The mission of Mannakin Theater & Dance is to expand the world of the performing arts by inviting new individuals and demographics to rich and exciting experiences in the theater seats, inside the classroom and learning studio, and underneath the stage lights. We believe that by opening the tent of the premier performing arts to the broadest swath of people and cultures possible that new audiences are created, fresh voices are heard and all people are lifted as ships on a rising tide, to ever greater heights of human creativity and achievement.

The professional creation and production credo of Mannakin Theater & Dance focuses on works that spontaneously gather a racially and ethnically diverse audience by engaging dancers and choreographers from a wide range of communities, including Latin, Chinese, Indian and African American.

Mannakin Theater & Dance follows an artistic vision that often places professional talents alongside student and amateur dancers. This mingling of the virtuosic and the lay represented a hearkening to the roots of the art form, when everyone in the village danced together.