Dyane Harvey-Salaam

Dyane Harvey-Salaam

 

by DALE RICARDO SHIELDS

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DanceAfrica: Rwanda: the Remix (2019)

Dyane Harvey-Salaam is a virtuoso performing artist, a founding member of Forces of Nature Dance Theatre, actress, dancer, educator, choreographer, and certified Pilates teacher. She is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Drama/Educator and works in the entertainment industry.

“I am on a high like never before…                                                                                                                                                                          this existence is filled with lessons which serve to guide us to our purpose in life…“

 

She appeared as a principal soloist with some of the most recognized theatre and dance companies across the United States and abroad. Her Broadway, television, and film credits include Free to Dance (PBS Special), The Wiz, Timbuktu!, Spell# 7, Ailey Celebrates Ellington (CBS Special). and Free to Dance.

Biography

Dyane Harvey-Salaam is an accomplished performing artist, dance educator, choreographer, certified Pilates instructor, and board member of the American Dance Guild. Daughter, Sister, Wife, Mother and Grandmother, she has performed as a principal soloist with many recognized dance companies and is a founding member and assistant to director Abdel R. Salaam, of The Forces of Nature Dance Theatre Company and wishes to acknowledge with deep gratitude this long relationship.

Having appeared nationally and internationally with concert dance companies including: The Eleo Pomare Dance Company, Joan Miller’s Dance Players, Chuck Davis Dance Company, Walter Nicks Dance Company, Otis Sallid’s New Art Ensemble, George Faison’s Universal Dance Experience, Dance Brazil, and The Repertory Dance Theatre of Trinidad and Tobago, she knows that the values instilled while dancing with these companies have prepared her for a richly satisfying life.

She has served as guest artist in Sydnie L. Mosely’s Purple, A Ritual In 9 Spells, first produced for Lincoln Center’s Rose Theatre, DancePlace in Washington, D.C., other iterations of the “Purple Universe” include a residency at Penn State University and most recently in collaboration with Dr.Kim Hall’s exquisite quilt exhibit at the Milstein Library, Barnard College.

Commercial appearances include The Wiz (original Broadway and film) Timbuktu!, Spell #7, Your Arms Too Short ToBox With God (Paris Company) Ailey Celebrates Ellington (CBS Special) Free To Dance (Forces of Nature Dance Theatre-PBS Special)

Her choreography for Black Theatre companies has earned AUDELCO Awards: Oya the Dance Drama, and Great Men of Gospel, and The United Solo and Broadway Berkshire Awards for Becoming Othello a Black Girl’s Journey. Other awards include: Abundance Arts Keeper of the Flame Award, the Asase Yaa Foundational Legacy Award, A.I.R. Living Legends Award (Miami Dade Community College), Distinguished Woman Award (Harlem Arts Alliance and Harlem Chamber of Commerce), and the ModArts Legacy Award.

Aspects of her life have been recorded for the Lincoln Center Performing Arts Library Jerome Robbins Dance Division, Oral History Project, and she participated in The Dance Historian Is In, a video presentation in which her major career achievements were highlighted. Along with dance colleagues, she assisted in the curation of two The Dance Historian Is In segments celebrating the lives of her mentor Eleo Pomare and Joan Miller, as well as a special evening honoring the lifework of Talley Beatty. She is a BESSIE award nominee (2019) and winner for (2017) and 2024,

Her published article, “Making Movement as an Act of Listening, Riding With the Muse” was included in the CLAJ Special Edition dedicated to the legacy of collaborator, Ntozake Shange. Additional literary offerings include a chapter in the book edited by Reverend Melody McGant, Good is Powerful , entitled “The Goodness of SweetHoney” and for the Dance Enthusiast, “Impressions:DanceAfrica 2025, Movement! Magic! Manifestation!”

An educator, she continues to teach and design courses at both Princeton and Hofstra Universities, where she shares her philosophy about the dance of life itself.

Ase’ to all who have come before!

 

Dyane has performed with Tony Award-Winning George Faison’s Universal Dance Experience, Dunham (dancer) Walter Nicks’ Dance Theatre, Otis Sallid’s New Art Ensemble, internationally recognized Dance Brazil, and The Trinidad Repertory Dance Theatre, just to name a few.

