Abdo Sayegh Rodriguez’s leadership in dance has been shaped by the experience of his own distinguished performing career and his longstanding dedication to teaching and training young dance artists. Originally from Venezuela, Rodriguez’s early performing career included both of Venezuela’s leading companies: the Ballet Nacional de Caracas and Ballet Nuevo Mundo de Caracas. Coming to the US as a guest artist in 1994, he performed with Minnesota Dance Theatre (MDT) under the direction of Lise Houlton and later joined the company where he danced for over a decade before becoming associate artistic director. He was awarded a McKnight Foundation Artist Fellowship in 2007.
In 2011, Rodriguez served as a consultant to TU Dance, the contemporary company founded by his longtime colleagues Toni Pierce-Sands and Uri Sands, helping with the formation of the School at TU Dance Center. He became TU Dance’s managing director in 2012 and was later promoted to executive director. During his tenure, Rodriguez has facilitated the organization’s expansion of the school and its facilities, new fundraising initiatives and major grants, information systems for school and donor management, and new staffing to support company and school administration.
Well-known for his teaching, Rodriguez has served as a faculty member of MDT’s Dance Institute and the St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists (SPCPA), and presently teaches at the University of Minnesota and TU Dance Center. As a community leader dedicated to building equity through access in dance education, Rodriguez serves on the Board of dancemn.org, has served as a member of the SPCPA Arts Advisory Council, and was honored by the Ordway Center with its 2015 Education Award for Excellence in Community Engagement.
Rodriguez holds a bachelor degree in Administration from the Universidad Catolica Andres Bello in Caracas, Venezuela. He lives in Minneapolis with his husband, Leif Anderson.
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