Spotlight: MICHIYAYA Dance

GIBNEY 280, THE THEATER (Studio H)

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you have to look through this to see me

MICHIYAYA’s new work you have to look through this to see me is a reimagination of intimacy and reclamation of femme and nonbinary sensuality. MICHIYAYA Dance processes the complexities of how we crave, sustain, and heal in relationship with one another as sensual beings. Without stigma from heteronormative sources, MICHIYAYA takes control of their dialogues in raw yet fanciful ways. It is a rewrite of how we belong together as our most authentic selves.

This new work is created by Artistic Directors Anya & Mitsuko Clarke-Verdery in collaboration with and featuring their five dance artists Alex Bittner, Bree Breeden, Joy Carlos, Alex Schmidt, and Alexandra Wood, with guest artist Gabriella Sibeko. It features an original score created by grammy-nominated Hip-hop recording artist and composer Billy Dean Thomas, and costume design by Bones, newly featured artist of hit series Project Runway.

About MICHIYAYA Dance

Co-founded in 2015 by Anya & Mitsuko Clarke-Verdery, MICHIYAYA Dance is a queer-led dance company that pushes boundaries and centers the divine feminine by creating space for multidisciplinary performances and programming. Artistic Directors Anya and Mitsuko created MICHIYAYA as a way to combine their voices as artists—Anya, a Black queer choreographer/dance artist from Brooklyn, and Mitsuko, a white & Japanese queer visual/performance artist from Manhattan. Now in their fifth year, MICHIYAYA is an evolving company of five core dance artists.

Their performance work has spread nationally at venues and institutions such as Yale University, Brooklyn Museum, Andy Warhol Museum, Gelsey Kirkland Theater, La MaMa Galleria, Dixon Place, among others. Described as “revolutionary and physically virtuosic,” the powerful group of femme voices has been featured in Art Forum, Thinx, Vice i-D, Medium, and more. MICHIYAYA’s educational and community initiatives have reached the American College Dance Association, University of Santa Barbara, Alonzo King LINES Ballet Training Program, Purchase College Conservatory of Dance, and more. Anya & Mitsuko’s vision has been supported by Microsoft, CVS Health, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Foundation for Contemporary Arts, Opportunity Fund, and Dance/NYC.

COVID-19 SAFETY POLICIES

Audience members must adhere to Gibney Center’s COVID-19 policies. Review the full policy here: https://gibneydance.org/plan-your-visit/

Gibney’s Spotlight highlights the work of early-career artists with generous support from the Jerome Foundation and offers a rich blend of dance and performance in fully produced, evening-length commissions.

This work is made possible in part with public funds from Creative Engagement, supported by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature and administered by LMCC.

Photo by Jeremiah Cumberbatch.