Ryan Smith and Wendy Rein have been dancing together and collaborating since 1998, when they met as students at Brown University. Since 2004, they have co-directed RAWdance, an award-winning company known for transforming theaters and public spaces with intellectually and emotionally layered performances.
The duo have been supported through residencies at Djerassi, Zaccho Dance Theatre, Ucross, and CounterPULSE. They are current resident artists at 836M Gallery in SF, creating a new work in the gallery’s windows over the course of three months. RAWdance is a resident company of ODC Theater. Smith and Rein are recipients of an SF Bay Guardian GOLDIE award, Choreographers in Mentorship Exchange (CHIME) award, and have been named SF Weekly Mastermind finalists. Their work has been supported by the NEA, SF Arts Commission, SF Grants for the Arts, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, and others.
RAWdance has performed in Singapore, China, and across the US, and its 2013 short dance film “since you went” has toured the international festival circuit. Rein and Smith have been commissioned to set work on St. Louis’ Madco, the Bay Area’s Zi-Ru Productions, and schools such as Webster University, Williams College, Brown University, and Marin School of the Arts.
In 2007, the duo founded the CONCEPT series, a biannual, informal and intimate salon of contemporary dance. Through 18 iterations, they have presented 79 artists and companies to date.
