New Haven Independent

Betsy Ross students learned from a famed Alvin Ailey & Harlem Dance Co. dance master.

Forty-six “dance emphasis” students from the Betsy Ross Arts Magnet School in New Haven had the chance of a lifetime-to participate in a dance workshop with acclaimed dancer, instructor and University of New Haven Artist-in-Residence Theresa Howard.

Howard is currently a teacher with the Alvin Alley Company in New York City and a former dancer with the Harlem Dance Company.

Theresa Howard was the Artist in Residence at UNH for the week of Nov. 12. She also held a dance workshop for UNH dance students and the public on Nov. 12, from 7 to 9 p.m. in the UNH German Club. She interacted with students and classes throughout the week and held a workshop for UNH students on choosing a career in the arts.

Howard began training at a young age at the Pennsylvania Ballet, where she studied with Lupe Serrano and Marion Tonner. At age 12, she joined the Philadelphia Civic Ballet Company and later danced with the Dance Theatre of Harlem through which she traveled extensively throughout the U.S., Europe, and Africa. She has also worked with choreographer Donald Byrd in New York City Opera’s staging of Carmina Burana, his critically acclaimed Harlem Nutcracker, as well as the controversial production, The Beast. She joined Armitage Gone Dance! in 2004 and premiered Time is the Echo of the Axe within the Wood at the Joyce Theater, as well as the Beinnale Festival in Venice, Italy. Howard is currently an instructor at
the Alvin Ailey School in New York City. She has modeled in international fashion magazines and is also a writer whose work has appeared in various magazines. She is also currently writing her first work of fiction.