Melissa Pihos

Melissa Pihos, Associate Professor of Dance, Valdosta State University – choreographer, dancer, filmmaker, dance educator

Melissa Pihos, Associate Professor of Dance at Valdosta State University, began dancing at a very young age and has been performing professionally for over 30 years. She has performed all over the United States. Her film work has screened in several film festivals across the country and her choreography has been performed internationally. She has danced for Flatlands Dance Theatre, Larry Keigwin, Van Dyke Dance Group, John Gamble Dance Theatre and Sidelong Dance Company. She has also performed in works by Martha Graham and Twyla Tharp.

She is an award-winning filmmaker and is currently touring her work, PIHOS A Moving Biography as Alzheimer’s disease awareness events. PIHOS A Moving Biography is a documentary dance/film performance that explores the life of her father, NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame receiver, Pete Pihos and his battle with Alzheimer’s disease. The work has toured to Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Lubbock, TX, Philadelphia, New York City, Valdosta, GA  and Santa Fe. Melissa has also written, directed and choreographed two children’s performances for Valdosta State University Theatre and Dance, called Planets View from the Hubble Space Telescope and The Butterfly and the Bee. She has co-written and published an interactive digital dance textbook, called Dance and Culture.

She is a certified IMPROVment teacher. IMPROVment is a method that benefits a neuro-diverse community to improve motor impairment, functional mobility, balance, quality of life, gait, endurance and cognitive abilities. She volunteers teaches two weekly IMPROVment classes in person and on zoom, working specifically with individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, Dementia and Parkinson’s disease.

Pihos holds an MFA in Choreography/Dance from UNC-Greensboro and a BA in Biology. Her previous dance faculty appointments include UNC-Greensboro, UNC-Charlotte, High Point University and Salem College. Pihos has been a national dance judge for Dance Machine and Boogie Fever since 2015.

Dance Machine Dance Competition Adjudicator • National Competition Judge • cities vary• June 2015- present

• Adjudicator for dance competitions in various cities which involves watching live dance, making comments that are recorded and scoring the dances.

Her choreography is described as being complicated, gripping, evocative, moving and captivating.  She often uses multimedia technology in her work which adds a layer to the viewer’s visual experience.  Along with being a choreographer and dancer, she is an award-winning filmmaker. She created “Dear Dad,”in a documentary film production class in spring, 2009, which has since been screened all over the United States.  In spring 2010, she created a dance documentary called Accessing the Legacy of Martha Graham: Steps in the Street.   In 2011 she created Her Wrath, a dance for camera.

She has taught in the UNC-Greensboro, UNC-Charlotte, Salem College and High Point University. She is full time dance faculty at Valdosta State University in Valdosta, GA. She is a national judge for Showstopper and Dance Machine. She does video and consulting work for Curtain Call Costumes.

She is available for teaching Master classes and choreographing.  She is interested in setting PIHOS A Moving Biography on dance companies and students at Universities and Colleges around the United States.

I have created Alzheimer’s Association fundraiser events by touring my production PIHOS Moving Biography to Winston-Salem, Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Manhattan. The show explores various aspects of my Dad’s life and his struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. I traveled to Lubbock, TX in August 2013 to set PIHOS A Moving Biography on Flatlands Dance Theatre. The performance in Lubbock was performed on November 8 and 9, 2013 and in Santa Fe, NM in June 2014. I am helping to raise awareness to the devastating disease that plaques our nation and to raise financial support for the Alzheimer’s Association.

  -Melissa Pihos

PIHOS A Moving Biography Tour is a sponsored project of Artspire, a Program of NYFA, a 501(c)(3), tax exempt organization. Contributions on behalf of PIHOS: A Moving Biography Tour must be made payable to Artspire, a Program of NYFA, and are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Donations can be made online at  http://artspire.org/DirectoryDetail/tabid/95/id/1183/Default.aspx 3

Contact Info:

petepihos35@gmail.com

The Alzheimer’s Association is extremely helpful for people with Alzheimer’s disease,their families and caregivers. If you need more information about the Alzheimer Association — http://www.alz.org/ or call 800-272-3900