Emily Johnson facts for kids

Emily Johnson (born March 19, 1976) is an American dancer, writer, and choreographer. She is from the Yup'ik people, an Indigenous group in Alaska. Emily grew up in Sterling, Alaska, and now lives in New York City.

She is the artistic director of her own dance company, Emily Johnson/Catalyst. Emily also helps organize "First Nations Dialogues New York/Lenapehoking," which brings together Indigenous artists and thinkers. She has also worked at Birchbark Books, a bookstore owned by the famous author Louise Erdrich.

Emily Johnson's Creative Work

Emily Johnson has worked with many talented artists. She has danced for choreographers like Morgan Thorson and Hijack. She has also teamed up with playwright Lisa D'Amour and the music group So Percussion.

In 1998, Emily started her dance company, Catalyst, in Minneapolis. This was after she finished her dance degree at the University of Minnesota. Since then, she has created 22 original dance shows. She has also worked on many projects with other artists.

One of her most famous projects is a group of three shows called a "trilogy." It started with The Thank-you Bar (2009) and Niicugni (2012). The final part, SHORE, was performed on tour until 2015. Emily has also been important in organizing "Knowledge of Wounds," an Indigenous gathering that began in 2017.

What is Emily Johnson's Dance Style Like?

Emily Johnson has shared that she started dancing after a close friend passed away. Dance became a way for her to express her feelings.

Her dances are often like art installations. This means they are not just movements, but also include the space around them. Her choreography makes people think about how they experience a performance. She wants her dances to respond to the world around us.

Dance and Community

A special part of Emily Johnson's work is how she involves local communities. She often works with people in the places where she performs. For example, for her show The Thank-you Bar, she thought about how communities and tribes deal with being moved from their homes.

For Niicugni, the second part of her trilogy, she invited people in different states to sew fish skin together. They made lanterns from the fish skin. These lanterns were then hung with lights and speakers inside. They lit up the halls where Niicugni was performed.

The third part, SHORE, included community feasts. Everyone could share food together. More recently, for her work Then a cunning voice and a night we spend gazing at stars, Emily organized workshops where people made quilts. These quilts then became part of the stage set for the dance show.

This way of involving the community is similar to other dance forms. These include participatory dance and ceremonial dance. Emily's work helps connect community traditions with modern art. It shows how art can be a bridge between different cultures and people.

One director, Sara Coffey, said that it is brave for an artist to let so many people into their work. She noted that Emily wants the places she performs in to influence her art. Emily tries to make her work a constant transformation. It is a way for dance to create conversations and partnerships.

Awards and Recognition

Emily Johnson and her company, Catalyst, have received many awards. In 2012, they won a Bessie Award for Outstanding Production for The Thank-you Bar. This award is for new art, dance, and performance.

Here are some other awards Emily Johnson has received:

• Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, 2014
• Robert Rauschenberg Foundation Residency, 2014
• McKnight Foundation Artist Fellowship for Choreographers, 2013
• Creative Capital Award, 2013
• Joyce Foundation Fellowship, 2013
• The Doris Duke Residency to Build Demand for the Arts, 2013
• New York Dance and Performance Award (Bessie Award) for Outstanding Production, 2012 (for The Thank-you Bar)
• Sage Award for Outstanding Performance, 2011 (for The Thank-you Bar)
• Artist of the Year, City Pages, 2010
• Native Arts and Cultures Foundation Artist Fellowship for Dance, 2011
• McKnight Foundation Artist Fellowship for Choreographers, 2009
• Bush Foundation Artist Fellowship, 2004
• Jerome Foundation Artist Fellowship, several times between 2001 and 2004