Megan Guise

Megan Guise is a multi-faceted artist currently residing in Southern California. Her creative practices range from photographer, performer, choreographer, and movement educator. Her early dance training started in Santa Ana, California, at Orange County School of the Arts where she studied Commercial Dance and eventually led to her BFA in Dance from California State University, Long Beach. She has had the privilege of appearing in works created by Alex Ketley, Becca Lemme, Andy Vaca, Lorin Johnson, Christian Burns, Keith Johnson, Sophia Monat, amongst others. She has also participated in workshops with BodyTraffic, Countertechnique, Szalt, Ate9 Dance Company, and San Francisco Conservatory of Dance.

Megan's choreography has been well-recognized at the Youth America Grand Prix, American College Dance Association and the Southern California dance community at large. Her choreography stems from the curiosity of the human condition, the abstract and emotions that don’t have a tidy description or a single name. Megan finds joy in sharing her love of dance through education teaching forms including modern, jazz, contemporary, and improvisation. Megan recently co-directed Westside Dance Project for six years as resident choreographer and photographer. In her personal movement practice, she finds inspiration yoga, anatomy and GYROTONIC®. Currently, Megan is on faculty at Orange County School of the Arts and N10 Dance Studios

Co-Founder, Director

Krystal Matsuyama-Tsai (she/her) is a Japanese American movement artist, researcher, and educator. 

A Southern California native, Krystal earned her BFA from the University of California, Irvine under the close mentorship of Jodie Gates, Douglas Becker, and the legendary late Donald McKayle and his Etude Ensemble. Professionally, Krystal has performed with Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, BARE Dance Company, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, and is a founding member of Entity Contemporary Dance.

Krystal later returned to UC Irvine to complete and receive her MFA in Dance. Her thesis, titled “kNOw|BODY’s: The Effects of Communication in Dance Pedagogy on Artistic Voice and Personal Identity”, examines the relational power dynamics found in dance teaching practices. She explores and examines how the dance-learning experience can inform, mold, and shape the young dancer in their learning processes. As an educator, these ideas continue to heavily influence her own teaching practices, both at the pre-professional level and collegiate environment. 

Krystal’s movement and teaching philosophy centers holistic well-being, mind/body curiosity, and critical inquiry, which is a standard she holds for herself as an educator and her students. As a long time educator in the Orange County community, Krystal is privileged to be supporting a wide range of dancers, from the local dance studio to her role as a lecturer of dance at Chapman University in Orange, CA. She is proud to see her former students continue their dance journeys at educational institutions such as Juilliard and Arts Umbrella, and with companies Nederlands Dans Theater, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and Gibney Dance Company. 

For more than a decade, Krystal has been a collaborator with Peter Chu’s chuthis. From performer to intensive educator to staging the company’s work, she is honored to work alongside a tight knit group of artists who are dedicated to cultivating their own artistry, while fostering the artistry of the next generation through intentionally curated educational programs nationwide.

Beyond performing and education, Krystal continues to foster her love for collaboration and community as Artistic Associate for the Laguna Dance Festival, curating the festival’s seasonal programming. Working alongside her longtime mentor, Jodie Gates, Krystal continues to connect the local Orange County community to the arts by creating performance opportunities for movement artists from emerging to professional. 

As co-director of Hyphen Art House, Krystal is excited to bring her multifaceted experiences as a performer, her explorations as an educator, and overall love and appreciation of movement under one umbrella.