As a dancer and performance artist, Waewdao has traveled the world for almost two decades and made a career of performing many faces of northern Thai, or “Lanna,” culture. Starting with local demonstrations of regional and folk dances while still a student in Chiang Mai University’s Thai Arts program, she quickly became known for her smooth and graceful movement and a bright, flamboyant style. By her mid-20s, she had toured as a dancer for the Tourism Authority of Thailand to numerous countries throughout Asia, Europe and North America.
In 2005, Sirisook moved to Los Angeles to earn her MFA in Dance at UCLA’s Department of World Arts and Cultures, where she not only deepened her appreciation and skill in global dance forms, but she also acquired a healthy perspective on the larger issues surrounding what dance means to a community in any place and historical moment. She has since created her own ensemble and solo performances as a unique blend of traditional Lanna dance and cultural forms with postmodern and even ironic views on the effects of cultural identity in everyday life.