Gawain Garth Fagan, CD (born 3 May 1940) is a

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

modern dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert dance, concert or theatrical dance which includes dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th ...

choreographer Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...

. He is the founder and artistic director of Garth Fagan Dance, a modern dance company based in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

Biography

Early years

Fagan was born in

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long spit (landform), sand spit which connects the town of Por ...

to Oxford educated S.W. Fagan, former Chief Education Officer of Jamaica, and Louise I. Walker. It was a gymnastics class that initially drew his attention to dance early on. While attending Excelsior High school, he studied with Ivy Baxter at the Jamaica National Dance Company and performed at the inauguration of Cuban President

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and President of Cuba, president ...

in 1959. Fagan was educated at

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public university, public research university in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 375 programs. It is Michigan's third-l ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, Michigan where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree with sights on becoming a psychologist.

Career

Fagan worked at several dance companies in Detroit, and moved to Rochester New York in 1970, and there established his dance company originally named the "Bottom of the Bucket BUT ... Dance Theatre" in 1970. He was a Professor, at

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...

, Brockport starting in 1970. Fagan choreographed for the

Dance Theatre of Harlem Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) is an American professional ballet company and school based in Harlem, New York City. It was founded in 1969 under the directorship of Arthur Mitchell and later partnered with Karel Shook. Milton Rosenstock served ...

, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and the Limón Dance Company in the 1970s. He has studied the works of

Isadora Duncan Angela Isadora Duncan (May 26, 1877, or May 27, 1878 – September 14, 1927) was an American-born dancer and choreographer, who was a pioneer of modern contemporary dance and performed to great acclaim throughout Europe and the United States. Bor ...

Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer, teacher and choreographer, whose style, the Graham technique, reshaped the dance world and is still taught in academies worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over s ...

, Pearl Primus, Alvin Ailey,

José Limón José Arcadio Limón (January 12, 1908 – December 2, 1972) was a dancer and choreographer from Mexico and who developed what is now known as 'Limón technique'. In the 1940s, he founded the José Limón Dance Company (now the Limón Dan ...

, and

Katherine Dunham Katherine Mary Dunham (June 22, 1909 – May 21, 2006) was an African American dancer, choreographer, anthropologist, and social activist. Dunham had one of the most successful dance careers of the 20th century and directed her own dance compan ...

. He is also influenced by Caribbean and West African dances. Fagan's choreography incorporates elements of

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

Afro-Caribbean Afro-Caribbean or African Caribbean people are Caribbean people who trace their full or partial ancestry to Sub-Saharan Africa. The majority of the modern Afro-Caribbean people descend from the Indigenous peoples of Africa, Africans (primarily fr ...

dance, and

social dance Social dances are dances that have social functions and context. Social dances are intended for participation rather than Concert dance, performance. They are often danced merely to socialise and for entertainment, though they may have Ceremoni ...

. Many of his works are autobiographical or include themes of personal relevance. His untitled 1977 work chronicles the dissolution of his marriage, showing a couple beginning a relationship with affection and passion but eventually drifting apart due to inevitable obstacles. ''Griot New York,'' which premiered in 1991 at the

Brooklyn Academy of Music The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is a multi-arts center in Brooklyn, New York City. It hosts progressive and avant-garde performances, with theater, dance, music, opera, film programming across multiple nearby venues. BAM was chartered in 18 ...

, is about the experiences of the underprivileged living in New York City. The piece juxtaposes linear balletic movement with sharp angular gestures, twitching, and erotic partnering to represent the diversity and contrast found in big cities as well as conflict in his own life. In ''Moth Dreams,'' choreographed in 1992, Fagan celebrates his childhood, adolescence, and relationship with his mother.

Personal life

Fagan resides in

, is now divorced, and has two children.

