Maura Garcia is a dance artist who collaborates within communities to create stories of identity and place. Originally from North Carolina, Maura is an Indigenous woman (non-enrolled Cherokee/Mattamuskeet) who brings her own mixed-blood southern story to all of her work. Concerns about the perpetuation of Cherokee life-ways, the environment and social justice underlie her creations. She uses her art to empower, to form connections, to uplift Indigenous cultural values and to explore the rhythms of the natural world.
Maura specializes in multi-sensory shows blurring the line between audience and performer. Ā Her repertoire includes solos, group performances incorporating local dancers from the host community and site-specific workĀ incorporatingĀ passersby. Ā She also engages the community in the creative process via interactive arts projects and experiential workshops. To realize community programs, she has partnered with different organizations including theĀ Ā Charleston Library Society(SC),Ā Creative Arts in Public & Private SchoolsĀ (NC),Ā Haskell Indian Nations UniversityĀ (KS),Ā imagiNATIONS Activity CenterĀ (DC),Ā Kansas City Indian Center(MO),Ā Lawrence Arts CenterĀ (KS) and theĀ Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual AssaultĀ (MO).
To craft performances Maura works with core collaborators: sound artistĀ MarkGabriel Little, dance artistĀ Olivia C. DaviesĀ (Metis, Anishnawbe, Welsh) and musician/composerĀ Amado EspinozaĀ (Quechua from Bolivia). Maura is dedicated to engaging artists from diverse backgroundsĀ and has formedĀ project-basedcollectivesĀ withĀ mixed-media artistĀ Alyssa Hinton (Tuscarora/ Osage),Ā Bharata Natyam dancerĀ Anjali Tata Hudson,Ā Ethiopian singer/activist Chachi Tadese, poet/musicianĀ Chico Sierra,Ā video artistĀ Robert Parker(Comanche/Kiowa/Athabascan /Tlingit/ Dakota) and multi-media artistĀ Soumitra Dasgupta, among others. She is fascinated by stories that have been hidden and the unexpected connections that arise when they are rediscovered.