DAVID J AMADO
DANCE & CHOREOGRAPHY
My practice in dance and choreography brings together artistic creation, pedagogical research, and community-based learning. My work explores embodiment, rhythm, and cultural memory across stage performance, artistic research, and inclusive dance education initiatives such as Ballet para Todos.
ARTISTIC PRACTICE
Through movement, rhythm, and embodied storytelling, I explore masculinity, migration, intimacy, desire, risk, memory, and collective healing.
My work approaches ballet as a living and evolving form, creating spaces where technical rigor, vulnerability, and cultural memory can coexist. Across performance and collaborative processes, I am interested in how choreography can produce new relationships to the body, visibility, and belonging.
RESEARCH & METHODOLOGY
My research and methodology investigate how classical ballet training can be reimagined through Afro-diasporic, queer, and community-centered approaches to movement.
My pedagogical framework is informed by institutional exchange and research partnerships with the Classical Dance Alliance, Inc., Danza Contemporánea de Cuba, and the Federal University of Bahia.
Areas of focus include:
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Integration of Afro-diasporic movement systems into ballet training
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Somatic awareness and embodied practice
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Inclusive ballet pedagogy
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Artistic mentorship and teacher training
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Cultural equity and democratization of access to dance education
BALLET PARA TODOS
Ballet para Todos is a community-based ballet initiative expanding access to dance education through inclusive and socially engaged pedagogical practices.
Founded by David J. Amado, the project expands access to rigorous ballet training for communities historically underrepresented in classical dance.
Conceived as both a pedagogical and artistic research platform, Ballet para Todos investigates how Afro-diasporic movement systems, somatic awareness, and culturally responsive practices can reshape contemporary ballet education while preserving technical rigor.
Through long-term training, mentorship, and community engagement, the project positions ballet not as a fixed European tradition, but as an evolving language capable of reflecting diverse cultural histories, bodies, and modes of embodiment.
SELECTED CHOREOGRAPHY
PRISM
A choreographed contemporary ballet duet built around the concepts of symmetry, parallel lines, light and perspective.
KALEIDOSCOPE
A choreographed contemporary ballet trio which uses formations and visual effects to give the illusion of that the viewer is gazing into a kaleidoscope.