Alumni Spotlight: Rhianna Cranston

Rhianna Cranston, née Jordan graduated from KU in 2018 with a BFA in Dance. As a student, she performed with (and even choreographed for) our University Dance Company. Currently, Rhianna is a MFA candidate in Dance at the University of Colorado Boulder, where she spends time taking and teaching classes. She routinely works in house, hip-hop proper, ballet, contemporary practices, and Afro modern styles.

When asked about her favorite KU memory, Rhianna highlighted her time in prof. Muriel Cohan’s Dance for Children course, which explored pedagogical theories and teaching approaches. “This was my first real exposure to dance education in K to 12 settings, and seeing the immediate impact of integrating movement and the arts into curriculum was incredibly powerful.” She also looks back fondly on her two years as president of UNITY Hip Hop. Her advice for her freshman self is to be present and find joy in the everyday, because the days will come and go and time will keep changing whether you are ready or not.

In addition to her responsibilities as a CU Boulder grad student (including an emphasis in sound design and sonic futurism), Rhianna teaches at Miss Rachael’s Dance in Denver and regularly guest instructs and choreographs for studios in Colorado and Kansas. Additionally, she recently presented a workshop at the American College Dance Association at California State University and spoke on a panel at the Collegium for African Diaspora Dance at Duke University.