CV

ISA LEAL

b.1984 Queens, NY

2020 MA in Performance Studies, UC Davis

2006 B.A in Theatre and Dance, James Madison University

2012 Figure Space Alumni

2024 (Expected Graduation) Performance Studies PhD, UC Davis

 

As a Director /Facilitator

2020 Coastal Fog: A Dance Sonata in Four Movements, Facilitation/Direction, Davis, CA

2016 In Watermelon Sugar, Facilitation/Installation/Direction, Fields Festival

2015 Flatland, Co-Direction/Facilitation, The Annex Theatre

2014 More Like a Monk, Evening of Dance works, Producer/Director, EMP Collective

2012 Authentic Vehicle Experiments, Direction/Facilitation, Akimbo Dance Festival

2012 More Human,  Director, UnSaddest Factory, 10 minute Play Festival, Baltimore, MD

2009 Can Do!, Evening of work,Producer/Director, This Little Bird, Charlottesville, Va

2009 Improvisations, Evening Length Work, Producer/Director, Charlottesville,Va

2008 No Exit, Guest Artist & Director, Piedmont Virginia Community College

2008 Evening of Dance Works, Producer/Director, The Bridge, Charlottesville, Va

2007 Still Life:, Performance Installation, Producer/Director,This Little Bird, Charlottesville,Va

 

As a Movement Researcher

Current Ongoing: Geophysical Dance Research with Ian Faloon,a UC Davis

2019-2020 Group Improvisation Lab Labs with Joe Dumit, UC Davis

2016-2018 Mindful Movement Curriculum, Movement Analyst, Kennedy Krieger Institute, MD

2016 Seeds, Artist in Residence (Interdisciplinary Exchange, Science and Art), Plainfield, MA

2016 Figure Space Reunion, Research Intensive and performances, Earthdance, Plainfield, MA

Facilitated collaboration by Steve Paxton, Lisa Nelson with; Karen Nelson, Margit Galanter, Danny Lepkoff, K.J, Holmes, Olive Bieringa, Otto Ramstad, etc.

2013 Sierra Contact Festival (Adv. contact research labs)

2011-2012 Figure Space, World Class Dance Research Intensives, Earthdance, Plainfield, MA

Material for the Spine, Steve Paxton, The Tuning Score, Lisa Nelson

2010-2018 Solo and Group Improvisation with Kate Porter on Cello

2009-2010 Solo Movement with Gerrit Roessler on found sound and computers

2009-2010 Solo Movement with Stephen Nachmanovitch, Violin/Viola, Weekly, This Little Bird

2008-2010 ‘Dancing in the Halls” Weekly improvisation research with Zen Monkey Project

2008-2010 “Authentic Movement Mornings” Research(weekly), This Little Bird Studio/Zen Monkey

2008 Karl Frost, Contact Improvisation, Performance Research, Charlottesville,Va

2007 Nina Martin, Improvisation Intensive, Earthdance, Plainfield, Ma

2007 Karl Frost, Contact Improvisation Intensive and performance, Charlottesville, Va

2007 Martin Keogh, Contact Improvisation Intensive, Charlottesville, Va

2007 Brad Stoller, Contact Improvisation Intensive, Carborough, North Carolina

2006 Martin Keogh, Contact Improvisation, Intensive, Charlottesville, Va

2006-2010 Brad Stoller, Weekly, Contact Improvisation. Charlottesville, Va

2005, 2006 Zen Monkey Project 3 week Intensives, Contact/Somatics, Charlottesville, Va

 

As a Maker of Performance Experiments

2019 Composing with Living, European Tour

2019 You Make Me, Performance Installation, Davis, CA

2017 Symptom of Capitalism: A Dance of the Imagination, The Holy Underground

2016 saythemagicpassword:themagicpassword,Various Locations

2015 The Hotdog Piece, EMP Collective, MD

2015 A Woman’s Fantasy, EMP collective, Iron Rainbow Dance Theatre

2014 Looking down on Oppression, Current Gallery, Iron Rainbow Dance Theatre

2013 Experiments! 5 month solo tour/Performance research with audiences

            The Toothbrush Piece, Opening the Door, Witnessing the Audience

2012 Silent Vow, 31 days, Silent in City Life, Baltimore, MD

2012 Authentic Vehicle Research, Akimbo Dance Festival, D-Center, Iron Rainbow

 

