GEORDIE WRIGHT, Associate Professor, is a native of California, and began her study of ballet, jazz, and tap at the age of five. Her professional dance experience began at the age of 8, when she was selected to perform three consecutive years with the Bolshoi and Kirov Ballet Companies, during their San Francisco engagements. Ms. Wright received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from California Institute of the Arts, studying with Bella Lewitzky, Donald McKayle, and Mia Slavenska. She did post-graduate work in Dance at U.C.L.A. and earned a Master of Arts degree in Dance at Cal State Long Beach. She continued her professional dance career while still in college, touring and performing locally and nationally with several modern, jazz, and folk ballet companies, including Gloria Newman’s modern dance company, and Burch Mann’s Americana Dance Theater. Ms. Wright has danced professionally on television, film, and Broadway, including the movie Pennies from Heaven, the Academy Awards Show, and the Broadway musical Mack and Mabel. She has worked with directors, choreographers, and stars such as Gower Champion, Robert Preston, Bernadette Peters, Ron Howard, Bob Hope, Ann Margaret, Ben Vereen, Ray Charles, Sonny and Cher, Donald McKayle, and Jaime Rogers.

 

As an advocate for arts in education, Ms. Wright spent two years with the Los Angeles Unified School District’s Visual and Performing Arts Program, writing and implementing curriculum for the pilot arts and literacy program, teaching dance and creative movement to elementary school children, and providing professional development training and workshops for district teachers.

 

Ms. Wright implemented a partnership with Valley College and Arianne MacBean’s Dance Moving Forward Festival, bringing renowned guest choreographers to work with students in the Valley College dance program. Ms. Wright has been teaching at Los Angeles Valley College for more than 20 years, offering classes in Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Choreography, Dance for Film and Stage, Dance Production, and Dance and Creative Movement for Educators.