Benji Reid's 'Find Your Eyes' Opens Dance Reflections Season at NYU Abu Dhabi

Benji Reid premiered 'Find Your Eyes' as the 11th season opener for Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels at The Arts NYU Abu Dhabi. The performance merges photography, choreography, and theoretical storytelling into a live, hybrid form where dancers and photographers collaborate in real time. Reid, a British visual and movement theatre maker, draws from his background in hip-hop theatre and award-winning photography, evolving a practice that blends street culture with fine art. His work explores the Black British experience, focusing on themes like Black masculinity and mental health, translating personal memory into movement. The performance deliberately slows down viewing, exposing the mechanics of creation by revealing missed cues and spontaneous corrections, fracturing the façade of seamless performance. Reid began his career in Manchester's underground theatre spaces in the mid-1990s, refitting classic dramaturgy with breakbeat rhythms. Dance Reflections supports artists who push boundaries, cultivating a landscape for audacious thinking and wordless rebellions. 'Find Your Eyes' invites audiences to engage visually, emotionally, and conceptually, creating a shared space for observation and reflection.