About Leslie

Leslie Cuyjet is a choreographer, dancer, and writer whose multidisciplinary practice weaves together dance, video, text, and installation. Her work functions as a living archive, blending performance with monument to trace both personal and collective memory. Born breech in Illinois, the family story goes that she "came into this world dancing," foreshadowing her early journey into movement. After arriving in New York in 2004, Cuyjet spent years as a performer for a diverse group of downtown choreographers and artists, including notable figures such as Cynthia Oliver, Jane Comfort, David Gordon, Niall Jones, Juliana F. May, Narcissister, and Will Rawls. Her choreographic voice is driven by interrogating these experiences as a performer through the lens of the black body, and questions how the performing body is perceived, staged, and remembered. Through movement, film, text and theater Cuyjet's solo performances and installations present these intersections of history, personal narrative, and the politics of presence—enduring questions of identity, visibility, and black embodiment. Her work has been presented at venues like The Kitchen, The Shed, MoMA PS1, Center for Performance Research, SculptureCenter, and The Chocolate Factory Theater.

Cuyjet has garnered recognition and support with a Guggenheim Fellowship, Princeton’s Hodder Fellowship, Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants for Artists; with residency support from MacDowell, Chinati Foundation, Watermill Center, and Movement Research. She is also the recipient of two New York Dance and Performance “Bessie” Awards. Cuyjet proudly served as co-editor for the online journal Critical Correspondence for two years.

lesliecuyjet.com

photo: Ahad Subzwari