Faculty Profile for Michelle E Nance

profile photo for Michelle E Nance
Michelle E Nance
Professor — School of Theatre, Dance, & Film
JOW 178E
phone: (512) 245-2955
Scholarly/Creative Work
Awards
Grants
Service

Biography Section

Biography and Education

 Michelle Nance, Professor and Director of Dance at Texas State University, has enjoyed many years of devising dance works collaboratively with colleagues and students; as well as performing in the U.S. and abroad. Michelle has studied and taught the technique of Erick Hawkins extensively, and served as the Assistant School Director for the Erick Hawkins School of Dance in the mid-1990s. She also enjoys working in dance improvisation, site-specific dance, somatic practices, and collaborations in screendance. She has been teaching at Texas State University since 2003, and holds a MFA from the University of Colorado-Boulder.

Teaching Interests

 dance appreciation, dance composition/choreography, improvisation, modern technique, world dance, dance history/philosophy

Research Interests

 dance advocacy, aesthetics, somatics practices, world dance

Selected Scholarly/Creative Work

  • dancer and choreographer, HinterTerra. April 2022 - Present.
    Showings:
    • Latent Spaces Reframed – Malta. December 10, 2022 - January 15, 2023 Space C, Spazju Kreattiv, Valetta, Malta.
    • Lift-Off Filmaker Sessions. March 27, 2023 @LiftOffGlobalNetwork, Pinewood Studios in the UK.
    • XVII Intrnational Video Dance Festival DVDanza Habana Movimiento y Cuidad. April 21, 2023 - April 23, 2023 Havana, Cuba.
    • Dance Days Chania. July 27, 2023 - July 29, 2023 Chania, Greece.
    • FilmFest by Rogue Dancer. June 1, 2023 Raleigh, NC, USA.
    • The Huntington Beach Cultural Film Fest. August 25, 2023 - August 27, 2023 USA.
    • Festival de Video Danza Cuerpo Digital. September 25, 2023 - October 1, 2023 Cochabamba, Colombia.
    • Festival del Cinema di Cefalú. September 1, 2023 Palermo, Italia.
    • Land Art Moving Biennale 2023/24. September 4, 2023 - September 17, 2023 Agueda, Portugal.
    • 3rd Women in Dance International Dance Film Fest. October 14, 2023 - October 15, 2023 Yokohama, Japan.
    • Cinematica Videodance Competition. October 29, 2023 Ancona, Italy.
    • Women in Dance International Dance Film Fest, online screening. November 19, 2023 Los Angeles, CA.
    • Tokyo Documentary Film Festival. December 9, 2023 - December 22, 2023 Tokyo, Japan.
    • Athens Video Dance Project. December 18, 2023 - December 19, 2023 Athens, Greece.
    • Festival Internacional de Dança Vídeo & Tecnologia da Unicamp. June 20, 2024 - July 5, 2024 Casa do Lago, Unicamp, Campinas, Brazil.
    • 10th Annual School of Performing Arts Conference. March 22, 2024 University of Malta, Valletta, Malta.
    • Women in Dance Leadership Conference. October 17, 2024 - October 19, 2024 Brockus Dance Project, Los Angeles, CA.
  • dancer and choreographer, UrbáTerra Bartzelona. June 2023 - 2025.
    Showings:
    • Festival Internationcional de Videodanca. July 31, 2024 - September 1, 2024 RS Galeria Ecarta, Porto Alegre, RS. Brazil.
    • INTERNATIONAL VIDEO DANCE SHOW. May 24, 2024 Casa da Música Francisco Alves Gato, Mafra, Portugal.
    • Brighton Fringe Flicks. May 18, 2024 Lewes Depot, East Sussex, U.K.
    • Opening Door Dance Theatre "Timeless". February 22, 2024 - February 24, 2024 Patti Strickel Harrison Theatre, San Marcos, TX.
    • Cinedanza Festival. October 20, 2024 Moderna, Italy.
    • Biencortos Festival Internacional. November 12, 2024 - November 15, 2024 Maracaibo, Venezuela.
    • Vesuvius International Film Awards. November 26, 2024 Naples, Italy.
    • Tokyo Documentary Film Festival. December 8, 2024 - December 17, 2024 Tokyo, Japan.
    • Athens International Digital Film Festival. December 12, 2024 Athens, Greece.
    • Filmarte Short FIlm Festival. January 1, 2025 Porto, Portugal.
  • choreographer, Deep. July 2022 - August 4, 2022.
    Performances:
    • Choreographers' Showcase. August 4, 2022 - August 5, 2022 Jowers Studio B178, Texas State University.
    • Opening Door Dance Theatre. October 20, 2022 - October 22, 2022 Patti Strickel Harrison Theatre, San Marcos, TX.
    • American College Dance Association. March 7, 2023 Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX.
    • Austin Dance Festival. March 25, 2023 Rollins Theatre - Long Center, Austin, TX.
  • dancer/co-choreographer, TerraMontes. May 2024 - Present.
    Showings:
    • Opening Door Dance Theatre "Leaving the Light On". October 24, 2024 - October 26, 2024 Patti Strickel Harrison Theatre, San Marcos, TX.
  • choreographer/dancer, Twilight Tear (reconstructed). March 17, 2022 - 2024.
    Performances:
    • Shay Ishii Dance Company presents "Mending...". June 17, 2022 Bravo Theatre of Balance Studio, Austin, TX.
    • Opening Door Dane Theatre. October 20, 2022 - October 22, 2022 Patti Strickel Harrison Theatre, San Marcos, TX.
    • Bill Evans Dance and Somatics Institute. July 14, 2024 Ft. Warden State Park, Port Townsend, WA.

