Faculty Name
Cicely A. Kelley
Title
Co-director of Spelman Dance Theatre, Senior Lecturer
Department
Dance Performance & Choreography
Office Location
Wellness Center
Education
M.F.A., Dance, The University Of The Arts
Dance Performance & Choreography, Spelman College (degree pending)
Biography
Regardless of the location of the stage, theater, studio, concert venue or even a football field, Cicely Kelley has left her mark. After being trained by some of the greatest names in dance at Philadelphia’s University of the Arts, the Atlanta native has forged a career that spans all genres of dance and crosses multiple industries - from sports to advertising to entertainment and beyond.
Kelley’s list of accomplishments is extensive and audiences around the world have been entertained by her dance moves. Her choreography and mesmerizing performances have been featured by the Atlanta Falcons both in national commercials and during halftime entertainment. Other choreography credits include the Fugees European tour, Musiq Soulchild Stir the Senses tour, and Toni Braxtons 2010 tour and television performances. Kelley danced with Beyoncé Knowles in her video for Get Me Bodied and during her performance of the hugely popular Single Ladies during the 2009 MTV VMAs.
Courses Taught
Principles of Jazz
Jazz Funk
Commercial Hip Hop
Ballet
Choreographing Lives
Art of Teaching Dance
Dance for Camera
First-Year Experience
Co-director of Spelman Dance Theatre
Research Interests
Commercial Dance Education
Film & TV
Black Performance Theory
Diasporic Spidering
Black Female Body in performance through the lens of trans-temporality
Artist Statement
As a creator, my passion is to create art that has all of the elements of my upbringing yet will be used as a vehicle to tell the stories of the Black women, mothers, aunties, etc., for generations to come. I desire to make art that matters and inspires spectators to their core as well as make them challenge their own perspectives and biases. Work to make you think, fuel your soul, and/or frustrate you to induce change in whichever ecosystem you reside.
Publications
My Research
Artist Book: Le corps d’une femme noire ameĢricaine.
A body of work focused on the Black female body in American culture from past to present, through a trans-temporal lens of a Fictive Sisterhood Kinship.