Royce Zackery

Royce Zackery is an artist, choreographer, educator, and researcher whose work bridges the artistic traditions of ballet with contemporary research in human movement. An Associate Professor in the Florida State University School of Dance, his work advances evidence-informed approaches to performance, pedagogy, choreography, and dancer-athlete health within the interdisciplinary environment of a Research 1 university. 

At the center of Zackery’s scholarly and pedagogical practice is Evidence-Informed Clinical Reasoning for Dance Pedagogy an emerging framework for examining how dancers organize movement and how educators can translate principles from biomechanics, motor learning, movement assessment, and performance health into more effective teaching and training practices. His research investigates human movement organization through the lens of dance, with particular attention to biomechanics, motor learning, postural organization, preventative measures to minimize the threat of injury, movement assessment, and performance optimization. Rather than separating scientific inquiry from artistic practice, his work considers the studio, classroom, laboratory, and stage as interconnected environments for investigation. 

Zackery’s choreographic and creative practice extends across concert dance, higher education, cultural diplomacy, and international artistic exchange. His work and collaborations have included Beyond the Ballet Barre, Canada’s National Ballet School and Assemblée Internationale, Moveius Contemporary Ballet, State Street Ballet, Company E, the U.S. Department of State, and U.S. Embassy initiatives in Doha, Abu Dhabi, Jerusalem/Ramallah, and Rwanda. Across these settings, he has used dance as a vehicle for artistic inquiry, cultural exchange, community engagement, and dialogue across disciplines and communities. 

His contributions to the field also extend to national and international conversations surrounding dance education, dancer health and wellness, Black ballet histories and legacies, curriculum and pedagogical design, resilience, and the evolving relationship between artistic training and human performance. As a panelist, moderator, educator, mentor, and artistic collaborator, Zackery advocates for approaches to dance education that recognize the dancer not simply as an instrument of technique, but as an adaptive, thinking, sensing human being. 

Prior to joining Florida State University, Zackery served on the faculty of Howard University, where his leadership included serving as B.F.A. Coordinator, Artistic Director of the Howard University Dance Arts Ensemble, and Chair of the Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure Committee. His broader teaching and professional practice spans university dance programs, professional companies, conservatories, pre-professional training programs, and community-based organizations. 

Zackery holds an M.A. from NYU Steinhardt in partnership with American Ballet Theatre and a B.F.A. from Southern Methodist University’s Meadows School of the Arts. His continuing professional development bridges dance pedagogy, biomechanics, movement science, and strength and conditioning. His training and certifications include American Ballet Theatre’s National Training Curriculum, GYROTONIC®, Progressive Ballet Technique, and advanced study in human movement, biomechanics, motor learning, dancer health, and performance conditioning. 

Through his creative, scholarly, and pedagogical work, Zackery is developing an interdisciplinary body of inquiry centered on a fundamental question: How can a deeper understanding of human movement organization transform the ways dancers are taught, trained, assessed, and supported across their careers?