Robert Gardner

Robert Gardner began his dance training in his hometown of Roanoke, Virginia. He furthered his training under scholarship at the North Carolina School of the Arts and at the School of American Ballet. He began his professional career in New York with the Eglevsky Ballet, the Joffrey II Dancers, then performed with the Joffrey Ballet where he danced works by Frederick Ashton, Anthony Tudor, Ruthanna Boris, and Choo San Goh throughout the United States, as well as internationally. His career moved him west, where with the San Jose/Cleveland Ballet he danced principal and soloist roles in works by George Balanchine, Agnes De Mille, Lar Lubovitch, Jose’ Limon, Dennis Nahat, and others. He appeared as a guest artist with the Houston Grand Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, and Glimmerglass Opera in Cooperstown, New York. His world dance experience has enriched his vision, choreography, and teaching.

Robert has served as Artistic Associate with the New York State Ballet and Artistic Director of the Rochester City Ballet. Prior to moving to New York, he served as the Artistic Director of the Minnesota Ballet for 12 years, where he choreographed over 40 works, including his original versions of “Sleeping Beauty,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” “Dracula,” “Firebird, and “Swan Lake,” described as a “lush dance epic.” His work has been hailed as having a “meticulous use of contrasting imagery, emotions and energy that make each dance moment exquisitely unique,” and has been presented to acclaim nationally and internationally. He has choreographed for opera and orchestra, as well as musical theater. His national connections have enabled him to bring masterworks by George Balanchine, Twyla Tharp, Agnes DeMille, Anthony Tudor, and Salvatore Aiello to the companies he has led, as well as promoting emerging regional and national choreographers, composers, and designers. His teaching career is wide ranging, from master classes at universities such as Yale and Park Point, to professional companies, dance schools and academies throughout the United States.

Robert is a trustee and repetiteur for the Salvatore Aiello Trust, the recipient of an Excellence in the Arts & Sciences Award from the Saint Louis County Board of Commissioners and a Lifetime Artist Award from the Depot Foundation. He received an American Composers Forum Award to create an original work with original score and has served as a panelist for the Minnesota State Arts Board.