earned the first Ph. D. in Dance History and Theory at the University of California, Riverside. He also holds M A degrees in anthropology from California State University, Los Angeles, folklore ands mythology , and library science from UCLA. In September 1998 he was awarded the coveted James Irvine Foundation Fellowship in Dance. He is a five time recipient of the NEA Choreographic fellowship and was a NEA resident artist in La Napole, France

As a folklorist, he conducted research in traditional music and dance for the Smithsonian Institution in Lebanon. Shay was also awarded two National Endowment for the Humanities summer scholar positions.

He has contributed numerous essays, articles, and entries to the Oxford Encyclopedia of Dance, Encyclopedia of Homosexuality, the UNESCO Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre, Dance Reaserch Journal, Journal of Iranian Studies, Visual Anthropology, and the Southern California History Quarterly.

Anthony Shay is a dancer and choreographer with over forty years of performing and creative experience in staging and choreographing dances and music from Eastern Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia. After years of study in Iran, Shay created the AVAZ International Dance Theatre. He has choreographed over 150 works for both his own company and on commission to other groups.

Click on each image to order Anthony Shay's books
through Amazon.com:

home | introduction | articles