Curriculum Vitae
Jody Sperling
She/Her
jody[at]timelapsedance
EDUCATION
M.F.A. Dance, Montclair State University, 2020
M.A. Performance Studies, Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, 1996
B.A. Dance & Italian Studies (Phi Beta Kappa; High Honors; Student Fellow, Center for the Humanities) Wesleyan University, 1992
RESEARCH AREAS
Dance & Climate Change
Loie Fuller Legacy & Technique
Film, Media, and Embodied Technology
Ecokinetics - Environmental Performance & Somatic Practice
Dance as Activism
TEACHING AREAS
Repertory, Dance Composition, Modern Dance Technique (all levels), Improvisation, Screen Dance, Dance Writing, Dance History & Theory, Dance & Climate Change, Site-Specific & Environmental Performance, Loïe Fuller Legacy & Technique, Ecokinetics - Environmental Performance Practice, Ballet
HIGHER EDUCATION TEACHING
Adjunct Faculty
2022 (Spring) - New Jersey City University, Department of Music, Dance & Theatre
Teaching modern dance technique levels I and II.
2020 (Fall) - Rutgers University, Dance Department
Create new collaborative site work with MFA students based on principles of ecokinetics.
2018 (Fall) - Montclair State University, Department of Theatre & Dance
Set repertory work Wind Rose on BFA students. Taught online Dance Appreciation course.
2018 (Spring) - Barnard College, Dance Department
Developed and taught new course Composition: Site Specific & Experimental Methods.
2016 (Fall) - The Ailey School/Fordham University
As semester long course taught repertory work Turbulence to BFA Juniors.
2012 (Spring) - Hofstra University, Department of Drama & Dance
As semester long course taught repertory work Turbulence to BFA students.
Teaching/Guest Artist Residencies
2023 (Fall) George Washington University, Corcoran School for the Arts & Design
Guest Choreographer-in-Residence setting repertory on students.
2020 (Fall) Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Visual Arts
Remote guest artist teaching ecokinetics to Observing the Natural World/ Art+Science
2020 (Spring) Williams College, Dance Department
Teaching composition workshop, masterclass, panel, lecture, and class visits.
2017 (Fall) Skidmore College, Dance Department/Department of Sustainability
Created site-specific work. Taught composition, modern and improvisation. Lectures and panel.
2016 (Fall) University of California, Irvine, Department of Dance
Guest taught four classes: Global Perspectives, Composition, Modern Technique (II & III)
2016 (Spring) Brenau University, Dance Department
Two-week residency setting new work on students. Taught modern classes. Lectures and panel.
2016 (Fall) & 2006 (Fall) Wesleyan University, Dance Department
Half-semester weekly modern dance classes. Guest lecture & performance presentations.
2012 (Spring) DeSales University
Weeklong residency teaching Ghosts Revisited for student concert.
2010 (Spring ) & 2008 (Fall) Barnard College, Dance Department
Taught repertory Ballet of Light (in 2008) and Ghosts Revisited (in 2010) to students.
2007 (Spring) University of Wyoming, Department of Theatre and Dance
NEA American Masterpieces commission to reconstruct Ballet of Light for student performance.
