Desmond Richardson Master Dance Educator

A member of SDC was Raised in Laurelton, Queens NY began his formal dance training at the High School Of The Performing Arts known now as Laquardia High School of Art and the Performing Arts, The Alvin Ailey School and The Sommer Academie des tanz Köln, Germany was the first African American principal dancer of American Ballet Theatre and is Co Founder and Artistic Director along with choreographer Dwight Rhoden of the internationally acclaimed Complexions Contemporary Ballet, now celebrating its 28th season. He received a Tony Award nomination for his role in the Broadway original cast of Fosse, played the principal character of Tony in Twyla Tharp’s Broadway production Movin’ Out, worked in productions at Center Encores in NY, made his Broadway singing debut in the Burt Bacharach/Hal David-Ann Reinking/Scott Ellis production The Look Of Love in collaboration with Manhattan Theater Club, and was a standout in recent Tony Award winning After Midnight on Broadway. He graced the covers of Dance Magazine, Ballet2000, Dance Spirit, Dance Teacher and others.

With his technical virtuosity and statuesque expressive demeanor, The New York Times has hailed him as among one of the greatest dancers of his time. Lara Hartley poetically described him on Ballet Magazine website as “Moving sculpture, a body that is art, passing through time and space with power and grace – all parts connected, never stopping but heart stopping in beauty.”

Richardson has been a principal dancer and an invited guest with many of the most prestigious companies in the world such as Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Martha Graham, José Limón, The Frankfurt Ballet, The Bolshoi Ballet, The Royal Swedish Opera Ballet, Mariinsky Theatre, Teatro al la Scala. The Washington Ballet, San Francisco Ballet and more. He has performed on the most important stages in the world such as The Metropolitan Opera, The Kennedy Center, Dorothy Chandler Music Center, Teatro al la Scala, Paris Opera, The Bolshoi Theatre, Mariinsky Theatre St. Petersburg, Teatro Massimo and the Kremlin Theatre.

Richardson is the recipient of numerous awards for excellence in dance such as the Dance Magazine Award, Capezio Award, Ailey Apex Award, LA Ovation Award, Bessie Award, The YoungArts Alumni Award, and a 1986 YoungArts Finalist & Presidential Scholar in the Arts. He was invited to Israel to dance with Israeli dance icon Ido Tadmor, pianist Daniel Gortler and vocalist Adi Cohen for the 61st Israeli Presidential Conference in Jerusalem.

He has appeared as a celebrity guest performer and choreographer on hit TV shows, films, videos and stage productions such as The American Music Awards, The Oscars, Italy’s AMICI Maria De Filippi, America, Australia and Israel’s So You Think You Can Dance, original cast member in Debbie Allen’s musical Soul Possessed, Julie Taymor’s opera Grendel as principal character Beowulf, Teatro al la Scala production of Moise e Pharoné with Roberto Bolle and conductor Maestro Riccardo Muti, as well as with Michael Jackson, Prince, Madonna, Elton John, Aretha Franklin and many others. Films such as the Oscar winning Chicago, Julie Taymor’s Across The Universe, Patrick Swayze/Lisa Niemi’s One Last Dance, Charles Randolph Wright’s (Tony Award Nominee /director MOTOWN) Preaching to the Choir and Fall To Rise. Richardson was a featured performer on the PBS special Jazz and the Philharmonic with a noted impromptu improv with vocal master Mr. Bobby McFerrin.

He choreographed and was co-creative director on the Sybille Szaggers Redford and Robert Redford production of Way of the Rain at the Sundance Film Festival with notable musicians Will Calhoun, Chuck Palmer, Dave Eggar and the group OAR.

Richardson continues to give back and enjoys teaching and encouraging the next generation of dancers as an in-demand master teacher throughout the world.

Teaching at his own Complexions Academy and many top universities from the Chadwick Boseman School of Fine Arts at Howard University, the USC Glorya Kaufman International School for Dance, Julliard, SMU, Marymount, Skidmore, Harvard, Booker T Washington, Dallas, Princeton, UC Irvine and Chapman University. Richardson is honored to share his expertise and knowledge of the art of dance.

He and his collaborative partner Dwight Rhoden contemporary ballet technique titled “NIQUE” has been received by critical acclaim and they continue to share their expertise boldly.

Richardson continues to give back by teaching and collaborating with such organizations as the All-Stars Project NY, YoungArts Miami, Jacobs Pillow, United Way, Dance conventions including NYCDA, ASH, Universal Ballet competition and YAGP.

His video collaboration with the trumpet master, Grammy Award winner, Terrance Blanchard Magnetic shot by Nitin Vadukul was viewed with critical praise. Grammy Award winner Jill Scott’s video Back Together featuring dancers from his company Complexions with acclaimed director Alan Ferguson; part of the creative movement team under director Mr. Stephen Galloway (collective Shift) for fashion icon Tom Ford and legendary bassist Nile Rodgers’, creative movement consult on fashion campaigns, ID Magazine, Jimmy Choo, Banana Republic and more.

Richardson was invited to dance and speak for TEDTALKS IN PALO ALTO and is featured as the character Sammy in the recent featured film sequel by Michael & Janeen Damian HighStrungFreeDance”. Richardson is the recipient of the US Presidential Honors Roosevelt “Rosey” Thompson Award and a recent recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from The University of North Carolina School Of the Arts for Excellence in Fine Arts, recently worked in collaboration with LA based award winning choreographer Jacob Jonas, Grammy Winning Saxophonist Dave Koz, Acclaimed composer Steve Hackman and director Andre Bato on Edging Normal @ Films.dance and is currently working on the Choreography for the Broadway-bound, “Mozart” her Story with Collaborator Dwight Rhoden, and Producer Tegan Summer.

Richardson is the Curator/Co-Founder of “Dance For Life “which had its inaugural performance April 23, 2022, in Los Angeles at the Nate Holden Theater. Currently Richardson can be seen on the 3rd season of the hit show on HBO Max “The Other Two” as Ted.