For Norton Owen, the director of preservation at Jacob’s Pillow, archives activate a place where the past is in dialogue with the present. Owen’s efforts have helped dance feel like a bigger place, and dance history like an evolving story that unites us all.

The 2023 Dance Magazine Awards will honor Antoine Hunter, Alicia Graf Mack, Norton Owen, Bijayini Satpathy, and Maria Torres.

In his current position as director of preservation, he oversees exhibitions, the growing online resource Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive, PillowTalks, pre- and post-show lectures, and film programs. Owen describes his motto as having “one eye looking backward and one eye on what’s happening currently.”