CHOREOGRAPHY (LIST OF WORKS)
2023 Arbor, 6 dancers, 22 mins
2023 Fractal Memories - 6 dancers, 20 mins (for documentary film Obsessed with Light)
2023 Bunhead’s Back - film - in-progress
2022 American Elm, solo 7 mins
2022 Plastic Harvest - stage work/site activation, 3-5 dancers, 20-25 mins
2021 Elegy - solo dancer/cellist, 6 mins
2021 Plastic Harvest - film, 4 dancers, 12 mins
2020 Single Use - solo film, 9 mins
2020 Fly - solo film, 4 mins
2020 Plastic Virus - solo film, 3 mins
2019 Grid - 6 dancers, 10 mins
2018 Wind Rose - 6 dancers, 20 mins
2018 Sound Study - solo dancer/cellist, 8 mins
2017 Book of Clouds - solo dancer/visual artist, 1-5 hr multimedia performance installation
2016 Piece for a Northern Sky - solo, 15 mins
2015 Ice Cycle - 6 dancers, 30 mins
2015 Solos for the feature film The Dancer (2016) - 6 mins
2014 Arctic Memory - solo, 5 mins
2013 Time-Lapse Fantasy - 6 dancers, 15 mins
2012 Loie Unveiled - 6 dancers
2011 Turbulence - 6 dancers, 20 mins
2010 Ghosts Revisited - 4 dancers, 15 mins
2010 Satellite - solo aerialist, 8 mins
2010 Forms of Dilemma - 4 dancers, 15 mins
2010 Cheap – Leg Up - 4 dancers, 13 mins
2008 Ghosts - 3 dancers, 20 mins
2008 Bang for the Buck - 4 dancers, 20 mins
2007 Roman Sketches - 3 dancers, 20 mins
2007 A Leg Up - 4 dancers, 20 mins
2006 Ballet of Light - 7 dancers, 15 mins
2005 Debussy Soirée - solo, 15 mins
2005 Hoop Act - solo, 4 mins
2005 An Arm and a Leg - 3 dancers, 16 mins
2005 Cheap Hoops - 3 dancers, 8 mins
2005 Cheapest - 3 dancers, 15 mins
2003 Cheaper - 2 dancers, 20 mins
2003 La Nuit - solo, 8 mins
2003 Sympt-o-matic - solo, 13 mins
2002 Dance of the Elements - solo, 15 mins
2002 Orlando - solo, 12 mins
2001 Winded - solo, 12 mins
2001 Washed Up, Solo Distillation - solo, 10 mins
2000 Washed Up - 7 dancers, 60 mins
2000 Magic-Lantern Dance - solo, 15 mins
2000 Trapeze Disrobing Act - solo, 8 mins
1999 Serpentine Dance - solo, 8 mins
1999 Cheap - solo, 10 mins
1999 Bunhead’s Back! - solo, 12 mins
1998 Threshold - solo, 10 mins
1997 The Butterfly Dance - solo, 3 mins
1995 Loop - solo, 8 mins
1995 Switchback - 4 dancers, 20 mins
1994 End Games - 3 dancers, 15 mins
1994 Loose Ends - solo, 5 mins
1993 Puzzler - duet, 12 minutes
1992 Permutations - 5 dancers, 20 mins
CREATIVE RESIDENCIES
2021-present - NY Society for Ethical Culture
Ongoing eco-artist residency and collaboration.
2021 & 2022 - Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC Canada
Collaborative project with artists Amy-Claire Huestis and Omar Zubair exploring bird migration.
2021 - The 14th Street Y, New York, NY
Two-week creative residency facilitating development of Elegy, Arboreal Entanglement, and Bunhead’s Back!
2020 - The Center at West Park, New York, NY
Two-week creative residency to develop Plastic Harvest.
2017 - Human Impacts Institute, Impact Artist Residency, New York, NY
Month-long creative incubator with multidisciplinary artists working on climate change.
2017 - UCLA Art | Sci Center, Los Angeles, CA
Two-week residency to develop Book of Clouds, culminating in 24-hour performance installation
2016 - Hunter College, Arts Across the Curriculum Initiative, New York, NY
Mellon-Funded one-week full-company residency with performance, panel & masterclass.
2016 - Harvestworks - New York, NY
One-week residency collaboration with DJ Spooky culminating in Creative Tech performance.
2014 - US Coast Guard Cutter Healy, SUBICE Polar Science Mission, Chukchi Sea, ArcticFirst choreographer-in-residence aboard USCGC icebreaker for 43-day Arctic mission at invitation of Dr. Robert Pickart of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Danced on sea ice, made dance film short, participated in science data collection, taught workshops, presented lectures and performances for scientists and crew.
2012 - Silo Space, Center Valley, PA
Weeklong company residency for re-mounting Roman Sketches.
2009 - Hobart & William Smith Colleges, Geneva, NY
Weeklong residency with company performance, school show, masterclasses, and lecture.
2009-2010 - Streb Lab for Action Mechanics (S.L.A.M) - Brooklyn, NY
Recipient of Emerging Artist Commissioning Program grant for creation new aerial work.
