Trainor Dance

Trainor Dance "I love dance because of those rare exquisite moments when the movement feels as fine as it does in my dreams" Caitlin Trainor (Founder, Artistic Director)

About Caitlin Trainor:

Caitlin Trainor lives and dances in New York City. Originally from Rhode Island, Trainor holds degrees from Skidmore College (B.S. in Dance Performance and Choreography) and Mills College (M.F.A. in Dance Performance and Choreography). Caitlin is a member of the dance faculty at Barnard College/Columbia University and delights in sharing dance with students. Before founding

Trainor Dance, Caitlin danced for the Metropolitan Opera Ballet, Sean Curran, Amy Marshall and others. She was assistant choreographer to Mr. Curran and site-specific choreographer Stephan Koplowitz, and has taught at Dance City (Newcastle, England), Montclair State University, American College Dance Festival, and Sarah Lawrence College. During her recent tenure in the U.K., Caitlin co-founded Fresh, an ongoing forum for the development, sharing and discussion of new work for regional dance artists and audiences, and presented The Magic Behind the Movement, a lecture/demonstration, in conjunction with Northumbria University and Darlington Arts Center. Trainor recently received a generous grant from New York Foundation of the Arts, and is grateful to Barnard College for ongoing production support.

The contention of the piece was that 6 female performers, wearing only white leotards, enter a white box gallery in whic...
02/01/2026

The contention of the piece was that 6 female performers, wearing only white leotards, enter a white box gallery in which the audience unloads 36 paint-loaded squirt-guns. ⁠
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Photo: Paul B. Goode Music: Robert Boston (live) and Mozart (film) Costumes, concept, and choreography: Caitlin Trainor Film: Gus Reed Performers: Emily Craver, Shirley Dai, Falls Kennedy, Tamrin Goldberg, Emily Pacilio, Caitlin Trainor, Hannah Weeks⁠
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In an essay, published in the July 2018 issue of The Dancing Times of London, I wrote about the long planned live experi...
02/01/2026

In an essay, published in the July 2018 issue of The Dancing Times of London, I wrote about the long planned live experimental performance, which took place only 3 weeks after the terrible Las Vegas massacre and at the peak of the movement. ⁠
⁠
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Photo: Paul B. Goode Music: Robert Boston (live) and Mozart (film) Costumes, concept, and choreography: Caitlin Trainor Film: Gus Reed Performers: Emily Craver, Shirley Dai, Falls Kennedy, Tamrin Goldberg, Emily Pacilio, Caitlin Trainor, Hannah Weeks

PAINT is an exploration of herd mentality and predator/prey relationships. Link in bio ⁠Funded by Lower Manhattan Cultu...
02/01/2026

PAINT is an exploration of herd mentality and predator/prey relationships. Link in bio ⁠
Funded by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, this piece was created in collaboration with Gus Reed, for which he needed to outfit his camera with a special handmade paint-proof case.⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠
Photo: Paul B. Goode Music: Robert Boston (live) and Mozart (film) Costumes, concept, and choreography: Caitlin Trainor Film: Gus Reed Performers: Emily Craver, Shirley Dai, Falls Kennedy, Tamrin Goldberg, Emily Pacilio, Caitlin Trainor, Hannah Weeks

In an essay, published in the July 2018 issue of The Dancing Times of London, I wrote about the long planned live experi...
02/01/2026

In an essay, published in the July 2018 issue of The Dancing Times of London, I wrote about the long planned live experimental performance, which took place only 3 weeks after the terrible Las Vegas massacre and at the peak of the movement. ⁠
⁠
⁠
Photo: Paul B. Goode Music: Robert Boston (live) and Mozart (film) Costumes, concept, and choreography: Caitlin Trainor Film: Gus Reed Performers: Emily Craver, Shirley Dai, Falls Kennedy, Tamrin Goldberg, Emily Pacilio, Caitlin Trainor, Hannah Weeks⁠
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ContemporaryDance DancePerformance DancingTimesofLondon NewYorkDancers DanceCompany DanceArtists MusicAndDance PAINT

PAINT is an exploration of herd mentality and predator/prey relationships. Link in bio ⁠Funded by Lower Manhattan Cultu...
02/01/2026

PAINT is an exploration of herd mentality and predator/prey relationships. Link in bio ⁠
Funded by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, this piece was created in collaboration with Gus Reed, for which he needed to outfit his camera with a special handmade paint-proof case.⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠
Photo: Paul B. Goode Music: Robert Boston (live) and Mozart (film) Costumes, concept, and choreography: Caitlin Trainor Film: Gus Reed Performers: Emily Craver, Shirley Dai, Falls Kennedy, Tamrin Goldberg, Emily Pacilio, Caitlin Trainor, Hannah Weeks

“Faux Pas” translates to an awkward social blunder or misstep, a corollary to how it felt to create this piece with unap...
01/15/2026

