B I O G R A P H Y

Olivia Eaton resides in Chesapeake, Virginia where she began her dance training at the age of two years old at Gail Harts Center for the Arts. She has trained in multiple styles including jazz, tap, modern, lyrical, liturgical, and ballet. After training with the center for over 10 years she decided to turn to the next chapter in her dance career and part ways with her home studio. After her departure from the center, she furthered her training at the Governor’s School for the Arts in Norfolk, Virginia under the leadership of Todd Rosenlieb. From there she began to explore different modern techniques such as Horton, Graham, and Limon while also discovering the joys of contemporary dance. Olivia was also able to experience a wide range of dance artists from around the world at The National Highschool Dance Festival 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. There she received several scholarships from dance colleges and summer programs such as UARTS, Bates Dance Festival, ODU, and etc. Olivia is currently dedicated to improving her overall dance training regarding her flexibility , strength, and her ballet technique.

A R T I S T

S T A T E M E N T

My artistry is heavily inspired by the black dance aesthetic. To me the black dance aesthetic is a blended combination of aspects of African dance and modern techniques that destroy the narrative of what the “ideal dancer” should embody. Majority of my work highlight the areas of the body that are deemed as incompatible to the traditional dance era where dancers were deemed suitable if they were tall and skinny in all the “right” areas. African American dance companies such as Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and Dance Theater of Harlem motivate me to create work that is not only bigger than life but also bigger than myself . Watching these companies takes me to a place of gratitude and appreciation. These companies paved the way for dancers that look like me. They walked so I could DANCE. In majority of my work I use Graham and Horton technique as well as contemporary aspects. I would describe the way I move through space as wide with a strong use of spiral. I enjoy using my fullest range of motion while tapping into the entirety of the space provided for me. Fluidity is very important to me as well as the general rolling of the spine. Oftentimes my movements fall and or flow into one another giving it the feeling of falling off its axis.