Virginia Johnson returns to Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) as artistic director having been a founding member and principal dancer.  Born in Washington, DC, Johnson graduated from the Academy of the Washington School of Ballet.  She briefly attended the School of the Arts at New York University as a University Scholar before joining DTH in 1969. During her 28 years with the company, she performed most of the repertoire, with principal roles in Concerto Barocco, Allegro Brillante, Agon, A Streetcar Named Desire, Fall River Legend, Swan Lake, Giselle, Voluntaries, and Les Biches, among others.

Three DTH productions in which she danced leading roles were recorded for broadcast: A Streetcar Named Desire for Dance in America on PBS, Creole Giselle, which was the first full-length ballet broadcast on NBC, and Fall River Legend, which won a cable ACE award from the Bravo Network. In addition, she was included in two acclaimed television dance series, Margot Fonteyn’s The Magic of Dance, and Natalia Makarova’s Ballerina.  Her choreographic credits include the television film Ancient Voices of Children in which she danced. Later choreographic works include ballets created for Goucher College, Dancers Responding to AIDS, the Second Annual Harlem Festival of the Arts, Thelma Hill Performing Arts Center, and Marymount Manhattan College, where she was an adjunct professor.

While still performing, her interest in journalism led her to Fordham University where she continues to pursue a degree in communications.  After retiring from performing, she founded POINTE magazine and was editor-in-chief from 2000-2009. The popular publication helps dancers prepare for the professional ballet world, developing educational seminars and lectures on health and wellness for dancers, auditions, and professional preparation.

Her honors include a Young Achiever Award from the National Council of Women, Outstanding Young Woman of America, and the Dance Magazine Award, a Pen and Brush Achievement Award, the Washington Performing Arts Society’s 2008-2009 Pola Nirenska Lifetime Achievement Award, and the 2009 Martha Hill Fund Mid-Career Award.

Her commitment to community service is maintained through volunteer assignments with New York Cares.

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