JOY DAVIS is a dance maker, performer, and teacher. Originally from Nashville, Joy has spent the last fifteen years between her beloved Tennessee, Chicago, and Amsterdam creating, performing, and studying contemporary dance and improvisation. Joy is (obviously) an MFA Candidate and Teaching Fellow at Smith College in the Department of Dance, Northampton, MA and has taught at Smith College, Hampshire College, UMass Amherst, and Marlboro College. Joy holds a BA in Performing Arts through the College Scholars Program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She served as Artistic Director of Circle Modern Dance and was on dance faculty at the University of Tennessee. Since 2005, Joy continues to train and study the Countertechnique with originator, Anouk van Dijk, Artistic Director of Chunky Move. In 2012, Joy was certified to teach Countertechnique and is one four American instructors teaching classes and workshops all over the United States. In addition to independently producing seven evening-length works in site-specific locations, Joy was a recipient of the Chicago Dancemakers Forum (CDF) Greenhouse Grant for Emerging Choreographers produced by Links Hall and received a choreographic residency at Sandra Hirth’s Workspace for Choreographers in Sperryville, Virginia. Her solo work has been presented by The San Diego Dance Theatre, the H-O-T series at Mascher Space Co-op in Philadelphia, Mountain Empire’s TDP Salons in Northampton and Philadelphia, and Company Rose’s ONE in Nashville. Joy collaborates with choreographer, Shaina Cantino on their recently launched project Duoco Dance Theatre and is also collaborating with Banning Bouldin’s New Dialect in Nashville for their emerging choreographers series. Joy is honored to be teaching and performing at the Seattle Festival of Dance Improvisation (SFDI) this coming summer.