The Art of Belonging: Mina Rose Dances Her Identity into the Spotlight IN New York City

Performer Mina Rose stands as the main dancer for two distinguished New York City-based companies — Mosaic Dance Theater Company and the Phyllis Rose Dance Company. With her compelling stage presence and cross-cultural versatility, Rose has quickly established herself as a fresh and vibrant young artist in the Big Apple’s dynamic dance landscape. Her performances are marked by technical precision and emotional authenticity, earning her a place at the forefront of culturally driven, contemporary performance.

Born in Lucerne, Switzerland, and of mediterranean descent, Rose’s unique multicultural heritage resonates deeply through her work. “For a long time, I felt I didn’t quite belong anywhere,” Rose reflects. “I wasn’t black enough, or white enough. But in dance, there are no borders. It’s the one place where I feel entirely at home.”

At Mosaic Dance Theater Company — a company internationally recognized for its dedication to the traditional and contemporary dances of the Mediterranean — Rose’s performances are a seamless integration of form and history. Most recently, she starred as the lead in Jacintha in the Impressions of Alhambra, a richly layered piece set to Middle Eastern and Baroque rhythms. It premiered in July and returned in November 2024 to enthusiastic audiences. Rose portrayed a woman swept into a passionate love story — a role that demanded emotional nuance and physical precision. As the main dancer, she not only delivered the choreography’s complex hip articulations but also mastered the cymbals, simultaneously dancing and creating rhythmic sound.

“Mosaic felt like a calling,” she explains. “I could finally bring together my classical training from Switzerland with my Mediterranean roots. The movement felt like it had been waiting inside me for years.”

At the Phyllis Rose Dance Company, Rose delves into contemporary narratives rooted in African diasporic and global cultural traditions. In June 2024, she made her choreographic debut with Joyful Liberation, a solo work that marked a bold artistic statement — and which will remain in repertory through 2029 due to its impact and acclaim. Created in observance of History Month in the United States, Joyful Liberation offered a strikingly original perspective on a subject often approached through the lens of historical trauma and oppression.

Rose chose to reframe the conversation and her work illuminated the moment of emancipation itself — the triumph, the reclamation of identity, and the celebration of life beyond bondage. With movement rooted in African diasporic vocabulary and layered with expressive contemporary gestures, the piece embodied a sense of spiritual release and radiant strength.

 “I wanted to celebrate what it means to become free — the joy, the hope, the power of liberation. That’s the part of the story I felt was missing. And I think people really resonated with that.” Rose explains.

Her capacity to communicate layered themes through movement was also on display in the her solo 'Echoes of You' at Beauty is the Home of Hope Festival in February 2025. A contemporary reflection on the fleeting and silent nature of inner emotional currents, it was a haunting reminder of how much we carry inside that remains unseen.

Rose’s repertoire is not confined to any one genre — she navigates ballet, Moroccan dance, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, and folkloric styles with equal ease. In the solemn Table of Silence memorial performance for 9/11 in 2024, she contributed her presence to an ensemble of global dancers honoring collective grief and resilience.

Looking ahead, Rose will take the stage once more with Mosaic Dance Theater Company at the prestigious River Dance Festival in New Hope, Pennsylvania. On Saturday, August 16, 2025, at 1:00 PM, she will perform a solo titled Dance Performance of SAIDI, rooted in traditional Egyptian movement. The piece — both a preservation and celebration of Saidi dance — requires exacting detail and cultural integrity, qualities Rose embodies with grace and deep respect. The festival will be held in New Hope, PA  gathering national talents in a showcase of diverse dance voices.

In this different companies, Rose have earned reputations for blending education and performance, and her work exemplifies their values. Phyllis Rose Dance Company champions stories from around the globe, and Mosaic Dance Theater Company is lauded for its accurate and artistic interpretation of Mediterranean traditions — having performed under the auspices of Lincoln Center’s “Meet the Artist” program and other national platforms.