First Name
Joshua
Last Name
Legg
Position
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
MFA Program Director, Fine Arts & Dance
Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Practice
Email
Joshua.Legg@wilson.edu
Phone
Office Location
Lortz 202
Bio

Joshua’s choreography has been called “stunning, intense…an exciting interpretation of modern ballet.” Recognized for his diverse range (recent commissions include both dance and opera companies), he has presented works nationally earning grant support and honors on adjudicated concerts.

 

His work as a choreographer, performer, and director spans ballet, classic modern, post-Judson, street jazz, dance theatre/performance art, opera, classical and contemporary theatre, and musical theatre. Joshua has enjoyed dance roles in masterworks by Balanchine, de Mille, Petipa, and Robbins, and a diverse range of contemporary works as well.

 

His book, Introduction to Modern Dance Techniques, (October 2011: Princeton Book Company), is available in French and Italian translations (Gremese Editore). Additional dance writing has appeared in DanceTeacher and DanceSpirit magazines, covering a breadth of topics from ballet and contemporary techniques to choreography pedagogy, grantsmanship, and dance in rural America. Joshua has interviewed major artists and educators in ballet and contemporary dance including: Ruth Andrien, Keith Lee, Mary Lisa Burns, Judith Jamison, Albirda Rose, Elizabeth Auclaire, Karin von Aroldingen, Robby Barnett, Sara Rudner, Sara Neece, Sally Fitt, Jennifer Scanlon, and Robert Swinston. As a scholar, he considers race, gender/sexual identity, economics, and the appearance of liminal ritual in concert dance.

 

Recognized as a master teacher, Joshua has been a guest teacher or speaker for the American Dance Festival’s Paul Taylor Project, the DanceTeacher Summit, the American College Dance Festival, various universities, private and pre-professional studios, and high school dance programs. His academic appointments include the dance or theatre programs at Northwestern State University of Louisiana, Harvard University (where he received a Certificate of Distinction in Teaching), Suffolk University, and Shenandoah University. Working alongside some of dance’s greatest artists, Joshua has served as a rehearsal director/dance captain for concert dance and musicals. For instance, at Harvard University, he worked with Trey McIntyre on a new ballet, with Heather Watts on her stagings of Balanchine’s Apollo and Serenade, and Christine Dakin on her staging of Graham’s Night Journey.

 

Joshua’s political experience includes serving as a White House staff member for the Clinton Administration, and board member service with statewide social justice/civil rights organizations.

 

He holds a BFA and MFA in dance choreography and performance (Shenandoah Conservatory), and a BS in mass communications (Shenandoah University). Joshua is a proud recipient of the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation’s service award (Shenandoah), is a member of the Omicron Delta Kappa leadership honor society, and is an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.