Daniel Lewis | Advisory Board

Dr. Daniel Lewis is president of Miami Dance Futures, which he formed in 1988 to develop dance in South Florida and a consultant for the José Limón Dance Foundation in New York. He was the Founding Dean of Dance of the New World School of the Arts, from 1987 to 2011, an eight-year professional dance program, starting in the ninth grade and ending with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

Dr. Lewis is perhaps most widely known for his association with the work of José Limón. From 1962-74, he danced with the Limón Dance Company, originating roles in A Choreographic Offering, Legend, Psalm, The Winged, Comedy and The Unsung. In 1975, Dr. Lewis completed the choreography of The Waldstein Sonata, an unfinished work begun by Limón just before his death. Dr. Lewis staged the works of Limón and Doris Humphrey for such companies as the Royal Swedish Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, American Ballet Theatre, National Ballet of Canada, and The Juilliard School. In 1972 following the death of José Limón Dr. Lewis served as the Limón Company’s acting artistic director and in 1984 became founding director of the Limón Institute. His book, The Illustrated Dance Technique of José Limón (1984), has been translated into German, Spanish and Japanese.

He had two papers published in Medical Problems of Performing Artists. He was Issue Editor for Dance in Hispanic Cultures, Harwood Academic Publishers. As a choreographer, Dr. Lewis has been commissioned to create works by the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, Dallas Civic Opera, American Opera Center at Lincoln Center, Amherst College, the University of California at Los Angeles, The Juilliard School. His repertory company, Daniel Lewis Dance, has performed and taught extensively throughout the United States, Europe and Scandinavia. From 1984-87, Dr. Lewis was Assistant to Martha Hill, the Director of the Dance Division, at The Juilliard School, where he had been a member of the dance faculty since 1967. Dr. Lewis was also an adjunct professor at New York University and a professor at Amherst College. Dr. Lewis graduated from New York’s High School of Performing Arts in 1962 and The Juilliard School in 1967.

In 1990, the National Society of Arts and Letters awarded Dr. Lewis the gold medal for Lifelong Achievement in Dance. In 2001 he received The Florida Arts Recognition Award recognizing his outstanding initiatives, leadership and excellence in supporting the arts in Florida. In 2002 he received a Life time achievement award from “dance4life”, and the Nancy Smith Award. In October of 2010 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Dance Educators Organization. In February of 2011, Miami Dade County and the City of Miami declared February 5, 2011 as Daniel Lewis Day. On April 6, 2011, he received a proclamation from the floor of the Florida State Senate for his work in the arts in Florida by Senator Anitere Flores He received the 2011 Martha Hill “Lifetime Achievement Award in New York City. In December of 2012 he received an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts Degree from the University of Florida. 

He is currently the General Manager and treasurer of the Florida Dance Educators Organization. He serves on the boards of The Thomas Armor Youth Ballet (President), Arts for Learning and Miami Dance Futures (President), and on the Advisory Board for Dance NOW! Miami. He continues his teaching, choreographing, staging his and Limón’s works around the world and just published his biography: Daniel Lewis, A Life in Choreography and the Art of Dance.