Samantha Kenney, M.F.A.

M.F.A., Smith College

Sam Kenney, Associate Professor of Dance, earned her BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography from the Purchase College/SUNY Conservatory of Dance in 1998 and her MFA from Smith College in 2004. Before joining the Fredonia faculty in 2007, she spent three years as a Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Massachusetts/Amherst, teaching jazz, contemporary/modern dance, ballet, tap, and composition/choreography. Additional teaching credits include master classes or residencies at Rubicon Dance (Cardiff, Wales), the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Cardiff Metropolitan University, the Foundation for Liberal and Management Education (Pune, India), Mercyhurst University and numerous American College Dance Association Conferences.

Choreographic credits include Rubicon Dance (Cardiff, Wales), the InHale Performance Series (Philadelphia, PA), the Youth American Grand Prix Ballet Competition (NYC, NY), Theatre Lantaren/Venster (Rotterdam, Holland), Irish Classical Theatre Company (Buffalo, NY), Buffalo Contemporary Dance, Zodiaque Dance Company, University Dancers of UMass/Amherst, and the Five College Dance Department. Since 2008, Sam has created or restaged more than 20 choreographic works for the students of the Department of Theatre and Dance, and has contributed choreography to three Mainstage theatrical productions: Victor/Victoria (2008), Romeo and Juliet (2009), and Cabaret (2015). Three of her works have also been selected for performance in Gala Concerts of regional American College Dance Association Conferences: 90% Metaphor (2010), Embodying (2012), and Orion I (2016).

Sam has served as Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance since January 2017. She also currently serves as one of three Interim Associate Deans of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, working directly with the Departments of Communication, English, Theatre and Dance, and Visual Arts and New Media.

Office Hours

• Monday: 8:00-10:30 am & 3:00 pm-5:00 pm (TADA)
• Tuesday: 10:30 am-2:00 pm (TADA) & 2:00 pm-5:00 pm (CLAS)
• Wednesday: 8:00-10:30 am & 3:00 pm-5:00 pm (TADA)
• Thursday: 10:30 am-2:00 pm (TADA) & 2:00 pm-5:00 pm (CLAS)
• Friday: 8:00 am-12:00 pm (TADA)
• By Appointment

Awards and Honors