Selected Awards

  • Award / Honor Recipient: Best Short Film - Environment & Sustainability (Silver Category) for HinterTerra, One Earth Awards 2023. 2023
  • Award / Honor Recipient: College Achievement Award for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching, College of Fine Arts and Communication. October 2023
  • Award / Honor Recipient: Everette Swinney Faculty Senate Excellence in Teaching Award, Texas State University. October 2022
  • Award / Honor Recipient: College Achievement Award for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Scholarly/Creative Activities, Texas State University. October 2020
  • Award / Honor Recipient: Innovation in Screendance, Jeju Drone Film Festival, Republic of Korea. September 30, 2019

Selected Grants

  • Nance, Michelle E. Student Travel to American College Dance Festival - FY 24, Student Service Fees - One Time Funding, Institutional (Higher Ed), $10400. (Submitted: January 2023, Funded: September 2023 - April 2024). Grant.
  • Nance, Michelle E (Co-Principal), Baer, Ana Carrillo (Co-Principal). Art as a Catalyst for Social Change: Our Journeys with DanceAbility, University Lecturer Series - one time funding, Institutional (Higher Ed), $3000. (Submitted: January 2023, Funded: September 2023 - April 2024). Grant.
  • Nance, Michelle E. Student Travel to American College Dance Festival - FY 23, Student Service Fee - One-time funding, Institutional (Higher Ed), $4000. (Funded: September 2022 - May 2023). Grant.
  • Nance, Michelle E. Why Representation Matters: Screendance and Accessibility, University Lecturers Program, Texas State University, $2000. (Submitted: October 2021, Funded: January 2022 - May 2022). Grant.
  • Nance, Michelle E (Principal). Student Travel to the American College Dance Festival - FY 21, Student Service Fees, Texas State University, $4700. (Submitted: January 15, 2020, Funded: September 1, 2020 - May 15, 2021). Grant.

Selected Service Activities

Editorial Review Board Member
San Souci International Festival of Dance Cinema
October 2018-Present
Coordinator / Organizer
American College Dance Festival - 2025 Regional Conference
January 2024-Present
Member
University Performing Arts Committee
August 2019-Present
Member
Dance Technique Placement Juries
November 2017-Present
Organizer
Program Audition co-Coordinator
August 2017-Present