ARTISTIC LEADERSHIP AND STAFF
Elijah Alhadji Gibson, dance educator,
choreographer, and activist, is the
Artistic Director of Social Movement
Contemporary Dance Theater, a
Houston based professional dance
company he founded in 2019 after an
international career as a professional
dancer, teacher, and choreographer
and a long-standing career in Higher
Education. Gibson is also on faculty at
Texas A&M University and serves as
the Associate Program Director for the
BS in Dance Science and Dance Minor.
Originally from San Diego, California,
he began dancing with the San Diego
Civic Dance Association and attended
the San Diego School for the Performing
Arts. Gibson studied dance in college
and later earned his Master of Fine Arts
in Dance from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, focusing on dance history, somatic studies, and pedagogy. He has been on faculty and has held residencies at several universities across the nation.
Gibson’s work has received critical acclaim and has been performed by invitation at both the Kennedy Center and Jacob's Pillow. Gibson has created educational programming for Houston public schools that promote representation in Arts Education by focusing on combining physical practice and history and continues to promote and curate community engagement programming throughout Harris County.
Elijah Alhadji Gibson
Artistic Director
Jessica Ray Herzogenrath, PhD
Artistic Advisor
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Elijah Alhadji Gibson | Board Chair
Derek Jayson Rusch | Vice Chair
Brianna McCray Holmes | Treasurer
Victoria Ferrell | Secretary
Dana Anderson
Bryan-Keyth Wilson
Jermey Edmonson