Reachout Deaf Refugee Conference June 20-23

Avi Pryntz-Nadworny | Performer, Choreographer, Circus Artist

Growing up in Rochester, NY Avi spent his youth bouncing between a fascination with animation and a playful obsession with juggling and gymnastics. His interest in animation eventually brought him to Academy of Art University in San Francisco, where he studied Graphic Design and New Media before the lack of movement prompted him to audition for circus school in Quebec City, Canada. After two years of intensive training, he landed a job with Cirque du Soleil and began working as an acrobat and fire juggler in Les Chemins Invisibles. After the show ended he traveled to Italy to study tumbling and Cyr wheel at FLIC Scuola di Circo.

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A few years later, he moved back to Rochester to join the international touring company PUSH Physical Theatre as a physical actor and choreographer. Throughout his career, he has performed and created works all over America, Europe, and Asia as a soloist and with companies such as Cirque du Soleil, CirqOvation, Airplay Juggling, and Cirq’ulation Locale. He was also a finalist on TruTV’s Fake Off and has spoken as a guest for TEDx.

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A few of his recent highlights include performing original work for Paychex, Cornell University, The Rochester Institute of Technology, The 2018 Shanghai Drama Valley & AEMI Edinburgh Interactive Art Showcase, WallByrd Theatre Company, United Refining Company, and the Flint Hills International Children’s Festival.

Maya June Dwyer | Performer, Community Engagement Specialist, Director

Maya June Dwyer is a performing artist, director/choreographer, and a recent graduate with a dual B.A. in Theatre Performance and Community Engagement Through Arts (Empire State College). An emerging interdisciplinary artist, community activist, and current member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation Observership Class, her work as a performer, creator, and director spans musical, immersive, educational, and devised theatre; film, opera, and dance nationally and internationally.

Maya’s approach to creation has been shaped by her background in drama and dance-theatre, paired with work experience and training in restorative justice and community outreach with youth and adults. She has worked and trained with internationally acclaimed artists and companies including Meryl Tankard (Australian Dance Theatre), Shen Wei Dance Arts, Meredith Monk, Third Rail Projects, and PUSH Physical Theatre.

As a teaching artist, Maya’s experience ranges in age, setting, and discipline. She has taught long-term in both public and private school settings (pre-K – college), as well as facilitating shorter term projects in nursing homes, hospitals, and resettlement centers. For several years, she worked for Peaceful Schools teaching social and emotional skills through theatre, music, movement, and media in the Syracuse City School District. There she received extensive training in mediation and restorative justice, and since then has had a special interest in theatre for social justice and peace leadership. In 2018, she organized “All Artists: A Workshop Series for Unity Through Creativity”, a project funded by Andrew Cuomo’s N.Y.S.C.A. Decentralization Program. This series was created in partnership with the Northside Learning Center in Syracuse, with an emphasis on the empowerment of refugee artists and the development of cross-cultural relationships.

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Maya was recently awarded the 2019 Individual Artist Commission by CNY Arts. She was also awarded an Opportunity To Create grant through A.R.T./New York’s Creative Opportunity Fund to create “Pansy Craze”, an immersive choreoplay debuting this year.