Faculty Profile

David Grenke
Professor of Theatre & Dance

Dance, Choreography

Professor Grenke is a former principal dancer for the Paul Taylor Dance Company and is the founder of ThingsezIsee’m Dance/Theater.

He has also danced for Dennis Wayne’s Dancers and The Joffrey Concert Dancers, and he was a founding member of the Armitage Ballet. His choreography has been presented in New York at Lincoln Center, Dance Theatre Workshop’s Fresh Track Series, the Guggenheim Museum’s Works and Process Series, the Dia Center for the Arts, Pace University, and Riverside Church. Outside New York his works have been performed at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, The American Dance Festival, the Cannes International Festival, Kaatsbaan International Festival, and on tours of Russia, Poland, Denmark, Taiwan, and Argentina. Support for these tours has come from the U.S. Embassy, Trust for Mutual Understanding, and the Harkness Foundation.

Professor Grenke is a recipient of ADF’s 1998 Doris Duke Award for new work, the 1997 Scripps/ADF Humphrey-Weidman-Limón Fellow for Choreography, and the Nora Kaye Award for dance. He participated in the American Dance Festival’s 1997 International Choreographers Commissioning Program, where he was in residence creating new work on ADF dancers.

For the Paul Taylor Company, his choreography inspired the hit Funny Papers, where his work is represented in the first movement, which was filmed for PBS Dance in America special The Wrecker’s Ball.  His choreography is also in the repertory of Mark Taylor’s Pittsburgh Dance Alloy, the Baltimore School for the Arts, and Rutgers University. A former faculty member at Rutgers University, Grenke is currently on the faculty at the Taylor School and teaches master classes both domestically and internationally. He has been guest faculty at Brigham Young University, SUNY Brockport, Denmark’s Oure Academy, and the Baltimore School for the Arts, among others.

Professor Grenke served as Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance for three years beginning in 2008-09. He currently sits on the oversight committee for the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts.

Room 228, Wright Hall
dwgrenke[remove-this-and-replace-with-at]ucdavis.edu
Seasonal Event

Outside the Lines, CANCELED
Hickey Gym

David Grenke Diego Martinez-Campos

At the direction of the Chancellor, Professor David Grenke, Department of Theatre and Dance chair, has decided to cancel all performances of Outside the Lines, Winter Quarter, scheduled for March 12-14 due to health concerns. We know you will understand this decision and thank you for support of the department.

“Outside the Lines, Winter Quarter,” presented by the UC Davis Department of Theatre and Dance, is an informal preview of new choreography in progress created by graduate and undergraduate students.  

Seasonal Event

Auditions for “Outside the Lines”
Winter Quarter

David Grenke

The Department of Theatre and Dance will be holding auditions for the winter quarter edition of “Outside the Lines” on Nov. 25 6-8 p.m. in the Hickey Gym. Auditions are open to all UC Davis students. 

The winter quarter edition will be performed March 12, 13 and 14 at 7 p.m. and 2 p.m. on March 14 in Hickey Gym. 

The performance will feature new works created by graduate and undergraduate choreographers curated by David Grenke, Department of Theatre and Dance chair. 

Seasonal Event

Dance Auditions for “Outside the Lines” Spring Quarter
Hickey Gym

David Grenke

Dance auditions for the spring quarter Outside the Lines will be held on Monday, April 8 in Hickey Gym, 185, from 6 to 8 p.m.

The dance concert which showcases choreography created by graduate and undergraduate students, runs Thursday through Saturday, May 23-25 at 7 p.m. with a 2 p.m. matinee on May 25 in Wright Hall’s Main Theatre.

Auditions are open to all UC Davis students, faculty and staff. 

Enrollment in DRA 145 course may be required or co-requisites may be required.

Seasonal Event

Outside the Lines, Spring Quarter
Main Theatre, Wright Hall

David Grenke Outside the Lines, Winter Quarter

PURCHASE TICKETS

“Outside the Lines, Spring Quarter,” presented by the College of Letters and Science’s Department of Theatre and Dance, features new choreography created by graduate and undergraduate students.  

Performances are Thursday through Saturday, May 23-25 at 7 p.m. with a 2 p.m. performance on May 25 in the Wright Hall Main Theatre.

Seasonal Event

Outside the Lines, Winter Quarter
Main Theatre, Wright Hall

David Grenke Lena Polzonetti

“Outside the Lines, Winter Quarter,” presented by the College of Letters and Science’s Department of Theatre and Dance, features new choreography created by graduate and undergraduate students.  

Performances are Thursday through Saturday, March 14-16 at 7 p.m. with a 2 p.m. performance on March 16 in the Wright Hall Main Theatre.

Seasonal Event

Outside the Lines 2
Main Theatre, Wright Hall

David Grenke

PURCHASE TICKETS

Butoh, a form of Japanese dance theatre, is showcased in the winter quarter edition of “Outside the Lines” in performances featuring guest artists Kota Yamazaki and Mina Nishimura.

Seasonal Event

Outside the Lines 1
Main Theatre, Wright Hall

David Grenke Tara Brandel

PURCHASE TICKETS

The fall quarter edition of “Outside the Lines 1” will feature guest artist Rachel Berman, a former dancer of the Paul Taylor Dance Company, and the U.S. premiere of a work by Tara Brandel, artistic director of Ireland’s Croí Glan Integrated Dance Company.

Post

Outside the Lines 3

David Grenke

“Outside the Lines 3″ is the final event of the 2016/17 three-part dance series that brings the audience into the evolution of the performance process.

The performances take place May 25 through 27 at 7 p.m. in the intimate Vanderhoef Studio Theatre in the Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students.

Tickets are available at the door.

Seasonal Event

Outside the Lines 1
Main Theatre, Wright Hall

David Grenke Mary Beth Cavanaugh

A presentation and insight into the Horton Technique will be featured as part of UC Davis Department of Theatre and Dance’s Outside the Lines 1.

Outside the Lines, which showcases professional and student works, runs Thursday through Saturday, Dec. 1 to 3 at 7 p.m. with a 2 p.m. matinee on Dec. 3 in Wright Hall’s Main Theatre.

Announcement

Outside the Lines 2
Main Theatre, Wright Hall

David Grenke

This is the second event of a three-part dance series that brings the audience into the performance process. The unique formatting of this show provides the viewer an opportunity to see works in various stages of conception and development. Follow the evolution of an artist over the course of the year or watch new choreographers put their work on display; there will be new choreography from the students featured in the last series, as well as new students presenting dance works.

News

Dave Grenke Performance at Broadway Backwards
March 21, 2013

David Grenke

Professor David Grenke performed “Vespers” on Monday night for BROADWAY BACKWARDS — the annual celebration where gays and lesbians see their stories onstage, told through the great songs of musical theater, sung by their favorite Broadway performers. See the article and photos here:

http://broadwayworld.com/article/Photo-Coverage-BROADWAY-BACKWARDS-2013-All-the-Performances-20130319

View all UCD Arts departments and programs

Melody Chiang

Art
History

Melody Chiang

Maria
Manetti
Shrem
Art Studio Program

Melody Chiang

Cinema and
Digital Media

Melody Chiang

Design

Melody Chiang

Music

Melody Chiang

Theatre
and Dance

Melody Chiang

Performance Studies

Melody Chiang

Maria
Manetti
Shrem
Art & Art History Visual Resources Library

Melody Chiang

Museums

Melody Chiang

Map