"As a mexican/american female choreographer, I create work that is political because it represents women’s rights to express themselves freely. My work aims to give a voice to the female body, and the female psyche. I create work with the intention of unveiling my deepest fears, to un-hide my inner voice and discover my greatest purpose. My work represents my fantasies, and my desires while echoing my history. My choreographic process is collaborative. This collaboration leads me to expand my consciousness along with the dancers. I am deeply moved by relationships, conversations and music.
The practice of creating work allows me to question everything and indulge in new fantasies. I want to inspire and connect with the world through my work. I make work to break the rules. I create dances to give a voice to my body. I make work that speaks up to my culture. My work investigates love and relationships bridging the divide between the intimate and the universal. I create work from the lens of a woman who is also a sister, a friend, a daughter, a dreamer, and a lover. My work represents the heart and soul of a woman. My work is a practice of self-love and acceptance. My work represents diversity, equality, and unlimited possibilities."
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR | CHOREOGRAPHER
Valeria Y. Gonzalez is a Mexican-American artistic director, choreographer, dancer, performance artist, producer and activist. Starting in 2009, she embarked on a learning expedition in Montreal followed by a full relocation to NYC to continue her professional education in dance. During this time, she completed two certificate dance programs from Ballet Divertimento in Montreal and The Ailey School in NYC. Her studies have led here to attending several dance intensives such as: GAGA in Tel Aviv, Movement Invention Project, SBDNY Module, B12, TL Collective, Szalt, Gallim Dance, Vim Vigor, Pirouetteando, and Alvin Ailey intensives.
Since moving to New York in 2011 Valeria has conducted several projects in homage to her Mexican roots. ConexionArte Juarez, for example, is a platform based in her hometown of Juarez, Mexico that serves to inspire and connect artists all around Mexico. Valeria continued to participate as the leader for three large projects for Inside Out Project - a platform founded by visual artist JR. She's very proud to have been apart of the New York Women in Communications from 2012 to 2014 as well as a valiant member of the National Society of Leadership and Success in 2014.
Since an early age, Valeria has extended her passion outside of dance to the areas of photography, filmmaking, and media. In 2012 she decided to conclude her BFA in Communications at the New York Institute of Technology. In 2015 she graduated with a BFA in Communication Arts and TV Production. During the NYIT time, she worked for prominent media outlets such as Time Out Magazine (E-Commerce Manager) and at NBC New York (Social Media assistant & Assignment Desk Intern). In 2014 she was hired as a full-time Production Assistant at NBC New York where she worked along with the executive producers, anchors, photographers, assignment desk editors and reporters. During her time at NBC, she created several news packages, assisted reporters for red carpet events where she interviewed prominent figures and assisted in producing Wednesday Child” news packages. Most notably during this time, Valeria found her true calling by founding her dance theater company, VALLETO.
Valeria's unique view and inquiry in gender equality, freedom of expression, sexism, and diversity were crucial to starting her dance company. VALLETO has become an emerging dance theater company - highly sought out - whose mission is to create work that empowers women and unifies artists from different diversities. Valeria’s personal mission is to make a difference in the world of dance by tackling these issues through female empowerment and the celebration of one’s individuality. Valeria has already choreographed and directed five seasons for VALLETO in both New York and Brooklyn. She celebrated a commission for her company by HERE Arts Center in 2015. Her unique and evolving artistic language has inspired and created a culture that empowers the female body and psyche. Her movement language describes femininity, tension, intimacy, impulse, raw emotions and self-awareness. VALLETO has continued to grow and continues to make theatrical work that explores collectively what the unconscious mind hides in the body.
