“The first tapper to break the sound barrier of So You Think You Can Dance”—Dance Magazine
“Ms. Sullivan, with a sly smile and a sense of wonder ... [is] a choreographer and a dancer of high ability and polish”—NY Times
Flying Over Sunset | Associate Choreographer. Opening Spring 2020
Encore! | On Camera Choreographer - "Annie", "Oklahoma", + "High School Musical"
Crazy-Ex Girlfriend | Assistant Choreographer - "Anti-Depressants Are So Not A Big Deal" Emmy Award Winning Episode
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Flirty Dancing | On Camera Assistant Choreographer, Season One
Dorrance Dance | Artistic Associate
Melinda Sullivan is an American choreographer, dancer, actress and educator. She is one of the most highly sought out tap dance soloists in the world, as well as a true triple-threat with an incredibly diverse resume in dance, television, and theater. Based in Los Angeles, Melinda choreographs and performs for a variety of scripted and unscripted television shows, most recently choreographing several episodes of the hit series Encore! for Disney+. She is a guest artist with NYC based, award winning tap company Dorrance Dance. Melinda is currently working alongside Michelle Dorrance as the associate choreographer of Lincoln Center Theater’s newest musical, Flying Over Sunset. She is on faculty at the Colburn School in Los Angeles, & is constantly collaborating with musicians and filmmakers (which you can find on her Instagram @itsmelindasullivan).
Born in East Meadow, New York, and raised in Thousand Oaks, California, Sullivan began tap dancing at age four, turning professional at age 14. She studied dance under the Jazz Tap Ensemble, Debbie Allen Dance Academy, and California Dance Theater. Melinda left home to tour North America with the Cats 25th anniversary company, followed by the inaugural national tour of High School Musical on Stage!
Melinda continued to diversify as a performing artist, acting in the American soap opera As the World Turns as Zoe Finn. The following year, she finished 9th place in the seventh season of the U.S. version of So You Think You Can Dance; it was the furthest any tap dancer had gone on the show. Melinda went on to appear as the first tap All-Star in Season 10, as well as featured in Chloe Arnold's Syncopated Ladies in Season 11. In 2012, Sullivan's dancing and choreography on her work "Gone" won the Capezio A.C.E. Award. In 2016, she danced in the film La La Land''s opening number, "Another Day of Sun", leading to performances on the Academy Awards and the Golden Globes. Other film and tv work include Glee, Dancing with the Stars, It's Complicated, Disjointed, The Goldbergs, and multiple episodes of the Late Late Show with James Cordon.
Photos: Jeremy Jackson & Lee Gumbs
MORE: Melinda Sullivan Videos
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