Flight Path Dance Project is a tuition-free training program
and repertory dance company
for 14 to 20-year-old dancers
in New York City.
PROGRAM
At its core, Flight Path Dance Project is a repertory company.
In addition to 10 hours of weekly repertory rehearsal and technical training at Gibney Dance 280, Flight Path dancers engage in professional development workshops and receive a monthly book to support learning beyond the studio and prepare for the whole of a career in the performing arts. Past workshops have included business skills with Fran Kirmser, injury prevention and management with NYU Langone Harkness Center for Dance Injuries, financial literacy with Park Piedmont Advisors, meditation with Inscape and Fit for Broadway, a panel of professionals with Desmond Richardson, Preeti Vasudevan, and Karen Ziemba, and more. Past books have included Dancing Revelations by Thomas F. DeFrantz, Functional Awareness by Allegra & Nancy Romita, The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp, Life in Motion by Misty Copeland, and more.
As a repertory company, Flight Path dancers rehearse and perform diverse choreography from established and emerging choreographers, and train in ballet and contemporary technique. Past choreographers and masterclass teachers include Stephanie Martinez, Yusha-Marie Sorzano, Michael Trusnovec, Juel D. Lane, Dylis Croman, Ching Ching Wong, Paige Fraser, and more.
For further information, please reach out at any time by emailing info@flightpathdanceproject.com
STAFF
Michael McGowan
Founder & Artistic Director
Michael McGowan began his dance training at his mother’s dance studio in Clarksburg, WV. He continued his studies in various training programs at West Virginia University, National Academy of the Arts and North Carolina School of the Arts. He is a proud graduate of the Harid Conservatory of Dance in Boca Raton, FL where he studied with Tina Santos, Marjorie and Maria Tallchief, Helgi Tomasson, David Howard and Patricia Wilde, among others. Michael was a member of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago under the artistic direction of Lou Conte. With HSDC he toured the world performing the works of Twyla Tharp, Bob Fosse, Daniel Ezralow and Margo Sappington, among others. He was a guest artist of River North Dance Chicago under the artistic direction of Sherry Zunker, and appeared in a documentary about the company titled Reality of a Dreamer. He was also featured in Love in Four Acts for WTTW Chicago choreographed by the late Claire Battaille. Michael is forever grateful to Claire, Lou and Sherry for inspiring him to continue the legacy of artistic mentorship. Michael was the founder and Artistic Director of Kitchen Sink Dance Company and its satellite pre-professional ensemble. He continued his teaching and choreography at the Spence School in NYC, where he was the Chair of the Performing Arts Department and director of the dance program for fourteen years. Michael was awarded a choreographic residency with the Ucross Foundation in Wyoming. His work there ultimately led to the development of Flight Path Dance Project. Michael lives in NYC with his husband Steven Lutvak, who composed the music and co-authored the lyrics for the Tony Award-winning Best Musical A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, and their daughter Eliot Rose.
Sean McCabe
Technical Writer
Sean McCabe is a technical writer and educator originally from Ottawa, Canada. Sean holds a Master of Fine Arts degree from New York University’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program (2018) as well as a Bachelor of Education and a Bachelor of Arts from Queen’s University in Canada. He specializes in curriculum development, grant writing, and business & development. He has worked for Flight Path since its launch in 2018.
ANTI-RACISM
Flight Path Dance Project is committed to anti-racism. We are engaging in a process of prioritizing anti-racism work in order to build a more equitable organization. We stand with the Black Lives Matter movement to acknowledge and dismantle systemic racism in all its forms.
The work that we do around anti-racism is and will be reflected across all aspects of the program, from Board development to repertory selection to the guest artists and professionals we employ, in order to better represent the diverse experiences of the young dancers we are training and our community at large.
Dance is a transformative change agent, and it is our responsibility as dancers, dance makers, and arts administrators to use that power for progress. We are committed to creating repertory that allows our dancers to express the full range of self, challenge the traditions of concert dance, and expand the minds of our audience.