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2024 Queensboro Dance Festival Participants

Meet all 24 Queens-based dance companies touring with us this summer! Click on a photo to learn more.

Argentine duet looking at each other and posing

Silvana Brizuela Weigel

Representing: Jackson Heights
Performing: Argentine Folk
Mission: Sharing the essence of Argentine Culture through the traditional dances of Folklore, Tango & Fusion.
Photo credit Horacio Morales

Male solo dancer flipping over mid-air, legs in split

DANCE FOR THE PEOPLE

Representing: Flushing
Performing: Chinese Contemporary
About: Using modern dance elements to present Chinese cultural elements we hope to expound converse dynamic elements such as “static in motion” to achieve the balance of Yin and Yang around this philosophical idea.
Photo credit Wudao Fengbao

Dancers in traditional Southern Philippines clothing

Kinding Sindaw

Representing: Jackson Heights
Performing: Indigenous Southern Philippine dances
Artistic Director Potri Ranka Manis is a registered nurse and Maranao tradition-bearer from Mindanao, Philippines. She believes that in teaching and performing these dances, music and chants, communities will be inspired to take action in defending indigenous traditions and the land on which we live.
Photo credit Dillon Wright

Solo dancer with one arm and one leg up

Kalli Siamidou

Representing: Jamaica
Performing: Greek Zeibekiko
"I aim to honor, preserve and continue the cultural heritage from which it stems while infusing it with my own modern perspective. This Zeibekiko, with its profound emotional depth, serves as a bridge between the past and the present, Asia Minor and New York, fostering a dialogue that transcends cultural differences and unites us in the essence of simply being human. It is a dance of solitude, a solitary journey that echoes the highs and lows of life's unpredictable twists and turns.
Photo credit Jeong Park

Violinist playing with arms around dancer

Chieh & Yoyo

Representing: Elmhurst and Astoria
Performing: Taiwainese Contemporary
Chieh creates choreography through Yoyo’s violin movements while Yoyo dances and plays violin simultaneously. By combining western culture with Taiwanese culture, they hope to increase the visibility of their home country. QDF2024 will continue our fictional love story from the past.
Photo credit Pratya Jankong

Four hip-hop dancers in gold, black, and white gesturing with fingers up

The Kingdom Dance Company

Representing: Rosedale
Performing: Hip-hop
Our dances dream to move audiences with storytelling, fusing spoken word, music, singing & art to create cohesive performances that depict uplifting themes conquering rugged tribulations. We highlight and enrich the lives of artists from different socio-economic backgrounds and disability statuses with affordable training, instruction, and immersive workshops during training to recognize the individual & artist. Our goal is to create healing through art and art that heals.
Photo credit Josef Pinlac

Group of dancers wearing hoodies leaning to right, shadowy lighting

Umami Playground

Representing: Long Island City Performing: Street Styles Umami Playground is a space for movers to play, explore, make mistakes, share, and grow together. We blend street and club dance with contemporary styles, combining them with our imagination and experience to create something unique. Photo credit Sean Chee

Trio of ballerinas in light blue and lavender; two dancers en pointe framing the third dancer who is kneeling with one leg out along floor

Sheep Meadow Dance Theater

Representing: Long Island City
Performing: Ballet
From Artistic Director Billy Blanken: "Through SMDT, I aim to make high-quality concert dance accessible to all New Yorkers. Ballet, often hindered by financial barriers and specific settings, becomes more accessible through programming like QDF. This festival allows me to share my artwork within my local community and represent it authentically in my home neighborhood."
Photo credit Jay Krempa

Trio of Kathak dancers in beige and red, arm reaching to side

Neela Dance Academy

Representing: Jackson Heights
Performing: Kathak Classical Indian dance
"Kathak, with its emphasis on rhythm and time cycles, relies on natural body movements to convey its artistry. For this project, I have selected "Tarana," a sub-genera from the Indian classical music tradition set to a sixteen-beat time cycle. I aimed to juxtapose various movements against a serene, melodic backdrop. "
Photo credit Zahidur Rashid

Two tap dancers mid-air in front of Unisphere

Cole Collective

Representing: Astoria
Performing: Tap Dance
Cole Collective is a tap dance company founded in 2014 by artistic director Nicole Ohr. The company's choreographic mission is to find connections between music, and movement, through both choreography and improvisation. Cole Collective also strives to bring tap dance to the Queens community through local performances, free community events and classes, and local jam sessions.
Photo credit Robin Michals

Two dancers together cheek to cheek looking over to the right

sarAika movement collective

Representing: Ridgewood
Performing: Contemporary
sarAika movement collective is a contemporary dance collective, founded by immigrants and queer women Aika Takeshima and Sara Pizzi, advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion in the dance ecosystem. They spread awareness on topical aspects or personal insight by creating multidisciplinary collaborative performances, sarAika makes dance for and about people.
Photo credit BECCAVISION

Group photo of Caporales dancers in ornate blue, red, and purple sequined outfits and hats.

San Simon Sucre New York

Representing: Forest Hills
Performing: Bolivian Caporales
Caporales is a traditional dance that originated in Bolivia, in the city of La Paz. It is a cultural practice that combines indigenous, African, and European influences and is widely performed during festivals and celebrations. The dance is characterized by its vibrant costumes, fast-paced footwork, and the use of unique instruments such as the charango, quena, and bombo.
Photo credit Omar Rodriguez