Noelle Kayser is a Chicago based choreographer working in dance, opera, and film. She is the Founding Resident Choreographer for Open Space, a Whim W’Him Choreographic Shindig winner, a BalletX Choreographic Fellow, a Jacob’s Pillow Ann and Weston Hick’s Choreography Fellow, a New Century Dance Project Choreography Fellow, and a BalletCollective Commission for Developing Choreographers recipient. Noelle has created work for companies including Dance Aspen, Visceral Dance, Bruce Wood, and SALT among others. She has served as a Ballet Mistress at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and is currently the Artistic Liaison for South Chicago Dance Theatre. Noelle was named one of NewCity Magazines, “The 50 People Who Really Perform for Chicago”. Noelle’s short dance film “dust”—produced by Open Space—has been screened throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

Noelle’s company, nk + collaborators, have toured to St. Louis (MO), St. Petersburg (FL), and Palm Desert (CA). Most recently she produced GLAD FOR THE RAIN—a free education initiative based on The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 with research focusing on the experience of women and the immigrant working class. Comprising a dance film and interactive web map, the project was presented in Chicago public parks in the summer of 2026 and is now available as a free lesson planning resource to school teachers world wide.

In addition to her choreographic work, Noelle has performed works by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano, Ihsan Rustem, Wen Wei Wang, Robyn Mineko Williams, Jennifer Archibald, and Marguerite Donlon, among others. She has had the privilege of dancing with companies such as NW Dance Project and Visceral Dance among others. As an actor, Noelle has narrated 16 audiobooks for Audible, appeared in advertising campaigns, and performed in numerous stage productions. She won the 2024 Jeff Award for Best Ensemble for her performance as Selene in The Penelopiad at The Goodman Theatre, and starred in Anna Long’s short film Death in the Desert (Best Actress in a Short at the Idyllwild Film Festival & Best Short Drama at the Breckenridge Film Festival).