WHO IS OUTSIDE THE OUTSIDE?
Originally a native of California’s Central Coast, Ashley A. Friend moved to Brooklyn, New York in the sweltering summer of 2006. In January 2021 she returned West, she now resides in Port Townsend, Washington. Friend is a choreographer, performer, educator, and film maker.
Her choreography has been performed throughout the USA, NYC, and abroad. Friend’s work was presented at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, residency at Performing Arts Forum in France, and a residency and performance at the GVA Sessions in Geneva, Switzerland. She received scholarship to attend the Dance/USA conference in Denver, CO and NYC. Friend was a recipient of the prestigious danceWEB Scholarship and attended the five-week ImPulsTanz Festival in Vienna. She was also an artist-in-residence at The Atlantic Center for the Arts (ACA) in Florida and Centrum in Washington. Her work has been presented by the Joyce SoHo, 92nd St Y, Movement Research at Judson Church, Ailey Citigroup Theater, Women in Motion, New Dance Alliance, Jazz at Lincoln Center, DanceWorks, Somatic Dance Conference, and many more.
Since arriving in the PNW the community has been very welcoming and supportive. Friend began a performance series titled DanceWorks in collaboration with Madrona MindBody Institute and the Centrum Residency program. This program supports local and regional artists providing a week-long residency with a performance at the end. It has been a wonderful way to provide a platform for performing artists and a way to build the local audience and ignite enthusiasm into dance and the experimental performing arts.
The inspiration for the name Outside the Outside came from Friend’s choreographic work with that title. It was originally performed as a quartet at SUNY Brockport, then as a duet at Theater Rochester, and then as a solo in the Northeast ACDA and in NYC at Performance Mix Festival through New Dance Alliance. It is a project that has a variety of perspectives based on the notion of being on the edge, placed in the margins, and processing personal and societal identities. Her prior investigation was on a project titled Owned (also referred to as We Are Magic) and was performed at Byrdciffe Theater (Woodstock, NY), Women in Motion (Brooklyn, NY), hatch (NYC), New Dance Alliance (NYC), Poetry Church (San Luis Obispo, CA). This evolving piece compelled the audience by focusing on the relationship between the performers, sound, and interaction with a built environment of imposing props.
She is currently working on two group pieces that will be performed in April 2024 in Portland, Oregon. The first piece is a poetic sextet in three sections and titled Verses. It premiered at the Northwest Somatic Dance Conference 2023. The second piece is an untitled septet based on the concept of the influence of unseen forces and group dynamics. Both works reveal an inventive movement vocabulary that is authentic and singular to Friend’s artistry.
Friend received her BFA in Dance from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle. She graduated with her MFA in Dance and Technology from The Ohio State University with a minor in Film and Video. Friend taught modern dance technique, theatrical dance, and choreography at LaGuardia Community College in Queens, NY for 4 years. She was a guest professor in Performing Arts Education at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, CA for 3 years. Friend served as a full-time Guest Artist and professor at The College at Brockport, NY for 1 year. Friend worked and works as a film maker and freelance dance videographer. Her video work includes documentation of many individual artists and arts organizations throughout NYC and beyond. (A few: Movement Research at Judson Church, 92nd St. Y, The Whitney Museum, Kyle Abraham, RoseAnne Spradlin, The Chocolate Factory, BAX, New Dance Alliance, Stephen Petronio, Dean Moss, and more.)
Since moving to Port Townsend, WA she works as an archivist, assistant, and dancer for renowned choreographer and educator Bill Evans. She and Mr. Evans delivered his archival materials to be preserved at the University of Utah’s prestigious Marriott Library in Salt Lake City in the Fall of 2023. They also organized the 9th annual PNW Somatic Dance Conference (SDC) in 2023 which included over 20 workshops and two Summer Dance Concerts and are currently planning the 2024 SDC. This dance conference brings together choreographers and dance educators from around the world. Additionally, Friend teaches Contemporary Dance, Dance Improvisation, Ballet, and Pilates at Madrona MindBody and Port Townsend Ballet.
Contact: ashleyafriend@gmail.com
