About Kairos Dance

Our Mission

This mission of Kairos Dance Theatre is to transform and revitalize individuals and communities. We work with older adults in intergenerational settings to liberate the healing power of interactive dance and story. We achieve our mission by engaging the skills of professional teaching artists.

Our Vision

Kairos uses dance and storytelling to create a sense of community and well-being in participants of all ages and walks of life.

Our Work

Our work draws upon modern dance, movement improvisation, folk dance and oral history traditions from around the world, and the lives of inspiring people. Artistic Director Maria Genné is recognized for her ability to highlight the beauty of human experience through movement and story, skillfully weaving together the gifts of each performer. Kairos is the only intergenerational modern dance company in Minnesota, and one of only a handful in the U.S.

We are an unusual and unique dance company of all different ages (7-98 years). We have created an award winning program called “The Dancing Heart” which vitally engages frail elders, including those with mid-to-late stage Alzheimer’s, in a weekly dance and storytelling playshop that has shown to positively improve the health of participants. We have won two national awards: The Archstone Award for Excellence in Program Innovation from The American Public Health Association and the 2008 Mind Alert Award from the American Society on Aging.

Ebenezer and Amherst Wilder Foundation each received a Minnesota Aging Services Excellence & Innovation Award at the 2011 state convention for their work with Kairos and The Dancing Heart™

Most importantly, we are a community-based program that believes all are welcome in the community circle. We realized that there was a large group of people who had been left out, and our work welcomes them back in. Our intergenerational performances, which we bring to schools, nursing homes, museums, parks, and community centers bring a vision of what community can be: all ages, all backgrounds, all abilities, all dancing together.