Clare Croft is the creator and curator of Daring Dances. In addition to leading Daring Dances, Clare is a historian, theorist, and dramaturg. She is the editor and curator of the book, Website, and live performance series, Queer Dance: Meanings and Makings (Oxford 2017), which can be found online here, as well as the curator of the EXPLODE! queer dance festival. Clare is also the author of Dancers as Diplomats (Oxford 2015), and is currently at work on the book, A Different Kind of Lady: Jill Johnston’s Political Embodiments. In addition to her academic publications, Clare has contributed writing to The Brooklyn Rail, the Austin American-Statesman, and The Washington Post, among other newspapers and magazines. As a dramaturg, Clare has collaborated with Thomas DeFrantz and Jennifer Harge, as well as working in community engagement with arts presenters including the Fusebox Festival, University Musical Society (UMS), and the TBA Festival.

 

Clare’s work has been recognized by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Congress on Research in Dance (Dancers as Diplomats, 2016 Outstanding Publication Prize), American Society of Theatre Research (2010 Sally Banes Biennial Publication Prize). Clare holds a PhD in Performance as Public Practice from the University of Texas-Austin, and is Associate Professor of American Culture at the University of Michigan, where she also holds appointments in the Departments of Women and Gender Studies and Dance.