Today we’d like to introduce you to Dwain Travis
Hi Dwain, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started dancing when I was 3 years old at a small studio in the South Houston area. My focus was primarily in ballet. When I was 11 years old, I auditioned and made it into an internationally recognized ballet academy in Washington DC, the Kirov Academy of Ballet, where I trained for 5 years before moving back to Houston for my senior year of high school. That year, I trained at the Houston Ballet Academy and then quickly got my first contract as a professional dancer with the Bay Area Houston Ballet and Theatre, where I spent about 6 seasons as a dancer. During my time with BAHBT, I was able to continue to travel for training and working with other companies as a freelance dancer. Some of these schools/companies include the Harid Conservatory (Boca Raton, FL), the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival (Beckett, Mass), the Joffrey JKO School (New York, NY), and Canton Ballet (Canton, OH), among others. I also had the opportunity to dabble in work as a choreographer and presented work multiple times at the annual Regional Dance America Festival, including the RDA international festival in Montreal, Canada.
In 2012 (I was 22 y.o.), I moved to Austin…for love…and unintentionally left the dance world for almost 4 years. It was a very formative time in my life but after that relationship didn’t end up working out, I realized that I needed to do whatever I could to revitalize my dance career. Since then, I’ve done many projects as a freelance dancer around the South East US, co-founded the Juxatapose Arts Collective (a semi-professional dance company in League City), spent two seasons as a dancer with Houston Met Dance, and I’ve recently entered my 6th season as a founding member of the Houston Contemporary Dance Company under Artistic and Executive Director Marlana Doyle.
Regarding my personal life, I’ve been living as an out and proud gay man since I was 18 years old and do what I can to support those in the LGBTQ+ and other marginalized communities. I incorporate LGBTQ+ themes into the art that I create and love working with others that do the same. For example, the last two summers I had the opportunity to travel with my partner (of 7+ years) as his dancer representing his choreography at several dance festivals across Philadelphia, St. Louis, New Jersey, Richmond, as well as Houston. My partner, Travis Prokop, is an assistant professor of dance at University of Houston.
Lastly, I also do work as a freelance graphic designer and illustrator having studied Graphic Communications and Studio Art at UH. Since the pandemic, my work has been focused on dancing for HCDC and as a dance instructor at the Institute of Contemporary Dance, Houston. However, I still like to do graphic work and illustrate in my free time.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I have had a lot of incredible opportunities present themselves to me throughout my career, but I have definitely had my fair share of struggles along the way. One of the largest hurtles, I’d say, was after coming back to dance after my hiatus while living in Austin…I had stopped dancing through what (probably) should have been my “peak” years, and getting back into the groove – both physically and mentally – was certainly a challenge. While still in Austin, working as a barista at Starbucks (the one and only job I’ve ever had that wasn’t in some way related to dance) I met a fellow barista who happened to be a dancer AND whose sister just so happened to be starting her own project-based dance company. It was a more immersive, dance-theatre style company, but I was interested in being a part of it any way that I could. Tara was the director and after meeting her and the other dancers in the company, Nunamanna Immersive Dance Theatre welcomed me with open arms. I even designed the logo for the company.
Rehearsing with Nunamanna and performing in a handful of immersive dance shows revitalized my love for dance and performing but I knew that I had to commit to it full time if I was going to continue to have a career. Eventually I decided to move back to Houston and pick up training with my previous company, Bay Area Houston Ballet and Theatre (BAHBT). However, the struggle was real. Slipping back into the day to day routine felt like riding a bike, and I met several new friends in the company as most had left from my time before, but physically…I knew my body had a lot to catch up on.
Being a dancer whose job it is to rehearse in front of a mirror all day and self-critique can generate some serious body image issues. “It’s a part of the job” I always tell myself, but it doesn’t always make it easier. I feel like I have developed a healthier mindset over the last 8 years, but it is still something that I struggle with every now and then. And being 34 y.o. (as of September 2024) and currently the “senior” most member of my company doesn’t exactly help. Not to mention the many injuries – major and minor – I’ve accrued over the last decade; body maintenance is always on my mind. Luckily the people that I work with, including my director and co-dancers, don’t do anything but support me and make me feel like an integral part of the team. They inspire me and keep me motivated.
I have my dark days, feeling “too fat” or “too old” and “what am I still doing here,” but ultimately I know I am good at what I do and I am happy with this little space that I have carved out for myself in the Houston dance scene.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’d like to think that over the past 8+ years, I’ve established myself as one of the most recognized dancers in the Houston contemporary dance scene. I’ve worked for individuals and companies all across the city and have done a great deal to build my reputation as being professional to work with and interesting to watch on stage. My favorite part of the job however isn’t performing, but rather being in the studio with my peers and a choreographer creating art. The creation process has always intrigued me and taught me that a “work” is ever-evolving and never truly finished. And so my knowledge of the craft will never be complete. That is the fun part. I try to approach everything I do in life with this mindset, and I’ve gone pretty far with it.
Since the pandemic, I haven’t sought out many opportunities to flex my “choreography” muscles (I’ve been mostly the paintbrush and not the painter) but that is something that I am hoping to dip my toe back into soon. Be on the lookout.
What does success mean to you?
I think that success looks different for each and every person. For me, who had a comfortable childhood and not too many obstacles to stand in the way of who I am as a human being; I am just thrilled that I get to spend every day doing what makes me happy, keeps me curious, my self-worth in check, and pays my bills. I feel pretty successful.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.houstoncontemporary.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dwizzlestick/?igsh=MW14dzR2MW8wbmg4bQ%3D%3D
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@DwainTravis
Image Credits
Fluid Frames
Ben Doyle; BEND Productions
Claire McAdams
Morteza Safataj
Houston Contemporary Dance Company
