Artist
“Joseph's professional career has spanned broad areas of the profession, including teacher of all levels and ages, choreographer of all forms, from abstract to theatrical, performer, community involvement, lecturer, advisor, etc. Joseph's has remained current with the growth and directions the dance art has taken.
Joseph has achieved a mature level of experience in the Art of Theater, Dance, and Movement that is invaluable to bringing audiences and students to experience dance in the most pure and raw form. Joseph grasps the profession as both an art form and a philosophy. Crowning, this is the richness, humor, and intelligence all shining through when dealing with students and people.”
— Alberto “Tito” del Saz, Artistic Director, Nikolais/Louis Foundation for Dance, Inc.
Collaboration
“Coincidences gives poetic form to our human desire for belonging and connection,” Gravis said. “Using visual and performing arts as a conduit for creative expression, this collaborative exhibition invites community members to contemplate their individual experiences of isolation, and the potential to dissolve illusions of ‘otherness’ by recognizing our common humanity.”
— Lydia Gravis, Shaw Gallery, Former Director of Art Exhibitions and Public Programs - Mary Elizabeth Dee Shaw Gallery
“These collaborative projects underscore Jo’s versatility as an artist and their exceptional ability to lead and inspire teams. Their dedication to pushing artistic boundaries, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, and promoting the performing arts is truly commendable.”
— Cam McLeod, Internationally/Nationally recognized photographer
Performance
“Joan Woodbury adds: “He is a truly beautiful human being, inside and out. Each year I have seen him grow and change and become someone and something more in his human capacities and his capacities as a dancer. His body fluidly extracts from a gesture just the exact amount of energy, tonality and phrasing that is inherently needed to bring the poetry to the fore. He makes the movement sing.”
— Joan Woodbury, Co-Founder, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company
“Shirley Ririe says Blake is “absolutely one of the best dancers we have ever had. He has a wonderful sense of humor in his dancing, a trait that is rare these days and one I value highly.”
— Shirley Ririe, Co-Founder, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company
“The person who has worked with Blake most intensively for the past ten years is, of course, Boye-Christensen, who says that one rarely comes “across the depth of expression, the fearless physicality, the inquisitive mind and the unique sense of humor that Jo has…(Jo) just keeps getting better, more interesting, more conscious of how to use his exceptional facilities in ways that serve both the work and himself as a dancer.”
— Charlotte Boye-Christensen, Co-Founder, NOW-ID, and Former Artistic Director, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company
Educator
“Jo is a highly innovative and accomplished educator. He is inquisitive, a creative thinker, an educator who goes above and beyond to provide his students with a superior arts education that is tailored to the Dance Careers of the future. Jo believes in Dance, its history and is invested in the innovation of its future in higher education and in the broader Ogden/Wasatch Front/Utah Community.
Collaboration, community engagement, forward-thinking, seeks opportunities for inclusion and equality for all people and motivated to action are all words that come to mind when I think of Jo and his involvement in the Dance community and Higher Education System in Utah. He is a person who has the great ability to bring people together from many different parts of a community or institution and unite them to create change, to innovate, to understand and to move forward.”
— Lynne Larson, Associate Executive/Artistic Director
“All of Jo’s “tangible” accomplishments that create an impressive list, do not compare to the work that is happening in the classroom with students. It is a beautiful thing to watch his classes. Jo is a stunning and versatile dancer. His many years dancing with professional companies shaped him into a multi-faceted mover with a rich vocabulary from which to draw. He has, over time, developed a unique voice. His technique classes offer a perfect balance of technical skill building and lively, challenging, virtuosic phrase work. Students sweat and have fun, while learning essential skills. More importantly, he helps students find their own voices.”
— Professor Jen Salk, Former Chair, University of Washington Dance Program