The Unrehearsed Artist Residency Program is a virtual program that funds and supports South Asian dance and movement artists from many different backgrounds, genres, and identities. Many of these artists are challenging the status quo, which often prevents us from witnessing certain stories or points of view.
This years public sharings takes place over two wednesdays! Each event will showcase four residents' work in progress followed by a QnA with the audience.
Please join us in supporting the residents and consider a small donation to help us fund the residency next year.
The exact schedule for the sharing will be out soon!
Day 2 Artist Bios:
Ammr Vandal | New York, USA
Ammr Vandal began her Kathak training in Lahore, Pakistan, studying under the late Maharaj Ghulam Hussain and Nahid Siddiqui during Zia Ul-Haq’s regime, which banned women from dancing. She was featured in Pakistan's first publicly televised dance performance following the restoration of democracy, performing in Nahid Siddiqui’s piece celebrating Pakistan's independence.
After moving to New York City, Ammr resumed her Kathak training under Parul Shah, a disciple of Kumudini Lakhia. She became a prominent performer with the Parul Shah Dance Company (PSDC), showcasing her artistry in productions such as All That’s in Between, History of Unforgetting, Chasing Upwards, Rushing in My Mind, Precious Cracked Earth, and several traditional Kathak pieces. Beyond group performances, Ammr has also delivered solo shows in Pakistan and New York, gaining recognition for her emotive storytelling and technical precision.
Currently based in New York, Ammr continues to evolve as a choreographer and performer, crafting works that reflect her personal experiences and cultural heritage. Through her artistry, she bridges the traditional and contemporary, bringing Kathak to audiences in ways that resonate with contemporary narratives while honoring the form's rich history.
Leia Devedason | Berkley, USA
Leia Devedason is a writer, composer, and dance-learner from Singapore. She is currently a PhD student in Performance Studies at UC Berkeley, where she researches and writes about queer performance, aesthetics, and artistic labour under capitalism, with a focus on Indian classical dance. In addition to dancing and performing Odissi, she served as a dramaturg for Devotions (2022), a project that combined the storytelling traditions of abhinaya and Western oratorio music. Most recently, she directed and composed her own dance film, Jani: there is nothing empty (2024), created under the Bay Area-based Voices of Bhakti artist fellowship.
Joshua Sailo | 2025 URP Cohort | Bangalore, India
Joshua Sailo is an anti-disciplinary Mizo artist, allowing his experience as a dancer and choreographer to branch out into various forms of expression through music, illustration, and visual design. His creative practice and research are autobiographical in nature, exploring themes of identity and power while navigating the world through a queer indigenous lens. Embarking on a new multi-media project supported by Foundation of Indian Contemporary Art, he is currently reexamining Mizo “folk” practices to devise new systems of composition, placing emphasis on the body as a living archive for storytelling, music, and dance as a celebration of “togetherness”. He continues to expand his range as a performer, appearing in works by Sasha Waltz and Guests, Foofwa d’Imobilité, Preethi Athreya, and Surjit Nongmeikapam amongst others, and is committed to building new arts audiences across India through teaching, producing, and podcasting.