معرفی
Ruddy A. Frias serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Dance within the Conservatory at Shenandoah University, employed since Fall 2024. A native of the Bronx, New York, he maintains an active career bridging professional performance, choreography, and dance education with a specialization in voguing and ballroom culture.
His educational foundation includes:
- B.F.A. in Dance Performance from Montclair State University (2018)
- Pre-professional training at New World School of the Arts, Miami
- Advanced training at The Ailey School with Emily and Leonard Blavatnik Scholarship recipient (2018)
Frias specializes in contemporary dance performance with deep expertise in voguing and ballroom traditions, having earned "legendary status" after fifteen years in the ballroom scene and six years with the House of Miyake-Mugler. His research explores the cultural significance of voguing through performance practice and choreographic innovation, informed by his certification in Lester Horton technique (2020). As an educator, he investigates pedagogical approaches for transmitting culturally specific dance forms.
His artistic contributions have been recognized with:
- Emily and Leonard Blavatnik Scholarship (2018)
- Legendary status in voguing (2023-2024)
- Lotus Foundation Grant for Brazil-based ballroom/vogue research
Professor Frias actively mentors emerging dancers through his teaching appointments at Ballet Hispánico’s Community Arts Partnership and School of Dance, Alabama School for the Arts, and Dance International Program in Japan. His recent Lotus Foundation Grant supports international research into global voguing traditions. He maintains significant artistic collaborations as rehearsal director for Rennie Harris and performing choreographer with Ballet Hispánico Dos.
His performance career includes principal roles with Deeply Rooted Dance Theater (interpreting works by Kevin Iega Jeff and Ulysses Dove), Ballet Hispánico Dos, and Rashaad Newsome’s "Assembly" at Park Armory where his voguing expertise was prominently featured. He has set choreography for Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts, Manhattan Youth Ballet, and Brooklyn High School of the Arts, with presentations at Jamaica Dance Festival and National Dance Institute.
