FRONTERA Choreographer & Founder of Animals of Distinction Dana Gingras [afikra Conversations]
In this third episode of The NYUAD Arts Center podcast, and in the lead up to the performance of FRONTERA at NYUAD’s Red Theatre, we talk to Dana Gingras, the choreographer of the show and founder of multimedia dance company Animals of Distinction. Dana talks about her creative process and how she strives to produce shows that are viscerally engaging, experiential and kinetic. She shares how she balances and tweaks her choreography to accommodate different spaces and contexts – inhabiting her audience’s gaze – and what it actually takes to put a show together.
Dana gives us insight into how the collaboration between Animals of Distinction, Fly Pan Am and United Visual Artists culminates into what NYU Abu Dhabi’s Art Center calls “a visually stunning spectacle of propulsive dance, powerful live post-rock, and dazzling lighting.” Finally, we asked Dana for advice she would give to aspiring dancers and her take on what’s trending in the dance world right now.
FRONTERA is on at the NYUAD on the 12th and 13th October 2023.
Animals of Distinction (AOD) is the multimedia dance company of renowned choreographer and dancer Dana Gingras. Through AOD, Gingras has fostered the creation of numerous cutting-edge works that have involved innovative collaborations across diverse mediums and artistic practices, all shaped by the possibilities of new technologies and cultural shifts.
About Conversations
afikra Conversations is our flagship program featuring long-form interviews with experts from academia, art, and media who are helping document and/or shape the histories and cultures of the Arab world through their work. Our hope is that by having the guest share their expertise and story, the community still walks away with new found curiosity - and maybe some good recommendations about new nerdy rabbit holes to dive into head first.
