UPCOMING PROJECTS
RECENT
ABOUT
Lou Sydel is a choreographer whose work draws from the study of gesture as well as experiences of transness, imagining dance as a living journal for a body moving towards new directions.
He is a graduate of Bowdoin College with a degree in interdisciplinary performance and anthropology and has studied physical theater at LaGuardia Arts HS and Accademia Dell’Arte.
He is the artistic director of Gesture Theater, a trans-led movement company currently in residency at NYU Tisch through WADE. Lou dances regularly with the Ellen Robbins Alumni Group at New York Live Arts. He is also a founding member of the artistic leadership circle of PhysFest, NYC's first ever physical theater festival this January.
Notable performances include NYLA, The Center at West Park, Triskelion Arts, Triskelion Arts, La Mama Puppet Slam, Edinburgh Fringe, Westbeth, Celebration Barn, the Teatro Virginian, Norte Maar Dance at Socrates, Sokolow Theater / Dance Ensemble, Rascal Arts at Theater Row, and at the International Society for Gesture Studies.
Photo by Julia Durr
VIDEO
PAST WORK
CHOREOGRAPHY
HAIR SISTERS November 2023
-
Puppets by Leah Levine presented at the La Mama Puppet Slam
WAITING / POINTING November 2023
-
Originally commissioned (site-specific) for the WestFest: All Over Westbeth Series
-
Costume manipulation, clowning, durational work about trans community
-
Most recently performed for Waxworks at Triskelion Arts
PURGATORIO August 2023
-
Ensemble piece produced at The Space Triplex, Edinburgh Fringe
-
A queer adaptation of Dante's Purgatory set in a techno-club
Gesture Studies Poster Session July 2022
• International Society of Gesture Studies held at Loyola University
On The Other Hand Showings 2021-present
• Evening-length solo show produced at Bowdoin College; PortFringe Maine
• Excerpts produced at The Celebration Barn; New York Live Arts
Una Serata Mascherata (Commedia Dell'Arte show) October 2022
• Teatro Virginian / Accademia Dell'Arte, Arezzo Italy
HOOK, LINE, & SINKER April 2022
• Newly developed musical based on the myth of Ondine
• Choreography incorporated large scale puppets and ensemble of actors
• Produced by the Bowdoin College Theater and Dance Department
COLE: A Musical Review 2019
• Ensemble driven, devised show about the life of Cole Porter
• Bowdoin College Theater and Dance Department
Frog and Toad the Musical 2019
• Bowdoin College Theater and Dance Department
Ellen Robbins Alumni Group 2018-present
• New York Live Arts
• Presented 2 original solos as well as company pieces (2018-present)
Ellen Robbins Dances by Very Young Choreographers 2008-18
• New York Live Arts / DTW
• Presented 10 original solos from the ages of 8 to 18
PERFORMANCE
Celebration Barn's 50th Anniversary Spectacular • Devised with company • South Paris, ME
The Beginning of Something • Dir. Aretha Aoki • Bowdoin College • Brunswick, ME
Around the World • Dan Wagnor, set by Gwyneth Jones • Bowdoin College • Brunswick, ME
Like Water • Dir. Lucia Gagliardone • Star Mountain Amphitheater • Sharon, VT
The People's Performance • The Auditorium Theater • Chicago, IL
Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind • Dir. Hugo Hentoff • Bowdoin College
Norte Maar Dance at Socrates • Dir. Julia K. Gleich • Socrates Sculpture Park • Long Island City
The Unanswered Question • Dir. Samantha Géracht • Sokolow Theater / Dance Co. NYC
Evolution • Dir. Adriane Erdos • The Field • NYC
In a Room Alone • Dir. Brian Solomon • Rascal Arts, Theater Row • NYC
You Can't Take it With You • Dir. Robert Krausz • LaGuardia Arts HS • NYC
Homage to Edgar Allen Poe • Dir. Jim May • Sokolow Theater / Dance Co. • NYC
DIRECTING
Waldo: an Original Play • By Spencer Wilkins • Bowdoin Dept of Theater
Small Mouth Sounds • Bess Wohl • LaGuardia Arts HS
Lysistrata • Aristophanes • LaGuardia Arts HS
Handscapes • Rising Stars • LaGuardia Arts HS
FILM
Gesture Studies
• Documentary film by Amelia Thompson
New Home
• Lead Dancer
• Dir. Niles Singer
• Bowdoin College Department of Visual Art
Dancing Science Fiction: The Body as a Site of Future Explorations
• Bowdoin Dept. of Anthropology
Sunlight Study
• Solo Dance Film
• Hawthorne-Longfellow Library Ramp Gallery
Permanent Night
• Actor
• Dir. Anastassia Kolchanov
• University of Edinborough
INSTALLATION
Neutral Voice
• New York Live Arts
• Lobby Installation embodying "Q": the world's first gender neutral AI robot
Let's Get Lost / Listening Glass
• Bowdoin Museum of Art, Brunswick ME
• exhibition created by linn meyers, Rebecca Bray, James Bigbee Garver, Josh Knowles
• Interactive performance featuring dance, visual art, and iPhone technology
TRAINING
Bowdoin College • Brunswick, ME • December 2022
Bachelor of Arts, Major: Interdisciplinary Performance, Minor: Anthropology
Sarah and James Bowdoin Scholar
Excellence in Dance; Outstanding Contribution to T&D; Micoleau Fellowship
Accademia Dell'Arte • Arezzo, Italy • Fall 2022
Physical Theater Semester Abroad
LaGuardia Arts HS • New York, NY • June 2018
Department of Drama
National Honor Society; Alumni & Friends Award; Principal's Certificate for Excellence in Drama
Ellen Robbins Dance Studio: Choreography, modern • NYC
Movement Research: Feldenkrais, Contact Improvisation, Alexander Technique, Klein, Topf
Media and Communication Intern
MELT Workshops with Ishmael Houston-Jones and Jimena Paz
Broken Box Mime Theater: Intern
Movement Theater Studio: Lecoq • Richard Crawford • Brooklyn College
American Tap Dance Foundation: Tap • NYC
Eugene O'Neill Young Playwrights Festival: Selected Playwright
SPECIAL SKILLS
Tap, Contact Improvisation, Clowning, Juggling, Mime, Balloon Animals, 2D Animation,
Procreate Design, Stage Management, Basic Technical Theater Crew Training,
Costume Shop sewing / tailoring, linocut printmaking
