Dr Sally Crawford-Shepherd
Course Leader - MA Performing Arts
Education & Qualifications
Sally Crawford-Shepherd is a dance teacher, performer, and researcher from Kansas who has traveled worldwide to gain inspiration from different cultures. She holds a BFA in Dance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, an MA in Choreography from Trinity Laban in London, and a PhD in Cultural Dance Studies from De Montfort University. Additionally, she is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Professional Experience
Sally's career began in 2000 creating dances for theatre and dance companies in Kansas City. After moving to the UK, she continued performing and choreographing with professional artists and educational institutions. From 2015-2018, she served as Dance Coordinator at the University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago. Currently, she works as an External Assessor for the University of Malta.
Current Research
Sally's research focuses on creative research methods across various dance styles, particularly cross-subject approaches to improvised movement and music. She serves as Co-Director for Tap Dance Research Network UK and is a member of several professional organizations including the Society for Dance Research and One Dance UK.
Currently, her research explores how tap dance improvisation can become a tool for arts activism and dance scholarship in both live and digital formats.
Publications
- Crawford-Shepherd, S. (2022) Independent Beats to Global Feet: The Evolution of English Tap Jams. Theatre, Dance, and Performance Training, vol.13, no. 1, 22-33.
- Crawford-Shepherd, S. and Murray, J. (dir) (2020) Online Tap Talk Series, online video series, presented 18 Aug 2020 – 05 May 2023. [Online] Available from: http://tdrnuk.com/whats-on/
- Torres, N., Crawford-Shepherd, S., Cairo, A., Donnelly, L., and Metzger, N. (eds) (2019) Rituals of Modern Society: Perspectives on Dance Fusion in the Caribbean and Dance Sustainability. Newcastle Upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
- Crawford-Shepherd, S. (2019) Improvising the Future: Expanding Perspectives of Tap Dance Scholarship in Rituals of Modern Society: Perspectives on Dance Fusion in the Caribbean and Dance Sustainability. Newcastle Upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, pp. 215-235.
- Crawford-Shepherd, S. (2018) Visible Beats: Competition in English Tap Dance in Sherril Dodds (ed.) The Oxford Handbook of Dance and Competition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 361-396.
