Kathy Diehl is a scholar, educator, administrator, and award-winning choreographer and dancer who began her professional career as a founding company member of Rochester City Ballet. She has danced with Bill Evans Dance Company, Present Tense Dance, Biodance and Anne Burnidge and Dancers. She has also performed in works by Larry Keigwin, Mariah Maloney, Marina Mascarell, Paul Selwyn Norton, Doug Varone, José Limón, Mark Morris and Heidi Latsky.
Diehl has choreographed works for several universities including guest artist residencies at University of Nebraska and Webster University. She has also presented work nationally and internationally at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, American Dance Guild Festival, WAXworks, RADfest, American College Dance Association, Rochester Contemporary Dance Collective, Body Mind Centering Conference, Fort Worth Contemporary Dance Festival, Somatic Dance Conference, and others. In March 2023 and 2019, Diehl's works "Shadows and Light" and "Inner Workings" were Gala selections during the ACDA Northwest Regional Conferences. Additionally, her work "Triangulation" received the top honor for choreography at the 2019 Body Logic Festival (an adjudicated showcase) in Salt Lake City, UT.
Diehl is a Certified Laban Movement Analyst (CLMA), a Certified Evans Teacher (CET) and a Registered Somatic Movement Educator (RSME) with additional certifications/trainings in the Franklin method, yoga, pilates and Shin Somatics. She is also a certified wellness coach and is passionate about dancer wellness and integrating somatic practices and concepts into dance pedagogy. Diehl is an active scholar, presenting her research in the areas of dance pedagogy, improvisation, performance, and somatics at various national and regional conferences. For additional information please visit her website at www.kathydiehl.com
Select Creative Works
New Horizons Dance Concert, Artistic Director, February 2023
Choreography works presented: "Shadows and Light" and "Lay My Burden Down"
Finding Joy Dance Concert, Artistic Director, April 2022
Choreography work presented: "Echoes"
American College Dance Association Northwest Regional Conference, March 2023. Presentation/performance: "Shadows and Light". Performed by two Colorado Mesa University dance majors. Selected for performance in the curated Gala Concert. Salt Lake City, UT
East West Somatics Conference: Exploring Shin Somatics Curriculum and Narratives, January 2023. Presentation/performance: "Unfolding". Solo semi-improvisational performance exploring the relationship between somatic practices, performance/creative practice, and performative writing. Zion, UT
Select Presentations
National Dance Education Organization Annual Conference, October 2022. Presentation: "Improvisation in Ballet: Disrupting tradition to create new inroads". Interactive workshop exploring various pedagogical strategies and applications to diverse settings. Atlanta, GA
Dance Studies Association, October 2022. Virtual presentation: "Somatic Ballet Pedagogy: Questioning traditions/Exploring possibilities"
Somatic Dance Conference and Performance Festival, July 2022. Presentation: "Improvisation in Ballet Class" Panel/presentation: "Oh Those Words: Language for Movement and Transformation" (presented with Marin Roper and Sarah Donohue). Geneva, NY
TED Talk, June 2022. "Moving to Connect": By Invitation. Interactive presentation focusing on somatic practices and concluding with an improvisational performance. Creative collaborators/performers: Laura Bradley, Kara Farmer, Cassidy Phillips. Grand Junction, CO
Select Publications
The Feminist Wire Books: Feminism, Race, and Social Justice. "Out of the Shadows" original poetry. Special Anthology: Who Belongs? Selected for publication in 2023
Dance Education in Practice "Collaborative Discoveries--Trust, Empathy, and Meaning" Special topics, Volume 6, Issue 2. 2020
https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/INYNTVSMKIJKSGPTRBZH/full?target=10.1080/23734833.2020.1751496
NDEO Behind the Curtain Blog: "The Possibilities of Somatic Ballet" Published October 10, 2020
Journal of Dance Education "The Mirror and Ballet Training--Do you know how much the mirror's presence is really affecting you?" April-June 2016, Volume 15, Number 2