PORTFOLIO

JUANA’s sonic world fuses field recordings, choral layering, poetry and rhythmic patterns influenced by her Latin roots.

Listen to her releases or Live Sets on SoundCloud!

INTERDISCIPLINARY WORKS

Dazwischen

Group of children on stage dressed in theatrical costumes, some with serious or confused expressions, one girl with red curly hair smiling, black background.

2026

We set out on a search. Together. Determined. We devote ourselves to what rarely becomes visible. We share our experiences and create visibility for one another. We tell our own stories, stumbling over labels and discrimination along the way.

Nine FLINTA* individuals explore their in-between in a collective performance. They illuminate spaces, words, and memories between their cultures. In a biographical devised piece, we find ourselves in a process of negotiating different identities and searching for spaces in between.

Created and performed by: Azadeh Ataei, Tako Basilaia, Arina Bychkova, Zahra Fares, Maka Kukunashvili, Yani Löber, Susanna Sumbajak, Nina Wsolak, Vida Zelić

  • Costume Design: Jooeun Lee

  • Music / Composition: María José Ulloa Beteta (JUANA)

  • Video Work: Arina Bychkova

  • Choreographic Consultation: Ana Lusia Anjos

  • Dramaturgical Support: Vida Zelić

  • Production Assistance: Nhu Luu

*image by Phillip Scholl

HELLERAU

A woman working on a laptop set on a table in a dark room with red lighting. Behind her, a large group of people sits on a wooden floor, some cross-legged, attending an event or class.

2025

Every year, residencies take place at HELLERAU in cooperation with MUSICBOARD BERLIN. For this year’s edition, the interdisciplinary artist JUANA has been selected.

During her residency she programmed and resaerched on how to connect her DAW and control midi parameters with a movement tracking sensor. Additionally, she had the chance to learn and play on an ambisonic soundsystem.

*image by Anja Schneider

HERE SORROUNDED BY WATER

A woman in a colorful dress stands center stage under hanging ribbons, with a fan and figurines around her, while an audience watches in a dimly lit theater.

2025

JUANA’s performance weaves live music and dance to explore cultural identity and inner reflection. HERE SURROUNDED BY WATER examines cycles of rumination and the search for belonging, drawing on her Nicaraguan roots and Berlin upbringing. Through field recordings blended with art-rock elements, JUANA captures the experience of identity in motion and highlights the fragility of these sounds amid city life.

Collaborating with stage designer Annika Konitzki, hip-hop dancers Sihäm and Elena, and actresses Anwen Sereina Ortiz and Aisha Kalymzhanova, the work invites audiences to contemplate belonging, alienation, and the fluidity of identity.

  • Concept/Director/Music: JUANA

  • Dramaturgy Assistant: Anwen Sereina Ortit

  • Dancers: Elena Garau, Siham Refaie

  • Stage Design: Annika Konnitzki

*image by Frederick Hermann

Group of five people, dressed in white shirts and dark pants, are engaged in a theatrical performance on stage. One person is holding and supporting another person who is bent over, and the others are gathered around, observing and participating.

Jack Of All Trades

2025

Elements from different cultures merge in Hip Hop into a new form that does not fully belong to either the diaspora or the countries of origin, yet finds itself in both – creating a new category while simultaneously challenging categorisation itself.

Ariela Leiva aka Ariela, Malik Nuganga aka Bola G, Sointu Pere aka Sointu,Winston Allan Phillips aka Nomada, Jamali Abale aka Man with the Scarf – Dance | Joël Dagbeto aka Djoelinho, María José Ulloa Beteta aka JUANA– Music | Martin Peñaloza Cecconi aka Ixora – Dance, Creative Director

Two women in dark denim outfits are practicing a yoga pose or dance move, bending forward with their heads close together and touching the ground, indoors, with a colorful abstract background.

EXHALATION

2024

"exhalation as a metaphor for the noxious and toxic effects textile landfills have on thr environment and the animate beings. it can also be understood as a synonym for the sensation of being able to breathe again and a feeling of relief as an outcome of a collective creation of utopias which tell us about futures with less waste." (artist text)

The immersive and interdisciplinary exhibition by Sarah Schurian is dedicated to the issues of the negative effects of mass production and the increased accumulation of textile waste. Utopias are needed. Community is needed. Shared spaces are needed where ideas, concepts and dreams can flourish together. Dreaming about a future that wastes less resources, produces less textile waste and does not exploit workers anymore.

Through visual art, performances, screenings and workshops, we are moving into a utopian world that creates spaces for utopias about a more sustainable future.

  • Dance by OSEWHÉN with music by JUANA

  • Concept/Director/Curator: Sarah Schurian

*image by Frederick Hermann

Two women with long hair in black clothing performing a dance or acrobatic routine on a stage with dark background and blue lighting, one woman on her knees with head down, the other arched backwards in a bridge position, touching the first woman’s head with her hand.

De mon âme à ton âme

*image by Dave Grossmann

2022

“De mon âme à ton âme”, delves into the relationship we develop with our inner child as we grow up. It contrasts the rational, socially shaped adult self with the playful, innocent child within us: a part of ourselves that often fades into the background as life progresses. Yet, through certain choices and moments, the inner child resurfaces, reminding us to approach life with curiosity and lightness.

Blending the afro-american dance styles of Hip-Hop and House with theatrical storytelling, the piece reflects on emotional diversity and resilience. It offers a compelling narrative that showcases how non-academic dance forms can express complex stories, inviting the audience to see the stage as a space for exploring vulnerability and connection.

Direction & Choreography : OSÉWHEN

Music : JUANA and Anwen Sereina (2nd act)

VIDEO TRAILERS

HERE SURROUNDED BY WATER

Jack of all Trades

De mon âme à ton âme

EXHALATION

Watch the official music video for Under These Lights

Contact