In addition to dancing for other local independent choreographers, Alyssa co-organized Durham Independent Dance Artists (DIDA), an organization that curated and marketed seasons of independent dance in Durham, from 2016-2020. Alyssa is interested in facilitating joy, developing community relationships, increasing accessibility around modern dance, and connecting artists with resources.

Alyssa has been a member of the Durham dance community since 2011 as a student, a community organizer with Durham Independent Dance Artists (DIDA), an independent choreographer, an arts activist, and a performer. Alyssa has self-produced two evening-length works as co-director of A+A Dance Company – What You Want in 2017 and Don’t Get Any Ideas, Little Lady in 2019 – in addition to performing her own work solo and performing work by other local artists.

Creatively, Alyssa is interested in finding ways that she can use my dancemaking to subvert the notion that vulnerable or charged emotional exchanges should be reserved for only our closest personal relationships. Alyssa is also interested in subverting the notion that women need to be polite (i.e., not angry or “emotional”) in public spaces, and in challenging the audience-performer relationship beyond the traditional passive observer framework.

Her overarching artistic practice goals are to prioritize work that supports independent artist vitality and to engage audiences in critical thinking around dance. She aims to create and participate in projects that initiate and continue important societal conversations, to increase inclusivity and accessibility levels of all of the projects that she is involved in, and to create and share resources as broadly as possible with other independent artists.

Follow Alyssa on Instagram @ascho3.