Elon alumna wins 'Best Dance Show' at Capital Fringe Festival 

Kristen Brooks Sandler, a 2013 graduate with a BFA in dance performance and choreography, recently premiered her new work, “Gilded,” in July 2018 at the Capital Fringe Festival in Washington D.C. “Gilded” was nominated for both “Best Dance Show” and “Best Overall Show” and won “Best Dance Show.” 

Performing in “Gilded” were Elon alumni Lucas Melfi ’17 (Dance) and Lizzie Markson ’16 (Musical Theatre). 

In her creative work, Sandler combines theater and concert dance. She seeks to explore a wide array of topics through the universal language of dance and movement. Some of her choreography credits include Nickelodeon’s “Shimmer and Shine,” Nickelodeon Jr.’s “Sunny Day,” Stamos’ music video “Cooking Thoughts of You,” and many more works for television and film. She has presented works at BAM Opera House in New York City, Dixon Place, Mill Mountain Theatre and New York Jazz Choreographers Festival among many other national and international venues. 

Sandler has also been nominated for the New York Innovative Theater Award for her choreography in “Lysistrata Jones.” She was a movement director for “Your Alice,” which was presented at Brooklyn Academy of Music and recently transferred to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland.

Sandler was most recently in Sweden working as an associate choreographer for Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” at the Gothenburg Opera. Check out Kristen’s website to learn more about her work as both a choreographer and performer!