Meet the team behind

Floating Island

  • COMPOSER

    Kara Gibbs is a composer and sound artist living in Vancouver. Utilizing an extensive sound palette that encompasses both acoustic and electroacoustic sounds worlds, her music is imbued with notions of identity, nostalgia, and memory. Her formal musical training was completed at the University of British Columbia, and she has been commissioned and presented by the Vancouver Intercultural Orchestra, Vancouver Pro Musica and Art Song Lab among others. Recent premieres include a Redshift Music Vertical Orchestra commission for 30 percussionists presented in the atrium of the Vancouver Public Library, and an original electroacoustic soundtrack to accompany the animated short “The Garden of Absolute Truths” by visual artist Valerie Hird and animator Martin De Geus. Her music has been called a “discovery” that “covers the gamut from playful to meditative and serene” (WholeNote Magazine). She performs regularly with the Balinese ensemble Gamelan Gita Asmara. You can hear more of her music at karagibbs.com.

  • CHOREOGRAPHER

    Rhiannon Beausoleil-Morrison (they/them) was born in Ottawa where they trained at The School of Dance before moving to Vancouver in 2020 to join the Arts Umbrella pre-graduate program. In 2021, they continued to the post secondary program under the artistic direction of Artemis Gordon, with Sabra Perry and Lynn Shepard. Before graduating in 2024, they had the privilege of working with admirable artists such as Acacia Schachte, Crystal Pite, Johan Inger, Fernando Hernando Magadan and Rebecca Margolick. In their third year they also had the pleasure of dancing with Ballet BC annex under the direction of Medhi Walerski, participating in an outreach tour across local schools in BC. They have also participated in summer intensive courses at Modus Operandi (with David Raymond and Tiffany Tregarthen) and Domaine Forget de Charlevoix (with Anne Plamondon).

  • CHOREOGRAPHER

    Emma Hall is a dancer from Vancouver, BC. In 2020, she joined the Arts Umbrella Pre-Grad Professional Training Program and in 2021 started the Arts Umbrella Post-Secondary Dance Program, both under the direction of Artemis Gordon. In the Post-Secondary Program, Emma has been fortunate to work with choreographers and teachers including Carolina Armenta, Eric Beauchesne, Anna Herrmann, Johan Inger, Fernando Magadan, Crystal Pite, Anne Plamondon and Amy Raymond. In November 2023, she performed “BOLERO X” by Shahar Binyamini in Ballet eBC’s program “HERE”. From 2023-2024, Emma was a part of the Ballet BC Annex Project as well as the AU/Tour Program. Within the Ballet BC Annex project, she was part of touring a program of two works, “US” by Joseph Toonga and “Blink of an Eye” by Medhi Walerski. Emma has also attended the Ballet BC 44, the Arts Umbrella International Summer Dance Intensive, b12 summer workshops and Henny Jurriëns summer intensives.

  • PIANIST

    Perri Lo is a pianist and vocal coach, working in opera, chamber music, and dance.  She has worked with opera companies across Canada including Montreal’s Institut Canadien d’Art Vocal, Toronto’s Opera Atelier, and at the Banff Arts Centre’s Opera in the 21st Century Program.  Perri has performed and coached singers with West coast companies including Vancouver Opera, Pacific Opera Victoria, City Opera Vancouver, Re:Naissance Opera, Burnaby Lyric Opera, Opera Kelowna and Sound The Alarm Music Theatre – both in traditional and contemporary repertoire.

    She was most recently music director with Vancouver Opera and Pacific Opera Victoria’s touring production of Flight of the Hummingbird (March 2024) and co-creator and performer in The HAFU Project (May 2024) with baritone Luka Kawabata.

    Perri is a company pianist for Ballet BC and Arts Umbrella Dance Company, and is thrilled to be collaborating with dancers and singers for a Canadian work premiere with Vancouver-based companies Belle Spirale and Opera Unbound this August 2024.

