Julie Adams Strandberg
Biography
I develop repertory, documentaries, curricular materials, and programs on American Dance. These resources provide students, educators, scholars, and the general public with ongoing access to dance masterworks and dance artists. I am interested in American dance as it reflects the inherent multi-culturalism of the United States and the role of dance in the K-University curricula. I direct musicals, produce concerts and festivals, and have choreographed over 40 works for professional and college dance companies.
Julie Adams Strandberg, co-founder of The American Dance Legacy Institute, is Artist-In-Residence and Founding Director of Dance at Brown University. In 1971 she co-founded The Rhode Island Dance Repertory Company and was its artistic director until 1978. In 2000, the company reunited to create Arabella Project to showcase what mature dancers have to offer both through new and classic works. In 1973, she co-founded The Harlem Dance Foundation with her parents, Julius J. and Olive A. Adams and her sister, Carolyn Adams. She is Associate Artist Director of the New York State Summer School of the Arts School of Dance and was on the faculty of the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival from 1992-1995. She has choreographed and directed extensively for college, community, and professional theater groups, directed the Brown University productions of Stephen Sondheim's "A Little Night Music," and Leonard Bernstein's "West Side Story," choreographed the Trinity Square Repertory Company productions of "Ghost Dance" and "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," and directed, "Tabou: Parisian Cellars in the 50's and 60's" and "The Life and Times of Joseph Beuys" for The Rhode Island School of Design, and directed The Harlem Dance Foundation's "Santa Claus and The Unicorn," an original, multi-generational musical. She was one of the original teachers in the "Dancers in the Schools" pilot project. She served as vice-chairman of The Rhode Island Alliance for the Arts in Education and, in 1974-1975, was the first dancer-in-residence for The Rhode Island State Council on the Arts. She has designed and coordinated programs, workshops, and productions for young children, such as "Where the Wild Things Are" (1974), "The Trouble with Toys" (1976), and "Somewhere Near the Moon." (1983) She has also collaborated with scientists and artists in other disciplines to create many works for traditional theater as well as experimental spaces. In 1985, she took a sabbatical leave from her duties at Brown University for a world tour, with her daughters, studying dance and theater traditions in other countries. She is listed in Who's Who in the East and the Directory of Distinguished Americans. She was honored by the city of Providence, R.I. as one of its 350 most distinguished citizens during the celebration of the city's 350th birthday. With her sister, Carolyn Adams, she co-authored "American Education and The Arts: A Balancing of Visions for Cultural Transformation" and co-edited "Dancing Through The Curriculum: A Guide To Dance Video Tapes Curated By and For Teachers To Enrich The School Curriculum." She has received two grants from the National Endowment for the Arts to develop repertory and educational materials for the Kindergarten-University curriculum. In June 2002 she was awarded a Dance Alliance Legacy Award and a Citizen Citation from the City of Providence in recognition of innovation, generosity, wisdom and artistry and for a profound understanding of the importance of the arts and ongoing efforts to promote and advance standards of excellence in dance and dance education. She is a graduate of the Ethical Culture Schools and has a B.A. from Cornell University and an M.S. from The Bank Street College of Education. In 2006, she received a Masters Ad Eundem from Brown University. She and her husband Josiah (Ph.D, Brown '75), a computer programmer, have two daughters, Laura Carolyn, (Brown '92) a dancer and educator, and Marie Elisabeth Strandberg Porter, (USC '96), a computer support engineer, a son-in-law, William Nels, and grandsons, Andrew Kenneth and Jackson Josiah.
Research
DANCE LEGACY, DOCUMENTATION, EDUCATION & ACCESS
American Dance Legacy Institute
Discovering the American family tree through dance
Carolyn Adams & Julie Adams Strandberg,
Founding Artistic Director/Curators
The American Dance Legacy Institute is dedicated to enabling all individuals to participate, as primary collaborators, in the creation and perpetuation of America's dance heritage. The Institute fulfills its mission by developing interactive materials, including the unique Repertory Etudes™, short dances based on signature works of American choreographers. Repertory Etudes™ are available to the public for study, viewing, and performance on an ongoing basis with no royalties and minimal restrictions. The Institute also conducts a range of access and education programs that emphasize hands-on experiences and provide an environment where people can share common knowledge around the Institute's resources and programs.
