Olivia Sease Waldrop

Educator + Screendance Maker + Choreographer

Olivia began her training at the Augusta Ballet under the direction of Ron and Zanne Colton in Augusta, GA. At 17, she joined the Houston Ballet II, a trainee program for Houston Ballet, where she danced for two years under the direction of Stanton Welch and Claudio Munoz. In 2007, she began her studies at the University of South Carolina, where she danced notable roles in works by choreographers such as George Balanchine (Raymonda Variations, Stars and Stripes, Serenade and Rubies), Lila York (Celts) and Twyla Tharp (Deuce Coupe). She graduated magna cum laude with a BA in Journalism in 2012.

After graduation, she pursued her Masters in Fine Arts degree in Dance at the University of California, Irvine, where she researched the integration of video projection into live dance performance. In addition, she taught ballet courses and workshops with an emphasis on healthy training, musicality, and artistry.

Olivia joined the University of South Carolina dance faculty in 2017 where she teaches composition, ballet, and dance history. Additionally, she experiments with choreography in the mediums of screendance and live performance to develop creative collaboration methods with students and fellow artists.

Olivia has been honored for her dedication and passion in the field of dance by the Houston Ballet Academy, UofSC, and UCI, as she has been awarded the Michael Wasmund Award, UofSC Board of Dance Artistic Achievement Award, and Dean’s Fellowship in Expanded Media Performance. 

Olivia lives in South Carolina with her husband, Devin, and her two pups, Zooey and Margot.