Rachel Hettinger

Originally from Pennsylvania, Rachel Hettinger moved to NYC to train in Broadway Dance Center's Scholarship Program, and then continued her training with the Pushing Progress Contemporary Training Program, focusing on contemporary movement and anatomy.

During Rachel's time in NYC she has enjoyed numerous performance opportunities with an incredible variety of choreographers and artists, some of which include Brice Mousset, Calen J. Kurka, Sidra Bell, Jim Cooney -for the Office Max Elf Yourself Ad Campaign and Glamour Magazine, Cara Goodwin - honoring the Wounded Warrior Project at Symphony Space, Emily Greenwell - at the Paul Taylor Theater, Rhapsody James' Sirens After Dark, and the Capezio ACE Awards, Shelly Hutchinson - for the Young Choreographer's Festival, Derek Mitchell - in the Capezio ACE Awards, Carnival The Choreographer's Ball (L.A), Pushing Progress Showcase Series, and a TV promo for Wendy Williams.

Rachel is the Artistic Director of metaphors&similesDANCE, a NYC based contemporary dance company. Her company has presented work at the Salvatore Capezio Theater at Peridance, Galapagos ArtSpace, and at San Jose State in San Jose, CA at the sjDANCEcoChoreo Project, where she was awarded with the Audience Choice recognition for choreography.

Rachel has also presented at the Pushing Progress Showcase Series, the Young Choreographer's Festival, In- sight Dance Company's annual Suite Summer Festival at Socrates Sculpture Park, the annual DUMBO Dance Festival, the annual Amalgamate Artists Series, and The Giving Tree, a benefit concert to raise awareness for pediatric cancer, J CHEN PROJECT's 2015 TRANSLATE (The Voices of Dance) at Dixon Place, the USDAN Center for Performing Arts, the Peridance Faculty Showcase, the Periapsis Open Series at the Gelsey Kirkland Arts Center, and alongside singer/songwriter Jenna Nicholls as part of GIG, a live music and dance performance collaboration at University Settlement.

Most recently, Rachel co-produced an evening of dance at the West End Theater alongside, NSquared Dance Co, directed by Nick Neagle. This was the first full-length work produced by metaphors&similesDANCE entitled Two Companies, One Stage. Rachel also teaches at several other studios in and around the tri-state area.