Samar Haddad King, Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre

Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre (YSDT) creates invigorating performance and education programs that expand access to—and promote understanding through—the arts, rooted in the belief that art should be liberating, transformative, and accessible to all. Founded in 2005 by Samar Haddad King, YSDT has a repertoire of 30+ original works performed across NYC, regionally, and abroad in 20 countries across five continents. Since 2011, the company has worked transnationally between NYC and Palestine, and is committed to uniting diverse artists and audiences in the creative process. For more information, visit www.ysdt.org.

Samar Haddad King (she/her), artistic/founding director of YSDT, graduated from the Ailey/Fordham BFA program under the tutelage of Kazuko Hirabayashi. Her work has been performed in 21 countries on five continents, with commissions throughout the US and abroad including Hong Kong Arts Festival (Hong Kong), Hubbard Street 2 (Chicago), Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival (Ramallah), The Walk/St. Ann’s Warehouse (New York), Good Chance Theatre (Marseille), and The Herds (Paris). Awards and fellowships include the Prix des Jeunes Créateurs Palestiniens pour la Diversité des Expressions Artistiques (Palest’In & Out Festival, Paris), La Fabrique Chaillot Residency (Chaillot – Théâtre national de la Danse, Paris), The Center for Ballet and the Arts at NYU, and Toulmin Creator (CBA/National Sawdust, NYC). Samar is a 2023 Creative Capital Wild Futures: Art, Culture, Impact awardee for her new multidisciplinary project Radio Act.