The Ailey School

Ariana Champlin was born and raised in the state of Maine.  She began her training with Scottish Highland Dance and Flamenco, performing with the Highland Soles throughout New England.  She broadened her training at the Bates Dance Festival in Maine, the Laban Center in London, and at The Ailey School in New York City, where she graduated  from their Certificate Program in 2009. Ariana was a member of the Alvin Ailey Student Performance Group and she also trained and performed in Burgos Spain, under the direction of Kazuko Hirabayashi. More recently, she has worked with established choreographers, such as Nicole Wolcott and Derek Mitchell, in the creation and production of performances in the greater New York area.

In 2010, Ariana co-founded 49th Parallel Dance Company and in 2015 she took over sole direction of the company.  Ariana’s Choreography has been presented at venues such as Green Space Festival (Queens, NYC), The QAS at Webster Hall (NYC), Feats Festival of Dance (Edmonton, AB), Dancers Studio West (Calgary, AB), Manhattan Movement and Arts Center (NYC), Vancouver Fringe Festival (Vancouver, BC), the Queensboro Dance Festival (Queens, NYC), and the Saco River Theatre (Buxton, ME).  As an educator of dance, Ariana has taught both modern and contemporary techniques in New York, New England, Vancouver and Calgary. She is currently in the process of choreographing a new piece for the 49th Parallel dancers in NYC, and looks forward to collaborating and performing with new artists from all over the globe.