We had the good fortune of connecting with Janis Brenner and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Janis, what is the most important factor behind your success?
The most important factor behind the 40+-year success I have had as a multidisciplinary artist, has been sheer Perseverance and Belief in my work, in myself and in Art’s power to communicate, to find common ground, to engender discussion and new ways of thinking, and to heal–not only to heal on a collective level, but on a personal level as well. I persevere, sometimes against strong odds, because it is how I live in the world, how I transcend an often befuddled mind and difficult world. Being a creative and still-performing artist, even at this stage of my life, brings me closer to understanding so much more about my life and the lives of other cultures, traditions and peoples.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am an award-winning dancer/choreographer/singer/teacher/collagist and Artsitic Director of Janis Brenner & Dancers in NYC. Known for “meticulous artistry,” I’ve toured in 36 countries and received numerous awards/grants: NY Dance & Performance Award (a “Bessie”) for performance in Meredith Monk’s work, Lester Horton Award for Choreography in L.A., Copperfoot Award for “Lost, Found, Lost” at Wayne State, Fund for US Artists at International Festivals, Asian Cultural Council, Trust for Mutual Understanding, O’Donnell Green Music & Dance Foundation, Harkness Foundation for Dance, US Embassies in Moscow, Bosnia, Jakarta and Dakar, and a commission for “The Memory Project” from the Whitney Museum of American Art. My work has been commissioned/restaged on more than 50 companies and colleges worldwide, and I performed with Meredith Monk and Vocal Ensemble from 1990 – 2005, 2014, recording on ECM Records. I was with the Murray Louis Dance Company (1977-84), working with Rudolf Nureyev, Placido Domingo, Dave Brubeck Quartet, Joseph Papp, Bat Sheva Dance Company in Israel, and Alwin Nikolais. I was on faculty at The Juilliard School until 2021, directing Choreographers and Composers Collaborations and teaching Improvisation. My multi-award-winning one-woman show, “Inheritance: A Litany” received “Best Performance” at the United Solo Theatre Festival Off-Broadway, and has since received five 5-Star reviews from All About Solo publication and at the American Dance Festival this past summer. Janis Brenner & Dancers has performed throughout the US, Asia, Russia and Europe since 1989 and has served as Cultural Ambassadors on numerous tours. My new one-woman show, “She Remembers her Amnesia” premiered in NYC in November, 2022. As well, my first Visual Art exhibit at Susan Eley/Fine Art debuted in March, 2022. In SoCal specifically, I have toured to colleges and universities dozens of times over the last 3o years, staging many works and being a Guest Artist for semester-long residencies. All of this could not have been possible without the early belief and encouragement from my supportive parents and early teachers/mentors who set me on this path. And No, it was not easy, and continues to be not easy. I’ve learned to accept the circuitous paths and large bumps along the road, and to remember to see them as possibilities rather than dead-ends. I have kept myself open to multiple art forms and creative processes because I both love and thrive in multiple layers of forms and because when one is not working, I turn to another to keep going. “Life is an Improvisation.”

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I know Los Angeles and Long Beach most, since that’s where I’ve consistently spent the most time while in SoCal. I love the Westwood area surrounding UCLA. It’s so vibrant and energized, and some of the restaurants are great–and just hanging out there is fun. The Fowler Museum on the UCLA campus is a beautiful place. In Long Beach, I enjoy going to walk along 2nd Street in Belmont Shore, to the restaurants, shops, and then to the pier, the water. Since I’m in Theatre, I’ve enjoyed seeing work at the Luckman Fine Arts Complex, Martha B. Knoebel Theater at CSULB, Royce Hall, and The Wallis Theater in Beverly Hills most recently.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I dedicate this article to the Nikolais/Louis Dance Lab and Foundation, who formed me as a young, wide-eyed dancer/creator– specifically my brilliant, inventive teachers Phyllis Lamhut, Murray Louis, Alwin Nikolais, Hanya Holm and Claudia Gitelman, who instilled the spirit of Improvisation into everything we explored. As well, I could never have created the work I’ve made without the dedicated commitment of so many longtime company members—true artist collaborators.

Website: www.janisbrenner.com

Instagram: janisbrenner

Facebook: www.facebook.com/janis.brenner

Youtube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC6Wo913E1QnCiJecFPh_1ng

Other: https://fundraising.fracturedatlas.org/janis-brenner-dancers

Image Credits
Judy Stuart Boroson, Julie lemberger, Tom Caravaglia, Hakan Jelk, Bearnstow, Grinnell College

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