The Most Influential People in Dance Today: Ryan Heffington

June 18, 2017

Patron saint of queer quirk and founder of Los Angeles studio The Sweat Spot, Ryan Heffington first made headlines three years ago as the choreographer of “Chandelier,” a music video for Sia starring Maddie Ziegler with a combined view count of more than 1.5 billion. Last year, Heffington both broadened his range and reinforced his brand, contributing to the frankly sexual short film for “Worship” by U.K. pop trio Years & Years, collaborating with director Spike Jonze and dancer-actress Margaret Qualley on a cinematic short to launch KENZO’s World perfume, and reuniting with Sia and Ziegler for “The Greatest” featuring Kendrick Lamar.

But the most effective vehicle for his idiosyncratic creative voice so far might be the polarizing Netflix series The OA. Heffington’s compulsive tendencies to choreograph facial expressions and give discrete actions priority over cohesive phrasing are well-suited to screen actors without much dance experience. Whether the show’s second season includes as much dance as its first remains to be seen; either way, chances are good that Heffington himself will remain busy.


Read the rest of
Dance Magazine
‘s list of the most influential people in dance today.