To Aidan Carberry, choreographing is not just his livelihood, but a game to be played and a puzzle to be solved.
Growing up in Los Angeles, Carberry trained at Debbie Allen School of Dance before continuing at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. Breaking his leg junior year led him to explore movement in new ways, helping him develop his unique style. In 2015, he was accepted into the inaugural class of the University of Southern California’s Glorya Kaufman School of Dance.
After graduating in 2019, Carberry co-founded JA Collective with his classmate Jordan Johnson. Together, they’ve danced, choreographed, and directed for concert dance companies, music videos, commercials, and international tours.
Carberry’s innovative and distinctive aesthetic speaks for itself. Dance Teacher sat down with him to talk about his journey, career, and approach to life.
On His Creative Mindset
“I’m in a constant state of creation, and I tend to value quantity over quality. It doesn’t really matter what I think of my own art because when I put stuff out there, it can lead to opportunities. I don’t connect creating to my emotions anymore. It’s more of a state of being, and it gives my life purpose and keeps me pushing forward.
“…I treat creating like a game or a competition because it makes it way more fun. Even if something turns out badly, it makes someone happy, so you win either way.”
Filling in the Gaps
“I think I’ve always wanted to be a choreographer. Even though I had people telling me that I danced too small or that I wouldn’t be able to do this long term, I stayed on the path.
“…I also looked at competitions and programs to see what wasn’t happening. I looked for the weak spots where I could shine without having to be the best, and it felt like a game to fill in the gaps. Maybe that’s a little capitalistic, but I saw it less as trying to be the best and more like: What are people not doing? Once I met Jordan and we started JA Collective, it all clicked.”
On JA Collective
“JA started out of necessity. People kept asking us to make stuff. That turned into a collaboration, then a business, and now a creative partnership.
“…In 2018, we won second place at the [Capezio] A.C.E. Awards, which introduced us to the dance-competition world. We also choreographed a music video for half•alive that went crazy viral, so they asked us to be their creative directors. At the same time, [William] Forsythe pushed us into the contemporary concert world. Right out of college, we were like an octopus with arms in these different worlds.
“We started feeding these spaces separately, but we’ve always lived in all of them.
“…We don’t want to define what we do. I just want to be able to solve any choreographic problem. Make a piece on a ballet company? Choreograph a music video? Set a winning piece at Radix? Easy. Well, none of it’s easy, but I love problem-solving, so these are just different choreographic puzzles to work through.”
Advice for Social Media
“Working social media has been a huge part of our career. You need a way for people to see you, and Instagram has been massive for that.
“There are basically two types of accounts. One is the job page—it’s not about followers, it’s a portfolio of the work we want to do. It’s a resumé with our aesthetic, voice, and vision. That page is less about posting and more about putting out what we love, clearly and intentionally. Then, there’s the @thecarberrys page, which my wife and I started. That one’s about farming followers—it’s a billboard. It’s just about staying visible and learning how to keep people’s attention. The key is to hyper-focus on the goal of each page and stick with it for years.
“I also taught myself filming and editing, so we don’t need to hire anyone. If you can only choreograph but can’t present it professionally, how will people see your work?
“…When you’re starting out, collaboration is essential. You need to work with others so people understand your choreographic voice.…You want to meet people, and if it clicks, they’ll remember you. Maybe they’ll pass a job your way when they’re too busy. That’s how it starts.
“…What’s cool about choreography is that every job creates content you can share, which leads to more jobs. It feeds itself. When people hire us, it’s because they know what JA is, and now they say, ‘I knew that was JA before I even saw the name.’ That’s what you want.
“But also—it’s a slow burn. It took me 10 years to figure it out. I’m four years into kind of having a handle on it. It’s not about instant gratification, but about trusting the process and believing in yourself.”
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