana has been with JLDC for 12 years, becoming an integral part of the company's success both on and off the stage.

Kristen Hedberg was born and raised in Richmond, VA. She earned her BFA in Contemporary Dance from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, where she was dual-enrolled with The Martha Graham School during her senior year. Kristen was a member of the RIOULT Repertory Dancers, under the direction of Pascal Rioult, Joyce Herring and Charis Haines. Other professional credits include: Curet Performance Project, Faustine Lavie Dance Project, and Susie McHugh + Dancers, among others. Kristen is delighted to be in her fifth season with JLDC.

Michael Miller grew up on Long Island, New York. He started dancing at the age of eight, focusing primarily on ballet and modern dance at Peconic Ballet Theatre. Michael then received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance from James Madison University in Virginia, studying under Rubèn Graciani, Matt Pardo, Fran Kirmser, and Ryan Corriston. While at JMU, he also performed in the pre-professional Virginia Repertory Dance Company, under the direction of Matt Pardo, and was awarded the Excellence in Performance Award his senior year. Michael had the pleasure to work in multiple residencies with choreographers such as Abraham in Motion (A.I.M) directed by Kyle Abraham, Rubèn Graciani, and Ryan Corriston. He also performed in original works choreographed by Omàr Roman De Jesùs, Xiang Xu, and Ricky Ruiz. This is Michael’s fourth season with JLDC.

Riccardo Passera is from Milan, Italy and draws on his heritage that spans across the Atlantic Ocean, from Italy to the Caribbean. He started dancing Caribbean dances at the age of 10 at Ratz Mataz school and later continued his ballet, modern and contemporary training with The Ballet School, AreaDance Nuova and New Style Dance. During this time Riccardo performed works by Lino Villa, which toured Italy with New Style Project Dance Company. He also performed choreography by Mattia Cuda while he was an apprentice with MAADE Ensemble. At the age of 18, Riccardo moved to New York City to train at The Ailey School, where he was a member of the Ailey Student Performance Group from 2022 to 2024, performing Alvin Ailey’s works across the tri-state area under the direction of Freddie Moore. During his time at Ailey, he performed Bird Lives by Alvin Ailey, an excerpt of Festa Barocca by Mauro Bigonzetti and Mr. Ailey’s Memoria for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons at New York City Center. Between Italy and New York, Riccardo has had the pleasure of working with choreographers such as Clifton Brown, Amy Hall Garner, Ronald K. Brown, Darrell Moultrie, Brice Mousset, Norbert De La Cruz, Johan King Silverhult, Attila Joey Csiki and Rita Pivano. This is Riccardo’s second season with JLDC.

Austin Shaffer, an Ohio native, received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance from Slippery Rock University with a concentration in Performance and Choreography. He has performed works by Bill T. Jones, Brian Brooks, Helen Simoneau, Joshua Manculich, Hanna Brictson, Cameron McKinney, Ursula Payne, and Bill Evans. He has performed and presented his works at the Koresh Artist Showcase, American College Dance Association Conference Gala, Cleveland Dance Festival, Whirlwind Dance Company, El Colegio del Cuerpo (Cartagena, Colombia), and Columbus Arts Festival. Austin just finished his second season as a main company dancer for Whirlwind Dance, a contemporary dance company in Columbus, Ohio. This is Austin’s first season with JLDC. 

Mitchell Takeda was born in Taiwan and raised in Sacramento, CA. He graduated from Ball State University in May 2024 with a BFA in Musical Theatre and was part of the Honors College. Mitchell was introduced to JLDC during the Fall Semester of 2022 when the company visited Ball State for a three-day masterclass series. Since then, he has always dreamed to dance with the company and perform with them one day. He participated in the JLDC Winter Intensive in January 2024, and is excited to be in his second season with the company.