We imagine our community in terms of three overlapping circles with different points of contact with our work. At the center are the artists of Ananya Dance Theatre, women and femmes from global BIPOC communities, working in the Twin Cities with the belief that their artistic practices are important forces of healing, joy, beauty, and community. The next circle includes our staff, board, collaborators and guest artists, and all our families and friends who keep the company going and whose advocacy is crucial to our growth. The other circle embraces participants in classes and community workshops, and artists, activists, audiences with whom we connect at home and on tour.
Our people: Artists
Our performers take pride in their identity as both committed professional dancers and cultural activists. We believe in and practice the immediate association of the aesthetic and the political.
We believe that the powerful together-dancing of Black and brown women and femme artists, arising from our rage, joy, struggles, and aspirations, prepares for groundbreaking shifts toward justice in our communities. For us, dancing toward excellence and justice means conjuring and manifesting an-other reality where marginalized communities and different notions of beauty and power are activated, transformative possibilities are embodied, and paradigms of power can shift.
Staff
- Gary Peterson, Managing Director
- Jennie Ward, Incoming Managing Director
- Hadiya Shire, Operations Manager
- Jessie Storovich, Production Manager
- Kealoha Ferreira, Artistic Associate
Current artistic collaborators include
- Marcus Young, directorial collaborator
- Spirit McIntyre, composer
- Dameun Strange, composer
- Laichee Yang, graphic designer
- Greg Schutte, composer
- Annie Cady, costumer designer
- Kevin A. Jones, lighting designer
- Mankwe Ndosi, vocalist
- Dr. Pooja Goswami Pavan, vocalist
- Andrea Reynolds / QueenDrea Loopsneffects, vocalist
- Chelsea Warren, scenic designer

Performing at the “Flotilla for Peace” installation, Katherine E. Nash Gallery, Minneapolis, MN. July 11, 2013.
Artistry, administration, production, governance
Ananya Dance Theatre acknowledges with gratitude the numerous contributions of time, creativity, consultation, and resources provided since 2005 by the following individuals in the areas of artistry, administration, production, and governance.
- Yasmin Abdi
- Ta-coumba Aiken
- Elizabeth McDermott Altheimer
- Arunima Shiney Ajay
- Lisa Albrecht
- Louis Alemayehu
- Sherie Apungu
- Dora Arreola
- Jen Aubrecht
- Leila Awadallah
- Janice Badmoccasin
- Kate Barr
- Jeff Bartlett
- Sarah Beck-Esmay
- Jack Becker
- Wachen Bedell Anderson
- Rose Brewer
- Sharon Bridgforth
- Jessica Briggs
- Chastity Brown
- Malia Burkhart
- Sharon Rodning Bash
- Annie Cady
- Shá Cage
- Kenna Camara-Cottman
- Laurie Carlos
- Fei Bi Chan
- Raj Chaphalkar
- Srija Chatterjea-Sen
- Ming Jen Chen
- Jesse Cogswell
- Cherry Spoon Collective
- Mary Ellen Childs
- Holo Lue Choy
- Justin Christy
- Rep. Karen Clark
- Bill Cleveland
- Michelle Coe
- Jesse Cogswell
- Tameka Colbert
- Common Harvest Farm
- Renée Copeland
- Michala Cornell
- Sianneh Corvah
- Anitra Cottledge
- Beverly Cottman
- Shamita Das Dasgupta
- James Davies
- Dorene Day
- Sharon Day
- Barak adé Soleil
- Thomas DeFrantz
- Jigna Desai
- Steve Dietz
- Toan Thanh Doan
- Jean Ann Durades
- Hammad El-Bedour
- Heid Erdrich
- Kezia Florence
- James Galtney
- Grace Gathaara
- Annielille (Ani) Gavino
- Julia Gay
- Shannon Gibney
- Marlina Gonzalez
- Brenda Dixon Gottschild
- Shalini Gupta
- Nanette Hanks
- Mary Harding
- Christina Harstad
- Katie Haynes
- Denise Hedberg
- Anne Henly
- Timothy Herian
- Allison Herrera
- Sophia Hill
- Alison Hiltner
- Rose Huey
- Anne Hunter
- Yan Huss
- Tawny Hyster
- Odion-Victoria Igbavboa
- Indigenous Peoples Task Force
- Lori L. Jacobwith
- Iryna Podolyan
- Yonci Jameson
- Nora Jenneman
- Andrew Jerabek
- Darren Johnson
- Kevin A. Jones
- Seitu Jones
- Divya Karan
- Randy Karels
- Gulgun Kayim
- Michelle Kinney
- Nakita Kirchner
- Gina Kundan
- Jitendrapal Kundan
- Simran Kundan
- Irna Landrum
- Janis Lane-Ewart
- Chrys Carroll Laramy
- Diyah Larasati
- Camille LeFevre
- Sophie Liu
- Robert Lynn
- Prakshi Malik
- Josina Manu Maltzman
- John Marks
- Dr. Cecilia Martinez
- Kate Martinson
- Danielle Mkali
- Kari Mosel
- Ayanna Muata
- Shubha Mudgal
- Dipankar Mukherjee
- David Mura
- Zainab Musa
- Meena Natarajan
- Tenzin Ngawang
- Sachiko Nishiuchi
- Felicia Perry
- Takawi Audam Peters
- Anh-Thu Pham
- Lela Pierce
- Toni Pierce-Sands
- Dunstan Pinlac
- Aneesh Pradhan
- Anne Jin Soo Preston
- Brent Thomas Radeke
- Brittany Radke
- Rex Rajavairan
- Pratap Rath
- Pearl Ray
- Refugee and Immigrant Women for Change
- Marcie Rendon
- Andrea Reynolds
- PJ Roduta
- Annie Katsura Rollins
- Joel Saas
- Eleanor Savage
- Arshiya Sethi
- Vidhya Shankar
- Collin Sherraden
- E. Gaynell Sherrod, Ed.D.
- Mika Shiozawa
- Kimberly Simon
- Mona Smith
- Michele Steinwald
- Stefania Strowder
- Jasmine Kar Tang
- Shinaah Thao
- Omise´eke Natasha Tinsley
- Deb Torraine
- Mette Towley
- Anne Ulseth
- Chitra Vairavan
- Jonathan “AJ” van Arneman
- Nakita Vang
- Pramila Vasudevan
- Laura Selle Virtucio
- V. Paul Virtucio
- Saymoukda Vongsay
- Mike Wangen
- Stephanie Watts
- Claire Wilcox
- Hui Niu Wilcox
- Lynn Wilcox
- Alessandra Lebea Williams
- Lori Young Williams
- Diane Wilson
- Negest Woldeamanuale
- Women’s Environmental Institute
- Women’s Initiative for Self-Empowerment
- Clara Wong
- Kayva Yang
- Magnolia Yang Sao Yia