2008-2015 - Vassar College, Dance Department, Poughkeepsie, NY
Five creative residencies (one-two weeks) during summers to develop new company works.
2008 - Paul Robeson Gallery, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
Two-week residency for development of new company works.
2006 - Vermont Performance Lab / Marlboro College, Marlboro, VT
Inaugural VPL residency with company to create Roman Sketches. Gave masterclass.
NYC PERFORMANCES
Seasons
2023 NY Society for Ethical Culture - May/November - Arbor & Other Works
2022 14th Street Y - Time Lapse Dance Onstage
2020 Online - Time Lapse Dance 20th Anniversary Season
2019 The Center at West Park - Melting Ice/Changing Winds
2018 Barnard College - Soundings
2017 Baryshnikov Arts Center - Book of Clouds
2016 Performance Project at University Settlement - Polar Rhythms Festival
2016 JCC Manhattan - Bringing the Arctic Home (encore)
2015 JCC Manhattan - Bringing the Arctic Home
2014 New 42nd Street Studios - Polar Vortex
2013 Danspace Project, DANCE: Access - Wood & Silk (with Racoco Productions)
2012 Joyce SoHo - Loïe Fuller Celebration
2011 Baryshnikov Arts Center - Turbulence
2010 Tribeca Performing Arts Center - Time Lapse Dance 10th Anniversary Season
2008 Ailey Citigroup Theater - Ghosts and More . . .
2007 Baryshnikov Arts Center - Roman Sketches and Other Works
2005 Abrons Arts Center, Harry du Jur Playhouse - Time Lapse Dance
2004 NY City Center Studios - Season Preview
2003 Williamsburg Arts NeXus - An Evening of Solos and Duets
2002 Joyce SoHo - An Evening of Solos
2000 Cunningham Studio - Time Lapse Dance (First Full Evening)
Other
2023 - City of Forest Day, Roosevelt Island - performance program
2023 - Battery Dance Festival
2023 - NYCHA Housing Performances, Amsterdam Houses & Harborview Terrace
2023 - Berry Earth Day - street performances
2021-22 - Amsterdam Eco-Arts Festival - street performances
2022-23 - Street Arts: An Earth Day Celebration - street performances
2020 - We Walk: Streets for Connection - street performances
2018-19 - Spot for Dance Festivals - street performances
2005 - NY City Center - Fall for Dance
1995, 1998, 2002 - Movement Research at the Judson Church
2000, 2008, 2010 - Performance Mix Festival - Joyce SoHo
2000-2015 - Tea Dances - Ongoing Works-in-Progress Salon
1999, 2000 - Dance Now Festival - Joyce SoHo
1995, 2016, 2018-19 - Dixon Place - Crossing Boundaries
1994 - Cunningham Studio - New Work (Shared Evening)
TOURING ENGAGEMENTS
Performing Arts Centers & Universities
2022 - Mandell Theater, Westphal College of Media Arts & Design, Phil., PA
Full-company program Melting Ice/Changing Winds.
2019 - Shea Center for the Performing Arts, Wayne, NJ
Full-company program Melting Ice/Changing Winds.
2018 - University of Virginia, Institute of Humanities & Global Culture, Charlottesville, VA
Full-company performance of Ice Cycle keynote plenary for Humanities Informatics conference.
2017 - Marywood University, Music, Theatre & Dance Department, Scranton, PA
Presented two performances and masterclass for dance students.
2016 - Payment Performing Arts Center, N. Truro, MA
Two full-company performances of Bringing the Arctic Home with audience talkbacks.
2016 - University of Virginia, Climate Cultures Symposium, Charlottesville, VA
Full-company production of Ice Cycle with live music and audience talkback.
2015 - Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC
Arctic Spring-Arctic Matters Festival presented premiere performance Ice Cycle.
2013 - University of Massachusetts, UMASS Fine Arts Center, Amherst, MA
Weeklong full-company performance & residency with public lectures, and masterclass.
2012 - Spring of Culture Festival - Ministry of Culture, Manama, Bahrain
Full-company performance & residency at Cultural Hall, masterclasses and talkback.
