Rosanna Tavarez received an MFA in Choreography from The Ohio State University and a BFA in Choreography from University of Michigan. She has a diverse background as a performer/entertainer and has had the honor of working with Marina Ambramovic, Ryan Heffington, Travis Payne, Tony Michaels and Rosanna Gamson/Worldwide. She also toured with N’SYNC and Jessica Simpson as one-fifth of the girl group Eden’s Crush and covered the Emmys, Grammys and Oscars in addition to hosting her own shows as a television personality for FOX, E!, TVGuide Network, and Telemundo/NBC.
As a dance educator, Tavarez is on faculty at CalArts Sharon Disney Lund School of Dance. She has taught as faculty and guest artist at numerous institutions including USC Kaufman School of Dance, University of Michigan, Loyola Marymount University, Scripps College, CalState Long Beach, Studio School, University of Southern Mississippi, Texas State University and Cal State LA. She is also a certified Countertechnique teacher and has had the pleasure of teaching the practice nationally and internationally.
Her work has been presented at The Broad Museum, ODC Theater, REDCAT, Dance Camera West, The Odyssey, Breaking Ground Dance Festival, LA Department of Cultural Affair’s LA Dance Platform, Sarasota Contemporary Dance and Highways Performance Space, and has been supported by CalState LA’s Research, Scholarship and Creativity Awards, ARC grant from the Center for Cultural Innovation, UCLA Hothouse Residency and Show Box LA.
artist statement
Growing up as a first-generation Dominican American in Washington Heights and then Miami, there were two constants in my home: boisterous, demonstrative storytelling and social dancing to lively music. My upbringing was both traditional and forward-thinking, Dominican and American, in Spanish and in English. These experiences shaped my work as an artist. I am a movement polyglot: I weave social dances like salsa, merengue, bachata, tango and disco, with contemporary dance, jazz and ballet. I often draw from my personal stories, which are often tied to my familial ones, and though they begin in this intimate place of lineage and history, I aim to connect with audiences through shared experiences that underpin these works. We have all experienced the complexity, depth and richness of connection and relationship, however particular the details may be. I make work that is emotionally and psychologically demanding. The movement itself ranges from feral, ferocious and vulnerable to humorous and joyful.