Sonya Tayeh

Last updated

Sonya Tayeh
Born1977or1978(age 45–46) [1]
New York City, New York
EducationDance (BS/BFA)
Alma mater Wayne State University
OccupationChoreographer
Years active2002–present

Sonya Tayeh is a New York City-based choreographer. She has worked nationally and internationally across the worlds of dance and theater.

Contents

She has earned several accolades for her work, including the Tony award for her choreography work on the Broadway production of Moulin Rouge!, Emmy nominations for Fox's So You Think You Can Dance, and the Lucille Lortel and Obie Awards for “Outstanding Choreography” for her work on David Henry Hwang's dance-play Kung Fu, for which she also received a Drama Desk nomination.

Life and career

Early life and education

Tayeh was born in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Detroit, Michigan, the daughter of a Lebanese mother and Palestinian father. [2] She has two sisters and one half-brother. [3] Tayeh started dancing at age 15 when she began frequenting hip-hop and house dance parties with her sister. [4] She started studying ballet and modern dance—as a subject—at age 17 when she was a student at Henry Ford Community College. [5] Although Tayeh was a freestyle house dancer in her youth, she didn't take any formal dance classes until she was 18 and a student at Wayne State University. [6] Before starting her training, she was denied by six dance studios who wouldn't let her take classes because they felt she was too old. [7] In addition to her classes, Tayeh was a member of Counter Groove [5] and Full Circle [8] dance companies.

During her time at Wayne State, Tayeh drew on dance history, anatomy, and performance to develop a style that is built on core strength, aggressive partner interaction, quirky, and stylized movements. [9] She graduated Wayne State in 2002 with a bachelor's degree in Dance. [10]

Dance career and mainstream exposure

Since gaining mainstream exposure, Tayeh has choreographed tours and/or live events for Madonna, Florence and the Machine, Kylie Minogue, Kerli, and Miley Cyrus. [11] She has also choreographed for Steed Lord and spent three years in residence with the Los Angeles Ballet. [12] In 2010, she choreographed indie singer Lucy Schwartz' music video "Graveyard". [13]

Tayeh choreographed the rock musical The Last Goodbye which is based on Romeo and Juliet and set to a soundtrack of music by Jeff Buckley. It premiered in 2010, but a revised version of the show with a new cast opened in September 2013 at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, California. [6] [14] In 2011, she choreographed San Jose Repertory Theatre's production of Spring Awakening. [6] In 2014, she choreographed an off-Broadway play based on Bruce Lee's life called Kung Fu. [15] It premiered February 24 with So You Think You Can Dance alumnus Cole Horibe playing the lead role. [16]

In 2015 Martha Graham Dance Company commissioned a new work by Sonya Tayeh which she set to the music of Meredith Monk. It premiered in the company's New York season at The Joyce, Spring 2015 and has been performed by the company while on tour.

Sonya earned a Tony award for her choreography of the Broadway musical, "Moulin Rouge".

