Grant Recipients Viola Farber Award Dance 2026

Maggie Cloud

Black and white portrait of Maggie Cloud. She is sitting on a wooden ladder, smiling at the camera in jeans and a sleeveless fringe shirt. Maggie’s feet are bare, pointed down on the last step of the ladder and the floor. Behind her is a white backdrop.
Photo by Spencer Weidie.
  • 2026 Viola Farber Award
  • Dance
  • Dancer
  • Born 1987, Oklahoma City, OK
  • Lives in Brooklyn, NY
  • She/Her

Artist Statement

My work is a practice of attunement. 

Dancing is an organization of intention, a coordination of will and spirit made visible.

- December 2025

Biography

Maggie Cloud is a dancer and acupuncturist known for her sensitive attention and technical rigor. Through long-term and project-based collaborations, Cloud approaches dancing as a continually expanding practice, shaped by the distinct sensibilities of the artists she works alongside. 

Her earliest formal training was in the Cecchetti Method, a structured and unadorned ballet form emphasizing anatomical awareness that evolves into intricate, off-balanced movement. This sparked a sustained interest in challenging the boundaries of technique which led Cloud toward the Cunningham Technique, where she became drawn to the deconstruction of form. Her experimental engagement with classical virtuosity has been featured in the work of numerous choreographers, including Moriah Evans, Beth Gill, John Jasperse, Sarah Michelson, Pam Tanowitz, and Gillian Walsh.

Cloud has performed in Beth Gill’s Nail Biter at NYU Skirball Center, New York, NY (2024) and Catacomb at The Chocolate Factory, New York, NY (2016); Moriah Evans’ REPOSE at Beach Sessions, Queens, NY (2021); John Jasperse’s Within Between at New York Live Arts, New York, NY (2014); the Merce Cunningham Trust’s Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event at Brooklyn Academy of Music, Brooklyn, NY (2019); Gillian Walsh’s Moon Fate Sin at Danspace Project, New York, NY (2017); xgzdiiiiiicdiirrwjfffffffff (pronounced grief) at New York Live Arts, New York, NY (2016); and Pam Tanowitz’s New Work for Goldberg Variations at Duke University, Durham, NC (2017); and Passagen at The Joyce Theater, New York, NY (2014). For her performance in Passagen, Cloud was nominated for a 2014 New York Dance and Performance “Bessie” Award for Outstanding Performer.

Maggie Cloud performing. She is looking at her hand above her head as she extends her other arm to the side and points the toes on one of her feet, as if she is about to leap. Cloud is wearing a black dress. Behind her is a painted backdrop with melted candles on brown candle holders, white curtains that look almost like webs, and a black chandelier that is matching her dress.

Performance still from Nail Biter at the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN, 2023. Choreographed by Beth Gill. Photo by Kameron Herndon.

Maggie Cloud looking down as she performs. Her hands are facing out and she is wrapped in gauzy fabric. The angle of this photograph makes Maggie appear to be floating. The background is pitch black.

Performance still from Brand New Sidewalk at Abrons Art Center, New York, NY, 2017. Choreographed by Beth Gill. Costume design by Baille Younkman. Photo by Maria Baranova.

Three dancers performing in a dimly lit, foggy room. On the right hand side, one dancer is in a pirouette-like position, extending both of their hands and one leg to the sides. In the center and to the left are two more dancers, moving on the ground.

Performance still from Moon Fate Sin at Danspace Project, New York, NY, 2017. Choreographed by Gillian Walsh. Pictured: Emily Hoffman, Justin Hyacinth, and Maggie Cloud. Photo by Ian Douglas.

Dylan Crossman steps one foot in front of the other as he holds Maggie Cloud in the air in front of a beige wall. Cloud's back is towards him and she looks to the side while pointing her arms and feet. Both are wearing white semi-see through garments with blue accents.

Performance still from Broken Story (wherein there is no ecstasy) at the Fisher Center at Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY, 2015. Choreographed by Pam Tanowitz. Pictured: Dylan Crossman and Maggie Cloud. Photo by Cory Weaver.

Maggie Cloud spreads their arms in a “V” formation while looking at the camera. Behind her are four more dancers who are moving towards the wall or at each other. They all wear black outfits with white shoes. The audience is seated in the left corner against a limestone and terra cotta facade. The marble tile floor consists of light grayish brown squares connected by walnut-colored edges. There is a black circle in the center of each tile square.

Performance still from Social Dance 1-8: Index at ISSUE Project Room, Brooklyn, NY, 2015. Choreographed by Moriah Evans. Performed by Benny Olk, Lizzie Feidelson, Maggie Cloud, Jeremy Pheiffer, and Sarah Beth Percival. Photo by Paula Cort.