Over the years, Headlong has created over forty dances, many of which are known for their witty take on contemporary culture. Rather than relying on a single dance style or technique, Headlong develops a unique movement vocabulary for each new piece. The Co-Directors’ eclectic movement backgrounds include modern, ballet, jazz, tap, contact improvisation, releasing techniques, theater, sports, sign language, Bharata Natyam, and Ghanaian dance. Drawing on these and many other sources, Headlong creates movement that both reflects and comments on the subject matter they are exploring. In Shosha, they looked at photographic images of the Jewish ghetto in 1930's Warsaw, as well as video footage of the Living Theater and other experimental theater groups of the 1970's. In Britney's Inferno, for example, they used videos of Britney Spears and the Backstreet Boys as a source of movement material.

David, Andrew and Amy were inspired by the work of Richard Bull and Cynthia Novack early in their careers, and Headlong continues to practice choreographic improvisation in the studio and on stage. In fact, many of the company’s dances include or consist entirely of structured improvisation.

Headlong has performed nationally and internationally to a range of audiences, and their work -- informed by a deep commitment to collaboration, humor, and formal experimentation -- has won many fans and much acclaim.

- New York Times, March 24, 2002

Headlong Dance Theater’s mission is: to create and perform new and visionary works of dance theater that use the entire body including the voice, the face, and the mind; to create accessible dances that are relevant beyond traditional dance audiences; to bring new audiences closer to dance by performing informally, in nontraditional venues, and for free; to develop and propagate training techniques that bridge dance and theater and empower performers to be co-creators; to provide mentoring and leadership in the local and national arts communities; and to dance our way into the blind spots and hot spots of our strange times.

David Brick’s (Co-Director) first movement vocabulary was sign language. Many years of gymnastics gave way to modern dance when he entered Wesleyan University. Before starting Headlong with Andrew and Amy, he danced and toured with the Richard Bull Dance Theater. Other recent projects include co-directing Madam Douce Amere with Fins for Wings; choreographing Love Unpunished for Pig Iron Theatre Company; and dancing for Nichole Canuso Dance Company. He loves teaching Contact Improvisation at the Parlor and Dance Composition at Bryn Mawr College.

Birthdate: June 6, 1967
Sign: Double Gemini
Pets: Allergic
Procrastination Technique: Contact Lenses
Classic HDT Moment: As Luke, barging into the alien's bar. Everyone stares at him.

Andrew Simonet (Co-Director) is a dancer and choreographer. Following a background in theater, he stopped acting in college when he discovered dance. The ability to perform using only physical presence thrilled him. Creating performance that takes place here, in this room, in the present moment was transformative.

He studied dance at Wesleyan University and at the Center for New Dance Development in the Netherlands. Choreographically, he has long been fascinated by the act of reading movement, interpreting dance. Recently, he has become obsessed with rhythm, feeling that it is the secret key to choreography, often given away to the music. He loves seeing dances by Maguy Marin, Koosil-Ja Hwang, Baneto, Richard Bull, New Paradise Laboratories, Takeshi Yazaki, DeFacto Dance, and Moxie Dance Collective.

In 1995, Andrew started the Dance Program at the Lawrenceville School, a private high school in New Jersey. (His high school students were the inspiration for Headlong’s Britney’s Inferno.) He lives in Philadelphia with his wife, Elizabeth, their son Jesse Tiger, and their hyper, needy dog Fran.

Birthdate: July 16, 1969
Sign: Cancer
Relationship Status: Married
Pets: Frances the dog
Procrastination Technique: Soliciting Baby Advice.
Classic HDT Moment: "What is this sound to us? It's an opportunity".

