RALPH ESCAMILLAN is a queer, Canadian-Filipinx performance artist, choreographer and teacher based in Vancouver, BC. Ralph started his training in street dance styles, and is a graduate of Modus Operandi—a Vancouver-based Contemporary Dance program. He has danced/toured/created with Vancouver-based companies, Film and TV as well as a beacon for the Vancouver Ballroom Scene since 2017, through his other nonprofit VanVogueJam.
As the artistic director of FakeKnot, he develops collaborative performance works that have been presented both nationally and internationally. Having ancestral roots in the Philippines, he’s fascinated by inquiries into what it means to be North American, especially within the context of cultural traditions, dance, music and costume in an increasingly interconnected global community. The exploration of how culture is created through the accumulation of ideas and concepts is at the center of his work. He has found the body to be a powerful vessel through which these ideas can be investigated—incorporating music, costume and new media design.
The inaugural RBC Emerging Artist Award will recognize Ralph Escamillan, a queer, Canadian-Filipinx performance artist, teacher and community leader based in Vancouver, BC.