Stage productions

*''From Before'' (1978) *''Oatka Trail'' (1979) *''Prelude'' (1981, revised 1983) *''Touring Jubilee 1924 (Professional)'' (1982) *''Sonata and the Afternoon'' (1983) *''Never Top 40 (Jukebox)'' (1985) *''Passion Distanced'' (1987) *''Time After Before Place'' (1988) *''Until By & If'' (1990) *''Griot New York'' (1991) *''Moth Dreams'' (1992) * ''Draft of Shadows'' (1993) *''Prelude'' (1993) * ''Postcards: Pressures and Possibilities'' (1994) * ''Earth Eagle First Circle'' (1995) * ''Mix 25'' (1996) * ''Nkanyit'' (1997) * ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical coming-of-age drama film directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Don Hahn, and written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton. Produced by Walt Disney ...

'' (1997) *''Two Pieces of One: Green'' (1998) *''Woza'' (1999) *''Trips and Trysts'' (2000) *''Music of the Line/Words in the Shape'' (2001) *''Translation Transition'' (2002) *''DANCECOLLAGEFORROMIE'' (2003) *''----ING'' (2004) *''Life: Dark/Light'' (2005) *''Senku'' (2006) *''Edge/Joy'' (2007) * ''Phone Tag Thanks and Things'' (2009) * '' The North Star '' (2018) * '' coVid Virtue Victory '' (2022)

Honours and awards

Fagan is a Distinguished University Professor at the State University of New York at Brockport. He has a Bachelor of Arts from

, and earned a

Doctor of Fine Arts Doctor of Fine Arts (DFA) is a professional doctoral degree in fine arts. It may also be awarded as an honorary degree. Description Doctoral programmes leading to DFAs in the UK are of equivalent level to a PhD, with the same requirement to demon ...

from the

University of Rochester The University of Rochester is a private university, private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded in 1850 and moved into its current campus, next to the Genesee River in 1930. With approximately 30,000 full ...

in 1986, and holds ''honoris causa'' Doctors degrees from

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

, Hobart College,

William Smith College William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...

, and Nazareth College. Fagan received a

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are Grant (money), grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon Guggenheim, Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon indiv ...

in 1998, and a three-year Choreography Fellowship from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

. He was made Commander in the

Order of Distinction The Order of Distinction (OD) is a national order in the Jamaican honours system. It is the sixth in order of precedence of the Orders of Societies of Honour, which were instituted by an Act of Parliament (''The National Honours and Awards Ac ...

of Jamaica in August 2001, and was presented the Prime Minister's Award by Jamaican Prime Minister P. J. Patterson . In 2005 he received the Artist of the Year Award from the Arts & Cultural Council for Greater Rochester. In 2012, Fagan was named one of America's Irreplaceable Dance Treasures by the Dance Heritage Coalition. In 2021, Fagan was awarded the Eastman Luminary Award from the

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. Established in 1921 by celebrated industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman, it was the ...

for his achievements in modern Dance ;Awards * 1998 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Choreography – ''The Lion King'' * 1998 Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Choreography – ''The Lion King'' * 1998 Tony Award for Best Choreography – ''The Lion King'' * 2000 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Theatre Choreographer – ''The Lion King'' * 2001 Samuel H. Scripps American Dance Festival Award – Lifetime Achievement *2021 Eastman Luminary Award - Lifetime Achievement

References

External links

Garth Fagan Dance official website
* *
Archival footage of Garth Fagan choreography Scene Seen performed by Judith Jamison in 1988 at Jacob's Pillow
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fagan, Garth 1940 births Living people Jamaican choreographers Drama Desk Award winners Helpmann Award winners Jamaican male dancers Jamaican dancers Jamaican music educators Modern dancers Musical theatre choreographers National Endowment for the Arts Fellows Commanders of the Order of Distinction Laurence Olivier Award winners People from Kingston, Jamaica Artists from Rochester, New York State University of New York faculty Tony Award winners Wayne State University alumni Bessie Award winners Dance in New York (state)