Ananya Chatterjea/ অনন্যা চট্টোপাধ্যায় ‘s work as choreographer, dancer, and thinker brings together Contemporary Dance, social justice choreography, and a commitment to healing justice. She is the creator of ADT’s signature movement vocabulary, Yorchhā, and the primary architect of the
Hui Niu Wilcox, Ph.D., has been moving and thinking with Ananya Dance Theatre since 2004. She is a Professor and Chair of Sociology at St. Catherine University. She also teaches in Women’s Studies and Critical Studies of Race/Ethnicity. Hui is grateful for the privilege of engaging in activism through dance, and for the loving support of her family and friends, especially Elliot, Claire, and Lynn. Hui is co-editor,
Kealoha Ferreira is a Native Hawaiian, Filipino, and Chinese dance artist from Oʻahu, Hawaii now residing in Mni Sota Makoce. Interweaving the embodied, transnational feminist practices of Yorchhā and Aloha ʻĀina, she creates work that explores relationality, reclamation, and continuum through an
Alexandra Eady entered into the space of Ananya Dance Theatre at the age of 16. The company’s commitment to social justice and intentional choreographic creations are what fuel her performance onstage. Alexandra teaches Yorchha workshops and master classes in schools across the Twin Cities metro area as well as nationally and internationally while on tour with the company. In 2020,
Lizzette Chapa is a Mexican-American dancer and dance maker originally from The Rio Grande Valley, Texas, now residing in Mni Sota. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a BFA in Dance in 2017. She is deeply drawn to the company's commitment to social justice issues, radical healing, and ancestral guidance. She is currently a movement instructor in the Twin Cities, utilizing the principles of
Laichee Yang is a multi-disciplinary designer and artist who makes drawings, graphics, interactive installations, and photographs for digital and physical spaces. She is honored to have worked with organizations that include Ananya Dance Theatre, Indigenous Roots, Brownbody, and Fendika Cultural Center. Laichee is currently a master of architecture student at the University of Minnesota.
Noelle Awadallah نوال is a Palestinian-American improviser, performer, and dance maker who resides in Mni Sota. She graduated from Columbia College Chicago in 2018 with a BFA in dance. She joined Ananya Dance Theatre in 2019 and since has been fueled by the company's unwavering dedication to social justice issues and storytelling. Her personal
Parisha Rajbhandari (she/her) is a Newari-Nepali dance artist residing in Mni Sota. Parisha explores movement through her Newa identity interconnected with multiple folk-dance traditions in Nepal. She grew up immersed in social dances and continues to participate and learn through the social dance community in the Twin Cities. She received her BA in dance from Minnesota State University, Mankato in 2020, and is furthering
Alexis Araminta Reneé, affectionately referred to as Aloka, is a multiethnic Black and Brown identified visual artist, scholar, performer, choreographer and conjure woman bridging the divides between community healer, concert dance, theater, and film. Alexis creates interdisciplinary work that centers ritual, healing and social justice as transformative liberation practices. She has studied, performed, and presented work
Orlando Hunter is a choreographer who researches, illustrates and creates from an African-American male perspective. In his work he tackles issues resulting from a capitalistic imperialist patriarchal white supremacist system. Hunter grew up dancing hip-hop and graduated with a BFA in Dance from Univ. of Minnesota, where he performed works by Donald Byrd, Bill T. Jones, Carl Flink, Louis Falco,
Marcus Young 楊墨 is a behavioral and social practice artist making work for the stage, museums, and the public realm. He is a recipient of awards from the McKnight, Bush, and Jerome Foundations. He is founding artistic director for Don’t You Feel It Too? — an ongoing participatory street dance practice of social healing and inner-life liberation.
