Northeastern University New York City: A New Era for the Renowned Dance Program
Northeastern University has absorbed Marymount Manhattan College, bringing the 128-year-old institution its first-ever dance department under a new name and structure.
While the name of the New York City campus has changed, the excellence of the MMC dance program remains intact, Dance Magazine reported. The merger introduces an infrastructure and set of resources that were previously unavailable to the small institution.
“This merger allows us to have an infrastructure and resources that, as a small institution, were not previously available,” dance chair Melanie George told Dance Magazine. The private university based in Boston, Massachusetts, is investing in the program to help it operate at a high level and expand its faculty and artistic programming.
The conservatory training model housed within a liberal arts program will continue to function under the exact same curriculum and schedule. “We will retain our schedule and our faculty and our programming,” George told Dance Magazine.
George became the dance chair in January 2026 as an in-demand dramaturg, jazz choreographer, and scholar. Her plan relies on drawing from New York City’s location to give students access to top-tier dance artists.
Six full-time and approximately 40 adjunct faculty members teach ballet, modern, contemporary, jazz, club and street dance styles, and embodied African aesthetics. Students pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts or a Bachelor of Arts in dance sciences, pedagogy, or dance and media receive identical conservatory-level training.
“Students begin to form individual one-on-one relationships with faculty members based on their dance expertise or networks they’re connected to,” George told Dance Magazine.
Recent alum Christina Naslund entered the program in 2022 aiming to become a contemporary ballet dancer before connecting with the jazz faculty. For a junior-year concert, Naslund performed in a jazz piece by Dylan Pearce, the associate choreographer for the Radio City Rockettes.
“Getting that experience and his getting to know my dancing, my style, set me up for the following summer, when I trained at Radio City,” Naslund told Dance Magazine, which resulted in a performance contract for her senior year.
BFA and BA students secure stage experience immediately, with every freshman taking a stagecraft class while learning stage crew operations in their first year. Students audition for two to three concerts annually throughout their four years in the program.
Artist Rena Butler choreographed a contemporary work for students last semester in a concert featuring house dance by Tatiana Desardouin, theater jazz by Betty Weinberger, contemporary ballet by Keerati Jinakunwiphat, and contemporary dance by Larry Keigwin. Butler rehearsed students for two to four hours a week over the course of three months.
“It gave me an opportunity to actually absorb what their needs are, where I could challenge them, where they shine,” Butler told Dance Magazine.
The department programs two weekends of shows, including two Saturday performances, to prepare dancers physically and mentally for professional company work or Broadway. “Part of the education is learning how to care for their bodies for longevity in the field,” George told Dance Magazine.
“Change is powerful, and with change comes possibility,” George told Dance Magazine.
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