The Ensemble
The Artists
Minyi Zhang
Artistic Director · Pianist
Minyi Zhang is a pianist and the founder of CIRA Repertory Ensemble.
She has performed as soloist with the Stony Brook Symphony
Orchestra, the Fort Worth Symphony, Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra, and
the Hunan Symphony Orchestra. She has appeared as a semifinalist at
the Liszt Utrecht International Competition at TivoliVredenburg, and
given performances at Carnegie Hall, Steinway Concert Hall, The New
York Times, New York Fashion Week, and Grand Central Terminal. She
holds a Bachelor's and Master's degree from The Juilliard School and
is currently pursuing her doctorate at Stony Brook University under
Gilbert Kalish. In addition to her career as a pianist, she is also
an actor and filmmaker.
Clara Steeves
Executive Director · Actor
Clara Steeves is a Canadian-American actor based in New York City.
Recent select credits include Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey (Netflix),
Hudson & Rex (Citytv), and the films Color of Thread and Life in
USA. She has also appeared onstage with The Tank in New York City
and at the Stratford Music Festival in Ontario. Clara graduated cum
laude from the BFA Acting program at SUNY Purchase College and
proudly hails from Newfoundland.
Kathryn Goshorn
Actor · Director
Kathryn Goshorn is an actor and visual artist originally from
Atlanta, GA. She recently graduated from The Acting Studio – New
York's two-year Meisner training program, culminating in an industry
showcase. Her recent performance credits include This Property Is
Condemned (Willie) at The Acting Studio NY and Here (Melissa) with
Chelsea Rep Summerfest, as well as showcase work including Fool for
Love, Saint Joan, and Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven. In
addition to acting, Kathryn brings a background in visual art and
theatrical production. She holds an MFA in Painting from the New
York Academy of Art and a BFA in Painting from the University of
Georgia, and has worked as a scenic artist, director, assistant
director, and props and costume designer. Her multidisciplinary
practice allows her to approach storytelling both from the
perspective of a performer and through the visual language of a
production.
Michael Kowalski
Actor
Michael Kowalski is a Brooklyn-based actor, musician, and visual
artist. He regularly performs with the Chelsea Repertory Company and
has studied at T. Schreiber Studio and The Acting Studio New York,
where he completed their two-year Meisner Conservatory Program.
Michael has played roles ranging from Marcus Brutus in Julius Caesar
to Murray Burns in A Thousand Clowns to Father Flynn in Doubt.
Recent theater credits include McManus: Fall of a Tyrant with Nomad
Theatrical Company and Burying Al as part of the Chelsea Rep
Summerfest. He can be seen in the feature film Blue Hour and stars
in the feature film Beyond the Drumlins, which he co-wrote.
Yuyu Ikeda
Violinist
Violinist Yuyu Ikeda made her debut at the age of ten with the
Bellflower Symphony Orchestra. Currently based in NYC, her work
encompasses orchestral performance, chamber music, and education.
She regularly performs with ensembles including the New York
Classical Players and the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, and during
the 2022–23 season, she served as concertmaster of the Pacific Music
Festival Orchestra. An active chamber musician, Yuyu is a
first-prize recipient of the Ruth Widder String Quartet Competition
and has appeared at the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival,
Chelsea Music Festival, EAMA's String Quartet Residency, Juilliard's
37th Annual Focus Festival, and the Sarasota Music Festival, where
her performance was featured on WQXR-FM. Dedicated to expanding
access to classical music, Yuyu also regularly programs outreach
concerts with Concerts in Motion and Project Music Heals Us. She is
equally committed to music education, currently serving on the
faculty of the Geneva Conservatory and Musical Mentors
Collaborative. Yuyu holds degrees from The Juilliard School, Oberlin
Conservatory, and Manhattan School of Music.
Ryan Soeyadi
Pianist
Ryan Soeyadi is a pianist based in New York City and a staff pianist
at The Juilliard School. He was the 2018 and 2020 grand scholarship
winner of Music for Humanity and the first prize winner of the 2018
Kosciuszko Foundation Chopin Competition in Washington, D.C. Soeyadi
earned a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from The Juilliard
School in 2021 and a Master's degree in Collaborative Piano from
Juilliard in 2023. His additional honors include awards from the NY
Steinway & Sons Competition and the Mieczysław Munz Competition
at Juilliard. He has received piano fellowships to the Manchester
Music Festival, Pianofest in the Hamptons, and the Kneisel Hall
Chamber Music Festival, and has performed for artists such as
Stephen Hough, Emanuel Ax, and Matti Raekallio.
Helen Dempsey
Director of Photography
Helen Dempsey is a screenwriter, film photographer, and creative
technologist based in New York City. She currently works at The New
York Times as a software engineer and recently attended NYU Tisch
for screenwriting. Helen's photography has been featured in The VSCO
100, Photodom's inaugural zine, and has been showcased at The
Village's salons and at Greenpoint Gallery.