As New York-based dance company The Neighbors prepared for its second-ever show, Artistic Director and New School alum Christabelle Tan was set in motion. 

Tan is an adept producer, choreographer, and artist. In 2023, she became the quiet engine behind a machine of 38 dancers at The Neighbors dance company. Ahead of their latest production — Love, Your Neighbors at Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in Hell’s Kitchen — she and her co-directors bore heavy responsibility. 

Born in Singapore, Tan moved to New York City in 2016. She spent her childhood in Hong Kong, Thailand, and Belgium. “I grew up dancing,” Tan said. “My parents put me in dance class ‘cause I was a hyperactive kid.” Growing up, Tan trained in what she calls ballet, modern, and contemporary styles. It wasn’t until 11th grade that she discovered a parallel passion: filmmaking. 

“[I had] an incredible teacher,” Tan said about her first filmmaking class. “I think film kind of encapsulated almost every artistic discipline possible … and so that’s why I really fell in love with it.” This class (and its teacher) led Tan to pursue a bachelor’s degree in film and television at New York University (NYU).

Through her undergraduate years, Tan stayed in touch with dance, becoming a member of Pulse Dance Project, a student-run dance company at NYU. It was Pulse that further exposed her to hip hop, street, and club dancing styles. “[These styles] feel more free movement-wise,” Tan said. “I feel like I can express myself better than, say, ballet.” 

Photo by William Oh, courtesy of Christabelle Tan

By the time Tan had auditioned for The Neighbors in 2022, she was nearing completion of a master’s degree in media management at Parsons School of Design. She split her time between the editing suite and the rehearsal studio; film and dance often felt at odds. 

“In the dance world, I was kind of seen as the film person, and in the film world I was seen as the dance person,” Tan said. She wanted to be recognized for her merit in each respective field. Instead, she felt defined by her difference.  

Tan graduated from The New School with her masters in Spring 2023. The same year, she was asked to step into the role of artistic director for The Neighbors. Since then, she’s applied her cross-disciplinary skillset — and accordingly, her unique perspective on dance — to the group’s ethos. Along with her co-directors, Tan tracks a project from its conception; her work touches every aspect of production, from creative direction to choreography. 

Community and resilience drum through Tan’s work like a bass line. In projects such as “Lost Souls” and its sequel “On My Soul,” movement was guided by lived experience, rather than placing an emphasis on fixing the choreography to a beat. Personal histories surfaced in gesture — the people behind the scenes became visible within the choreography itself.   

December’s 13-piece program, Love, Your Neighbors, was a showcase where each piece was based on ideas submitted by the group’s dancers. Tan said that her piece, “go (need to) fly,” begins by posing the question: “What would you like to be?” 

Photo by Sean Chee, courtesy of Christabelle Tan

“I think growing up, I was always like, ‘I either have to fully pursue [one] thing or I have to fully pursue a different thing,’ like I can’t really have the best of both worlds,” Tan said. “I think I felt that with dance and film a little bit.”

At the beginning of her piece, Tan is pulled across the stage, her body caught in tug-of-war — a physical rendering of doubt. But as Boo Seeka’s “Dream” swells towards its end, Tan steps forward toward the audience, breaking the fourth wall, refusing to make a sacrifice. 

Tan’s work is integrative, expansive, and a source of empowerment. “I think that’s what makes my work cool, and it’s not something to be ashamed of,” Tan said. “Not everyone is able to intertwine these two disciplines.”  The space between mediums, once a source of discomfort, now defines her practice. It’s not film or dance, it’s film and dance.