His residency will open with a Conversations on Dance event at 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 24 in the Studio Theatre of Erma Lowe Hall on campus. D’Amboise will discuss highlights of his career in an informal Q&A session.
The National Dance Institute founder will engage TCU dance majors in an NDI experience during an intensive rehearsal period, culminating with a public performance on Thursday, Sept. 27 at 5:30 p.m. in the Studio Theatre of Erma Lowe Hall. The event is free and open to the public; seating is first-come, first-served.
Jacques d’Amboise is often considered to be one of finest classical dancers of the 20th century. His career has spanned decades and reached the pinnacle of every aspect of the dance world including: principal dancer in New York City Ballet under George Balanchine, Broadway musicals, movie musicals including Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Carousel, choreographer, director, producer, author, university faculty and dean, and since 1976, founder, director and dance educator with the National Dance Institute (NDI).
D’Amboise formed NDI from his passionate commitment to dance education as a way to inspire and motivate children to excel. NDI New York and its affiliated programs around the globe have reached more than two million children since 1976. The 1984 PBS documentary film, He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin’, about d’Amboise’ work with NDI, won an Academy Award, six Emmy Awards, the Peabody Award, the Golden Cine Award, and the National Education Association Award for the advancement of learning through broadcasting.
He has been honored with over 30 national and international awards including the Kennedy Center Honors, a MacArthur Fellowship, the National Medal of the Arts, and more than 10 honorary doctoral degrees for his work as an artist and dance educator. His recently published memoir I Was a Dancer has enjoyed widespread critical acclaim as “irresistible,” “charming,”, “lively” and adeptly “moving beyond personal experience to map the complex evolution of ballet in America.”