Jocelyn Reyes

Jocelyn Reyes (she/her) is a Latin American contemporary choreographer based in San Francisco. A first generation LA native, Reyes holds a B.S. in Cognitive Science and a B.A. in Dance from UCLA, and is the artistic director of REYES Dance.

Reyes’ works are informed by her past experiences with poverty, domestic abuse, religion, and chronic pain within the context of Latin American culture. She blends athleticism, everyday gestures, humor, storytelling and abstraction to question belief systems and toxic behavioral patterns, in order to heal and reimagine healthier ways of relating to ourselves and others. Since 2017, Reyes has presented choreography in many festivals and curated events, including the Festival of Latin American Contemporary Choreographers, West Wave Festival, RAWdance Concept series and the San Francisco Dance Film Festival, among others. Reyes’ works have been supported by the San Francisco Arts Commission Artist Grant, Dancers’ Group CASH Grant Award, Joe Goode Performance Group Co-production program, RAWdance Radiate Fellowship, and the Berkeley Ballet Theater residency.

Reyes is currently a resident artist with Zaccho Dance Theater and her latest work ‘DIOS’ is supported by the California Arts Council, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, Zellerbach Family foundation, the FACT/SF co-production grant, the Paul Dresher Residency Program and the ODC Rental Discount Initiative Award.

Artist Statement

In my work, I investigate where our feelings and thoughts come from with a choreographic process that closely mirrors the scientific method: question, research, hypothesis, experiment, conclusion. To me every person is like a walking encyclopedia, a product of all their experiences with and knowledge they have absorbed about places, people and things through their basic senses. I’m interested in how people coming from such different backgrounds find connection through creating, collaborating in, and experiencing art/dance.