Masterclass with Nile Russell, American Dance Festival Director of Education.
UCA studio 101
No preregistration is required. Participation waivers will be provided on the day of the class.
For questions contact:
Julia Cooper at julie.cooper@colostate.edu or
Emily Morgan at emily.morgan@colostate.edu
Nile Russell is originally from Baltimore, MD. At the age of fifteen, his dance teacher, Ilona Kessell, gave him his first chance to choreograph and teach. This opportunity opened his eyes to the creative mindset and communal impact of arts education. He received a BA in Dance from Connecticut College, where he had the guidance of wonderful dancers and professors, including Dan Wagoner, Lan-Lan Wang, Jeff M. Rebudal, Robyne Watkin, David Dorfman, Eddie Taketa, and Jeremy Nelson.
In 2002, Russell traveled to Mysore, India, to pursue Temple and Architecture studies and Bharatanatyam dance at the University of Mysore and was able to teach modern dance classes to women and youth in the community. He moved to New York in 2004, co-founding CaN Dance with Charly Wenzel and dancing and teaching with Silver-Brown Dance, University Settlement, LeeSaar The Company, Luis Lara Malvacias, Stefanie Nelson Dance Group, and Naganuma Dance. During his time in New York, he also taught classes in Santo Domingo, DR, and New Orleans, LA.
In 2009, Russell joined Pilobolus Dance Theater and later became Dance Captain, also taking on duties as Education Coordinator, scheduling and communicating with participating schools, institutions, and individuals, training new teachers, and developing new educational practices. He also helped to implement the company’s policy of dual teachers for each workshop with two teachers creating and instructing each class together so students could see a real-time example of a collaborative process. Russell moved to Denver, CO, in 2014 and has been a movement consultant for the Denver Center for the Performing Arts and a choreographer for the Arvada Center and Neighborhood Music Theater as well as an educator at multiple schools and studios across the state, such as Denver School of the Arts, Parker Dance Academy, and Colorado Conservatory of Dance.
While based in Denver, he has performed with Rosie Herrera Dance Theatre and collaborated on and directed commissions for Crystal Bridges American Art Museum, the Momentary, the Clayton Members Club & Hotel, and multiple music videos. He has also been the creative director on community projects for educational and nonprofit organizations, taught movement workshops for California State University, and continued his work with Pilobolus as a Teaching Artist. He is a founding member of Flow Kakou, an educational nonprofit in Hawaii focused on community outreach and the creator of TWYLI, a movement-based initiative for enhancing virtual meeting engagement.
Russell has performed and taught in over 20 countries, 49 states, and four continents.
More information about the American Dance Festival can be found here: ADF