From 2016 to 2018, Valeria attended NYU Tisch School of the Arts where she pursued and completed her MFA in Dance with a concentration in Performance and Pedagogy. During her education at NYU, she had the opportunity to teach Ballet, Improvisation and Dance Composition for the Future Dance and Dancemakers workshops. She was also graciously selected to be one of the five choreographers chosen to create a long piece for the Masters Performance Workshop concert. As a performer, Valeria created her very own solo, "echoes" a durational (6 hours) improvisation performance that premiered in May 2018 at NYU Tisch Dance. She also has performed works by Gioconda Barbuto (Nederlands Dans Theater), MADBOOTS, David Pressault (Toronto Dance Theater), Eric Miles (Les Ballet Jazz De Montreal), Pamela Pietro (NYU Tisch), and more.
"I worked closely with Valeria on her MFA thesis and she exhibited a real passion for feminist politics and bridging different disciplines and forms of research into her creative practice and choreographic vision. Through the soul-searching process she developed a clear voice as a Mexican American artist, speaking boldly to the female psyche and experience. She demonstrated a real ease with the working process of her pieces and produced a piece of enigmatic beauty and kinetic rigor. She has an innate feel for drama and risk. Her movements can be soft and vulnerable one moment and then explosive and ferocious the next moment. Her work contains a singular movement sensibility, a unique and timely point of view that needs to be heard. As a professional in the field, Valeria is a hard worker, and is able to juggle different aspect of her life as a dance artist in the city, while maintaining a peak level of physical and creative excellence." - Rashaun Mitchel (Cunningham Trustee, Guggenheim Fellow)
Valeria founded the VALLETO summer intensive in 2019 in New York City. The summer intensive's mission is to unify emerging choreographers, and provide exceptional training to future dance artists. Valeria plans to extend this program to more communities in other cities.
In January 2019, Valeria was offered a part-time position as a faculty teacher at Dance and Theater Department of The University of Texas El Paso (UTEP) where she is currently teaching Contemporary Dance and Improvisation. At UTEP, she was also assigned to direct the Fall 2019 concert, and was commissioned to create a long choreographic piece for the senior students of the BFA program. Her piece called "Until Tomorrow" was exceptionally successful. In addition to teaching, Valeria also mentors the students and provides them opportunities to create and present their artistic statements to the public. Valeria is currently enrolled in the Graduate Women and Gender Studies Program at UTEP where she will receive a certificate by 2021.
Valeria was selected to be a key speaker at the 10th annual Women and Gender Studies History Month conference where she would present her thesis " Regarding the female body, identity and sexuality in dance: body relations”. However, this event will be postponed to 2021 due to the current pandemic.
Valeria is a proud member of Wise Latina International, a non-profit corporation serving the international border area of the City of El Paso, the State of Texas, New Mexico & our international sister city of Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua. Our mission is to educate & empower Latinas and women of all walks of life, to overcome barriers, to be self reliant, to become leaders and to act as agents of change in our communities through arts and entertainment.
In 2020, Valeria founded VALLETO Heal, an initiative that aims to inspire the world to dance, and heal through movement and holistic approaches. This initiative has made a difference in the community and keeps evolving. (ig @valletoheal) Valeria currently lives in El Paso texas where she keeps leading VALLETO, choreographing, planning and creating initiatives that empower communities; catch her new podcast (VALLETO) in spotify and Instagram (@valletodance) called "Even More" an interview series and platform for women from all over the world to speak up about their personal stories, and creative and impactful projects.
"Valeria’s curious and open minded. There is a quixotic and playful quality to her dancing that partners naturally with her focused and receptive nature in the studio. She is an inventive, hard working talent and is exactly the kind of artist that this medium needs to promote contemporary dance not only here in the US, but also in her native Mexico." - Shannon Gillen (VIM VIGOR)
In 2020, Valeria founded VALLETO Heal, an initiative that aims to inspire the world to dance, and heal through movement and holistic approaches. This initiative has made a difference in the community and keeps evolving. (ig @valletoheal) Valeria currently lives in El Paso texas where she keeps leading VALLETO, choreographing, planning and creating initiatives that empower communities; catch her new podcast (VALLETO) in spotify and Instagram (@valletodance) called "Even More" an interview series and platform for women from all over the world to speak up about their personal stories, and creative and impactful projects.