Mission and History - Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre

MISSION

Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre presents theatrical and immediate works that engage audiences from start to finish and beckon a response of thought, feeling, and soul. Our education program, Notes in Motion, brings inclusive dance programs to the NYC Public Schools in styles including modern, ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, Latin, African, and more. Programs are united by our singular approach to dance education, The Movement Exchange Method, which combines technical instruction with creative skill-building and collaborative learning. We provide access to the art form of dance to inspire the next generation of dance appreciators. With a variety of performance structures including full productions, open rehearsals, previews, immersive performances, participatory workshops, and hybrid programs in a range of performance venues and historically underserved communities, we are reaching and broadening a diverse NY audience.

Inside New York: “Amanda Selwyn is a master at illustrating the symbiosis of sound and movement, the romance of motion and emotion – she had me laughing, crying, cringing and gasping all in the short 55-minute production.”

Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival’s Pillow Pages: “Choreographically, Amanda’s point of departure is not an image or a gesture, but a theatrical imperative felt in her insistence on expression.”

HISTORY

Founded in 2000, Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre has presented 21 original evening length works and dozens of shorter works at NY Performance Seasons and festival engagements, and offers residencies to colleges and universities. We have presented over 135 productions at venues including Baruch Performing Arts Center, New York Live Arts, Mark Morris Dance Center, Tribeca Performing Arts Center, The Kumble Theater, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, Danspace Project, The Ailey Citigroup Theater, John Jay College, Dance New Amsterdam, Peridance, Cunningham/Westbeth, and more. Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre has been the recipient of grants from NYSCA, the Harkness Foundation, Hyde and Watson Foundation, MetLife, Friars, Dizzy Feet Foundations, Bronx Council on the Arts, DCLA, O’Donnell Green Foundation, Laura B. Vogler Foundation, MidAtlantic Arts, and more. We have been featured in Dance Magazine, Dance Teacher, Dance Enthusiast, NYFA’s Current, Queens Public TV, BronxNet, WKTU, WGBB, Movers and Shakers Podcast, Whisper in the Wings Podcast, It’s in Queens, The New Yorker, Time Out, NY Times, Oberon’s Grove, Dance Informa, Dance Talk,Jacob’s Pillow Pillow Pages, and more. Amanda has led residencies and workshops at Peridance, Bucknell University, Hofstra University, New Women, NY, the NY Gender Conference, Temple University, SUNY New Paltz Dance Association, BMCC, Baruch, Face to Face, Dance Teacher Summit, APAP, and more. In 26 years, Notes in Motion dance programs have served 98,950 students directly and 335,310 indirectly at 201 schools throughout NYC. We create long-lasting arts partnerships that inspire school communities with the beauty, magic, and vitality of dance.