“...a consistently interesting mine-magician-dancer with a remarkably pliant body and strong stage presence.”
- Jennifer Dunning - The New York Times
Richard Haisma, artistic director of GEOMANTICS DANCE-THEATER in Rochester, New York, is a dancer, teacher, choreographer, Certified Movement Analyst (CMA) and Master of Fine Arts (MFA). After touring throughout Europe, South America and the Middle East with the Murray Louis Dance Company in the 1970s, and performing with Rudolf Nureyev in Louis’ choreography on Broadway, he toured his own solo, evening-long performances throughout Europe and the United States in the 1980s and 90s. He has been Guest Artist with the Dublin Dance Theatre (Ireland), the Laban Centre (London), York University, Salem State College, Kansas State University, SUNY/Potsdam and many others. He has in recent years been on the dance faculties of the University of Rochester, Hobart and William Smith Colleges and the Laban-Bartenieff Institute of Movement Studies, and most recently at Wesleyan University in Connecticut. Since 2004 he has taught Laban Movement Analysis at SUNY/Brockport. He frequently teaches contemporary dance in cities throughout Italy. In 2004 he was Guest Teacher in Residence at the Venice Biennale. He is the Director of The Rochester School of Kinetics which offers “Visceral Motion Technique (VMT) ™ for all levels. His company, GEOMANTICS DANCE-THEATER, enjoys performing in unusual spaces for diverse audiences.
“Deriving enormous tensile strength and resiliency from thighs apparently made of spun steel, Haisma roots his feet on the floor, squats, bends deep, arches back and thrusts his musculature into infinite space. Sinewy arms pass under and around legs with astounding flexibility. You find yourself asking, ‘Did he really do what I think he did?’…Richard Haisma is one hell of a dancer.”
- Alan Ulrich – The San Francisco Examiner
