About

Film

Photography

Cadance Collective

DPMKE

Education

Performance

Saint Kate Gallery

Educator

Videography

Christal Wagner is a Milwaukee-based dance artist, filmmaker, educator, and arts leader whose interdisciplinary career spans performance, choreography, dance on film, photography, and arts administration. She is is an Alumna of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Peck School of the Arts Dance Department where she is also adjunct faculty. As Artistic Director of Danceworks Performance MKE she is committed to creating meaningful artistic experiences while cultivating the next generation of dance artists. Her work bridges concert dance, musical theatre, film, and community engagement, reflecting a belief that movement can connect people across disciplines and experiences.

For nearly two decades, Wagner has performed extensively throughout the Midwest as a company member with Danceworks Performance MKE, Your Mother Dances and Cadance Collective and has collaborated with organizations including Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Milwaukee Ballet, Present Music, the Milwaukee Art Museum, Skylight Music Theatre, and numerous independent artists. Her choreography has been presented in concert dance, theatrical productions, festivals, educational settings, and community collaborations, while her musical theatre choreography has received Tommy Award recognition.

As a filmmaker, cinematographer, and editor, Wagner has become a distinct voice in dance cinema. Her short films have screened nationally and internationally at festivals across North America, Europe, and Asia, earning multiple awards for experimental filmmaking collaborating with artists and institutions such as Li Chiao-Ping, Joe Goode, Maria Gillespie, Daniel Burkholder, St. Kate Arts Hotel, Milwaukee Opera Theatre and notably her work has been shown at Dance on Camera, Milwaukee Film Festival, ADF, MODArts, RADfest and the Asia Pacific Dance Festival.

Beyond the stage and screen, Wagner is an accomplished photographer and visual storyteller whose work documents performances, artists, and cultural organizations throughout Wisconsin. Whether behind a camera, in the rehearsal studio, or in the classroom, she is passionate about supporting artists and building vibrant creative communities through collaboration, mentorship, and innovative artistic practice.

CHRISTAL’S MEDIA KIT

Her Mission:

To make moving dynamic art that connects with my Milwaukee Community.

To move audiences to escape their daily realities and allow themselves to be transformed by what they see.

To create movement practices with students and community members that bring them to be at balance in the present moment.

To create art that challenges the double standards of being a strong woman.

To support and elevate the voices of my community, collaborators, and fellow artists.