Alessandra Williams

Alessandra Williams is an assistant professor of dance at Rutgers University-New Brunswick who researches dance, race, gender, transnationalism, and queer performance. Her fellowships include the Inclusive Excellence Fellowship with the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater (2018–19) and the Eugene V. Cota-Robles Fellowship with the University of California, Los Angeles (2010–14).    

She has performed with the Ananya Dance Theatre company in the evening-length dances: Dastak and Altars of Our Sacred Geometries (2021), Sutrajāl (2019), Shaatranga (2018), Shyamali (2017), Horidraa (2016), Roktim (2015), Moreechika (2012), Ashesh Barsha (2009), and Pipaashaa (2007). She is coeditor of the anthology Dancing Transnational Feminisms: Ananya Dance Theatre and the Art of Social Justice (2022) and has written about cross-cultural solidarity in other publications (The Drama Review 2022; Dance Teacher Online 2021; Relay Relay 2018; Talking Black Dance Inside Out/Outside In 2016). As a grant recipient with the Institute for the Study of Global Racial Justice, she presented a curricular and arts-residency series on “queer black dance,” featuring David Roussève and the REALITY Dance Company, which is also the major subject of her current book project. 

Publications:

• "Dancing Transnational Feminisms: Ananya Dance Theatre and the Art of Social Justice," co-author (University of Washington Press 2022)

• “A Radical Practice of Inclusion: Choreographing Race and Gender with Ananya Dance Theatre” (TDR 2022)

• “Ananya Chatterjea’s Teaching Pushes Students Toward Their Own Fiery Engagement with the World” (Dance Teacher 2021)

Media Appearances/Speaking Engagements:

• Chair and co-panelist for paper presentation "Gestural Translation in American, Ethiopian, and Togolese Performances," Dance Studies Association, Radical Acts of Translation virtual conference

• The Cross-Cultural in the Queer Black Postmodern Aesthetic of David Roussève,” Invited Speaker for the Swarthmore College Dance Program Lecture and Workshop Series

• "Queer Dance: An Approach, An Embodiment,” Guest Lecturer for the Women’s Studies in Religion Program, Harvard Divinity School

Previous Organizations

• Ananya Dance Theatre

• University of Wisconsin, Whitewater

• Carleton College

Accomplishments

• Inclusive Excellence Fellowship, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

• Eugene V. Cota-Robles Fellowship, University of California, Los Angeles

• Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship

Upcoming projects

• "Bittersweet: A Queer Black World in Dances and Films by David Roussève and the REALITY Dance Company," current book project

Social and racial justice concerns appear in the theory and method of my scholarship in dance studies, especially as I research the intersectional formation of queer African American dance. These concerns also emerge in my performance work as a dance artist with Ananya Dance Theatre.

The Advancing Studies of Queer Black Dance project explores the intricate relationship between sexuality, race, and gender through choreography. The program explores these dynamics with former artists from the renowned "REALITY" dance company. Through research, curriculum development, and public engagement, the initiative aims to deepen our understanding of the cultural significance of queer black dance.

https://globalracialjustice.rutgers.edu/what-we-do/art-culture-and-public-humanities