Jennie Ward has worked as a producer, administrator, theater director, teacher, and community builder in the Twin Cities, Chicago, New York City, and Boston. Locally, she served as Managing Director at the Center for Performing Arts in South Minneapolis; Associate Producer for The Remember Project (a program of Trellis); and Interim Manager of Operations for Six Points Theater. Jennie has directed and assistant directed with Six Points Theater (formerly Minnesota Jewish Theater Company), Playwrights’ Center, Guthrie Theater, Jungle Theater, Theatre in the
Gary Peterson (he/him/his-they/them/their) has been a part of Minnesota’s dance community for more than 40 years. In addition to his work as managing director of Ananya Dance Theatre and research collaborator with Dr. Ananya Chatterjea, he has served as dance student, consultant, and as executive director of James Sewell Ballet, Zorongo Flamenco Dance Theatre, Zenon Dance Company, and the Southern Theater. He has
Hadiya Shire (she/her) is a writer and arts administrator from Minneapolis, MN. She holds a BA in English and Africana Studies from Vassar College. She has worked in the Twin Cities literary arts and performance space for over eight years. Before joining ADT, Hadiya worked for Graywolf Press, The University of Minnesota Press, In Black Ink, Springboard for the Arts, and The Loft Literary Center. Her work in nonprofit administration, operations, finance, and logistics has supported programming that
Jessie Storovich is excited to be working with Ananya Dance Theatre, for the first time this season. Jessie previously worked as the Director of Operations and Productions for The Lab Theater in downtown Minneapolis. She currently works as a Producer/Production Manager for several arts, entertainment, & commercial organizations. Jessie is also the Owner/Creator of RatHaus Inc. & CABARAVE. Jessie believes in the importance of art and feels blessed to live in a community full of truly brilliant artists and creators! Photo by Laichee Yang
Spirit McIntyre (spirit/they/them) is a Cellist, Vocalist, Lyricist, Reiki Practitioner, Compassionate Facilitator, and Visual Artist who promotes empowerment and healing by any medium necessary. They believe in: the importance of breath, the power of deep listening, holding space for complex emotions, healing intergenerational trauma, honoring lovability, and growing compassionately through
Sharon Bridgforth, a Doris Duke Performing Artist, is a writer that creates ritual/jazz theatre. A New Dramatists alumnae, Sharon has received support from Whitman Institute, Creative Capital, MAP Fund, and the National Performance Network. Her work has been featured at: New York’s SummerStage Festival; Rites and Reason Theatre’s Black Lavender Experience at Brown University and
Founder & Executive Director of TruArtSpeaks, Tish Jones is a poet, performer, educator and organizer from Saint Paul, Minnesota. She has performed at CBGB, Kaplan Theater, The Walker Art Center, Intermedia Arts, The Cedar Cultural Center and more. Her work can be found in the Minnesota Humanities Center's anthology entitled, Blues Vision: African American Writing from Minnesota (Minnesota Historical
Andrea (Queen Drea) Reynolds, recipient of a 2017 Minnesota Emerging Composer Award administered by the American Composers Forum, is a vocalist, performance, and soundscape artist whose pieces are often conceived and created under the auspices of improvisational settings. Queen Drea has created work about depression in the Black community for Intermedia Arts, and about the
The polymathic Douglas R. Ewart has been honored for his work as a composer, improvising multi-instrumentalist, conceptual artist, sculptor, mask and instrument designer, builder and more. As an educator, Ewart bridges his kaleidoscopic activities with a vision that opposes today’s divided world by culture-fusing works that aim to restore the wholeness of communities and their members,
Dr. Pooja Goswami Pavan is a Minneapolis-based performer, composer, teacher, and scholar of Hindustani (North Indian classical) vocal music. She received her early training in Hindustani classical vocal music from her father, Pandit Surendra Goswami, and later from Prof. Ajit Singh Paintal. Currently, she receives training in Khayal from her elder bother, Dr. Shailendra Goswami. Pooja earned a Ph.D. in
Chelsea M. Warren is a multidisciplinary theater artist with a focus on scenic and puppet design with an equal interest in both traditional and devised creation processes. This is her third project with Ananya Dance Theatre; previous works include Shaatranga, and Sutrajal. Having grown up in the Adirondack Mountains, Chelsea is drawn to robust, elemental stage pictures and is
Kevin A. Jones has worked in the professional dance and theater community for nearly 40 years. He was resident lighting designer and production manager for James Sewell Ballet for 20 years. His designs have illuminated internationally acclaimed ballets such as Moving Works, Barrage, Appalachia Waltz, Your Move, and Guy Noir: The Ballet. Jones designed for Minnesota Dance Theatre, CAAM Dance, SOLO, The McKnight Dance Fellows, and many
Annie Cady holds an MFA degree in Theatre Design and Technology from the University of Minnesota, and a BA in Theatre Arts from Simpson College. Her professional design credits include productions for Children’s Theatre Company, Normandale Community College, Commonweal Theatre, Ten Thousand Things, Jungle Theatre, Black Label Movement, Minnesota Jewish Theatre Company, AMP, and Threads Dance Company. http://www.anniecady.com/
Darren Johnson is proud to have collaborated with Ananya Dance Theater for more than 15 years, traveling from Kolkata to Maui with interdisciplinary projects. A writer and video producer whose work runs the gamut from documentary to experimental, he has tackled tough issues like implicit bias and diversity in the legal profession; aided and spotlighted innovation in the arts; and is currently producing a documentary about ADT, finishing a spoken word audiobook, and
Dameun Strange is a sound artist, multi-instrumentalist, and composer whose conceptual chamber works, choral pieces, and operas are focused on stories of the African diaspora, often exploring afrofuturist themes. Strange is compelled to express through sound, music, and poetry, the beauty and resilience of the Black experience, digging into a pantheon of ancestors to tell stories of triumph while connecting the past, present, and future. His sound
Greg Schutte is a composer, drummer, producer, and sound designer. As a touring drummer, Schutte currently plays with Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter Ryan Bingham. He has performed nationally and internationally with a variety of other artists, including Chastity Brown, Todd Clouser's A Love Electric, The Hornheads, Jelloslave, Lori Line, Anthony Cox, Empire Brass, Chuchito Valdez, Bernard Allison, and more. He performed on
Michelle Kinney, cellist, serves as Musician In Residence on the faculty of the University of Minnesota Dance Program. She holds a BA in cello performance, composition, and ethnomusicology/jazz studies from Northwestern University, and an MA in Performance Studies from New York University. Michelle is a grateful recipient of a 2014 McKnight Fellowship in Composition and a MRAC Next Step Fund Award. Her career has also been supported by the Bush Foundation, American