Photo by Gianina Ferreyra
Born in Bayombong Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines and raised in Los Angeles, Norbert De La Cruz III is recognized for his creative versatility in performance and choreography. He is a New York and Los Angeles based freelance dance artist.
With a BFA in dance (Juilliard) and a MFA in dance (Hollins), his movement practice has brought attention to many dance companies and educational programs. His physicality is shaped by his training and performance experiences at the Gabriella Foundation, LA County High School for the Arts, Marat Daukayev School of Ballet, The Juilliard School, and through his performance career as a professional dancer. He developed his contemporary sensibilities post classical dance training (Cecchetti and Vaganova) by ballet masters Vera Ninkovic and Marat Daukayev.
Professionally, Norbert has performed as a soloist with the Metropolitan Opera's production of Aida, Aszure Barton & Artists in Germany & Austria (Blue Soup & Busk), Balletto Teatro di Torino (Italy), Sydney Skybetter & Associates, Santa Clarita Ballet, Lustig Dance Theatre, Boca Tuya, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet and Complexions Contemporary Ballet. As a pre-professional, he won the Music Center's 17th annual Spotlight Award, the Emerging Young Artist Award, 2nd place in Youth America Grand Prix non-classical, and represented the Juilliard School at Kodak Theatre’s first annual Dizzy Feet Foundation Gala in Hollywood, CA. Norbert recently danced for Warner Brothers Pictures 2021's upcoming hit musical film, "In The Heights" directed by Jon Chu.
Additionally, Norbert has performed works by choreographers José Limón, David Parker, Adam Hougland, Johannes Wieland, Ohad Naharin, Aszure Barton, Jerome Robbins, Larry Keigwin, Jiri Pikorny, Hernando Fernando Magedan, Spenser Theberge, Jeremy McQueen, Camille A. Browne, Dwight Rhoden, Desmond Richardson, Lightfoot & Leon, Crystal Pite, Alonzo King, Zachary Tang, Omar Roman De Jesus, Gregory Dawson and Jirí Kylián.
Norbert's choreographic career was further mentored by esteemed Aspen Santa Fe Ballet (ASFB) Directors, Tom Mossbrucker and Jean-Philippe Malaty. His early career was recognized through the support of the Jerome Robbins Foundation’s NEW Essential Works Grant (2012), commissioning his first large-scale ballet, “Square None” (2012) with ASFB. He was then a finalist of Hubbard Street’s National Choreographic Competition (2013), a Princess Grace Foundation-USA Award under the choreography fellowship (2012), Alvin Ailey New Directions Choreography Lab (2013), finalist for the Joffrey Academy of Dance’s 2014 Winning Works and a recipient for the 2015 National Choreographic Initiative in Irvine, CA. He was selected for the 2017 and 2018 Spring Sessions at the New York Choreographic Institute, an affiliate of New York City Ballet, where he created his “Lunar” and "Traces" ballet alongside Juilliard composer and esteemed collaborator, Nathan Prillaman. Additional honorable mentions include the Asian Arts Alliance Jadin Wong Award, McCallum Theatre Choreography Festival Award, and was featured in Dance Magazines Top 25 to watch.
He has since been commissioned to create and premier new works for companies such as Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Hubbard Street 2, Joffrey Academy of Dance, James Sewell Ballet, Tulsa Ballet II, Barak Ballet, Grand Rapids Ballet, Ballet Florida, Peridance, Golden State Ballet, Attack Theatre, Ballet X, and Periapsis Music & Dance.
De La Cruz has instructed and created works for such schools as The Juilliard School, SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance, Ailey Fordham University, Princeton University, University of Richmond, Hollins University, Marymount Manhattan College, Columbia University, Cal State University of Long Beach, Hartford University, Grier Private School, Golden State Ballet, and taught at the International Ballet School intensives at Gdynia, Poland for two summers.
