DEBBIE BLUNDEN-DIGGS, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Debbie Blunden-Diggs like her mother, founder Jeraldyne Blunden, began her dance training at the age of five at the Schwarz School of the Dance. She joined the Dayton Contemporary Dance Company at the age of 12 and won national recognition for her choreographic talents by the time she was age 17. Her first piece, Variations in Blue, was submitted as an entry in the Young Choreographers Showcase and selected for inclusion in the National Choreographic Plan and made available to dance companies across the country.
During her more than 30 years with DCDC, Mrs. Blunden-Diggs has appeared in most of the Company's repertoire, being featured in principal roles such as the Mother in Las Desenamordas and the Madame in District Storyville. Mrs. Blunden-Diggs’ choreographic contributions to the DCDC repertory have spanned over two decades with works including; No Room, No Place, No Where for which she received a Monticello Award in 1982, Variations In Blue, Night Phases Silent Echos, Configurations, Kaliedascope, Fragments, In My Fathers’ House and Traffic to name a few.
In addition to her choreographic and performance contributions to DCDC, Mrs. Blunden-Diggs is the Executive Director of Jeraldyne's School of the Dance cornerstone of the Dayton Contemporary Dance Company and works closely with the pre-professional company, DCDC2. In 1990, Mrs. Blunden-Diggs was appointed Associate Artistic Director and in 2003 became Deputy Director for Arts and Operations. And when Kevin Ward retired on July 1, 2007 Mrs. Blunden-Diggs became DCDC’s new Artistic Director.
