Samuel Donlavy- Biography

Some passions simply cannot be ignored. For Samuel Donlavy that uncontrollable passion is for dance and choreography. Once he realized this fact, Donlavy quickly began to make his mark on the local Los Angeles dance scene, emerging as a respected dancer, choreographer, and producer.

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.