Research Overview

Rosamaria Kostic Cisneros

Dr (Summa Cum Laude)

I am an Associate Prof. artist-researcher at Coventry University’s Centre for Dance Research (C-DaRE) and also work as an independent artist, dancer and teacher.

MY RESEARCH VISION: I am inspired by interdisciplinary work and collaborative projects and modes of working. The combination of the practical and the theoretical underpins all of my research interests and I am guided by bringing people together. Working with vulnerable groups and using the arts and education to engage communities and participate in projects that lead to a more inclusive society, is what I am hoping to achieve with my academic research. Cultural heritage and digital technologies is also a key part of my current practice.

Particular Interests:

Dance and Technology
Cultural Heritage and Digital Platform
Dialogic Teaching Methods and Successful Educational Actions
Oral histories and vulnerable groups, in particular the Romani community
Flamenco: history, performance, CH, engagement
Education and participatory research methods
Dance History, Higher education, digital platforms and tools(e.g annotation)
Museums, Dance and public spaces
Historical Dance and links with younger audiences

As a dancer and choreographer, dance historian and critic, Romani Studies scholar, sociologist, Flamenco Historian and Peace Activist who graduated from UW-Madison and went on to complete her Master’s in Dance History and Criticism from UNM-Albuquerque (USA). My PhD is in Sociology with a focus on Roma women, intersectionality, dialogic feminism and communicative methodologies.

I am a professional dancer, choreographer, curator and qualified teacher, who has lived and danced in various parts of the world and collaborated with many Flamenco greats and other leaders in the Dance field.

I am involved in various EU-FUNDED projects which aim to make education accessible to vulnerable groups and ethnic minorities and sits on various Boards: Roma Coventry Project (UK), Drom Kotar Mestipen Roma Women’s Association (Spain), Awa Dance Charity, and the Early Dance Circle (UK). At the moment I am an artist-researcher at Coventry University’s Centre for Dance Research based in the UK. I also am an independent artist, dancer, curator and teacher who has organised various festivals and exhibitions. My dance films have screened in the UK, US, Colombia, Mexico, Greece, Cyprus and Germany and myp latest documentary won best documentary from the UK in 2016.

I have started my own production company, RosaSenCis Film Production Co., which worked on the Society for Dance Research Oral History Project. The company aims to create dance films and documentaries that capture stories and reflect embodied traditions that might otherwise be lost.She has also managed major EU-Funded projects and local City of Culture Partnership projects and organised the Hip Hop Talking Back: artists and researchers events. Rosamaria collaborates closely with the University of Barcelona’s Centre for Research on Theories and Practices for Overcoming Inequalities (CREA).She sits on academic Journals as an editor and those include the Journal for Embodied Practices, International Journal of Romani Studies and OneDance UK’s HOTFOOT Online magazine.

Cisneros brings conceptual grounding in debates around decolonising dance, archives and practice research and through her consultancy work for the International Council on Archives, leading their ethical archives project, and chair of the Equality and Diversity Task Force for Europeana Foundation, Cisneros is well placed to discuss EDI-related tensions. She is also located in a network of practitioner and researchers working in ‘inclusive’ and ‘marginalised’ dance practices and supports services (e.g. NHS, Save the Children, EU-Commission) to explore the potential of arts and culture in their services.