University of Utah School of Dance

This weekend, see the School of Dance’s resident stage manager, Rebecca Johnson, present a series of dance works, “Enduring, Adorned With Blooms,” as part of Blooming with Pride event!

Johnson’s own choreography will be featured, along with choreography by fellow SOD alumni Addison Cambia, Sean Sullivan, & Soph Cardinal, as well as SOD performers!

Friday, June 12. Performances from 12:00pm-7:00pm. Red Butte Garden tickets are free for UofU faculty, staff, and students, but a time reservation is required. Learn more at redbuttegarden.org.

Next weekend, attend Utah Arts Festival and see work from School of Dance alum Constance Anderson (MFA ’25 + Screendance Certificate, .opera.dance.company ) who will be performing as Sock Opera Dance Company and showing her film “Sissy” will be shown as part of the Fear No Film Utahn Program.

Use code CFA26 to get $5 off General Admission (Friday-Sunday; not Thursday) and VIP tickets (Thursday-Sunday). Tickets on sale now at uaf.org/tix.

Congratulations to School of Dance Graduate Tori Gilbert, who was featured in !!!

Tori talks about her experience in the School of Dance and her plans post-graduation. Read the full story at the link in our bio!

Photo courtesy of Tori Gilbert

Join the Screendance Graduate Group for JUMPCUT, a screening of screen dance works followed by light snacks and conversations about the films.

Saturday, April 2026
Utah Museum of Contemporary Art
Doors Open at 6:30pm
Screening Begins at 7:00pm
Free Admission

Registration is open for the 2026 Dance Science and Somatics Educators Conference, which will be at the UofU School of Dance July 17-19! More info below & at the link in our bio.

Dance educators and practitioners dedicate their lives to teaching, creating, mentoring, and sustaining dance communities. This conference features presenters who will share ways in which we can actively sustain ourselves—physically, emotionally, socially, and professionally—across the arc of a dance career. The sessions will address longevity and wellness in dance education and practice, sharing innovative approaches to caring for ourselves while continuing to nurture artistry and excellence.

Em Zinn is the School of Dance’s 2026 College of Fine Arts Outstanding Senior! 
 
🏫 Major: Modern Dance BFA 
 
💭 Three words that describe you: Heartfelt, Driven, Bubbly 
 
⭐ What inspires you: I’m inspired by the incorporation of visual art elements in the physical performing art. Theatricality has always been really captivating to me as well as pulling from human experience. Especially, I’m so inspired by the people around me and the creations that they make! 
 
🎉 Em was nominated for her academic achievements, artistic and scholarly accomplishments, and ongoing commitment to their craft.
 
Read about her many accomplishments, as well as those of the other CFA Outstanding Seniors at the link in our bio!
 

 

The University of Utah School of Dance, in partnership with Kingsbury Hall, will host the American College Dance Association’s 2027 National College Dance Festival. Read more at the link in our bio.

NEXT WEEK! Join us for the School of Dance Gala at Kingsbury Hall on April 17 & 18. This concert features the choreography of and , as well as the dancers and director emerita of and the U Philharmonia . Read more and buy tickets at the link in our bio. We hope to see you there!

Megan O’Brien is taking over our Instagram Stories for Opening Night of the “Gala!”
 
Follow a day in her life as a professional dancer and participate in a Q&A during Megan’s segment on Friday, April 17th!
 
FUN FACTS
⭐ Is a U of U alum, Modern Dance BFA ’17
⭐ Trained at The Winner School and has competed at national and international competitions
⭐ Has learned from and worked with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Company 605 (Vancouver), Danielle Agami, and the Staatliche Ballettschule School located in Berlin, Germany
⭐ Is Assistant Director, Founding Member, and Performer with Cat + Fish Dances
⭐ Has choreographed guest works for local companies RDT, FemDance, etc.
 
Photo 1: Megan O’Brien (by Becca Webb)
Photo 2: O’Brien in a solo from Zvi Gotheiner’s “Chairs” (by Sharon Kain)
Photo 3: O’Brien in a duet from Shane Urton’s “Sweetspot” (by Stuart Ruckman)
Photo 4: O’Brien in Nick Cendeses’ “Come Rain or Come Shine” (by Sharon Kain)
Photo 5: Megan O’Brien (by Logan Sorenson)
Photo 6: O’Brien in Katarzyna Skarpetowska’s “Oktet: In Situ” (by Sharon Kain)
Photo 7: Megan O’Brien (by Becca Webb)
 
 

At the upcoming School of Dance Gala concert, audiences will experience Helen Tamiris’ Dance for Walt Whitman, reconstructed by guest artist Linda C. Smith and performed by UU Dancers alongside artists from Repertory Dance Theatre. While the historic piece and live orchestral accompaniment are exciting in and of themselves, what the audience may not know is that the person behind it—Smith—is a significant figure in the Utah dance community, and has had a major part in shaping it to be what we know today. Read more at the link in our bio!

The School of Dance Gala is playing at Kingsbury Hall on April 17th and 18th. Learn more at dance.utah.edu!

Photos of Linda C. Smith courtesy of