Choreography for So You Think You Can Dance

SeasonWeekDancersStyleSongNote
4 3Kourtni Lind
Matt Dorame		 Contemporary "Wrestlers (Sticky, Dirty Pop Mix)"—Hot Chip
6Chelsie Hightower
Gev Manoukian		"These Arms of Mine"—Otis Redding
8Courtney Galiano
Mark Kanemura		 Jazz "The Garden"—Mirah
5 LVWAll Dancers"Great DJ (Calvin Harris Remix)"—The Ting Tings
2Melissa Sandvig
Ade Obayomi		"24 Hours" (The Aston Shuffle A-Bomb Remix)—Terry Poison
4Kayla Radomski
Kūpono Aweau		Contemporary"Eyes On Fire"—Blue Foundation
7Janette Manrara
Evan Kasprzak		Jazz"Move" (Metronomy Remix)—CSS
8Top 3 male"True Romance"—She Wants Revenge
Top 3 female"Kick It (Stereoheroes Remix)"—Nina Martine
9Jeanine Mason
Evan Kasprzak		"Heartbreaker"—MSTRKRFT featuring John Legend
Talia Fowler "Shot You Down"—Audio Bullys Guest Dancer
Result Show
6 MT20Mollee Gray
Pauline Mata
Ellenore Scott		"On a Cloud"—Platinum Pied Pipers
1Ellenore Scott
Ryan Di Lello		 Contemporary Jazz "Arcadia"—Apparat
5Kathryn McCormick
Jonathan "Legacy" Perez		Jazz"So Deep"—Hot Chip
Ashleigh Di Lello
Jakob Karr		 Lyrical Jazz "Time Flies"—Lykke Li
6Ellenore Scott
Jakob Karr		Contemporary Jazz"Tore My Heart"—OONA and Dave Tweedie
7Top 8Jazz"Pon de Floor" (Samantha Ronson remix)—Major Lazer feat. Vybz Kartel (JazzResult Show
8Ashleigh Di Lello
Russell Ferguson		Lyrical Jazz"Angel Standing By"—Jewel
7 MT11Courtney Galiano
Ashley Galvan
Neil Haskell
Robert Roldan
AdéChiké Torbert		Jazz"Freak"—Estelle feat. Kardinal Offishall
1Mark Kanemura
Cristina Santana		"Starstruck"—Santigold
Allison Holker
Alex Wong		Contemporary"Hallelujah"—Jeff Buckley
2Top 10Jazz Royal T"—Crookers feat. Róisín Murphy (JazzResul Show
3Courtney Galiano
Robert Roldan		"XXXO"—M.I.A.
6Allison Holker
Jose Ruiz		Contemporary Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind theme—Jon Brion
Kent Boyd
Kathryn McCormick		Jazz"Tightrope"—Janelle Monáe
8 MT20Jordan Casanova
Marko Germar
Missy Morelli
Clarice Ordaz		"Vanguardian"—Steed Lord
Top 10 girls"Pop Drop & Roll"—Chonique Sneed & Lisette Bustamante
1Caitlynn Lawson
Robert Roldan 2 		"In For the Kill" (Skream's Let's Get Ravey Remix)—La Roux
Top 20"XR2"—M.I.A. Result Show
3Ashley Rich
Chris Koehl		"Lights Go Down" (District 78 remix)—Telepathe
Ryan Ramirez
Ricky Jaime		Contemporary"With Every Heartbeat" (Acoustic)—Robyn
6Allison Holker
Marko Germar		"I Know It's Over"—Jeff Buckley
Melanie Moore
Sasha Mallory		Jazz Game On—District 78
7Tadd Gadduang
Ellenore Scott		"The Gulag Orkestar"—Beirut
Marko Germar
Caitlynn Lawson		Lyrical Jazz"Heavy in Your Arms"—Florence and the Machine
8Sasha Mallory
Mark Kanemura		Jazz"Raise Your Weapon"—Deadmau5
9 LVWAll Dancers"Freak Out (Gold Chains Panique Mix)"—My Brightest Diamond
MT20Audrey Case
Tiffany Maher
Janelle Issis*		"Sail"—Awolnation
Top 10 guys"Precognition" (Steed Lord Machine Mix)—Steed Lord
1Tiffany Maher
George Lawrence Jr.		Contemporary"Turning Page"—Sleeping At Last
2Amelia Lowe
Will Thomas		"3326"—Ólafur Arnalds
Audrey Case
Matthew Kazmierczak		Jazz"Hear Me Now" (Dri, Lind and Likka Mix)—Steed Lord
6Allison Holker
Cole Horibe		Contemporary"Possibly Maybe" (Instrumental)—Björk
Lindsay Arnold
Alex Wong		Jazz"Somebody That I Used to Know"—Gotye feat. Kimbra
7Top 6"Scream"—Kelis
8Tiffany Maher
William Wingfield		"Time is Now"—Moloko
Cyrus "Glitch" Spencer
Chehon Wespi-Tschopp		"Fangs" (District 78 remix)—Little Red Lung
9Tiffany Maher
William Wingfield		"Time is Now"—Moloko
Cyrus "Glitch" Spencer
Chehon Wespi-Tschopp		"Fangs" (District 78 remix)—Little Red Lung
Top 20Contemporary/Hip-hop "Torn"—Nathan LanierSonya Tayeh
Christopher Scott
10 LVWAll DancersJazz"Latch"—Disclosure (band)
MT20Jasmine Mason
Amy Yakima		"Enjoy"—Björk
Top 20"Ghost of Sky" (Epic Dub)—Steed Lord
1Jasmine Harper
Aaron Turner		"Bottom of the River"—Delta Rae
Amy Yakima
Du-Shaunt "Fik-Shun" Stegall		Contemporary"Elsa"—The Valerie Project
3Top 18Jazz"Pretty Face" (Nathan Lanier remix)—Sóley Christopher Scott
Sonya Tayeh
Malece Miller
Marko Germar*		Contemporary"In the Embers"—Sleeping at Last
5Top 14Jazz"Dimman Kryper Sakta In"—District 78 Dmitry Chaplin
Sonya Tayeh
Alexis Juliano
Nico Greetham		Contemporary"Ashes"—The Bengsons
Makenzie Dustman
Paul Karmiryan		Jazz"You'll Find a Way" (Switch & Sinden Remix)—Santigold
11 LVWAll Dancers"F for You"—Disclosure feat. Mary J. Blige
MT20Top 20"Stalker Ha"—Kingdom
Jessica Richens
Ricky Ubeda		Contemporary"Vow"—Meredith Monk
1Tanisha Belnap
Rudy Abreu		Jazz"You Need"—Bengsons
Carly Blaney
Serge Onik		Contemporary"Latch (Acoustic)"—Sam Smith
3Jacque LeWarne
Zack Everhart Jr.		Jazz"Back to Black"—Beyoncé feat. André 3000
Brooklyn Fullmer
Casey Askew
Emilio Dosal
Emily James
Serge Onik
Tanisha Belnap
Valerie Rockey
Zack Everhart Jr.		Contemporary"So Broken" (Live)—Björk
5Zack Everhart Jr.
Amy Yakima 		"Europe, After The Rain"—Max Richter
10Top 10
All-stars		Contemporary/Hip-Hop"Sweet Disposition"—The Temper Trap Sonya Tayeh
Christopher Scott
12 TBATBATBATBATBA

