About Emilia

Originally from Lake Zurich, IL, Emilia Bruno (they/them) is an Italian-American, queer movement artist and educator based in College Park, MD. They are a core collaborator with Tristan Koepke/Big Boy Dance, regularly creating, developing, and performing company work since 2023. Additional performance credits include Kendra Portier/BANDportier, Shapiro & Smith Dance, Zenon Dance Company, Slo Dance Company, Brit Falcon/Falcon Dance, and MK Ford. In addition to their work at BDF and as a performance artist, Emilia works as an arts administrator for Mariclare Hulbert Consulting supporting the communication, marketing, and public relations efforts of renown dance artists and organizations including Dance/USA and NCCAkron. Their dance scholarship has been presented at the 2025 Pop Culture Association Conference and the University of Florida in Gainesville.

Emilia’s work with the Young Dancers Intensive began in 2018 working as an intern for the Mentorship Team. They then served as the Director of Mentorship for the program from 2023-2025 before being named Associate Director in 2025. Education and mentorship for aspiring youth artists is a core value of their continued work and desired impact on the dance field at large. Emilia has held teaching positions of various capacities at a multitude of institutions and organizations including University of Florida; University of Maryland, College Park; American College Dance Association; and Bates College. Emilia received their BFA in Dance and BS in Kinesiology from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities and is a current MFA candidate in Dance at the University of Maryland, College Park.