Dankmeyer Dance Company is a modern dance collective I founded in 2002. I am inspired by the inventive impulse at the roots of modern dance, and the capacity for dance to communicate human experience. I seek creative responses to the flux and ambiguity of our world. My physical vocabulary shifts between the playful and formal, in a dynamic, kinetic approach to space. The dancing body is beautiful and powerful, and my work is deeply influenced by the expressive qualities of my dancers. I began making dances during my ten years performing with the Martha Graham Dance Company.

My work explores humans’ place in their environments, both natural and urban. I’m interested in what connects us, how universal themes can be revealed through movement in diverse spaces. The dialogue of dance and music is an essential element in my work. Ideas unfold and impulses are discovered in collaboration with both dancers and musicians. All of the members of DDC are active teachers in diverse dance disciplines. Giving back through education is an invaluable part of our work.

--Erica Dankmeyer, Artistic Director