Mariadela Belle Alvarez
“Alvarez generously gives of herself through her effervescent energy, bringing effortlessness to the material.”
Photo: Natasha Cohen-Carroll
Mariadela Belle Alvarez (she/they/ella) is a Latinx dancer, artivista, capoeirista, and teaching artist native to Central America. Born in Honduras, raised in the Philippines and having come of age in Philadelphia, Alvarez creates and collaborates with the belief that dance is futuristic technology for organizing, healing and liberation. Alvarez is currently based in Mni Sota Makoce, Saint Paul, MN.
In 2022, she had the opportunity to perform as an actor with Teatro Del Pueblo’s production of Real Women Have Curves under the direction of Leslis Brito and Adlyn Carreras, and was an artist in residence at Keshet Dance & Center for the Arts. Her choreography has been presented by the Painted Bride Art Center (2017), Asian Arts Initiative (2019), and PGM ONE (2019), to name a few.
Her commitment to dance and social justice has earned her scholarships to train with Ananya Dance Theatre, CONTRA-TIEMPO, and study with Urban Bush Women's Summer Leadership Institute and Dance Exchange’s Summer and Winter Institutes. Her social dance practice includes capoeira, house, salsa and bachata, rooted in Afro Latin arts & culture. Since 2019, she has studied Yorchhā, Ananya Dance Theatre’s signature aesthetic and contemporary dance technique, under the guidance of Dr. Ananya Chatterjea, Kealoha Ferreira, and Alexandra Eady.
Her ten years of extensive teaching credits include courses, residencies, and guest instruction with Swarthmore College, Temple University, Spelman College, Friends Central School, the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts, and numerous community arts organizations; for which Alvarez was recognized by the Bartol Foundation for her leadership as a teaching artist.
Alvarez received her early training at the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Performing Arts and earned her BFA in Dance from Temple University in 2014. Since January 2023, Alvarez joined Ananya Dance Theatre as an Artist. Past production roles include Michhil Amra (2023) and Antaranga (2024). This fall 2025, she will perform in the premiere in Swapnō Jhnāp.
Contact
mariadelabellealvarez@gmail.com