Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryan Page.
Ryan, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in the south. Backwoods, baked beans, barbecue, and bible study. Dancing wasn’t in reach, so sports were always my trojan horse into movement. I enjoyed it, but my bigger priority was staying closeted, so I really did not allow myself to express beyond the way in which I perceived how men were “allowed” to move. Being in sports long enough, disavowing how I naturally wanted to freely articulate my spine and hips, a lot of suppressed creative energy came out in the form of aggression in sports. Breaking rackets, fights, kicked out of games—so dramatic! It was just all of this free-floating arousal similar to the feeling of mosh-pit goer at a concert. That was me in my body.
Eventually, I broke into dance and found myself at North Carolina School of the Arts, a high-school boarding school conservatory for dance. It was exacting, over-the-top, but I valued having teachers that treated our artistic development as if it was as important as war or childbirth. It was an intense time, but I really developed through a fine blend of challenge and support.
I moved to NYC, danced a lot, parked it for a while, and ended up at a Buddhist university called Naropa in Boulder, Colorado, when I was 21. My degree was in contemplative psychology but my focus was on parlaying my training into a larger exploration of what the body’s role in healing is and maybe how performance can have a home in all of that.
Now I’m in LA. You can really free range in the breadth of opportunities here. So much is aligned with the pop music industry, but there is an exciting undertow of experimental work that exists here. It’s a less organized season that somewhere like NYC, but community takes the place of infrastructure. I’m performing, teaching, and movement directing for models and actors who need help embodying or playing their weird right on camera or for print.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
One the primary obstacles for being a dancer and maker in LA is an existential one. We are sold this myth that LA is the place where people come to pursue BIG dreams and are cut down by pursuit. The most free I have felt is when I have disarmed this narrative and replaced it with the power of listening and having faith in my own voice. I don’t give up on myself as easily as I used to because I’m finding ways to sealing the gap between expectation and reality.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’m a dancer, choreographer, but have lately been more immersed in the field of movement direction. Movement direction has a vastness to it in definition, it really can be anything. I recommend it for people who thrive in a context of spontaneity, compassion, and patience. I got my start by partnering with one of my favorite photographers Ryan Pfluger. His work demands a level of bodily intelligence from those in front of the camera and that’s where I can be of service. So many dancers have the ability to do this, but it is really not a trajectory that is sold to us in terms of how and where we drive our careers. As a movement director, I have worked for Samuel L Jackson, Playboy, Slipknot, Brooke Candy, NY Times, Olivia Wilde, Ezra Miller, and others. Each job is incredibly different but the thru line is being able to roll with the punches, connect with people, PUSH IT, and coach talent from a place of command and kindness. There’s still so much I’m learning about it, but the thrill of helping construct a powerful image is real.
What were you like growing up?
Oh man. I was all over the place. I wanted to be a professional wrestler, a wildlife photographer, a tuba player, flower farmer, museum curator, hospice caregiver–anything that felt high-stakes and sensual. I was a really sensitive kid and definitely built my identity around the prospect of feeling “special” and people pleasing. Worked for a while, but then I realized how much life force I was hemorrhaging out by trying to be everything to everybody. I had a lot of friends but definitely depended on a rich fantasy world behind closed doors to get by.
Contact Info:
- Email: ryan.walker.page@gmail.com
- Instagram: @ryanwalkerpage
Image Credit:
Owen Scarlett (photographer), St. Vincent and Dua Lipa (talent), Ryan Pfluger (photographer), Easton Schirra (photographer), Osiris Santos (photographer), Brooke Candy (talent), Ryan Pfluger (photographer), Ryan Pfluger (photographer)
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