2011 - University of Nebraska, Lied Center/Interdisciplinary Arts Symposium, Lincoln, NE
Full-company performance in 900-seat auditorium. School show, masterclass & lectures.
2010-2014 - Muses of Modern Dance
Program featuring the three muses of modern dance, Loïe Fuller (Sperling), Isadora Duncan (Jeanne Bresciani) and Ruth St. Denis (Livia Vanaver). Performed at Moving Voices Foundation in South Boston, VA (2010), Kaatsbaan International Arts Center, Tivoli, NY (2010 & 2014) and Piccolo Spoleto Festival in Charleston, SC (2012).
2010 - DanceBase, Love Dance Festival, Edinburgh Fringe, Scotland, UK
Presented ten solo performances, taught masterclass, and gave public lecture.
2010 - Society for the Performing Arts in Nigeria (SPAN) - Lagos, Nigeria
Weeklong residency including solo performance, teaching technique & repertory.
2008 - Maryhill Museum of Art, Goldendale, WA
Company performance culminating Loie Fuller celebration and conference.
2007 & 2012 - Bloomfield College, Westminster Arts Center, Bloomfield, NJ
Presented solo performance in 2007 and company performance for return engagement in 2012.
2006 - Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center - Cambridge, MA
Full evening solo concert for weekend performances.
2006 - Florida State University, Department of Dance, Tallahassee, FL
Solo performance and lecture presentation as guest artist.
2005 - Two River Theater, Red Bank, NJ
New venue presented full company performance Time Lapse Dance in Concert.
2000 & 2007 - Community Education Center - Philadelphia, PA
Performance exchange program between New York and Philadelphia dance artists.
Solo Performances & Lectures at Museums
2020 & 2017 The Clark Art Museum, Williamstown, MA
2019 Monson Williams Proctor Art Institute, Uttica, NY
2017 Kemper Art Museum, Washington University, St. Louis, MO
2016 Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
2016 Reynolda House Museum, Winston-Salem, NC
2004 Zimmerli Museum of Art, New Brunswick, NJ
2001 PS 1, Warm-Up Series, New York, NY
2000 Smithsonian/National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC
1997 Library of Congress, Washington, DC
Festival Performances
2005 Art of the Solo Festival - St. Petersburg, Russia
2004 Art of Movement Festival - Yaroslavl, Russia
1999, 2001, 2003 Fringe Festival of Independent Dance Artists, Toronto, ON Canada
1999-01, 2003, 2005 Philadelphia Fringe Festival, Philadelphia, PA
2003 Edgy Women, Studio 303, Montreal, QC Canada
2003 Le Boudoir, Lyon d’Or, Montreal, QC Canada
FILM
2023 - Obsessed with Light (Dirs. Sabine Krayenbuehl, Zeva Oelbaum)
Premiere, Rome Film Fest
Choreographer, Creative Consultant, Performer.
Commissioned to create new company work for feature-length documentary focusing on Loie Fuller and creative practice.
post-production - Time Lapse Dancer (Dir. Joshua Sperling)
Featured Subject, Choreographer, Performer
Hour-long documentary feature following choreographic process.
post-production - Book of Changes (Dir. Elizabeth Yng-Wong)
Choreographer, Performer
Created dance sequences for feature-length documentary about I-Ching.
post-production - Bunhead’s Back! (Dir. Jody Sperling)
Choreographer, Dance film
2021 - Plastic Harvest (Dir. Jody Sperling)
Choreographer, Dance film for Time Lapse Dance themed on plastic pollution
2020 - Single Use (Dir. Jody Sperling)
Official Selection International Harlem Film Festival
Choreographer, Performer, Covid-era dance film themed on plastic pollution.
2016 - The Dancer (Dir. Stephanie Di Giusto)
Choreographer, Creative Consultant, Coach, Body Double
Commissioned to create new dances for French feature film about Loie Fuller.
