Meaghan Novoa (They/She) is a Dancer and Choreographer of Latinx and Jewish descent originally from the metro Atlanta area.
They grew up training in their hometown of Newnan, GA where they studied Ballet, Jazz, and Modern dance at studios such as Classical Dance Theatre, Newnan School Of Dance, and Southern Arc Dance Center. As a student, they also took open classes at Atlanta Ballet’s school and attended regional summer intensives, including American Ballet Theatre’s intensive at The University of Alabama.
At 18, they started their professional career with Southern Arc Dance Theatre in Newnan, GA as a founding company dancer and later went on to perform with companies such as City Gate Dance Theater (Atlanta), Room To Move Dance Company (Atlanta), Professional Bodies (Atlanta), Automal Dance Company (Portland, OR), Idaho Dance Theatre (Boise, ID), and Bautanzt Here (Atlanta).
They have presented their choreography in multiple cities with some highlights including The Modern Atlanta Dance Festival, Treefort Music Festival (Boise, ID), Mixtape Dance Festival (Atlanta, GA), Fertile Ground Festival (Portland, OR), Fall For Fall Dance Festival (Atlanta), Dance ATL's AM collab program, and the Beltline After Dark Festival.
They have received multiple grants and Artist Residencies for their choreography including from Idaho Commission On The Arts, MING Studios, Boise City Department Of Arts & History, Surel’s Place, LED Boise, Atlanta Contemporary, Dance Canvas, Art On The Beltline, Decatur School Of Ballet, A&E Atlanta, The City Of Atlanta's Mayor's Office Of Cultural Affairs and South Arts.
Their most recent work as a dancer and choreographer has included multimedia collaborations with visual artists and composers from across the country. Most recently they were awarded the 2024-2025 Emerging Artist Award in Dance from The City Of Atlanta's Mayor's Office Of Cultural Affairs, developed a new work "Fractal" at The High Museum's Dance Lab for Dance Canvas's 2025 performance series at The Rialto Center For The Arts and presented their most recent evening length work "Viscera" as part of Synchronicity Theatre's Stripped Bare Arts Incubator project.
Meaghan acknowledges the influence and inspiration of all past teachers, directors, choreographers, dancers, collaborators, etc. that they have worked with, all whom have elevated them as a dancer, choreographer, and artist.
When Meaghan isn't rehearsing, they teach Pilates at Contour Pilates Atlanta and CORE Ormewood and enjoy spending time with their partner, Cameron and cat, Ginger.
Photos by Jordan Young
Artist Statement:
I use my choreography to create my own ideal world, centering my queer and neurodivergent perspectives as well as exploring the intersectionality of my heritage as a Latinx and Jewish person. Grounding my choreography in these lived experiences helps me to create more organic entry points for my collaborators and those viewing my work. When starting a new process, I consider the subject matter of the work, source inspirations, and each piece’s collaborators' contributions, in order to draft a “mood board” of written and visual prompts to help me start the creative process. In my process, I use task-based exercises and memory recall as tools to start improvisational movement. From these improvisations, I pull visceral gestures that I translate into more technical choreographic phrases. From these movement “sketches”, I am then able to begin rehearsing with the dancers where I can share these discoveries and dialogue with the dancers to find entry points for them as they enter the work. This process aids our immersion into each created “world” where the dance takes place.
