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Donlavy
Dance Company Samuel Donlavy Bio |
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Listen to Sam's Herndon Davis Radio Interview (click here)
Donlavy is a native of Los Angeles , born and raised in
South Central Los Angeles. He attended college at California State
University Northridge (CSUN) where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree
in Theater. During his studies at CSUN, he was involved in numerous
stage and video productions which allowed him exposure to nearly every
aspect of the art of production.
But dance was his priority. Donlavy pursued his dance
training, studying modern, ballet, jazz and character movement, and
became influenced by the works of choreography legends Martha Graham,
Alvin Ailey, Bob Fosse and the more contemporary Bill T. Jones. He soon
returned to Northridge as a Resident Choreographer while pursuing his
Master of Arts degree. During this time, his choreography was featured
in numerous Modern Dance Concerts on campus.
Shortly after leaving Northridge, Donlavy met Susan
Alvarez of the Inner City Cultural Center and together they created a
dance series called “Voices in Motion.” They felt there were too few
opportunities for emerging young dancer artists and designed the series
to cater to these needs. Donlavy also saw this as an opportunity to
pursue his dream of having his own company and performing on a
professional level. He quickly auditioned dancers, taught them his
movement and performed in the first series which debuted in June 1993.
Since then, Donlavy produced the second and third series on his own and
was awarded a grant from the Los Angeles Office of Cultural Affairs to
produce the fourth and fifth installments of the series.
After forming the Donlavy Dance Company (DDC) in May
1993, Donlavy took the company on to perform in many highly respected
local venues including “Black Choreographers Moving Toward the 21st
Century,” “First Impressions 1994 Summer concert Series,” “Voices in
Motion 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5” and numerous other venues.
The DDC performed in the 1995 summer art series titled
“Ecce lesbo/Ecco Homo” at Highways Performance Space. As a result,
Donlavy and the DDC were directly attacked by numerous conservative
organizations from the religious right including Rev. Donald Wildmon of
the American Family Association, who were seeking ways to eliminate NEA
funding for gay art forms. Donlavy was targeted based on the content of
his work, semi-nudity in one piece and most passionately for a photo of
two nude men embracing while holding a cross and the Bible (the concept
was that gays can worship God too!). Donlavy would not back down and
consequently enjoyed sold out houses every performance. On the brink of
controversy, Donlavy promises to continue to express himself as an
artist even when it sometimes hits a nerve.
Additional honors include an NAACP nomination for his
choreography in the local state musical “Metro rail” at the New Ivar
Theater and nominations for Lester Horton Awards including “Outstanding
Achievement in Performance/Company” and “Outstanding Achievement in
Choreography” for “Stained Glass.”
In recent years Donlavy began the Donlavy Dance Camp, an
attempt to bring dance to children in elementary and middle school. The
camp lasted for close to four years and was picked up by Los Angeles
Unified Schools as a qualified afterschool program. However, Donlavy
wished to return to his work as a presenter and decided to shift his
focus back to the stage. Receiving attention from the Los Angeles Times
and LA Weekly, Mr. Donlavy was named in his 1996 Calendar Feature,
“Re-emerging Artist of the Year.” Mr. Donlavy and his Donlavy
Dance Company has received more than 10 Best Picks and Dance Picks of
the Year and been labeled “the one to watch for.”
As a choreographer, teacher, dancer and producer,
Donlavy continues his mission to keep dance – and controversy -- alive
in Los Angeles . He offers local youth and adults the opportunity to
participate in dance through his current productions and those of the
future.
