Michaela Gerussi (she/they) is a dance artist based between London (UK) and Tkaronto (CA). Her practice is based in movement and extends into writing, performance, teaching, video and image-making. She studied contemporary dance at Concordia University in Montreal with a focus on choreography, video and performance, where she received her BFA in 2014.
Michaela’s dance practice is nourished by her inquiry into the nervous system, interoception and attunement, in relation to her studies in Biodynamic Craniosacral therapy. She is particularly engaged with improvisational scores, attention, affect and the complexities of how we sense ourselves. Her choreographic work considers shifting relationships between people, places and materials, layering subtle perceptual detail with a functional, dynamic approach to movement. Since 2008 Michaela has pursued her interest in film and the moving image. She is a member of the Director’s Guild of Canada. Michaela’s screen-based work addresses the continuous process of reconciling the image of the body with the complex, tactile experience of embodiment.
Her collaborative performances, intermedia and site-specific works have been presented in London, (UK), Montreal (CA), Toronto (CA), Sherbrooke (CA), Buffalo (USA) and Berlin (DE). In 2021 she completed an MFA in Creative Practice, based in London at Trinity Laban and Independent Dance. Beyond her artistic work, Michaela supports performance in a range of professional capacities; as a curator, performer, producer, stage manager and lighting designer. Along with Julia Pond and Laura Columban she co-founded Dance Outside Dance, a podcast of interdisciplinary conversations. Her writing and images have been featured in The Dance Current (CA). She is currently busy establishing a collectively-run studio in East London with a group of artistic peers.