As a Performer-Collaborator

2020: Coastal Fog: A Dance Sonata in Four Movements

2019 Composing with Living, European Tour

2017 Container with Miles Kurtz-Clark & Hannah Jeremiah, Overlapping Kinespheres Festival

2016 Cave Coast, Collaborative Experiments up the C.A. Coast with Margit Galanter

2016 In Watermelon Sugar, Facilitated/Acted, Performance Installation, Fields Festival

2015 Bubbles Please with Michael Wasteneys Stephens, The Penthouse Gallery, Baltimore, MD

2012 The Toothbrush Piece with Kate Porter, Feel, 5th Dimension, Baltimore. MD

2012 Authentic Vehicle Research, Akimbo Dance Festival, D-Center/Wind-up Space

2012 Water Cycles, The Annex Theatre,Baltimore, MD

2011 Power Moves Forever Quest with Claire Cote, Transmodern Festival, Baltimore MD

2011 The Artist Statement, Theresa Columbus,Baltimore, MD

2011 Wedding on the Eiffel Tower, BXDC/ The Annex Theatre, Baltimore, MD

2011 Moves Gallery Residency, Baltimore Experimental Dance Collective, Brooklyn, New York

2011 The Pod, Baltimore Experimental Dance Collective, Copycat Theatre, Baltimore,MD

2011 Authentic Movement Study 1, with Claire Cote, Copycat Theatre, Baltimore,MD

2010 Eyes Everywhere, Baltimore Experimental Dance Collective, Show Paper, New York

2010 Fantastic Planet ( summer revival), The Annex Theatre, Baltimore , MD

2009 Music and Movement with Gerrit Roessler and Isa Leal

2009 Evening of Improvisations with Zen Monkey Project

2009 Music and Movement Improvisations with Stephen Nachmanovitch and Isa Leal

2007 Shentai Arts Carnival, Monkey, Fire dancer, Zen Monkey Project, Charlottesville, Va

2007 Still Life:, Performance Installation, Charlottesville,Va

2007 Close Quarters, with Karl Frost and Zen Monkey Project, Charlottesville,Va

2006 Anna Karenina, “Anna Karenina”, Live Arts, Charlottesville, Va

 

As a Curator-Arts Administrator

2016 Transmodern Festival, The Yes Men, with The Contemporary CoHosts II, Md

2016 Core Organizer, Curator, 13th Transmodern Performance Festival, Md

2016 Audience Development Coordinator, Akimbo Dance and Movement Art Festival

2015 Curator, Visible: An Incidental Symphony for Transmodern Festival, Md

2013-2014 Booked and Produced Experiments! Across the U.S and Mexico

2011-2013 Founder/Facilitator, Cooperative Art Space, Curious Palace, Baltimore, Md

2011- 2014 Artistic Director/Founder, Iron Rainbow Dance Theatre, Baltimore, Md

2008-2010 McGuffey Art Center Resident /This Little Bird Studio, Charlottesville, Va

2008-2010 Artistic Director/ Founder, This Little Bird ,Charlottesville, Va

2007-2009 Assistant for the Arts Coordinator, Piedmont Community College, Va

2007 Assisted, Acting Zen Monkey Project Director, Charlottesville, Va

2004-2005 Office Assistant, James Madison University, School of Theatre and Dance

2004 Virginia Theatre Association Intern, James Madison University

 

As a Teacher

Currently:Associate Instructor in Theatre and Dance, University of CA, Davis

2020 Geophysical Dance with Ian Faloona, PhD, UC Davis

2019 Beg Modern Dance, UC Davis

2019  Embodied Creativity with Joe Dumit, PhD, UC Davis

2018-Present Introduction to Acting, UC Davis

2016-2018  Kennedy Krieger, Center for Neurodevelopmental and Imaging Research, MD,  Mindful Movement

2016 Guest teacher, MFS/Tuning Score, Ci, Towson University, Baltimore, MD

2015 Empathy in Performance, Baltimore Free School, MD

2014, 2015 Artistic Director, Iron Rainbow Dance Theatre

2014-2016 Fitness Fun and Games, Assistant Director, Arts Teacher, Baltimore, MD

2013 Authentic Dialogue Workshop (Ci.,AM, Tuning Score)s as part of Experiments!!

2 day Dogtown Dance Theatre, Guest Teacher at Santa Monica Jam, Santa Cruz Jam,

4 day intensive, Mexico City, for Proyectos de Improvisation.

2012 Guest Teacher, Contact Improvisation, Towson University, Baltimore, MD

2010-2012 Fitness Fun and Games, Group Leader/ Arts Teacher,Baltimore, MD

2011 Filmed Workshop, Authentic Movement/Contact Improvisation,

For the documentary An Intimate Dance, MA

2011-2013 Contact Improvisation, The 5th Dimension, with Kate Porter

2009-2010 Theatre Teacher, The Village School, Charlottesville, Va

2009-2010 Theatre Teacher, The Field School, Charlottesville, Va

2009-2010 Spanish Teacher K-5, Free Union Country School

2008 Guest Artist, ‘Cockadoodle If You Can Can’, Piedmont Virginia Community College

2008 Guest Artist, Contact Improvisation, Piedmont Virginia Community College

2007 Guest Artist, ‘The Onions Thoughtless Locomotion’ Piedmont Virginia Community College

 

Publications

Leal, Isa “Composing with Living” SEM: Ethnomusicology Journal

Leal, Isa.“On Embodiment and Social Change” CQ Contact Improvisation Newsletter,Winter/Spring 2015 Vol. 40.1

Leal, Isa. “I am Not a Capitalist”. Limited Edition Zine.

 

Lectures

2021 “How can dancing Geophysical Fluid Dynamics support the development of new scientific epistemologies? with Ian Faloona, PhD, PFS Symposium

2019 Composing with Living, PFS Symposium

2018 Artist Talk: Dialoguung the Unconsious, AllOverzStreet Arts Festival

2018 Ego Death/Art Not my Idea and Experimental Lecture, PFS Symposium

2018 “Somatic Research as Non Verbal Ethnography” on the Panel “Saying Everything Beyond Words: Emotion, Arts, and Artistic Expression in Psychological Anthropology”

2017 What is Somatics? Wham City Lecture Series, Mercury Theatre

2016 Ego Death in Art: Not my ‘Idea,’ Wham City Lecture Series, The Crown

2012 Empathy and Performance, Wham City Lecture Series, Yellow Sign Theatre

 

Awards

Brad Boynton Award for Excellence in the Arts,Alpha Psi Omega Honor Society,Stratford Players Scholarship 2005,Honorary Alumnus 2009: Henrico Center for the Arts