Ralph Perkins

Assistant Professor of Dance and Music Theatre

Why I Chose Hartt

After working as a guest choreographer for a number of productions, I was asked to relocate to Hartford. A position was created for me as Director of Dance for the Theater Division at The Hartt School. In the years I have been in residence, I feel the school has grown tremendously, culminating in the opening of the Handel Performing Arts Center. Hartt has proven itself to be a paramount training ground for young artists. One of the main things that keeps me here, besides my creditable colleagues and consistently talented students, is the collaboration between the departments and the support of all the programs to make this one of the top conservatories in this country.

More about Ralph

Ralph has received two Kevin Kline Award nominations for outstanding choreography for his work on Urinetown and Kiss Me Kate , both productions with The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis. He also choreographed 1776 for Goodspeed Musicals in the fall of 2007. A native of North Carolina, Ralph received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, after being named a national dance semi-finalist by the National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts. He resided in Las Vegas for several years, where he choreographed for several shows, including EFX at the MGM Grand, SIEGFRIED AND ROY, at The Mirage, and TOURNAMENT OF KINGS. He was artistic director and cofounder of The New Works Project, a contemporary dance company in Las Vegas and received an Artist Fellowship Award from the Nevada State Council on the Arts for artistic achievement. A member of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, Ralph has choreographed numerous musicals for The Monomoy Theatre in Chatham, Cape Cod and in Las Vegas, as well as a revival of  Sweet Charity  for Barrington Stage Company in Sheffield, MA. Ralph is the Director of Dance for the Theatre Division at The Hartt School, and has choreographed many productions for the school including Ragtime,   West Side Story,   Carousel , Hair , Crazy for You , and On the Town , to name a few.