^2 Due to a shoulder injury, Mitchell Kelly was barred from performing in his routine. He was replaced for the evening by season 7's Robert Roldan and was automatically in danger of going home.

Teaching

Tayeh is a faculty member at the Edge Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles. [17] She has also taught classes at The Hip Drop Dance Complex, [18] Monsters of Contemporary, [19] Broadway Dance Center, [11] 24 Seven Dance, [12] Hall of Fame Dance Challenge, Loyola Marymount University, NUVO, and Spotlight Dance Works. [5]

Style and influences

Tayeh describes her choreography style as combat jazz because in her words "[i]t’s staccato, aggressive, and engaged, even when it’s slow." [19] SanJose.com characterized it as "fearless, provocative and unique." [6] She has several influences which include two of her former college professors Diane Mancinelli and Erica Wilson-Perkins, Broadway choreographers Twyla Tharp and Bill T. Jones, Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, her favorite choreographer Jiří Kylián, and her family. [4] [5] In addition, she calls competitive hip-hop dancer Salah her "idol" [4] and Icelandic singer Björk her "ultimate hero". [20]

Awards and recognition

In January 2009, Tayeh was named one of Dance magazine's "25 to Watch". [19] In 2010, she was honored by the Detroit Arts Council [17] and she made the December cover of Dance Teacher magazine. [21] At Wayne State University there is a scholarship named after her called the Sonya Tayeh Endowment Fund that is awarded to students who want to pursue a degree in dance. [17]

In July 2013, Tayeh was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography for "Possibly Maybe", "Turning Page", and "Sail"—three routines she choreographed on season nine of So You Think You Can Dance. [22] At the 2013 Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony, she joined the other seven choreography nominees and created a routine honoring dance that was performed just before the Outstanding Choreography award was presented. 2013 was the first year the Outstanding Choreography award was presented at the Primetime Emmys telecast rather than at the Creative Arts Emmys ceremony which takes place a week prior. [23]

At the 74th Tonys, Tayeh received the Tony Award for Best Choreography for her work in Moulin Rouge! . [24]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gwen Verdon</span> American actress and dancer (1925–2000)

Gwyneth Evelyn "Gwen" Verdon was an American actress and dancer. She won four Tony Awards for her musical comedy performances, and she served as an uncredited choreographer's assistant and specialty dance coach for theater and film. Verdon was a critically acclaimed performer on Broadway in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, having originated many roles in musicals, including Lola in Damn Yankees, the title character in Sweet Charity and Roxie Hart in Chicago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Fosse</span> American actor, choreographer, dancer, and director (1927– 1987)

Robert Louis Fosse was an American actor, choreographer, dancer, and film and stage director. He directed and choreographed musical works on stage and screen, including the stage musicals The Pajama Game (1954), Damn Yankees (1955), How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1961), Sweet Charity (1966), Pippin (1972), and Chicago (1975). He directed the films Sweet Charity (1969), Cabaret (1972), Lenny (1974), All That Jazz (1979), and Star 80 (1983).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wade Robson</span> Australian dancer and choreographer

