Desmond Richardson & Dwigth Roden (Complexions Contemporary Ballet) Fun Club

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DESMOND RICHARDSON (Queens, NY) Hailed by the New York Times as “one of the great modern dancers of his time”, Desmond Richardson is a multi-talented artist who has mastered a wide range of dance forms including classical, modern, and contemporary. Richardson’s immense talent was first recognized as a student at New York High School for the Performing Arts during which time he received a merit scholarship from the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center (1983-1986) and the International Academie des Tanz in Koln, Germany (1984-1985). He is also a recipient of a Presidential Scholar Award for the Arts (1986). In 1987, Richardson joined the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater where he was a principal dancer for seven years. After leaving the Ailey Company, he traveled to Germany where he performed with Ballet Frankfurt. Richardson has performed as a guest artist with several world-renowned companies including the Swedish Opera Ballet, the Washington Ballet, Teatro at La Scala, and the San Francisco Ballet. In 1997, he joined the American Ballet Theater where he performed the lead role in the company’s world premiere production of Othello. In its description of Richardson’s performance in that role, the New York Times described him as “one of the most majestic dancers ever to tread the MET Stage.” In 1998, Richardson joined the premiere cast of the Broadway Musical Fosse for which he received a 1999 Tony Award Nomination. He has also appeared on Broadway in the musical, The Look of Love and in the critically acclaimed Movin’ Out. He had a principal role in Debbie Allen’s dance/theatrical presentation, Soul Possessed, which premiered at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in 1999. Richardson has worked in television, film, and video in the United States and abroad. These experiences have allowed him to perform with such musical artists as Michael Jackson, Prince, Aretha Franklin, and Madonna. He is featured in Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi's film, One Last Dance and the Oscar winning Chicago. He made his singing debut in Charles Randolph Wright’s 2005 film, On the One and will appear in Julie Taymor’s soon to be released Across the Universe. His recent honors include the Alvin Ailey School's 2006 Apex award and the 2007 Dance Magazine Award. In 2008, Richardson will perform in Diana Vishneva, Beauty in Motion, at New York City Center. Richardson has recently released three new titles in Live at Broadway Dance Center instructional DVD series, continuing Complexions' long standing mission to make its technique more accessible to young dancers. DWIGHT RHODEN (Dayton, Ohio) Hailed by the New York Times as “One of the most sought out choreographers of the day", Rhoden began dancing at the age of 17 while studying acting. He has performed with the Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Les Ballet Jazz De Montreal and was a principal dancer with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. He has appeared in numerous television specials, documentaries and commercials throughout the United States, Canada and Europe and has been a featured performer on many PBS Great Performances specials. Under Rhoden’s direction Complexions has brought it’s unique blend of contemporary dance to audiences throughout the world including the United States, Canada, Europe, South America, Australia, and Asia. Rhoden has created over 60 ballets for Complexions, as well as numerous other companies, including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, The Arizona Ballet, The Aspen Santa Fe Ballet Company, Ballet Gamonet, The Dance Theater of Harlem, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, The Joffrey Ballet, Miami City Ballet, New York City Ballet/Diamond Project, North Carolina Dance Theater, The Pennsylvania Ballet, Philadanco, Minneapolis Dance Theater, Phoenix Dance Company, Sacramento Ballet, Oakland Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, The Washington Ballet, and Zenon Dance Company. He has worked with, coached, and created for some of the most diverse artists spanning the world of ballet and contem