Matt Rodriguez
dancer, choreographer
Matt is a military brat from Burlington, NJ who has has been dancing for over seven years, starting on his high school team as their first male ever. He went on with a dance scholarship to Cloud County Community College where he danced as captain for two years, and received his BFA in Dance from the University of Kansas. Rodriguez studied ballet, modern and jazz at KU and has continued to stay true to his Hip Hop roots all the while. Contemporary dance has become another dance form that he has picked up along this journey. He feels a true dancer in todays fast paced, ever changing world, is ready and prepared for anything.
Matt continues to inspire and teach in Lawrence and surrounding areas. He has already made quite a name just working with the Arts Center, teaching jazz classes, Boys Dance and Theatre, and assisting with productionssuch as a dance coach/assistant choreographer for the Summer Youth Theater production of West Side Story.
Matt performed in the Lawrence Arts Center's 2011 A Kansas Nutcracker: Sesquicentennial Edition as the Snow King. It was his first ever experience performing in a Nutcracker production. This spring, Rodriguez will take on his first role as head choreographer for the Lawrence Arts Centers performance of Willy Wonka.
Matt also teaches at Bryd’s Dance and Gymnastics in Kansas City where he teaches 3 levels of hip hop and a jazz/contemporary class. His goals in life are to be a back-up dancer/choreographer for a traveling music artist. In the meantime, Rodriguez is truly in it for the experience. He loves to choreograph and create dances that make people move and feel good. He loves to challenge thought and enjoys taking risks.