Donald Byrd is the executive artistic director of Seattle's Spectrum Dance Theater. He is both a TONY-nominated (The Color Purple) and Bessie Award-winning (The Minstrel Show) choreographer. From 1978 – 2002, he was Artistic Director of Donald Byrd/The Group, a critically acclaimed contemporary dance company, founded in Los Angeles and later based in New York. He has created over 100 modern and contemporary dance works for his own groups as well as for the Alvin
Ailey American Dance Theater, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company and Philadelphia Dance Company (Philadanco), among others; and he has choreographed for classical companies, including Pacific Northwest Ballet, The Joffrey Ballet, Dance Theater of Harlem, Aterballetto, MaggioDanza diFirenze and Oregon Ballet Theater.
His non-dance company work has included productions with The New York Shakespeare Festival/Public Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, the Intiman Theater, Center Stage, San Francisco Opera, Seattle Opera and New York City Opera. He counts among his numerous collaborators an eclectic mix of distinguished artists including Peter Sellars, Anna Deveare Smith and the late Max Roach.
