The Joyce is thrilled to announce the 2022 guest curator Renae Williams Niles, giving audiences a sneak peek for American Dance Platform’s return to The Joyce stage in 2022.
Introducing ADP 2022 guest curator Renae Williams Niles
Renae Williams Niles has worked in the arts and nonprofit sectors for over 25 years serving in many capacities including dance company manager, grant maker, dance presenter, chief fundraiser, moderator/speaker, adjunct professor, grants panelist, diversity liaison, consultant, advisor, board member and guest curator. She has served as director of grant programs for the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, the first chief operating officer/associate dean of administration for the University of Southern California Kaufman School of Dance, adjunct faculty for Claremont Graduate University’s Arts Management program, and currently executive director for the Culver City Education Foundation. For over 11 years Renae worked for The Music Center in Los Angeles eventually becoming vice president of programming. In addition to guiding all facets of the dance series, she curated the presentation of over 50 internationally-acclaimed ballet and contemporary companies and oversaw family programming and DIY/participatory art making. She also created the acclaimed programs BalletNOW and Moves After Dark (a site-specific program) and commissioned the world premiere of LA Dance Project and was the lead commissioner of Slow Dancing. She also partnered with Center Theatre Group, Dance Camera West, LA Opera and the LA Philharmonic. Renae continues to guest curate and has worked with the LA Philharmonic, collaboratively programming within both Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl.
As a leader in the field, she frequently serves as an advisor, grant review panelist and as an anonymous nominator for regional and national foundations and also for government agencies. Renae served on the Western Arts Alliance (WAA) board for 13 years in several positions including President, on the board of trustees for Dance/USA and as a three-year advisor for the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project. She is currently on the boards of the Association of Performing Arts Professionals and American Dance Movement. In 2017, she received the WAA Service to the Field Award.
In addition to being an alum of USC, Renae also completed a post graduate program with the USC Marshall School of Business. She holds a certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University and was a participant in the inaugural USC Racial Equity Leadership Academy.