ZOE RAPPAPORT
MOVEMENT DIRECTOR | CHOREOGRAPHER | CREATIVE PRODUCER
Recognized by the LA Times as a visionary in Creative Movement Direction, Zoe Rappaport is known for blending dance, art, fashion and music to create powerful movement-driven storytelling. Based between Los Angeles, New York, and Mexico City, she works as a Movement Director, Choreographer, Creative Producer, and Interdisciplinary Dance Artist. With nearly two decades of experience across editorial, film, fashion and live performance, her ability to translate artistic concepts into striking physical expression has made her a sought-after creative partner in both commercial and artistic spaces.
Collaborating with leading designers, brands, artists, and filmmakers, Zoe has worked with Grammy-winning artists, pop culture icons and global brands including Estée Lauder, FLAUNT, LOVE Magazine, Coca-Cola, HP and Schön! Switzerland. Her work has been featured in LA Times, Frieze, and Dance Magazine, and has been showcased at venues including MOCA LA, The Skirball, World of Dance NY, Webster Hall, Dance New Amsterdam, Human Resources LA, LaMama Experimental Theatre and The Hatch Shell.
Mentored by acclaimed artists by the time she was 18 years old, Zoe has performed the works of world-renowned choreographers Adrienne Hawkins (Impulse Dance), Simone Forti, Jimmy Locust (Michael & Janet Jackson, Paula Abdul), Sarah Elgart/Arrogant Elbow, Billy Siegenfeld (Jump Rhythm Jazz Project), Kathryn Posin, and Mecca Vazie Andrews.​​ With a background spanning modern/jazz/blues to hip hop, house, and experimental contemporary, Zoe draws on a broad spectrum of movement language in her pursuit to bridge worlds and build community. ​
During her 20s in New York, Zoe began expanding her creative lens while working as a professional dancer and choreographer, where she serendipitously met and was mentored by legendary makeup artist Linda Mason. This sparked her exploration of the intersections between art, beauty, fashion, and movement—leading to creative contributions on projects for Hermès, The Grammy’s, America’s Got Talent, So You Think You Can Dance, and A$AP Rocky's iconic Babushka Boi music video. In 2014, Zoe had the rare opportunity to work on HEARTBEAT—a legendary dance performance created by sound artist Christopher Janney and choreographed by Sara Rudner, toured internationally by Mikhail Baryshnikov.​​​
Since 2019, Zoe has served as the Creative Producer for Dare to Dance in
Public Film Festival (D2D) — an international dance film festival dedicated to the concept of democratizing dance so that it may be seen & experienced not just in studios and theaters, but in public space. Working in collaboration with Founder/Director Sarah Elgart, D2D has brought in some of the top industry professionals form the worlds of dance & film to judge including Desmond Richadson, Kyle Abraham, d. Sabela Grimes, Tony Testa, Nina McNeely, Stephen Galloway, Louise Lecavalier, Kristy Edmunds and more.
Zoe holds a degree in Community-Based Arts Education from New York University’s Gallatin School, where she focused on the transformative power of movement. The daughter of a civil rights/anti-war activist and pioneer of expressive arts therapies, Zoe has been cultivating brave spaces for creative exploration since she was 16 years old in a variety of settings - from after- school programs to summer camps, dance studios to prisons. She is currently on faculty at AMDA College of Performing Arts, directing dance reels and courses in Kinetic Storytelling, Experimental Contemporary, Dance Cinematography and Original Content Creation.
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In 2020, Zoe founded Storytelling Through Movement (STM), a creative production company helping global brands express their stories through the art of movement. In this endeavor, she has cultivated partnerships with Live Nation, LA Pride, House of Ninja and Utopia to bring inclusive, dance-centric events to larger stages and wider audiences. A founding member of Choreographers Guild, Zoe is committed to mentoring the next generation of empowered movement artists, bringing dance into new and unexpected places, and elevating the field as a whole.​
