In my career as a choreographer, I have had the pleasure of choreographing almost 40 contemporary dance works and, from these experiences, I have developed three primary performance objectives for the creation of a new work. They are:

1. Authenticity through symbolism;

2. Community-centered programming and practice; and

3. Variation along a throughline.

My way of honoring authenticity and artistic voice within the framework of specific and often corporate commissions, is by deeply reflecting on the uncertain and convoluted nature of my personal experiences and then translating these themes, ideas, and memories into abstract shapes, movements, and visuals. Through symbolism and archetypes, I strive to communicate–either consciously or subliminally–universal ideas (e.g. loneliness, maternity, hope).

For example, my most recent choreographic work, Grief is a House, explores themes from my 13-year journey with grief. The themes illustrated in this work include despair (portrayed by a large group clump that swallows dancers into the fold), hollowness (represented through negative space), and abandonment (visualized by sudden release of partners/partnerships). 

Whenever I enter a process, but especially with student dancers, I aim to model authenticity and vulnerability in art-making. The mentors and choreographers who impacted my artistic journey most were ones who were intentional, authentic, and vulnerable in their processes. I strive to do the same, which is why I often engage in a great deal of personal reflection and emotional processing before embarking on new commissions. I also make an effort to minimize triggers, expand open lines of communication, and take action to have the community within my works feel psychologically safe and creatively prepared.

Most of my choreographic works are also community-centered. I generate movement and programming with audience engagement and interaction in mind. For example, another recent work I choreographed and directed, titled reBloom, was created for a large audience of pediatric patients at Primary Children’s Hospital. For me, community-centered practice means that there is engagement, adaptation, and exchange happening. With this commission, I had the opportunity to engage young audience members in-person and via interactive live-stream in the choreography, generate choreography with adaptation in mind for an included dance therapy session, and exchange ideas with the team of 13 artists and clinicians who collaborated on the project. Adaptation as a construct of community-centered practice opens up possibilities for change, redirection, and serendipity in choreographic projects.

Lastly, while often staying tethered to a narrative, commission request, concert theme, or collaborative goal, I regularly seek innovation in my work through variation of choreographic tone, collaborative approach, and site-specific context. My hope is that increased diversity among the factors that influence the final outcome of choreography (soundscore, casting, display mediums, use of props, interdisciplinary collaboration, use of unconventional spaces as a stage, etc.) can lend to more dynamic programming for audiences and contribute to innovation for the dance field, at large.

As a dancer and educator with a focus in community accessibility, it is my mission to encourage personal growth and self-confidence through codified technique.

Guiding Awareness and Appreciation of Physical Embodiment

I am an enormous advocate for the life-changing potential of communal dance education. As young children, we first develop awareness of our body as it relates to others. This is a knowledge that influences how a person navigates their physical embodiment through life. I believe that dance strongly impacts how we understand our physical selves, the world around us, and the relationship between the two.

Therefore, when teaching class, I integrate exercises which demand spatial awareness, kinesthetic empathy, and heightened proprioception. That way, when students leave the studio, they leave with a stronger mind-body connection and heightened sense of how their physical existence relates to their surroundings.

Developing Confidence Through Community, Contrology, and the Joy of Movement

What drives my passion for education is my interest in personal development through community. In the classroom, I implement activities that include partnering, eye-contact, weight sharing, and group composition, in order to facilitate community.

A significant part of my somatic background is in classical Pilates, also known as Contrology, which is the study of body control. As a result, I make a point of educating dance students on their muscular anatomy, initiation, alignment, and control during technique classes.

When introducing kinesiology concepts, I instruct through an inclusive and body-positive lens which, to me, means emphasizing the importance of:

1. listening and trusting the body’s cues on alignment and misalignment

2. savoring the joy of movement, no matter how large or small

3. moving for the love of dance and not for the love of perfection.

Coming soon.

Coming soon.