There’s something about Zoï Tatopoulos’s choreography that mesmerizes whoever is watching. The VMA-nominated choreographer and creative director has worked on music videos for
FKA Twigs and Zara Larsson, while gaining the praise of Doechii, Demi Lovato, JT, and more. Most recently, Tatopoulos ventured into the fashion world to choreograph Miista’s first New York fashion show, which has opened a whole new vision for her future: “I see my work in a Rick Owens opening or something like that.”
The 36-year-old has been dancing for two decades, even competing on Greece’s So You Think You Can Dance, and has spent the past 15 years working more behind the scenes. She’d consider herself a contemporary choreographer, but she’s excited about the rise of more pop girls with technical dancing skills entering the scene, like Tate McRae, because “we mess with the body a little bit more than average pop,” which is her notable bread and butter. “What I love about my style is that I’m very keen on classic technique,” Tatopoulos says. “But then being like, Let’s showcase it, but in this bizarre way.” Below, she talks with The Cut about what inspires her work and how she approaches choreography.
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When did you start choreographing, and what was the hardest part about that?
I dealt with a major tonsillitis issue at 21 years old, so I couldn’t dance, and I was trying to find an outlet. At that point, I had plenty of time to put on headphones and mentally picture things. By the time I recovered, I had choreographed so much that I felt compelled to put together a group of dancers, and that was my first choreography debut in Greece.
You have a distinct style. It’s grungy and avant-garde. I’m curious, did you find that when you were choreographing or have you always had that style?
My dad was a production designer, so when I was younger he was really good at narrating the films he’d be working on over the dinner table. That sparked a lot of imagination in my head, like, What do you mean the creatures are moving like that? I was very inspired by those conversations and the fact that I had to use my imagination. And then seeing the movie and seeing how the creatures move, I was struck by the primitive, visceral, animalistic type of movement. But then I like playing with juxtaposition, where it’s a pop song to those types of movements.
What is your first step to creating a vision for choreography?
I’m initially inspired by music. I’m the type of choreographer that memorizes things in my head, and then I hop in the studio with my assistant and translate it. I have to have the music ASAP, because I sit and meditate on the music for hours and hours and hours. I have so many choreography friends that are like, “We make shit up on the spot at the studio with our dancers,” and I’m like, “I could never.” I have to really premeditate everything and understand every musical nuance and picture it mentally before I hop in the studio. I can tweak on the spot, but the vision is there before I even get to the studio.
How do the clothes and props play into that?
For jobs like FKA Twigs’s “Eusexua” and Miista, they came in with their original direction. So working with Jordan Hemingway, who was the director of “Eusexua,” he had already had the deck somewhat created, so I was able to play with it. With Miista, they had their clothes and shoes, and we had to interact with those items, which was very challenging.
How did growing up between L.A. and Greece impact your work?
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I was born in L.A., and at 15 years old, I moved to Greece. I came from a very hard-core dance studio, but I think something happened when I moved to Greece. I felt this sense of, Let me understand the culture. Let me get into the arts more and understand that world. In a sense, I almost neglected dancing for a little bit, which was probably the best thing because I was able to then focus my attention on more underground stuff. That’s what helped me develop my taste in music, which is very big to me, and my style. Then I did slowly get back into dance, and I blended both worlds, and that was the blessing. It was being able to go to the drum-and-bass parties at night, watching all these kids with their Oakley glasses and strange haircuts, just dancing like weirdos. It definitely helped inspire a whole new genre of dance for me.
How would you describe your work?
Visceral.
Who are some of your muses and inspirations?
I am probably one of the biggest Aphex Twin fans ever. I own Chris Cunningham’s DVD where he has directed all these music videos, and the first time I saw “Window Licker” I lost my mind. I was 10 or 11 years old. What I like about both of their approaches is that they play a lot: It’s serious, it’s bizarre, it’s avant-garde, but there’s also a touch of comedy. You’re really tapping into all these different emotions. I’m also inspired by a lot of directors, like Andrew Thomas Huang, Jordan Peele, and Quentin Tarantino. I’m also a big Planet Earth BBC fan. I love animal documentaries.
When you work with different artists, how do you create distinct choreography for the person who also feels like you?
It all stems from how long I work with the artist. I always like to kind of play it really subtly at first, because I don’t want it to come as a crazy shock unless the artists themselves are like, “Let’s fucking go ham.” But if there’s already a direction, I study how they move their body, what looks good on them, and play with that at first. Then, if I’m to continue, like with Twigs, who I’ve worked with on two different music videos, I’m able to kind of understand and kind of challenge her a little bit more throughout time.
For Zara Larsson and “Pretty Ugly,” I think what she was aiming for when she originally reached out to me was kind of like to get that quirky and technical “let me show off my body.” The only challenge with working with Zara was how I make the blend between us two a little bit more seamless and less dramatic. We wanted to make my stamp happen and make her stamp happen. Zara is so open-minded to merging worlds.
Is there any talent that you dream of choreographing for?
I feel like all choreographers want to work with Rosalía right now. I would also love to work with Tyler, the Creator. Not choreograph him himself, but if there was some sort of concept. And Björk, of course.
