Page 27 - Arts Management Magazine Iss 1
P. 27
AMM SPOTLIGHT
A Day
KwiNth IGHT
BY MATTHEW GOLDBERG applicants to a select eighteen who will enter the dance pro-
gram in the fall. Knight specializes in Jazz and Modern Dance
Oscar winner Jamie Foxx and director Jessy Terrero call her technique and also teaches two theory courses entitled “World
“Saleemah,” but dancers who parade the pathways of the Uni- Perspectives on Dance” and “Dance in Popular Culture.”
versity of Southern California call her “Professor Knight.” At “I’m bridging the gap between conservatory style training and
only 32 years of age, Saleemah E. Knight’s accomplished bio commercial dance,” affirmed Knight during an interview with
is chock full of on-stage experience and professional accolades Arts Management Magazine. “Whether in the classroom at
that most dancers spend an entire career striving to accumulate. USC or in the studio when teaching a master class, I tell my
During a recent photo shoot in sun-soaked Marina del Rey, students to take the information and technique they learn and
it was difficult to discern what was shining more brightly: the change the game.”
Southern California sun or Knight’s glowing persona. One When she’s not teaching jazz and modern dance technique and
can’t help but feel the warmth when basking in the glow of the performance-based courses at the USC Glorya Kaufman School
professor’s smile as she radiates a confidence and passion both of Dance, Knight is directing master classes at Debbie Allen
born of and driven by her deep love for all things dance. Dance Academy, Jimmie DeFore Dance Center, Loyola Mary-
mount University or at international studios around the world.
Knight’s lifelong love affair with dance began at the doe-eyed
age of three when she was captivated by the beauty of ballet. As “Whether in the classroom at USC or in the
her skills matured, she polished her craft at esteemed compa- studio when teaching a master class, I tell
nies Gus Giordano Chicago, River North Chicago and Dayton my students to take the information and
Contemporary Dance Company. Knight carried her talents to technique they learn and change the game.”
the stage, spending three years in the Broadway production of
The Lion King. After performing with the likes of Beyoncé,
Jillian Michaels, Tyrese, Ludacris, and Chris Brown, among
others, Knight sought after a deeper understanding of dance,
mastered her craft through higher education and received a
Masters of Fine Arts degree from the University of California,
Irvine. Since then, Knight has continued to choreograph for
both screen and stage.
As a current faculty member at the prestigious USC Glorya And Hollywood red carpets and philanthropic events supporting
Kaufman School of Dance, Professor Knight has spent the ear- education and the arts? Professor Knight can always be spotted
ly part of the spring narrowing down more than one thousand there, too. ?
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