Kevin Jenkins
PAST CHOREOGRAPHER
Dance Magazine has praised Kevin’s work as “riveting” and he travels throughout the country choreographing for State Street Ballet, St. Louis Ballet, San Diego Dance Theater, the School of Ballet Arizona, SUNY Purchase, CPYB, Island Moving Company, Dimensions Dance Theatre of Miami, Ballet Hartford, Ballet 5:8, Ballet Forte and Big Muddy Dance among others. He has served on faculty at Boston Ballet School, Joffrey Ballet School, Walnut Hill School for the Arts, the University of San Diego, Goucher College, and Master Ballet Academy. His choreography has been performed on the Inside/Out Series at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and he has been awarded residencies with Djerassi and the National Choreographers Initiative.
Kevin trained in San Diego under Dave Mullen, Kathy Meyer, Teresa Wells, Erik Saradpon, Kevin Patterson, and Ahita Ardalan. His diverse training led to working with a variety of companies including Mirable Ballet, Butterworth Dance Company, San Diego Dance Theater, and in productions of Guys and Dolls and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Outside the concert dance realm he appeared in commercials for Allstate Insurance, Latinva Fitness, and Verizon Wireless, danced backup in Las Vegas for the band NRG, and performed in ballroom productions with Mary Murphy.
Stepping away from performing in 2006 he founded Garage Contemporary Ballet with Ryan Orion Beck and served as co-artistic director through 2012. The company was featured in festivals such as 4x4, Breaking Ground, Ignite, Celebrate Dance Festival, and San Diego Young Choreographer’s Prize, while also presenting their own annual season. During this period his work in dance film won him three Editors Choice Awards from Dance and Pointe Magazine. His films went on to be featured in the San Francisco Dance Film Festival, Greensboro Dance Film Festival, San Diego Asian Film Festival, and American Dance Festival.
Deciding to focus on freelance choreography instead of directing a company, Kevin moved to San Francisco where he choreographed for Western Ballet, Emote Dance Theatre, the Orchestra Institute of Napa Valley, and Bay Pointe Ballet. He began traveling as well, creating for Convergence Ballet, Terpsicore Dance Company, Southwest Classical Youth Ballet, as well as Darian Lane’s film At The Ballet.
After leaving San Francisco and enjoying a two year tenure with Boston Ballet School, Kevin now lives in San Diego while continuing to create for companies and productions around the country. He choreographed and directed Gayle Skidmore’s Hourglass music video, worked under Jeremy Lapp at Musical Theatre Guild choreographing Minnie’s Boys, choreographed Natalie Bancroft’s US/European tour, and he consistently creates for dance companies and universities such as Ballet Dallas, Bellingham Repertory Dance, Ketchikan Theatre Ballet, Muhlenberg College, Ballet 5:8, Grossmont College, LITVAK Dance, Wanderlust Dance Project, and Columbia Ballet Collaborative.
Photo: 1000 Words Photography