Charles O. Anderson, a native of Richmond, Virginia, is artistic director of dance theatre X, a critically acclaimed afro-contemporary dance-theater company he founded in 2003 in Philadelphia. He is associate chair of The Department of Theatre and Dance and head of the dance program at The University of Texas at Austin. He received his BA from Cornell University and his MFA in Dance from Temple University. Anderson describes himself as an artist, an activist-educator, and change-maker–a kinetic storyteller.
He is moved to create dance theater that bears witness to human experiences through the cultural lenses of the African Diaspora. Among his achievements in afro-contemporary choreography and dance theater, Anderson was selected as one of “The 25 Artists to Watch” by Dance Magazine and is a Pew Fellowship in the Arts recipient. His professional work has been supported by such foundations and organizations as The National Performance Network, The Pew Foundation for Arts and Heritage, The Independence Foundation, The Puffin Foundation, and The Philadelphia Cultural Fund. He is the first Texas-based independent artist to receive the prestigious National Dance Production Grant awarded by the New England Foundation for the Arts. He has had residencies with MANCC, NCCAkron, and The American Dance Festival, among others. Anderson also serves on the faculty of the American Dance Festival and is an EDI consultant for dance programs investing in anti-racist approaches to dance programming and education. www.charlesoanderson.me
Classes: Footprints