Spectrum Dance Theater’s 2018/19 Season: WOKE?!?!
We are thrilled to share our 2018/19 season with you. This exciting lineup includes the return of our intimate Studio Series, the WOKEness Festival (which includes the world premiere production of Strange Fruit), Dance, Dance, Dance #2 (featuring Merce Cunningham’s Crises), and, to close the season, Spectrum collaborates with the 5th Avenue Theater to present Jerome Robbins’ beloved West Side Story.
Welcome to Spectrum Dance Theater
Spectrum Dance Theater (SDT) was founded in 1982 to bring dance of the highest merit to a diverse audience composed of people from different social, cultural, ethnic and economic backgrounds. Our principal objective is to make the art form of dance accessible through contemporary dance performances and high-quality training in a variety of dance styles.
Under Donald Byrd’s visionary artistic leadership since 2002, the organization has embarked on an exhilarating transformation that has attracted world-class dancers, produced some of the most ambitious works in contemporary dance, and generated local and national praise.
Spectrum Dance Theater ignites audiences through the ambitious artistic agenda of Donald Byrd, whose appetite to explore the arts knows no boundaries. The enfant terrible of the New York dance scene of the 1980s and 90s achieved international visibility for the creation of the Harlem Nutcracker and his choreography for the Broadway smash, The Color Purple. No less ambitious in the 21st century, Mr. Byrd leads his company through several programming themes that gives an insight into his far-ranging artistic ambition. Under Donald Byrd’s visionary artistic leadership since 2002, Spectrum has emerged as a company of regional and national significance.
The School of Spectrum Dance Theater is a reflection of the artistic standards set forth by Donald Byrd, exemplified by the motto “Dance for All.”
While we recognize that there are certain physical attributes that are necessary to rise to the highest levels of being a professional dancer, at the center of The School’s values is a belief that Dance is for All. We believe that an “ideal body” for dance is one that moves well, and not one that necessarily conforms to a visual representation of an “ideal.”
Donald Byrd, Executive Artistic Director
Mr. Byrd, a TONY nominated (The Color Purple) and Bessie Award winning (The Minstrel Show) choreographer, became Artistic Director of Spectrum Dance Theater in December 2002. Mr. Byrd has frequently been referred to as a ‘citizen artist’ a descriptive that perfectly aligns with an important component of Spectrum Dance Theater’s mission – “dance as an art form and as a social/ civic instrument.”