Premiere 2016 Cannes Film Festival, 2 Cesar nominations, 1 win for Best Costume Design
2017 World Choreography Nomination
2014 - Ice Floe
Director, Choreographer, Performer
Film short of dancing in the Arctic. Winner Creative Climate Award
2014 - Reimagining Loïe Fuller’s Ballet of Light (Dir. Ali Grossman)
Choreographer, Featured Subject
Documentary following reconstruction of Ballet of Light for University of Wyoming students.
2010 - Loïe Fuller: Dancing in the Light Fantastic (Dir. Michael Dukta)
Choreographer, Performer, Interview Subject
Provided interview and choreography for Loie Fuller documentary.
REPERTORY COMPANIES
2017-present Ice Theatre of New York
Set solo Arctic Memory on ice dancer for ITNY’s programming at Rockefeller Center, Chelsea Piers, Riverbank State Park, and other venues.
Received 2022 NYSCA funding for new commission of duet Of Water and Ice.
2008 & 2013 Introdans Youth Ensemble, The Netherlands
Set repertory Roman Sketches on Dutch company for European tour 2013. Return visit to set Clair de lune for company gala.
INVITED LECTURES/WORKSHOPS (SELECTED)
2020 Rutgers University, Dance Department - Guest Lecturer
2020 Barnard College, Dance Department - Guest Speaker on Dance Film
2020 Juilliard, Dance - Lecture on Loie fuller
2019 New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, Dance Department - Performer/Speaker
2019 Baruch College, Department of Fine and Performing Arts - Guest Panel Speaker
2018 Jacob’s Pillow, Becket, MA - Introduction/Talkback for “The Dancer” Screening
2018 Hunter College, Graduate Dance Education Program - Guest Teacher Methods Class
2017 USC Gloria Kaufman School of Dance - Lecture & STEM/Dance Workshop
2017 Barnard College, Dance Department - Guest Speaker about “The Dancer”
2016 Princeton University, Dance Department - Guest Lecturer “Turbulent Ice”
2014 Columbia University Seminar, Arts & Science Series - Lecture Climate Change/Dance
2014 SUMBERGE, NYC’s Marine Science Festival - Lecture Climate Change/Dance
2014 JCC Manhattan - Lecture “Polar Vortex: Upon Return”
2012 New York Public Library for the Performing Arts - Loie Fuller celebration
2011 Fashion in Film Festival, Graduate Center, CUNY - Panelist, Technological Costuming
2012 Towson University, Dance Department - Guest Lecture Loie Fuller
2012 Wilson College, Dance Program -
Lecture & Masterclass
2011 Harvard Club - Lecture “ Loie Fuller and Early Cinema”
2011 DeSales College – Lecture “Loïe Fuller and Early Cinema”
2009 Wesleyan University – Guest lecturer Dance Production
2008 Maryhill Museum of Art, Goldendale, WA – Lecture on Loïe Fuller
2008 ArtEz Academy, Arnheim, The Netherlands – Guest lecturer
2006 Trinity/La Mama – “Dance Watching & Writing” workshop
2005 Vaganova Academy, St. Petersburg, Russia – Guest lecture on Loïe Fuller
2005 Solo Tanz Festival, St. Petersburg, Russia – Public lecture on Loïe Fuller
2005 Marlboro College – Guest lecturer & Composition Class
2005 CyberArts Festival, Boston University – Featured lecturer Technology & Loie Fuller
2004 Stanford University, Cantor Center for the Visual Arts – Lecture on Rodin & Fuller
2002 Rutgers University – Guest lecturer dance history course
2001 Wesleyan University – Guest lecturer in College of Letters
2001 Sarah Lawrence College – Lecture-performance on Loïe Fuller
2001 Festival Oriente Occidente, Rovereto, Italy – Roundtable on Loïe Fuller
2000 University of California, Irvine, CA – Lecture on Loïe Fuller
2000 University of California, Riverside, CA – Lecture-performance on Loïe Fuller
PUBLICATIONS
“On Sharing Breathe,” Sub-Stance, 2023.
"From The Serpentine to The Renegade: Milestones in Dance and Media Technology,” in Milestones in Dance (Ed. Elizabeth McPherson), Routledge, 2022.
“Cosmic Voyages in Advance of Cinema: ‘La Loïe’ Skirts the Universe” in Birds of Paradise: Costume as Cinematic Spectacle, British Film Institute, London, 2014.