She presented Eugene Little’s moving tribute to Syvilla Fort in his version of Bacchanale, assisting Luk Vaes in his doctoral dissertation presentation on the prepared piano in The Hague, Holland.

She was hailed a “New York City Dance Diva” by Dr. Glory Van Scott in her series of tributes to Black female dancers at the Schomberg Center for Research Library.

 

 

Her awards include a 2017 New York Dance & Performance (Bessie) Award for Outstanding Production, two AUDELCO AWARDS (performance and choreography), MONARCH MERIT AWARD, GODDESS and GURUS AWARD, BLACK THEATRE AWARD, and most recently she was recognized as one of 12  “DISTINGUISHED WOMEN” by the Harlem Arts Alliance in conjunction with the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce. ASE to the Ancestors!

 

Micki Grant Memorial Celebration

Photo by Lia Chang

Photo by Lia Chang

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iforcolor

ARCHIVIST, EDUCATOR, HISTORIAN, and ARTiST
Dale Ricardo Shields is highly accomplished African American actor, director, producer, and educator with a distinguished career in theatre and academia.

Here's a summary of his background and achievements:

Early Life and Family:
Born on November 4, 1952, in Cleveland, Ohio.
His family has a strong musical background; his grandfather and father were founding members of the Shields Brothers Gospel Quartet of Ohio, and his mother was part of the Turner Gospel Singers.
He is a cousin of boxing promoter Don King.
Education:
Graduated from John F. Kennedy High School in 1970.
Holds both a BFA (1975) and MFA (1995) from Ohio University.

Career and Contributions
Theatre Professional:
Actor: Has appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway, and in regional productions. His television credits include The Cosby Show, Another World, Guiding Light, Saturday Night Live, and the ITV series Special Needs. He has also appeared in commercials and films.
Director and Stage Manager: Has extensive professional credits in these roles, including projects at Lincoln Center, The Henry Street Settlement House (New Federal Theatre), The Negro Ensemble Company, and The Joseph Papp Public Theatre.
Assistant Director: Served as assistant to Lloyd Richards and assistant director for the New Federal Theatre premiere of Ossie Davis's play A Last Dance With Sybil starring Ruby Dee and Earl Hyman.

Educator:
Professor: He is a Professor of Acting, Directing, Black Theatre, Black Studies, and Stage Management. He has taught at various institutions, including Ohio University, The College of Wooster, Denison University, Macalester College, Susquehanna University (as artist-in-residence), and SUNY Potsdam.
Workshops and Programs: Conducted workshops for Joseph Papp's Playwriting in the Schools Program (PITS) at The Public Theatre for six seasons and represented the United States at the ASSITEJ Theatre Festival in London, England, in 1988.
Artistic Activist and Historian:

Iforcolor.org: Creator and archivist for the Black History website Iforcolor.org, dedicated to preserving and sharing information about African Americans and artists of color. He also maintains the "Black Theatre/African American Voices" website on Facebook.
Project1VOICE Liaison: Serves as the Project1VOICE Liaison for the state of Ohio, directing "One Play One Day" events in Cleveland since 2011.

Awards and Recognition:
The Kennedy Center/Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Award: Recipient in 2017.
Paul Robeson Award: Recipient in 2021 (jointly presented by the Actors' Equity Association and Actors' Equity Foundation).
AUDELCO/"VIV" Special Achievement Award: Received in 2017.
Tony Award Nominee: Nominated for the "Excellence in Theatre Education Award" in 2015 and 2017.
Ebony Bobcat Network (EBN) Legend Award: Received from Ohio University in 2022.
ENCORE AWARD / The Actors Fund: Received in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2024.
Outstanding Professor Awards: Has received two of these and three "Educational Program of the Year" awards as a university professor.
The HistoryMakers archives: Interviewed and included in The HistoryMakers archives, permanently housed in the Library of Congress.
Dale Ricardo Shields is recognized for his profound impact on the lives of his students and his unwavering dedication to preserving and promoting Black theatre history and culture.