BIOGRAPHY
Originally from Monterrey, Mexico, Raúl Contreras is a multidisciplinary artist, choreographer, and educator based in New York City. He held an apprenticeship with Ballet Metropolitano de Monterrey, and performed with Metamorphosis Dance Collective with directors Iratxe Ansa and Igor Bacovich in Shanghai. He later joined Ballet Hispánico in NYC and performed across the US and Europe.
He was last seen as part of the ensemble of Sunset Boulevard on Broadway, directed by Jamie Lloyd and starring Nicole Scherzinger. He served as Dance Captain, Swing, and Santiago Understudy in Moulin Rouge! The Musical.
Raúl was a featured dancer in the film Kiss of the Spider Woman alongside Jennifer Lopez, working with choreographers Christopher Scott and Sergio Trujillo.
As an educator, he has taught for Cirque du Soleil, Steps on Broadway, and Broadway Dance Center. He holds a degree in Contemporary Dance from the Escuela Superior de Música y Danza de Monterrey, and has nourished his artistic development with leadership workshops from LIDEA as well as gathering pieces of wisdom from Maria Popova, Ocean Vuong, Krista Tippett, Brené Brown, amongst other contemporary thinkers.
CLASS DESCRIPTION
We will start with a thorough and mindful warm-up promoting awareness of the entire body, followed by guided stretch and stabilization exercises. We’ll dive into a series of modern technique–based exercises to organize the body, and with our vessels ready, we will learn a dynamic combination that challenges musicality, texture, and storytelling through the body.
The class will offer a supportive and inspiring environment to explore a blend of contemporary styles, developing a movement vocabulary that adapts to each individual body. The focus will be on deepening your relationship to your movement while expanding range, clarity, and specificity in the expression of ourselves. All while enjoying the gift of moving our bodies!