“Loïe Fuller (1862-1928),” biographical essay for the Dance Heritage Coalition’s website America’s Irreplaceable Dance Treasures, 2012. (http://danceheritage.org/fuller.html).
“Loïe Fuller’s Ballet of Light: Re-imagining a 1908 Media Spectacle in the Digital Age.” Paper delivered at the Thirtieth Annual Conference of the Society of Dance History Scholars, 2007.
“Sublime or Ridiculous? Some Thoughts on Marie Leyton's Electrical Serpentine Dance of the 1890s.” Twenty-Ninth Annual Conference Society of Dance History Scholars, Banff Centre, Alberta, CA, 2006.
“Loïe Fuller and the Magic-Lantern.” Paper delivered at the Dancing in the Millennium Conference, Washington, DC, 2000.
“Skirting the Image: The Origins of Loïe Fuller's Serpentine Dance.” Paper delivered at Twenty-Second Annual Conference of Society of Dance History Scholars, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, 1999. (Translated into Italian and appears in Danza di luce, Skira, Italy, 2002.)
“Works Choreographed and Staged by Jerome Robbins,” in Dance for a City: Fifty Years of the New York City Ballet (ed. Lynn Garafola), Columbia University Press, New York, 1999.
“Film and Video: Choreography for Camera” (with Nancy Becker Schwartz) in The International Encyclopedia of Dance, Oxford University Press, New York, 1998.
19 articles, including features & reviews The Village Voice (1993–2000)
25 articles, including features & reviews Dance Magazine (2000–2007
30+ blog entries, including essays & reviews on JodySperling.com (2008–2011)
2,000+ photo captions for six-volume scholarly reference The International Encyclopedia of Dance (1998)
CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
2016 American Geophysical Union, San Francisco, CA
2007 CND/SDHS/CORD Conference, Paris, France
2006 Society of Dance History Scholars Annual Conference, Banff, Canada
2003 Society of Dance History Scholars Annual Conference, University of Limerick, Ireland
2000 Dancing in the Millennium Conference, George Washington University, DC
1999 Society of Dance History Scholars, Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque
SERVICE
2020- present Artist Advisory Council, Artists With Evidence (AWE)
2004-2007 Board of Directors, Society of Dance History Scholars
GRANTS
2011-2023: New York City Department of Cultural Affairs
2023: Peck Stacpoole Foundation
2023: New England Foundation for the Arts, National Dance Project Finalist Award
2022: New York State Council on the Arts Individual Artist Award
2008, 2010, 2012-2014, 2018-2022: Lower Manhattan Cultural Council
2020: DanceNYC Covid Relief Fund
2005, 2008, 2011: American Music Center/Live Music for Dance Program
2010: Streb Lab for Action Mechanics (S.L.A.M)
2007: National Endowment for the Arts, American Masterpieces Program
2000, 2002, 2005, 2008: Harkness Foundation for Dance
AWARDS
2019 Actor’s Fund Graduate Study Scholarship
2017 World Choreography Award nomination
2015 Creative Climate Award
DANCER (WITH OTHER CHOREOGRAPHERS)
1999 Yvonne Rainer, Trio A (Flag Version), Judson Church
1998 Sarah Michelson Spit and the Believers - Danspace Project, Judson Church
1994 The Naked Anarchist, Robert Lyons (Director) Patricia Hoffbauer (choreographer)
1993 Gus Solomons, Red Squalls - Lincoln Center-out-of-Doors
SPECIAL APPEARANCES
2018 Aveda Fashion Shows - Las Vegas, Minneapolis
2017 World Choreography Awards - Saban Theatre, Beverly Hills
2016 Cox Communications Conference - Terranea Resort, Palos Verdes
2015 Kia Launch - The Wynn, Las Vegas
2013 Hermès Extravaganza - Palm Beach
2013 Clinique Dramatically Different Launch - 620 Loft & Gardens, New York
2011 Aveda Fashion Shows - Minneapolis, London, Sydney
2009 T20 Champions League Inaugural - Bangalore, India