Artists

James Sewell,
Artistic Director
(34th Season)

A Minneapolis native, Mr. Sewell (he/him) moved to New York and studied at the School of American Ballet with David Howard, and began performing with ABT II. He was a lead dancer with Feld Ballets/NY for six years and has performed as a guest artist with the New York City Ballet, Zvi Gottheiner and Dancers, and Denishawn. He has choreographed more than 100 ballets for companies in the United States and around the world, and collaborated with countless other artists across disciplines.

Projects include the New York City Ballet’s Choreographic Institute, the New York State Council on the Arts grant to create “Independence In Dependence” for Feld Ballets/NY; “Aida” (1998) for the Minnesota Opera and 11 other opera companies; James Sewell Ballet’s “Amahl and the Night Visitors” (1995); “Musical Toys” (1996) and “Nutcracker: The Untold Story” (1997) for the Minnesota Orchestra; “She Loves Me” (2005) and “1776” (2007) for the Guthrie Theater; and "Titicut Follies" (2017) with acclaimed documentarian Frederick Wiseman. James also has received commissions, including “Schoenberg Serenade” (2006) and “Passions” (1998), a work with composer Augusta Read Thomas, for the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra; “Metamorphosis” (2004) for the Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus; “Awedville” (2004) for the Wharton Center for Performing Arts and “Turf” (2006) for the Minnesota Orchestra. Mr. Sewell received a Bush Foundation Artist Fellowship (2002), a Choo-San Goh Award for Choreography from the Choo-San Goh & H. Robert Magee Foundation (2006), and a McKnight Artist Fellowship for Choreography (2007). He is a past trustee of Dance/USA and a past director of the American Composer’s Forum.

Eve Schulte,
Executive Director
(15th Season)

Eve (she/her) is a dance artist and administrator based in Minneapolis, MN. She grew up training in ballet and modern at Minnesota Dance Theatre, and transitioned to company member in 2007. In 2009, she joined James Sewell Ballet, where she has also served as Artistic Associate (2017-2020) and currently as Executive Director.

She has collaborated with physical theater group Live Action Set, which is pioneering innovative immersive and interactive moving stories. Some of her more memorable performances include roles in Glenn Tetley’s Mythical Hunters; Leralee Whittle’s Displacement Activity; Live Action Set's Unset; and Sharon Eyal & Gai Behar’s Killer Pig. In the summertime, she often teaches at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, and has twice served as co-director for their International Ballet Ensemble. She has been teaching various forms of dance for over a decade, and has performed or taught in France, Germany, Denmark, Canada, nationally in 17 states, and in 30+ Minnesota communities. Her choreographic work Any Offered None, developed as part of JSB's Ballet Works Project, was nominated for a 2016 MN Sage Award for Outstanding Performance. Eve also holds a B.A. in English from the University of Minnesota, where she also teaches the advanced ballet course. “Dance should allow people to shed and discover many things about themselves, whether participating on stage or from the audience. The ways in which it can permeate one’s heart are boundless.”

Jarod Boltjes,
Artist & Company Liaison
(5th Season)

Jarod is a Minnesota native from Adrian, MN. He started his dance training at Saint Mary’s University where he also obtained his BA Degree in Dance Performance and Studio Art. His formal dance training began at the age of 18 in college where he had the opportunity to train and perform internationally with Rose Bruford College in the U.K. and The Gaiety School of Acting in Ireland. Upon arrival to the Twin Cities, Jarod has worked with several local companies; Contempo Physical Dance, Twin Cities’ Ballet, Collide Theatrical, and St. Paul Ballet to name a few. If he is not in the dance studio, you can find him leading class as a certified barre and yoga instructor or under the big top tent coaching and choreographing for Circus Juventas.

Kaylie Bullock,
Artist
(1st Season)

Shohei Iwahama,
featured Choreographer on JSB's Pointed Humor program

Shohei Iwahama is a dancer, choreographer, and dance educator and is currently a member of Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo. He holds an MFA and BFA in Dance from Sam Houston State University, where he served as a Returning Professional Graduate Teaching Assistant. Shohei began dancing under the tutelage of Miyako Kato in Tokyo, Japan, and eventually performed for her company, Miyako Kato Dance Space. In 2006, he received a one-year grant from the Agency for Cultural Affairs of Japan to study at The Ailey School in New York City. Shohei has worked with NobleMotion Dance, James Sewell Ballet, and Hope Stone Dance as a company member. While performing with JSB, he had the privilege of performing works by guest choreographers such as Sharon Eyal of L-E-V from Israel, Norbert De La Cruz III, and Loni Landon. Shohei has also worked with Dominic Walsh Dance Theater, Earthen Vessels (Sandra Organ Dance Company), Minnesota Dance Theatre, and many other choreographers and collaborators in the United States and Japan. As a choreographer, he has choreographed works on James Sewell Ballet, NMD2, and Kingwood Dance Theatre. In 2012, he appeared in the New York Times Bestseller photography book, Dancers Among Us by Jordan Matter. Shohei was named Houston Press’ 100 Creatives 2013 and a recipient of the Minnesota SAGE Award 2015 as an Outstanding Dance Performer.

Javan Mngrezzo,
Artist
(1st Season)

Javan relocated to Minnesota in 2021 by way of Portland, OR. He graduated from Western Oregon University in three years, magna cum laude, with a Bachelor of Science in Dance and Sociology. At present, he dances with James Sewell Ballet, ARENA Dances, and Rhythmically Speaking. He has previously been a company dancer with Black Label Movement, Collide Theatrical, Threads Dance Project, Dar Vejon Jones Dance Ensemble, and BodyVox. He has also had the privilege of performing as a guest artist for numerous companies such as HATCH Dance, Analog Dance Works, Ballet Co.Laboratory, Heidi Duckler Dance, Cynthia Gutierrez’s Company Movimiento, and Dar Vejon Jones Dance Ensemble. Javan is a certified instructor of The Ellové Technique®; he has taught at many studios in Oregon and Minnesota. This season Javan is teaching at Hothouse MN and Out on a Limb.

Connor Simone,
Artist
(3rd Season)

Connor is a Twin Cities dancer, performing artist, and IT specialist. He received training at Stage Left Dance Center, Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists, the TU Dance School, and the University of Minnesota. Connor has previously danced with TU Dance and Threads Dance Project. Additionally, he has performed works by artists such as Marcus Willis, Kjara Wurst, Gregory Dolbashian, Berit Ahlgren, Gregory Vuyani Maqoma, Will Couture, Carl Flink, Sidra Bell, and Maurya Kerr among others. Alongside performing, Connor has worked for several arts organizations across the Twin Cities in IT and web development and is also teaching ballet and modern classes for Eleve’ Performing Arts Center. He will receive his BA in Dance with a minor in Computer Science from the University in the Fall of 2021.