ABOUT

Annika Johansson (they/them, she/her) is a genderqueer dancer, choreographer, and collaborator based in Minneapolis, Mni Sota Makoce on Dakota and Anishinaabe land.

Annika's work draws from their studies in somatic practices, improvisation, post-modern, and contemporary dance forms. Their aesthetic holds a curiosity for detailed movements and specific energetic shifts, finding deep investment in the sensations of the body. Their movement accesses control and abandon, sweeping gesture and minute grooves. Annika is interested in developing personal narratives in choreography and collaborative endeavors that draw individuals together in community.

Annika studied on the dance track at Perpich Arts High School, instructed by Mary Harding, and then attended the University of Minnesota where they graduated summa cum laude with a BFA in Dance in 2017. At the University, they performed works by Justin Jones, The Martha Graham Dance Company, Marcus Jarrell Willis, luciana achugar, Brian Brooks, and Joanie Smith. They also completed a year at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance in Palestine. They draw from a lineage of passionate and wise instructors in their work and explore intersections between somatic practices, improvisation, post-modern, and contemporary dance forms.

As a performer, Annika has appreciated the chance to work with a variety of local artists and collect creative experiences - they’ve performed works by Jeffrey Peterson Dance, Maggie Bergeron and Company, Sophia Pimsler, Alternative Motion Project, Emma Marlar, Flying Foot Forum, HoneyWorks, Hatch Dance, ARENA Dances, Becca Cerra, Taja Will & Mathew Janczewski, and Jagged Moves.

With their collaborator and wife, Abigail Whitmore, Annika has created dance for both theaters and public spaces. They have presented performative events at Glam Doll Donuts (You're Invited, 2016), the University of Minnesota Rec Center pool (Run Rinse Repeat, 2017), the Casket Arts Building (Casket Dances, 2018), and the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden (Sculptour 2018-2021). They also collaborated on works for Red Eye Theater's 2019 Works in Progress and for ARENA DANCES Candy Box Dance Festival in 2021.

Most recently, Annika presented their show LILACS, a Red Eye Theater Curated Rental. LILACS is a series of short dance works, each a unique reflection on gender, presentation, grief, and selfhood.

When citing their experience as an artist and body, they return to thank the trans and queer elders and friends who helped them ask questions and discover their truest self.

photo by Isabel Fajardo