American Dance Festival Announces 2025 Distinguished Teaching Award Recipients

The American Dance Festival (ADF) will present the 2025 Balasaraswati/Joy Anne Dewey Beinecke Endowed Chair for Distinguished Teaching and its $5,000 honorarium to dance educators Lynda Davis and Clay Taliaferro. A ceremony honoring their contributions to the dance field will take place on Sunday, June 29, 2025, at 5:00 PM at The Fruit in Durham, North Carolina.

“Their remarkable careers in education have impacted and inspired generations, both in and beyond the studio,” said Nile H. Russell, ADF’s Director of Education. “By fostering care, curiosity, and intellect, they create a space for rediscovery, empowerment, and the offering of one’s authentic self. Ms. Davis and Mr. Taliaferro continue to remind us of the transformative power of movement to reveal and liberate the soul.”

Lynda Davis is a renowned dancer, choreographer, and educator with a strong connection to ADF. She co-directed ADF's Dance Professionals Workshops from 1988 to 1995 with Martha Meyers. As part of ADF’s International Linkage Program, she taught in China, Korea, India, Mozambique, and Russia. She also served as Artistic Director and principal choreographer for the Centre Dance Ensemble and Transition Dance Company sponsored by the Laban Centre for Movement and Dance, currently known as Trinity Conservatoire of Music and Dance.

She has conducted additional choreographic and teaching residencies throughout the United States and parts of South Africa, France, Italy, Ireland, and England. Davis has also performed with the Gloria Newman Dance Theatre and the Bella Lewitzky Dance Company and co-directed the Theatre Dance Trio with Clay Taliaferro and Carol Warner. A recipient of the Florida Dance Association's Lifetime Achievement Award, Davis served on the faculty of Florida State University for 35 years, earning numerous teaching honors. Her recent creative work focuses on arts in healthcare, social justice, and community practice.

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