While navigating a freelance career as a choreographer, performer, and educator, Norbert is the head of contemporary dance at Golden State Ballet & Pilates whilst seeking for more valuable collaborations and human connections.
With a BFA in dance (Juilliard) and a MFA in dance (Hollins), his movement practice has brought attention to many dance companies and educational programs. His physicality is shaped by his training and performance experiences at the Gabriella Foundation, LA County High School for the Arts, Marat Daukayev School of Ballet, The Juilliard School, and through his performance career as a professional dancer. He developed his contemporary sensibilities post classical dance training (Cecchetti and Vaganova) by ballet masters Vera Ninkovic and Marat Daukayev.
Professionally, Norbert has performed as a soloist with the Metropolitan Opera's production of Aida, Aszure Barton & Artists in Germany & Austria (Blue Soup & Busk), Balletto Teatro di Torino (Italy), Sydney Skybetter & Associates, Santa Clarita Ballet, Lustig Dance Theatre, Boca Tuya, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet and Complexions Contemporary Ballet. As a pre-professional, he won the Music Center's 17th annual Spotlight Award, the Emerging Young Artist Award, 2nd place in Youth America Grand Prix non-classical, and represented the Juilliard School at Kodak Theatre’s first annual Dizzy Feet Foundation Gala in Hollywood, CA. Norbert recently danced for Warner Brothers Pictures 2021's upcoming hit musical film, "In The Heights" directed by Jon Chu.
Additionally, Norbert has performed works by choreographers José Limón, David Parker, Adam Hougland, Johannes Wieland, Ohad Naharin, Aszure Barton, Jerome Robbins, Larry Keigwin, Jiri Pikorny, Hernando Fernando Magedan, Spenser Theberge, Jeremy McQueen, Camille A. Browne, Dwight Rhoden, Desmond Richardson, Lightfoot & Leon, Crystal Pite, Alonzo King, Zachary Tang, Omar Roman De Jesus, Gregory Dawson and Jirí Kylián.
Norbert's choreographic career was further mentored by esteemed Aspen Santa Fe Ballet (ASFB) Directors, Tom Mossbrucker and Jean-Philippe Malaty. His early career was recognized through the support of the Jerome Robbins Foundation’s NEW Essential Works Grant (2012), commissioning his first large-scale ballet, “Square None” (2012) with ASFB. He was then a finalist of Hubbard Street’s National Choreographic Competition (2013), a Princess Grace Foundation-USA Award under the choreography fellowship (2012), Alvin Ailey New Directions Choreography Lab (2013), finalist for the Joffrey Academy of Dance’s 2014 Winning Works and a recipient for the 2015 National Choreographic Initiative in Irvine, CA. He was selected for the 2017 and 2018 Spring Sessions at the New York Choreographic Institute, an affiliate of New York City Ballet, where he created his “Lunar” and "Traces" ballet alongside Juilliard composer and esteemed collaborator, Nathan Prillaman. Additional honorable mentions include the Asian Arts Alliance Jadin Wong Award, McCallum Theatre Choreography Festival Award, and was featured in Dance Magazines Top 25 to watch.
He has since been commissioned to create and premier new works for companies such as Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Hubbard Street 2, Joffrey Academy of Dance, James Sewell Ballet, Tulsa Ballet II, Barak Ballet, Grand Rapids Ballet, Ballet Florida, Peridance, Golden State Ballet, Attack Theatre, Ballet X, and Periapsis Music & Dance.
De La Cruz has instructed and created works for such schools as The Juilliard School, SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance, Ailey Fordham University, Princeton University, University of Richmond, Hollins University, Marymount Manhattan College, Columbia University, Cal State University of Long Beach, Hartford University, Grier Private School, Golden State Ballet, and taught at the International Ballet School intensives at Gdynia, Poland for two summers.
While navigating a freelance career as a choreographer, performer, and educator, Norbert is the head of contemporary dance at Golden State Ballet & Pilates whilst seeking for more valuable collaborations and human connections.