MEET THE ARTISTS

WILLIAM ACKER

William Acker (gentle he/him, funny they/them, magnetic she/her) is a fan of slow mornings, a gardener, a sweet husband, a nurturing friend, mischievous and a pot stirrer, a queer artist, and full of dreams. William's artistic practice is to honor the memories of the heart; to build a more meaningful community, sustained happiness, and fulfilling love. He is an educator, devised performance artist, queer theorist and writer.

William graduated with a MFA in devised performance from The Pig Iron School/Rowan University and specializes in dance theatre, Lecoq pedagogy, clown, and ensemble movement. William is a founding collaborator of Very Good Dance Theatre (a queer-led, BIPOC-centered, performance art collective founded in 2018 in Dallas, TX) producing and devising multiple shows/performance experiences including: a sad lil song, a gay lil dance, May I Descend the Staircase, TENANTS/TENETS, and The 1st Annual Gay Show.

Aiden Ankli (she/they) is an ensemble theatre maker, performer, singer, dancer, teaching artist and amateur birder hailing from Southwest Michigan. Based in Philadelphia, PA, Aiden is passionate about creating new works, particularly movement-driven, ensemble-based work that draws inspiration from the natural world. As a deviser, Aiden has most recently collaborated with Alexis Howland (A Journey of Hardship and Suffering, Cannonball Festival 2025), Jonah Godfrey & Friends (The Bad Pirate Rock Show, Cannonball Festival 2024), and William Acker/Very Good Dance Theatre (May I Descend the Staircase? Cannonball Festival 2024). As a performer, they’ve performed all over the country including New Hampshire, Utah, Michigan, New York, and most recently, in Vermont with Donna Oblongota’s original musical, EF!, as the character Shallot.

As a teaching artist, Aiden conducts classes inspired by the LeCoq pedagogy with a playful twist. She has taught at Temple University, Rowan University, the Pig Iron School and has led various workshops for young artists.

When she is not in the studio or performing around Philadelphia, you will likely find her birdwatching and identifying bird calls on her Merlin ID app. Aiden holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Ithaca College and recently graduated from the Pig Iron School with their MFA.

AIDEN ANKLI

Tenara Calem is an ensemble theater maker, performer, playwright, and educator based in Philadelphia, PA. Born abroad with deep roots in the Midwest, Tenara has worked both collaboratively and as a solo artist. She makes theater that lives in the world of clown, the absurd, physical theater, comedy, and body horror, encompassing subject matter that ranges from what it means to be a loser to how corporate America kills us quickly. As an ensemble maker she has worked with Lupine Performance Cooperative (Field Calls, Brian’s House, Miranda, 2020-2022), Jonah Godfrey and Friends (The Bad Pirate Rock Show 2023-24), and Pig Iron Theatre Company (Bartok’s Monster, 2024). As a solo artist she has created Me, More Normal (2017) and performed as her cabaret act Bitty Fitzleapord. Her work has also been featured in the Cannonball Miniball Festival (BUCKLE UP, 2024).

Her written work has been featured all around the country, including with the Jewish Plays Project National Competition, the Young Playwrights Festival with Horizon Theatre Company in Atlanta, Georgia, and the Annual Midwestern Jewish Playwriting Contest at Continuum Theatre in Chicago, Illinois. Her work has earned her a Young Playwright award nomination from the Dramatist’s Guild.

Tenara has worked as a community engagement practitioner with Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, Trinity Repertory Company, FringeArts, Shakespeare in Clark Park, and The Barnes Foundation. Her praxis is based in consensus organizing for the arts, as developed by Seema Sueko and passed onto her through Rebecca Noon. Through mutually-empowering relationships with community stakeholders, Tenara’s community engagement seeks to co-create meaningful and relevant creative experiences with Philadelphians.

TENARA CALEM

ARANTXA CHAVEZ

Arantxa Chávez is a Peruvian theatre maker, improviser, and educator based in Philadelphia, PA. Growing up in Lima, Arantxa fell in love with street theatre and budget-friendly pockets of art, culminating in a bittersweet farewell and her first play, La Máquina de Nubes (2017). Since then, she has dedicated herself to developing a joyful practice, moved by cultural celebration, collective memory, and colorful minimalism. Her most recent and ongoing devising projects include: Molded Out of Faults: Reshaping Measure for Measure (Revolution Shakespeare, 2025), Bartok’s Monster (Pig Iron Theatre Company, 2024-25), 5 Stagehands Fall Out of a Closet: the goose crisis (G. Lazarz, M. Amendola, Fringies Best Comedy Nominee, 2025) La Picadura del Escorpión (Teatro Esperanza, 2025), and MADCAP & BUSTY (Fringies Best Cabaret/Nightlife Winner, 2024). 


Arantxa began her Improv journey in 2012, learning from Peruvian comedy legends such us Patricia Portocarrero and Pablo Saldarriaga. Upon moving to the US, she joined Colorado Springs’ first queer Improv troupe, Unsupervised Improv (Best of Springs Finalist, 2019), and went on to perform alongside them for many years. During this time, she also worked with other local staples including Theatreworks, The Millibo Art Theatre, Funky Little Theatre, and the beloved Meow Wolf: Convergence Station. From there, her background in physical comedy led her to the Pig Iron School in Philadelphia where she earned her MFA in Devised Performance. 

As a teaching artist, Arantxa thrives in collaboration, always striking a balance between playful exploration and rigor. Currently, she teaches and facilitates classes in devising, clown, mask work, improv, and project management. Locally, she has taught for Rowan University, Pig Iron School, Project 440, Philly Improv Theater, NYC PhysFest, among others. In development: Máscaras del Perú, a workshop series introducing folklore masks from the Peruvian Andes.

Jo Kramer Bailey is a queer, multi disciplinary artist from southern Louisiana. With an MFA in Devised theatre, they are passionate about creating genre bending work that offers bridges between the disciplines of science, psychology and performance art. They conjure work that wiggles, oozes and ungulates through the audience, creating webs that remind us we are constantly part of a living, breathing collective.

Jo is a co-creator of the stage play, Roleplay, as well as the Roleplay documentary, which premiered in the SXSW film festival in 2024. They continue to take the film and physical theatre workshops to universities across the country. Jo was also a co creator of the fringie award winning variety show Madcap and Busty, performing acrobatic, clown, and cabaret acts. More recently they have taken Egg Project, a duo acrobatic/dance storytelling show, to Jacob’s Pillow in July 2025. She prioritizes curiosity and play during the creation process, making room for bouts of laughter as well. Jo continues to forge avenues between clown, puppetry, mask work, acrobatics, and physical theatre. She believes the future of performance art is alive and pulsing at these intersections, and continues to cultivate playful, curious environments where these collaborations can thrive.

JO KRAMER BAILEY

headshots by Jeanne Lyon