Levi Philip Marsman was born and raised in Boston, MA and is Artist in Residence at the Boston Arts Academy. He began his training at the Boston Arts Academy, OrigiNation Cultural Arts Center, and Jeanette Neill Dance Studio as a scholarship recipient in their Boston Youth Moves Program.  Levi was an active member of OrigiNation’s NIA Dance Troupe from 2000 until he graduated from the from the Walnut Hill School for the Arts in 2005. He enrolled in the Ailey/Fordham BFA Program, which lead to an invitation to join Ailey II by former director, Sylvia Waters before graduation.  Levi’s other performance credits include the Radio City Christmas Spectacular (New York), Movements Dance Company (Jamaica), OrigiNation (Boston), Lula Washington Dance Theatre (Los Angeles), Reed Dance (Pittsburgh) and PHILADANCO! (Philadelphia).

 

Levi is currently on faculty at Urbanity Dance and in the Ailey Extension program at the Ailey School and has been Artist in Residence at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee and Teacher In Residency for Urbanity Dance. As a choreographer, he is based in Boston, but has created works for institutions such as Dallas Black Dance Theatre: Encore!, the Walnut Hill School for the Arts, Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, Alexander W. Dreyfoos School for the Arts, Marygrove College, Dean College, Endicott College, Eastern Michigan University, Wheaton College, Georgetown University's Black Movements Dance Theatre, the Joffrey School, Boston Conservatory at Berklee, The Ailey School, and MOVE(NYC). He has worked extensively with his mentor Christopher Huggins as co-choreographer and collaborator for dance companies and schools such as Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Duke Ellington School for the Arts, and the Juilliard School.

 

Levi’s awards include Contemporary Dance Silver Medalist of the 4th Seoul International Dance Competition, 2007 Young Professionals Awardee—Martha Hill Dance Fund, Best Performance at the 10th Annual Oakland Dance Festival in Michigan and first recipient of the 2016 Ballet Inc. Emerging Choreographer Award.  He recently finished choreographing a new work at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and islooking forward to creating new works for Ballethnic and Richmond Ballet in the coming months. 

 

All of attributes so much of his success to the grooming and structure he received from Shaumba Yandje Dibinga at the OrigiNation Cultural Arts Center. Being surrounded by people who were eager to see him grow gave him the confidence to believe in himself and have many successes in the dance industry.