Jodie Gates has established a significant career in the field of dance. For over thirty years she has contributed to the profession as a visionary leader, artistic director, educator, choreographer, producer, stager and principal dancer. She is an experienced founder of programs and organizations, and serves as a facilitator for artistic collaborations and educational initiatives nationally. Ms. Gates leads with integrity, bold ideas and risk- taking as guiding principles, and continues to usher momentous ideas forward to create groundbreaking and lasting change within the dance field, while creating a positive impact more broadly in society.

Currently Ms. Gates resides in Southern California, and is Artistic Director and Founder of the award-winning Laguna Dance Festival. Since 2005, the non-profit organization fosters artistic collaborations, supports choreographic commissions for multi-generational artists, provides youth scholarships, offers workshops and training for dancers, and presents international artists, educators, and the nation’s top contemporary dance companies. The organization’s mission is To present world-class dance performance, increase public appreciation for the art, and provide quality dance education.

Her professional leadership education includes The Psychology of Leadership Certificate from Cornell University SC Johnson College of Business, and her studies with the Higher Education Leadership Program for Women (HERS Institute) at Bryn Mawr College.

Her most recent service activity in the field has been as facilitator for the Artistic Directors Coalition for Ballet in America – Pilot Program for African American Inclusion. Since June 2020, this group of artistic leaders in the classical ballet and contemporary dance fields, have been actively working with the organization, The International Association of Blacks in Dance, to build broader diversity and greater equity in the dance field, specifically in classical ballet.

Ms. Gates is formerly a principal dancer with the Joffrey Ballet, Frankfurt Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, and Complexions Contemporary Ballet, as well as a principal guest artist with several companies around the world. Her guest appearances include a gala at The Maryinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia, the Benois de la Danse in Moscow, dancing Odette/Odile in Swan Lake at the Ballet de Monterrey, Mexico, to appearing in well-known festivals such as Spoleto in Italy, The Edinburgh Festival, the Nijinsky Festival in Hamburg, Germany, and The Melbourne Festival in Australia.  READ MORE