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Raja Feather Kelly

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Raja Feather Kelly
Kelly interviewed on HowlRound in 2021
Born1986 or 1987 (age 36–37)[1]
NationalityAmerican
EducationConnecticut College (BA)
Known forChoreography
AwardsNew York Live Arts (2019)[1]
SDCF Commission Award (2019)[2][3]
Randjelovic-Stryker Award (2019)[4]
Harkness Promise Award (2018)[5]


Carthorse Fellowship (2018)[6]
Solange MacArthur Award (2016)[6]
Dancemapolitan Award (2016)[6]
NYFA Choreography Fellow (2016)[6]
Dixon Place Dance Artist (2015)[6]


Dance Web Scholar (2009)[6]
National Dance Project Production Grant, 2019[7]
Websitethefeath3rtheory.com

Raja Feather Kelly is an American dancer and choreographer based in Brooklyn who is notable for his "radical downtown surrealist" productions which combine "pop and queer culture".[8][9] He has choreographed numerous theatrical productions, including Fairview and A Strange Loop.[8] He is the artistic director of his dance company called The Feath3r Theory,[1] and he serves as the artistic director of the New Brooklyn Theatre.[4]

Early life

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Kelly grew up in Fort Hood, Texas and later in Long Branch, New Jersey,[8] where he graduated from Long Branch High School and was selected to participate in the theater program of the Governor's School of the Arts.[10] He attended Connecticut College where he studied English and poetry and dance, graduating in 2009.[8][11]

Career

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Reviewer Sara Aridi in The New York Times wrote that "one leaves a performance of Raja's infected by his curiosity, love of craft and just plain outrageousness."[1] His choreography was described in Vogue magazine as combining social dance with the black vernacular.[12] Critic Brian Schaefer in The New York Times wrote that Kelly's choreography has a "lighter touch, a flirty wink and a queer sensibility" that "treats pop culture as a kind of religion itself."[13] A prime influence of Kelly in his approach to dance was the American visual and pop artist Andy Warhol.[6][13] Kelly has raised money for dance production by hosting telethons out of his apartment.[14]

In 2020, Kelly directed and choreographed an Off-Broadway production of We're Gonna Die by Young Jean Lee. It opened in Second Stage Theater's Tony Kiser Theater on February 4 and was scheduled to run through March 22.[15]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Sara Aridi (December 18, 2018). "Raja Feather Kelly Named New York Live Arts Resident Commissioned Artist". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 16, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  2. ^ Olivia Clement (December 5, 2018). "SDCF Commissions 5 Choreographers to Create Original Works Honoring Agnes de Mille: Raja Feather Kelly, Kitty McNamee, Al Blackstone, Jenn Rose, and Katie Spelman will debut their pieces at the Mr. Abbott Award Gala". Playbill. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  3. ^ American Theater Editors (October 12, 2018). "SDCF Awards Go to Loretta Greco, Anne Kauffman, Raja Feather Kelly, Susan Stroman". American Theater. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  4. ^ a b Staff writer (January 8, 2019). "Raja Feather Kelly '09 receives prestigious dance residency". Connecticut College. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  5. ^ BWW News Desk (September 4, 2018). "Misty Copeland to Open 2018 Dance Magazine Awards". Broadway World. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Staff writers (April 25, 2019). "Raja Feather Kelly". Dance magazine. Archived from the original on April 26, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  7. ^ "NEFA Grant Recipients". New England Foundation for the Arts. Archived from the original on December 7, 2019. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
  8. ^ a b c d Gia Kourlas (June 11, 2019). "This Choreographer Can Make Your Play Move: Raja Feather Kelly, who has left his mark on several Off Broadway shows, specializes in what he calls "virtuosic behavior."". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 30, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  9. ^ The New Yorker, June 2019, Marina Harss, Dance:Raja Feather Kelly Archived 2019-07-03 at the Wayback Machine, Retrieved July 3, 2019
  10. ^ Burke, Siobhan. "On the Rise: Raja Feather Kelly" Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, Dance Magazine, May 31, 2016. Accessed June 30, 2019
  11. ^ Staff writer (June 11, 2019). "Raja Feather Kelly '09 featured in The New York Times". Connecticut College. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  12. ^ Liz Appel (June 5, 2019). "Theater Is Coded as a White Space—Jackie Sibblies Drury Is Changing That". Vogue magazine. Archived from the original on June 27, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  13. ^ a b Brian Schaefer (May 26, 2016). "Raja Feather Kelly, Bowing at the Altar of Saint Warhol". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 16, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  14. ^ Abigail Rasminsky (June 4, 2018). "The Newest Old-School Fundraising Scheme: A Telethon Livestream". Dance Magazine. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  15. ^ Peikert, Mark (February 25, 2020). "What Did Critics Think of We're Gonna Die Off-Broadway at Second Stage?". Playbill. Archived from the original on March 15, 2020. Retrieved March 9, 2020.

Further reading

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