Education:
Bachelor of Arts in Dance, UNC Charlotte (2003)
Master of Fine Arts in Dance, Hollins University (2017)
Hometown: Monroe, NC
Audrey Baran says that she “fell in love with modern/contemporary dance” at UNC Charlotte, “and it's now the focus of my professional life.” She is a Filipina-American dance maker, performer, and educator based in the land of Catawba people / Charlotte, North Carolina. Currently, Audrey is Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance at UNC Charlotte, founded Baran Dance Company in 2012, and is co-chair of the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access Committee of NCDEO.
As the founder and artistic director of contemporary dance company Baran Dance, Baran is dedicated to broadening definitions and accessibility of contemporary dance throughout the Southeast by presenting collaborative, multimedia productions in a variety of venues. Her professional and educational choreography has been described as, “a fully human place with honesty, courage and creativity percolating simultaneously.” Through every creative and pedagogical process, Audrey insists on horizontal dynamics and equitable collaboration among diverse bodies in motion.
Baran was a selected choreographer for the Joffrey Ballet Academy’s Winning Works 2022 Choreographic Competition and Charlotte Ballet’s Innovative: Direct from the LAB 2021. She was the 2019 UNC Charlotte Department of Dance Distinguished Alum, an inaugural recipient of the Creative Renewal Fellowship from Charlotte’s Arts and Science Council, and has received awards from the Movies by Movers Festival and the Charlotte Emerging Dance Awards. Baran has presented work in the Richmond Dance Festival, Sites in the City, FEMMEfest, the National Dance Educators Organization Conference, Bill Evans Somatic Dance Conference, the North Carolina Dance Festival, Tobacco Road Dance Productions, Triangle Dance Project, Ladyfest CLT, Charlotte Dance Festival and numerous self-produced productions. Baran is a 500-hour Registered Yoga Teacher and thrives on sharing her research on the intersection of movement and mindfulness throughout the Queen City and beyond.
While a student at UNC Charlotte, Audrey choreographed a piece, “Multiples,” which was performed at the American College Dance Association conference. “It was the first time I created something that would be shown for an audience of more than just my peers, and in a way it set the course for the rest of my career, teaching myself to think out of my box (and create new ones).”
Audrey is impressed by the growth of the Department of Dance since she graduated. “I went through during the days when dance, theatre, music, and art were all packed into Rowe. Robinson Hall was not even a thought, and that beautiful facility is a real gem and asset to the students. The department's connection to the Charlotte arts culture is also growing stronger, and I'm excited to see how we all work together in the years to come. By becoming a dance student at UNC Charlotte, you are becoming a part of the dance community of Charlotte.”
Audrey was named the 2019 Distinguished Alumna in Dance. She has taught as an adjunct professor at UNC Charlotte for several years and in Fall 2020 became Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance.