Lauren Cox
Choreographer
Lauren Cox is a storyteller, teacher and traveler originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Jazz Dance at University of Massachusetts Amherst and co-creator/choreographer for Kaimera Productions’ SPACES. Her dance training is the sum of her travels ranging from competitive Rhythmic Gymnastics to Jazz and Haitian Cultural Dances, Hip-Hop, Samba, Modern, Contemporary, Improvisation, Poetry and Singing. She holds a B.A. in Sociology from San Francisco State University and has taught extensively on staff at year-round programs in New York City, including Joffrey Ballet School and The Ailey School, respectively.
Lauren’s research and embodied curriculum focus on history, responsibility, and connection to freedom, rhythm, and spirit as a practice of Jazz. She curates experiences in classes and events that call for participation and empathy in community. She has worked with Kaimera and community leaders in Harlem, New York; Saint-Denis, France; Oakland, California; and on the Island of Mozambique. Lauren has also collaborated independently with dancers, schools and programs in India, Hong Kong, Trinidad, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil, Spain, Canada and across the United States.
Lauren debuted the story of her interracial Grandparents in post-World War II Germany at TEDx Asbury Park. Since, she has shared live poetry with audiences covered by Vogue Magazine for We The Women Collective and as a host for the Planned Parenthood benefit series Wise Fruit. Lauren is also the creator and producer of Stories from the Basement; a space for storytellers to hash out new work in front of a live audience. Her professional dance credits include Saturday Night Live, Alicia Keyes, Gwen Stefani, Coldplay, Pharrell, LLCoolJ, Ariana & The Rose, Joey Yung and Kota Yamazaki/Fluid Hug-Hug. Off-Broadway includes Seeing You as night club singer, Joan DeBeauvoir; Afro-Cuban Yiddish Opera Hatuey: Memory of Fire (Dance Captain) and the as Associate Choreographer, Female Swing & Dance Captain for John Leguizamo's Kiss My Aztec at Berkeley Rep and LaJolla Playhouse in California. Lauren has also appeared in commercials for NYU Langone, Apple and Samsung as well as Music Videos for Vonavi, The Misterwives, Giovanni James, Already Late and more.
Lauren is ecstatic and honored to continue collaborating with the Kaimera community!