To date, Institute materials and programs have reached 39 states, the District of Columbia, and 9 countries. These materials include documentaries on American dance masterworks, Repertory Etudes™, and research based educational materials for the kindergarten through university curricula. The Institute currently includes materials on 13 individual artists and the Dancing Rebels™ Anthology: Celebrating the pioneering artists who gathered in the 1930s, 40s, and 50s as the New Dance Group. In 2005 she curated The Dancing Rebels™ Exhibit at the National Museum of Dance in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. The installation includes archival photographs, original costumes, and excerpts from Institute documentaries.
For more information, visit the Institute's website at www.adli.us.
CHOREOGRAPHY AND ARTISTIC DIRECTION
CHOREOGRAPHIC WORKS
Excerpt, "Bach Cantata #140," New York State Summer School of the Arts, 2005
"Memoriam," Dance Extension, 2004
"......And Again,,,,", with Arabella Project - 2003
"Resonances I," Dance Extension, 1996
"Holy Ground", The New York State Summer School of The Arts, 1995
"And Hilda Watched", 1992
"Company", Dance Extension, 1991
"Closer To The Light" Dance Extension, 1990
"Collections", The New York State Summer School of The Arts, 1989
"Duet", Dance Extension, 1988
"Plato's Cart", Dance Extension, 1987
"Ice Images", Dance Extension, 1986
"Wandering Stars," Citidance Company, 1986
"The Court Jesters," Dance Extension, 1984
"Dimensions," Dance Extension, 1983
"Encounters,"Dance Extension, 1980
"Folk Suite," Dance Extension, 1980
"Trio," Festival Ballet of Rhode Island, 1980
"Icari Victorious," Brown University Dance Ensemble, 1979
"Allegro," Brown University Dance Ensemble, 1978
"Suite Revenge," Brown University Dance Ensemble, 1978
"Festino," The Rhode Island Dance Repertory Company, 1975
"Impressions of a Worthy Past," Brown University Dance Ensemble, 1976
"Mereology" Brown University Dance Ensemble, 1975
"Dance of Death," Brown University Dance Ensemble, 1974
"Composition in Red, Yellow, and Blue" Brown University Dance Ensemble, 1973
"Back to the Valley," Brown University Dance Ensemble, 1973
"Walking and Running," and "America Build Insane Cars," The Rhode Island Dance Repertory Company, 1972
"Osibisa," The Rhode Island Dance Repertory Company, 1972
"Scavengers," The Rhode Island Dance Repertory Company, 1972
"Hugo's Trio," The Rhode Island Dance Repertory Company, 1971
DIRECTING
"The Life and Times of Joseph Beuys," - Rhode Island School of Design, 1994
"West Side Story," Brown University Theatre, 1993
"Tabou: Parisian Cabarets and Cellers in the 1950's and 60's" - Rhode Island School of Design, 1992
"A Little Night Music," Brown University, 1986
"Santa Claus and The Unicorn," an original musical production of the Harlem Dance Foundation, annually since 1976
"Shades of the Cotton Club," Co-producer, performer 1983
CHOREOGRAPHY FOR THEATRE PRODUCTIONS
Rose Weaver's "Menopause Mama" Perishable Theatre - 2003
"West Side Story", Brown University Theatre, 1993
RISD Cabarets, 1989 and 1993
"Tyger", Brown University Theatre, 1988
"A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," Trinity Square Repertory Company, Providence, R.I., 1986
"The Threepenny Opera," Brown University Theatre 1986
"Desert Song," Brown University Theatre 1982
"Candide," Brown University Theatre 1982
"Brigadoon," Brown University Theatre 1979
"Midsummer Night's Dream, "Brown University Theatre 1979
"Man of La Mancha," Brown University Theatre 1978
"Roar of The Greasepaint, Smell of the Crowd," Rhode Island College Theatre, 1975
"Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris," Rhode Island College Theatre, 1974
Supervision and organization of "Where the Wild Things Are," and "The Trouble with Toys,", children's pieces, Rhode Island Dance Repertory Company
Supervision and arrangement of American Indian dances for "Ghost Dance," Trinity Square Repertory Company, Providence, RI 1973
"Hello Dolly," The Barrington Players, Barrington RI, 1972
SITE SPECIFIC CHOREOGRAPHIC WORKS
"Chrome, Chroma, Chromosomes," Brown University Green, collaboration with John Goldman, 1986
Brown University Football Stadium, 1977
Providence City Hall, 1976
List Art Building, Brown University, 1975
The Gordon School, Spring, 1974
"The Stone Lantern," The Oriental Garden, Roger Williams Park, Summer 1974
RI College Campus, 1973