Section
Eastern University Dance

Stephen Welsh
Visiting Professor of Dance

Stephen Welsh

Stephen Welsh is a visiting professor of dance at Eastern University. He received his MFA in Dance from Temple University in 1987. Mr. Welsh has performed in the works of distinguished choreographers Anna Sokolow, Doug Varone, Moses Pendleton, Murray Louis, Jane Comfort and Jose Limon, performing at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Central Park’s Summerstage, The Kitchen and the Yard.

In Philadelphia, he has danced with Jeanne Ruddy Dance, Dance Fusion, Trapezius/Aerial Dance and continues to perform extensively in the tri-state area with his own pick-up troupe, SWERVE. His choreography has received a Rockerfeller Foundation Grant, a PCA Grant, a Five-County Cultural Arts Grant, two PIAIS Grants and a Pew Foundation funded audience development project shared with David Morgan.  He pioneered the first collaborative performance between teenage dancers at the Gwendolyn Bye School for dance and teenagers with cerebral palsy from Philadelphia's acclaimed HMS school.

In addition to his work at Eastern University, Stephen Welsh has been a guest artist and/or adjunct faculty member at Swarthmore College, The Community College of Philadelphia, Stockton State University, Montgomery County Community College, Drexel University, Bryn Mawr College, The University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University and West Chester University. Stephen is an advocate for empowerment through the arts.

Stephen is an advocate for empowerment through the arts.  He is on the board of the non-profit Indigenous Pitch Dance Collective, where he edits grants and helps fundraise for their special outreach programs (including seven years in New Orleans with young Katrina survivors, 4 years in North Philly with a-risk youth and two years in Haiti with Earthquake survivors).

He has taught Ashtanga-based Yoga for children, athletes and seniors at the Community College of Philadelphia, The Agnes Irwin School, The Episcopal Academy, and First Position Dance Arts/Ardmore which he co-owns with his wife Lisa.