Wade Jeremy William Robson is an Australian dancer and choreographer. He began performing as a dancer at age five, and has directed music videos and world tours for pop acts such as NSYNC and Britney Spears. Robson was the host and executive producer of The Wade Robson Project, which aired on MTV in 2003. In 2007, he joined the Fox television dance series So You Think You Can Dance as a guest judge and choreographer. He won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography for the dance number "Ramalama " of So You Think You Can Dance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Debbie Allen</span> American actress (born 1950)

Deborah Kaye Allen is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, singer-songwriter, director, producer, and a former member of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. She has been nominated 20 times for an Emmy Award, two Tony Awards, and has also won a Golden Globe Award and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Stroman</span> American theatre director

Susan P. Stroman is an American theatre director, choreographer, film director and performer. Her notable theater productions include Oklahoma!, The Music Man, Crazy for You, Contact, The Producers, The Frogs, The Scottsboro Boys, Bullets Over Broadway, POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive, and New York, New York.

Michael Douglas Peters was an African American choreographer and director who is best known for his innovative choreography in music videos.

Michael Smuin was an American ballet dancer, choreographer and theatre director. He was co-founder and director of his own dance company, the Smuin Ballet in San Francisco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mia Michaels</span> American choreographer and judge

Mia Michaels Melchiona is an American choreographer and judge on the television show So You Think You Can Dance. She has worked with Tom Cruise, Celine Dion, Gloria Estefan, Madonna, Ricky Martin, Prince, and Catherine Zeta-Jones. In 2005 she choreographed Cirque du Soleil's world tour Delirium and Celine Dion's A New Day..., for which she received an Emmy Award nomination. In 2007 she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography for her routine on "Calling You" during season two of So You Think You Can Dance. She won another Emmy Award during season five in 2010. She was a judge during season 7 with Adam Shankman and Nigel Lythgoe. She choreographed the dance sequence for "Get Happy" in the episode "Bombshells" of the television series House.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Layton</span>

Joe Layton was an American director and choreographer known primarily for his work on Broadway.

Graciela Daniele is an Argentine-American dancer, choreographer, and theatre director.

Larry Fuller is an American choreographer, theatre director, dancer, and actor. Both a Tony Award and Drama Desk Award nominated choreographer, he best known for his work on Broadway where he notably staged the movement for the original productions of on On the Twentieth Century (1978), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1979), Evita (1979), Merrily We Roll Along (1981), Is There Life After High School? (1982), and A Doll's Life (1982).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Ashford</span> American stage director and choreographer

Rob Ashford is an American stage director and choreographer. He is a Tony Award, Olivier Award, Emmy Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award winner.

Anita Mann is an American choreographer, dancer and actress. Mann has been honored by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences as one of America's top five contemporary choreographers. She is also the recipient of five Emmy Awards and accolades from every corner of the industry.

Samantha Jo "Mandy" Moore is an American choreographer, dancer, producer, and dance instructor. She is known for her work on the United States reality television series So You Think You Can Dance, having appeared on the show every year since the third season, and Dancing with the Stars. She choreographed the 2016 film La La Land and has also worked on stage musicals and commercials. She has created dance numbers for the Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Emmy Awards, and Grammy Awards ceremonies. She has been nominated seven times for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography, winning in 2017 for her work on Dancing with the Stars, in 2018 for her work on So You Think You Can Dance, and in 2020 for Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stacey Tookey</span> Canadian choreographer and dancer (born 1976)

Stacey Tookey is a Canadian choreographer and dancer known for her frequent appearances as a resident choreographer and guest judge on the Canadian and American versions of the dance-competition reality-television show So You Think You Can Dance.

Sergio Trujillo is a theater director, choreographer, dancer and actor. Born in Colombia and raised in Toronto, Canada, he is now an American citizen and resides in New York City. Trujillo was the recipient of the 2019 Tony Award for Best Choreography for Ain't Too Proud and the 2015 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Theatre Choreographer for Memphis. He is the first ever Hispanic recipient of the Tony Award for Best Choreography.