  • MEZZO-SOPRANO

    Rachael McAuley is a mezzo-soprano originally from Ottawa, Ontario, now making her mark in the Vancouver music scene. After recently relocating to the west coast, she is thankful to have performed alongside the Vancouver Chamber Choir, Early Music Vancouver, and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. Beyond her musical pursuits, Rachael loves the outdoors and recently returned from a transformative month at the Banff Centre, where she immersed herself in new operatic works while exploring the Canadian Rockies. Rachael has immense pride in her achievement of being named a winner of the Western Canada District in the 2024 Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. Rachael holds a Master of Music in Opera Performance from Western University, and continues to refine her artistry under the mentorship of mezzo soprano, Krisztina Szabo. Recent role highlights include Serena Joy in Ruders’ The Handmaid’s Tale, Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro, Serse in Serse, and Mercédès in Carmen.

  • MEZZO-SOPRANO

    Taryn Plater is a versatile singer and creator, recognized for her “dramatic and vocal thrust” (Opera Canada). Driven by an interest in opera’s relationship to different genres and mediums, her portfolio focuses on Ukrainian art song, new works, and the intersection of jazz and classical music. As a founding member of Opera Unbound, Taryn pursues projects that open new avenues for artistic collaboration. Through this company, she commissioned and workshopped Floating Island – a new work for music and movement by Vancouver composer Kara Gibbs, 

    Taryn is an emerging artist with Manitoba Opera’s 2024 DEAP program, was a 2021-2022 RBC Artist Fellow with the Association for Opera in Canada, and recently sang in workshops of Good Mess Opera Theatre’s new opera, Monsters Made. She created the digital artist statement First Steps through Against the Grain’s 2021 National Opera Intensive, and continues to explore non-traditional opera creation with the development of her original multi-media performance piece, Pamyatayesh.

  • MEZZO-SOPRANO

    Based in Vancouver, BC, Alyssa Nicole Samson (she/her) is an accomplished Filipino-Canadian mezzo soprano with a passion for performing and creating contemporary/new works. She is driven by her belief that classical music can make an impact that transcends traditional performance settings. This is evidenced by her breadth of experience leveraging classical music to advocate for marginalized voices, share contemporary stories about pivotal societal issues, and build community among musicians and non-musicians alike. Recent 2023/2024 highlights include: Mrs. XE in Du Yun’s Angel’s Bone, Shi Ping in Emily Pan’s Thunderstorm, and Medusa/Melpomene in Roan Shankaruk and Georgia Perdikoulias’ new Canadian commission, Monsters Made. 

  • DANCER

    From Regina, Saskatchewan, Elle began her early professional training at the Alberta Ballet School in Calgary, Alberta. In 2020, she continued her studies at Arts Umbrella in Vancouver under the direction of Artemis Gordon. Since then, Elle has been fortunate to work with incredible artists such as Yvan Dubreuil, Marissa Wong, Crystal Pite, Fernando Hernando Magadan, Doug Letheren, Aszure Barton, Sharon Eyal, and Ethan Colangelo, among others.

    Elle is based as a freelancer in Vancouver, BC and a member/founder of the dance collective Paper Rabbits. Elle is also on faculty at Arts Umbrella (BC), was recently a part of The Falling Company’s PLUNGE project, has starred in music videos, and has worked under the direction of Medhi Walerski for Ballet BC’s Annex. Elle is excited to perform in this season’s Dance Deck, something she has been looking forward to since moving to Vancouver.

  • DANCER

    Denae Harpham is a Contemporary dancer based in Vancouver, B.C. After receiving a full scholarship to dance with the Source Dance Company, Denae moved to Vancouver, where she trained under several reputable commercial dance educators. She later began to focus more heavily on Contemporary dance training and soon after completed the MO link program. Denae is now heading into her final year with Modus Operandi's Post-Secondary program and will be joining the Ballet BC Annex Project as a member of the 2024 season. Denae’s most notable professional opportunities include the dance films “Behind Us” - screening at Remai Art Museum and “crisscross”, Small Stage’s residency program, and the live performance of “Behind Us”. Denae’s passion for understanding the foundations behind movement has led to her enrolment at the University of Regina, working toward the completion of her Bachelor of Kinesiology. Denae is thrilled to be joining a team of incredible artists for Floating Island!