Audrey Baran (she / her) is a Filipina-American dance maker, performer, and educator based in Charlotte, North Carolina. She holds a MFA in Dance from Hollins University and a BA in Dance as well as a Graduate Certificate in Anti-Racism in Urban Education from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. As the founder and artistic director of contemporary dance company Baran Dance, Baran is dedicated to broadening definitions and accessibility of contemporary dance throughout the Southeast by presenting collaborative, multimedia performances and mentorship programs for emerging and evolving dance artists. Her professional and educational choreography has been described as, “a fully human place with honesty, courage and creativity percolating simultaneously.”

Baran was a selected choreographer for the Joffrey Ballet Academy’s Winning Works 2022 Choreographic Competition and Charlotte Ballet’s Innovative: Direct from the LAB 2021. She was the 2019 UNC Charlotte Department of Dance Distinguished Alum, an inaugural recipient of the Creative Renewal Fellowship from Charlotte’s Arts and Science Council, and has received awards from the Movies by Movers Festival and the Charlotte Emerging Dance Awards. In addition to producing over 20 independent professional dance concert, Baran has presented work in the Small Plates Dance Festival, Richmond Dance Festival, Sites in the City, FEMMEfest, the National Dance Educators Organization Conference, Bill Evans Somatic Dance Conference, the North Carolina Dance Festival, Tobacco Road Dance Productions, Triangle Dance Project, Ladyfest CLT, and the Charlotte Dance Festival. Baran is also a 500-hour Registered Yoga Teacher and MUNZ FLOOR® coach and thrives on sharing her research on the intersection of movement and mindfulness among diverse bodies in action.