Celebrated actor, dancer, choreographer and director Debbie Allen will visit Griffith University’s Logan Campus this Friday 20 September for a special guest lecture.
The woman with an illustrious career including her legendary role as Lydia Grant in the hit series Fame, projects with Michael Jackson, Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson and Sammy Davis Junior, judging on So You Think You Can Dance (USA) and the directing of Grey’s Anatomy, will discuss how art, dance and music can transform the lives of youth.
Debbie established the Debbie Allen Dance Academy (DADA) in 2001 with the express goal of empowering and defining self-esteem, discipline and creativity for students between the ages of four and 21 in the Greater Los Angeles area.
She is now set to share her experience in using arts education to encourage disengaged youths with the Griffith University community, local schools and partners in the Logan district through a 45-minute lecture to be introduced by Professor Lesley Chenoweth.
The lecture will be followed by an interactive dance class with Debbie and approximately 200 grade nine students from Glenala State High School and Loganlea State High School from 11.50am — 12.25pm.
Debbie is in Australia alongside more than 20 performers from DADA who have made the journey from LA for the world-premiere and headline act “Freeze Frame” at this year’s Brisbane Festival in six performances from 19 — 22 September.
She hopes the dance-driven narrative will present the human side to the often senseless killings seen on a daily basis in the gang-riddled streets of Crenshaw, one of America’s deadliest neighbourhoods and also the site of her non-profit dance school, DADA.
Debbie Allen Guest Lecture
11.00 — 11.45am, Friday 20 September 2013
L06 Auditorium, Griffith Uni Logan campus, University Drive, Meadowbrook
RSVP: Renuka Reid (07) 3382 1244, [email protected]
Media are invited to film/photograph the lecture and dance class.
MEDIA CONTACT: James Aspin, 0478 494 898
ABOUT DEBBIE ALLEN:
Debbie acts as a Culture Connect Ambassador representing the U.S. in visits to Brazil, China, Italy, and India expanding the opportunities in arts education for young people all over the world. She is a member of the prestigious President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities, a board member of the American Film Institute, and an Executive Committee member of UCLA’s School of Theatre, Film, and Television. She has received three Emmy awards honouring her choreography, and two Emmys and one Golden Globe for her role in Fame. She also holds the distinction of having choreographed the Academy Awards a total of ten times, five in consecutive years.