Denise Faye Greenbaum is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, and director. She is the recipient of an American Choreography Award, as well as a Screen Actor's Guild Award for the 2002 film Chicago. Faye won the Dance Track Magazine Artist Award for best choreography in a feature film for her work in Burlesque. Additionally, she received nominations including the Fred and Adele Astaire Award and The World Dance Awards for her choreography in Burlesque.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tabitha and Napoleon D'umo</span> American married choreographers

Tabitha A. D'umo and Napoleon Buddy D'umo, known together as Nappytabs, are Emmy Award-winning married choreographers. They are best known for their choreography on the television show So You Think You Can Dance and for being supervising choreographers and executive producers of America's Best Dance Crew. Since being with the former, their choreography has received both praise and criticism. They own Nappytabs urban dancewear and have been working in the dance industry since 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parris Goebel</span> New Zealand dancer and choreographer (born 1991)

Parris Renee Goebel, also known mononymously as Parris, is a New Zealand dancer and choreographer. She is the founder and main choreographer of the Palace Dance Studio, which has produced dance crews such as ReQuest, Sorority, Bubblegum, and the Royal Family. The last has won the World Hip Hop Dance Championship three times in a row, becoming the first dance crew in history to achieve it.

Joshua Alexandre Bergasse is an American choreographer and dancer. He has won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography for his work on the TV show, Smash. He has choreographed a number of Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the 2014 revival of On the Town, and the Off-Broadway revival of Rodgers and Hart’s I Married an Angel.

References

  1. ↑ Montemurri, Patricia (March 20, 2014). "Choreographer Sonya Tayeh rockets to top of dance world". USA Today. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  2. ↑ Green, Jesse; Bugbee, Stella; Salam, Maya; Bahr, Sarah; Coleman, Nancy (September 27, 2021). "The Best and Worst of the 74th Tony Awards". The New York Times.
  3. ↑ "Television's Hottest Choreographer, Sonya weiners Tayeh, Brings it to the El Portal Stage". TolucanTimes.info. October 28, 2009. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  4. 1 2 3 "Interviews: Sonya Tayeh". TheHipDrop.com. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Jones, Jen (December 1, 2012). "Combat Force". Dance Teacher. Archived from the original on September 22, 2013. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Smith, Tony (September 8, 2011). "In-Depth with Sonya Tayeh". SanJose.com. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  7. ↑ Camus, Renee (September 16, 2013). "Choreographer Sonya Tayeh's Passionate Honesty". Los Angeles Magazine. Archived from the original on September 22, 2013. Retrieved September 22, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Sonya Tayeh". HFCC.edu. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Sonya Tayeh". SonyaTayehDance.com. Archived from the original on July 25, 2010. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Choreographer Profile - Sonya Tayeh". MSAAgency.com. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved May 28, 2009.
  11. 1 2 "Sonya Tayeh". BroadwayDanceCenter.com. Retrieved August 13, 2013.
  12. 1 2 "Sonya Tayeh". 24SevenDance.com. Retrieved August 13, 2013.
  13. ↑ McQ, Jeff (August 26, 2013). "The MIMO Interview: Lucy Schwartz Talks about "Timekeeper"". RecordingConnection.com. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  14. ↑ Gordon, David (April 10, 2013). "The Last Goodbye, a New Musical Fusing Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet With Songs of Jeff Buckley, Will Open Old Globe Season". TheaterMania.com. Retrieved August 13, 2013.
  15. ↑ Serchuk, Barnett (September 6, 2013). "BWW Interview: SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE's Sonya Tayeh Talks THE LAST GOODBYE & More!". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  16. ↑ Thompson, Candance. "Quick Q&A: Sonya Tayeh". Dance Magazine. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  17. 1 2 3 "Sonya Tayeh - Contemporary Jazz". EdgePAC.com. Archived from the original on August 14, 2013. Retrieved August 13, 2013.
  18. ↑ "Faculty". TheHipDrop.com. Archived from the original on September 15, 2013. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  19. 1 2 3 "25 to Watch". Dance Magazine. January 2009. Archived from the original on March 23, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  20. ↑ Nguyen, Hahn (September 17, 2013). "SYTYCD Vets Sonya Tayeh, Allison Holker on Creating Emmys' Big Dance Number". TV Guide. Archived from the original on September 22, 2013. Retrieved September 22, 2013.
  21. ↑ "December 2010". Dance Teacher. December 1, 2010. Retrieved August 13, 2013.
  22. ↑ Lara, Maria Mercedes (July 18, 2013). "Announcing the 2013 Primetime Emmy Nominees!". BuzzSugar.com. Retrieved August 13, 2013.
  23. ↑ Garron, Barry (September 20, 2013). "Breaking Bad, Modern Family Are Top Shows at 65th Primetime Emmys". Emmys.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
  24. ↑ McPhee, Ryan (October 15, 2020). "2020 Tony Award Nominations: Jagged Little Pill, Moulin Rouge!, Slave Play Lead the Pack". Playbill. Retrieved October 17, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.