GESTURE THEATER
Gesture Theater is a trans-led movement theater company based in NYC
OUR MISSION
We ask what MOVEMENT reveals about CULTURE
We dismantle the 'NEUTRAL BODY'
We embody TRANS FUTURITY
OUR METHODS
A SERIOUS approach to PLAY
A DEVOTED approach to PRACTICE
A COLLABORATIVE approach to COMPOSING
ABOUT US
Artistic Director
Lou Sydel
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 toward new directions. Lou is in the Artistic Leadership Circle for NYC's first ever Physical Theater festival, PhysFest. Past work shown at NYLA with Ellen Robbins, Celebration Barn, La Mama Puppet Slam, The Center at West Park, Edinburgh Fringe, Bowdoin College, Accademia Dell'Arte, and the International Society for Gesture Studies.
IG @gesturestudies
Associate Director
Erika Michelle Davis
Erika Michelle Davis is a clown, actor, and physical theater artist based in NYC. They hold a BFA in Physical Theatre from Coastal Carolina University ('20) as well as a One Year Certificate in Physical Theatre from the Accademia dell'Arte ('19). Erika believes in and seeks out expression of the complexities of being alive through the honest movement of the human body.
IG @gesturestudies
Company Member
Campbell Ives
Campbell Ives earned a B.A. in Dance from Barnard College in 2022. There, they performed works by Wesley Ensminger, Arnie Zane, and Caroline Fermin. Now, they are a House Manager at New York Live Arts. As a gender non-conforming artist Campbell aims to rupture other binaries of mind/body and human/nature, through their movement research in improvisation, and site-specificity.
123-456-7890
Company Member
Theo Duclo
Theo Duclo (he/him) is a trans actor and theatre artist from Tucson, Arizona, based in NYC. His work explores the intersections of gender, dykehood, abolition, and radical Love. Theo received his BA in drama at Vassar College with a focus in queer and prison studies. He has studied classical theatre at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA) and the Powerhouse Theatre, and is a trained puppeteer, clown, and opera singer. He is a founding member of Nocturne Theater and Gesture Theater.
123-456-7890
Company Member
Nerissa Tunnessen
Nerissa Tunnessen (they/them) is an American dancer and choreographer based in Philadelphia, PA. With a BA in History from Vassar College, Tunnessen’s work often interrogates historical movements and subject matter with a contemporary twist. Recently, Nerissa has had the pleasure of showing and performing in work at Asheville Fringe, Richmond Fringe, Philadelphia Fringe, Triskelion Arts, Kefalos Municipal Theater, the Ionion Center for the Arts and Culture, KYLD Inhale, When Waves Collide Festival, the River Dance Festival, and alongside Carne Viva Dance Theater at Urban Movement Arts. They are so excited to continue to be a part of Gesture Theater! To find more about them visit Nerissatunnessen.com
Company Member
Lulu Munteanu
Lulu Munteanu (they/them), is a 23 year old artist originally from Seattle, Washington. They have received training from Pacific Northwest Ballet School and were a part of their Professional Division Program. Lu attended Alonzo King’s Lines Ballet Training Program, then performed soloist roles with Olympic Ballet Theatre. Lulu joined Spectrum Dance Theatre in 2022 under the directorship of Donald Byrd. They currently reside in New York City, freelance choreographing and dancing as a founding member of Lou Sydel’s physical theatre company “Gesture Theatre”. Most recently Lulu has presented the work: “Before I was an egg I was a chicken” through Greenspace’s fertile ground and Waxworks at Triskelion Arts.