Amy Smith (Co-Director) grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where she studied ballet, jazz and tap and got early professional experience with Jazz Dance Theater. Back then, she could do triple pirouettes and lay-outs. At Wesleyan University, she took full advantage of the amazing dance department, studying modern, composition, improvisational forms, ballet, Bharata Natyam, and Ghanaian dance. She also majored in Religion. After college, she spent a year at the Center for New Dance Development in Holland, where she soaked up European New Dance and learned from incredible people like Stephanie Skura, Ishmael Houston Jones and Steve Paxton. Other important teachers/mentors include Cynthia Novack and Richard Bull, Susan Foster, Deborah Hay, and Ann Trenka.

Besides Headlong, Amy has performed in the work of Deborah Hay (lamb, lamb, lamb...), Ishmael Houston Jones (Specimens), and many others. Theater goers may remember her as Ivona in Theater Exile's 2002 production of Princess Ivona. She serves on the Executive Committee of the Dance/USA board of Trustees, and spent several years working to create Dance/USA Philadelphia, our local service organization. She also serves on the board of the Canary Project, and helps artists and organizations with their tax preparation and financial planning. Amy has a rock-star husband and two kids who fulfill her more than words can say. She lives in a geodesic dome in the woods, where the smells of woodsmoke and baking tofu fill the air.

Amy loves the way Headlong embraces the many-layered lives of its Co-Directors - of course, this is by design. She is married to a wonderful husband and has two small kids who fulfill her more than words can say. She lives in a geodesic dome in the woods, where the smells of woodsmoke and baking tofu fill the air.

Birthdate: April 22, 1971
Sign: Taurus
Relationship Status: Married
Pets: Lola the cat
Procrastination Technique: Discussing Hair Dying Dilemmas
Classic HDT Moment: In Impossible Dance: "this time, could you fling me up into the air and flip me around?"

Mark Lord (Dramaturg) grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia and discovered the pleasures of performing at about the same time he learned that if you cut class and hide in a library or a museum they will never find you. Consequently, he learned a lot about art, philosophy, and avant-garde performance, and precious little about Physics. He is a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Yale School of Drama and is the Director of the Theater Program at Bryn Mawr & Haverford Colleges and the Academic Director of the Headlong Performance Institute.

He directs plays (often site-specific adventures). He teaches. He writes articles, manifestos, and poems about performance. He tries to keep up with the unceasing adventures of his two kids. And he keeps tabs on the world of the dinosaurs through his wife, who ships them around the world.

Birthdate: June 7, 1961
Sign: Post No Bliss
Relationship Status: Married
Pets: Alice (cat), Mr. Gills & Bubba (fish)
Procrastination Technique: Long walks beside highways
Classic HDT Moment: Two words: salamanderish radishes.

Founded: 1993, Philadelphia

Co-Directors: David Brick, Andrew Simonet, Amy Smith

Managing Director: Anna Drozdowski

Home: The Parlor, a grass-roots arts space

Touring: regional, national, some international

Awards: "Bessie" Award, 1999; Pew Fellowships, 2006.

Number of dances made: 40

Age range of company members: 33-40

Alma Mater: Wesleyan University, Connecticut

Biggest Audience: 2000 at Parc Guell, Barcelona

Smallest Audience: 1, for "Cell"

Favorite rehearsal snack: popcorn with nutritional yeast

How to tell Andrew and David apart: Andrew is the taller one

Freakiest Board Member: Ishmael Houston Jones

Favorite Rock and Roll experience: opening for our idol, Jonathan Richman, at the TLA.

HDT Offspring: 8 (Ruby, Dexter, Jesse Tiger, Simon, Max, Isadora, Dalia, Willem, and Nico Wolf)

CDs in our studio that have yet to be stolen:
Beth Orton, Beastie Boys, Lionel Ritchie, Low/Dirty Three, Eltro.

What the Parlor used to be: Fiorentino's Funeral Parlor

Costume storage space: The Embalming Room

The Golden Years: 1995-98, at 35 North 3rd St.

Dance soul-mates: Arrow Dance Communication, Kyoto, Japan

Most senior company member: Nichole Canuso