"I decided to teach dance because I wanted to give back to my community… I wanted to provide an opportunity for brown boys and girls in underserved communities to learn from a dance teacher who looked like them."
— Christa Oliver
MEET Christa
Christa is an educator, dance activist, performer, choreographer, and an Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of Performing Arts and Technology at North Carolina State University. She holds a Master of the Arts degree in Dance Performance and a Professional Diploma in Dance Studies from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance (England). She is also a Mellon Fellow in the School of Theater and Performance Research at Harvard University.
Throughout her career, Christa has collaborated with renowned choreographers such as Donald McKayle, Valerie Preston-Dunlop, Rafael Bonachela, Donald Byrd, Rennie Harris, Lula Washington, Victor Quijada, Christopher Huggins, Willi Dorner, Miguel Periera, Robin Lewis, and Dominique Kelly. She has performed professionally in the Netherlands, Mexico, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, and Kosovo and was the dance captain on the national tour of The Color Purple. She has also showcased her acting and dancing skills on the big screen in Hollywood films such as Avatar and Crazy on the Outside.
https://performingartstech.dasa.ncsu.edu/people/christa-oliver/
Photo by Earl Gibson