“Faux Pas” translates to an awkward social blunder or misstep, a corollary to how it felt to create this piece with unapologetic joy and celebration at a time when the prevailing sensibility was anything but that… The dancers I saw at that time felt gritty, ironic, visceral. I wanted rapture, fantasy, revelry. Using the music of Mozart without being ordained in ballet or advanced music theory felt irreverent at least, almost transgressive. Certainly a faux pas, and the tongue in cheek use of French in the title reflected the use of ballet vocabulary in the work. When I was researched the music, I read that Mozart was influenced by Africanist rhythms; I have no idea of whether this is true, but the concept seemed to validate what I’d heard in the music and created in response; whirling and lyric movements, yes– but also– grounded stomping movements, a peppering of polyrhythms, and flights of fancy alike. Dancers: Emily Craver, Landes Dixon, Kaitlyn Gilliland, Allegra Herman, Emily Pacilio, Holt Walborn, A. Raheim White, Leslie Ziff
Music: Mozart
Costumes: David Quinn
Photo: Paul B. Goode

The extravagance of the music is reflected in the colorful silken skirts worn by dancers of all genders. The dancers lea...
01/15/2026

The extravagance of the music is reflected in the colorful silken skirts worn by dancers of all genders. The dancers learned to work with these capacious garments as a partner. They wore the skirts trussed up like warriors, draped like ancient togas, flipped overhead like flowers in the rain, and fully released to display the full silken circle. The dancers adapted to the variables of wind, sweat, and humidity on the movement of the fabric, and I took them home after each show to wash them one at a time with baby shampoo. This project was my first collaboration with the costume designer David Quinn, and the skirts dramatically impacted the success of the work, demonstrating the impact of a true costume.
Dancers: Emily Craver, Landes Dixon, Kaitlyn Gilliland, Allegra Herman, Emily Pacilio, Holt Walborn, A. Raheim White, Leslie Ziff
Music: Mozart
Costumes: David Quinn
Photo: Paul B. Goode

Like a dream, this piece is rife with non-linear imagery meant to dazzle the eye and awaken the imagination. In every re...
01/15/2026

Like a dream, this piece is rife with non-linear imagery meant to dazzle the eye and awaken the imagination. In every rehearsal process, there is an interior language developed, often using metaphor to describe sections, moments or passages in a work. The synesthesia of dancers is so natural, reflected in the translation of physical to verbal reference points. In “Faux Pas” we had ‘ecstasy party’, ‘flowers blooming’,’escaping bird’, ‘babies’, ‘acid trip’, ‘African’ and ‘. Watch the piece and see if you can find them, or depart on your own flight of fancy into “Faux Pas”.

Dancers: Emily Craver, Landes Dixon, Kaitlyn Gilliland, Allegra Herman, Emily Pacilio, Holt Walborn, A. Raheim White, Leslie Ziff
Music: Mozart
Costumes: David Quinn
Photo: Paul B. Goode

Faux Pas” translates to an awkward social blunder or misstep, a corollary to how it felt to create this piece with unapo...
01/15/2026

Faux Pas” translates to an awkward social blunder or misstep, a corollary to how it felt to create this piece with unapologetic joy and celebration at a time when the prevailing sensibility was anything but that… The dancers I saw at that time felt gritty, ironic, visceral. I wanted rapture, fantasy, revelry. Using the music of Mozart without being ordained in ballet or advanced music theory felt irreverent at least, almost transgressive. Certainly a faux pas, and the tongue in cheek use of French in the title reflected the use of ballet vocabulary in the work. When I was researched the music, I read that Mozart was influenced by Africanist rhythms; I have no idea of whether this is true, but the concept seemed to validate what I’d heard in the music and created in response; whirling and lyric movements, yes– but also– grounded stomping movements, a peppering of polyrhythms, and flights of fancy alike. Dancers: Emily Craver, Landes Dixon, Kaitlyn Gilliland, Allegra Herman, Emily Pacilio, Holt Walborn, A. Raheim White, Leslie Ziff
Music: Mozart
Costumes: David Quinn
Photos: Paul B. Goode

The extravagance of the music is reflected in the colorful silken skirts worn by dancers of all genders. The dancers lea...
01/15/2026

The extravagance of the music is reflected in the colorful silken skirts worn by dancers of all genders. The dancers learned to work with these capacious garments as a partner. They wore the skirts trussed up like warriors, draped like ancient togas, flipped overhead like flowers in the rain, and fully released to display the full silken circle. The dancers adapted to the variables of wind, sweat, and humidity on the movement of the fabric, and I took them home after each show to wash them one at a time with baby shampoo. This project was my first collaboration with the costume designer David Quinn, and the skirts dramatically impacted the success of the work, demonstrating the impact of a true costume.

Dancers: Emily Craver, Landes Dixon, Kaitlyn Gilliland, Allegra Herman, Emily Pacilio, Holt Walborn, A. Raheim White, Leslie Ziff
Music: Mozart
Costumes: David Quinn
Photos: Paul B. Goode

Like a dream, this piece is rife with non-linear imagery meant to dazzle the eye and awaken the imagination. In every re...
01/15/2026

Like a dream, this piece is rife with non-linear imagery meant to dazzle the eye and awaken the imagination. In every rehearsal process, there is an interior language developed, often using metaphor to describe sections, moments or passages in a work. The synesthesia of dancers is so natural, reflected in the translation of physical to verbal reference points. In “Faux Pas” we had ‘ecstasy party’, ‘flowers blooming’,’escaping bird’, ‘babies’, ‘acid trip’, ‘African’ and ‘. Watch the piece and see if you can find them, or depart on your own flight of fancy into “Faux Pas”.
Dancers: Emily Craver, Landes Dixon
Music: Mozart
Costumes: David Quinn
Photo: Paul B. Goode

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