Choreographer
Emily Beattie has choreographed one dozen dances since her arrival on the Boston dance scene in 2003. The support of prominent and alternative venues display her work's appeal to the forefront of modern dance.
All told, her dances have been produced at the Institute of Contemporary Art Boston, outdoor venues in the Gloucester New Arts Festival 2006, Casa de Cultura in Quito, Ecuador, Spoke of the Hub Art Space Brooklyn, NY, Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center, The Knave Gallery, The Somerville Theater, CasaNia art space, Concord Academy Workshop, Green Street Dance Theater and the Julie Ince-Thompson Theater, Cambridge, MA.
Thea Singer in 2005, found her work a "provocative offering", a piece "as much about ideas as about movement: how bodies create depth perception; how sound translates as movement (or doesn't); how the timing -- and the ordering -- of gestures connotes meaning". Echoing this Theodore Bale of The Boston Herald viewed her work as "intellectually stimulating". The brawn of her choreography reflects her interest in the catlytic power of human effort.
Selected artists have included alumni of The Boston Conservatory, Prometheus Dance Company, Elders Ensemble, and Boston Ballet; movement artists, improvisation artists,and artists of spoken word. Under Beattie's direction all have contributed to simply electric moments in performance. Experience for yourself in the collection of works shown in the Media section of emilybeattie.com.
Movement Artist
In 2003 Emily Beattie made her professional dance debut under the direction of Diane Arvanites Noya and Tommy Neblett of Prometheus Dance Company. Through operatic works, hanging from ladders, standing on cast iron chairs, performing at Kresge Hall, Lincoln Center, and seizing onstage Neblett and Noya led her through her formative years.
Peppered throughout this time, Beattie has been seen in works by Donald Byrd (pre-professional), Jennifer Monson, Stephen Koplowitz, David Parker, Windhover Dance, Helene Lesterlin, Sarah Slifer, Zoe Dance, and Danah Bella Danceworks.
Her improvisation artistry has been cultivated through performance with media artists Yoichiro Kawaguchi,The University of Tokyo, Japan Hyjung Seo and Seunghye Kim SADI, South Korea, J.U. Lensing, THEATER DER KLÄNGE, Germany.
Emily currently creates with Lorraine Chapman, The Company, White Box Project,Dana Katz (Israel), and Joshua Monten (Switzerland). and collaborates with Liz Roncka and Eric Gunther.
Dance Educator
Emily Beattie is currently on the Modern Dance Faculty of Walnut Hill Performing Arts High School and Community Dance Academy. Her training began in classical ballet with Avery Ballet in Fredericksburg, Virginia. After studying the works and techniques of Humphrey-Weidman, Martha Graham, and Jose Limon she received a Bachelors of Fine Arts cum laude in Modern Dance from the Boston Conservatory.
Emily Beattie has held faculty positions at Brown University, Boston Ballet's Taking outreach program, The Boston Symphony Orchestra's Days in the Arts Summer Enrichment, Salem State University, and Longy School of Music.
Beattie's teaching philosophy encourages questions, experimentation, and creativity while keeping technique in the foreground.Teaching children, teens, adults, students over 55 years old and non-english speakers has developed her well rounded classroom experience. Her process of learning as she shares her passion for dance remains overt.