Dancing in A-Yard (2023)
In prisons ruled by toxic masculinity, dancing is an absolute taboo. But at Lancaster’s A-Yard, near Los Angeles, a group of young men, willing to take a chance to be mocked in the yard, start a dance class led by French choreographer Dimitri Chamblas. This class quickly becomes an intoxicating escape from their grim reality so they decide to create a dance show. In this exceptional context, the inmates engage with overwhelming sincerity, evoking their childhood, ganglife, the crimes, the prison, and their desire for transformation. Beyond damaged lives and a prison system on the edge of the abyss, DANCING IN A-YARD explores redemption and the capacity of human beings to reinvent themselves, when given a chance. And more importantly, how art and introspection can help see the light.
Director: Manuela Dalle
![]() |
Dimitri Chamblas as Himself |
![]() |
Dr. Bidhan Ro as Himself |
![]() |
Dimitri Gales as Himself |
![]() |
Kenneth Webb as Himself |
![]() |
Antonio Toy as Himself |
![]() |
Jonathan Hammond as Himself |
![]() |
Baleegh Brown as Himself |
![]() |
Terry Bell as Himself |
![]() |
Tyson Atlas as Himself |
![]() |
Albert 'AJ' Beckley as Himself |
![]() |
Arshawn Green as Himself |
![]() |
Randolph Haliburton as Himself |
| Directing | Manuela Dalle | Director |
| Production | Jean Martin | Producer |
| Production | Carine Magescas | Executive Producer |
| Editing | Weston Cadwell | Editor |
| Sound | Pierre Aviat | Music |
| Camera | Vincent Venturella | Director of Photography |