Laurie Van Wieren is an independent choreographer, based in Minneapolis, who has been creating dance and performance since 1980. She grew up on the west side of Chicago, and attended the Art Institute of Chicago. She moved to Minneapolis in 1975 where she worked at the Walker Art Center. At the Walker, she was exposed to many dance artists. Laurie took classes and performed with: Dana Reitz, David Gordon, Ruth Zapora, Eiko and Koma, Deborah Hay, Stuart Sherman and Jonathan Stone. These varied art makers have had a strong influence on her work. Laurie also studied Hanya Holm Technique for four years with Nancy Hauser. As a solo performer, and with her company, the B-Specifics, she has performed in many venues, including: the Southern Theater, Dancespace, DTW, Links Hall, the Walker Art Center and on the Lake of the Isles. She is also the recipient of fellowships from the Jerome, Bush and Rockefeller Foundations.

Artist Philosophy
My dance making has always been about the people who perform in it. The individual dancer’s idiosyncratic movement, gesture, and facial expressions are the vocabulary of my dances. I am interested in the humor and oddness in our bodies and how they tell stories. My dances take on the experience and singularity of the performers in rehearsal and on stage. My work is a response and a conversation, with the audience, my peers in the Twin Cities dance community…as well as from other, national and international, dance communities.

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