Executive Director, Marvin Askew

 

Marvin Askew began dancing with the Buffalo Inner City Ballet under the tutelage of Karl Singletary, the founder.  He has won numerous scholarships from the most prestigious dance schools in the country including the American Ballet Theater, School of the Arts Summer Dance Program in Saratoga Spring, The Chautauqua Institution, Alvin Ailey Dance Center and New York City Ballet.

 

A former member of the Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, Maryland Ballet and Capital Ballet.  Mr. Askew performed principal and solo roles with each of these companies.  He has danced with the Chicago Ballet and appeared as a guest performer with many other regional  companies as well as dance troupes in Tennessee, South Carolina and Los Angeles.

 

As the Executive Director of the Buffalo City Ballet and school, Mr. Askew was awarded a choreographer's grant from the New York State Council on the Arts Decentralization Program to create works for the company.  He represented the city of Buffalo in 1994 at the White House for the National Medal of Arts Award ceremony hosted by the National Endowment of the Arts.  In 2000, he was inducted into the Western New York Dance Hall of Fame for his outstanding work with children.  In March 2007, Mr. Askew and the Buffalo City Ballet was awarded the outstanding Arts Organization of the year by the Arts Council of Buffalo and Erie County.

 

Mr. Askew's teaching talents are in demand.  He has taught master classes throughout Western New York and in Tennessee, Pittsburgh and Los Angeles.  He also served as a dance consultant for the Buffalo Academy for Visual and Performing Arts and served on the staff of the University of Buffalo Dance Department.

 

His students affectionately call him Mr. Marvin.  Students trained at the Buffalo City Ballet have been accepted at many prestigious dance schools and companies, including American Ballet Theater, New York City Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet, Mercyhurst College, Briansky Ballet Center at Mt. Holylne, Ma, New York State Summer School for the Arts in Saratoga Springs, New York, La Roche College, Charleston Ballet, Columbia Ballet, Dance Theater of Harlem,  Dayton Contemporary Dance and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center.  In 2009 Mr. Askew taught advance ballet men classes for the University of Buffalo Theater and Dance Department.  Currently devoting most of his time in the development of the school and training program.