Photo by David Heisler
Dorothy O'Shea Overbey is a dancer, choreographer, musician, educator, and producer of multidisciplinary performing art, film, and immersive theatre.
Born in Alaska and raised in Austin, Dorothy grew up training at Ballet Austin and studying classical piano with University of Texas Professor Emeritus Amanda Vick Lethco. She holds a BFA in Dance Performance and a BA in Philosophy from Southern Methodist University.
Dorothy's professional dance career spans ballet and contemporary companies in New York, Colorado, and California. While in New York, she trained at the Atlantic Theatre School and appeared in commercials, indie films, and theatrical productions, immersing herself in the city's dynamic arts scene.
Returning to Austin after her time in NYC, Dorothy was inspired to foster a vibrant, sophisticated arts scene reminiscent of New York, but with greater accessibility and affordability. She co-founded Austin Community Ballet, an organization of dancers in the Austin area that offers professional-level ballet classes in an open, collaborative, non-hierarchical environment. In 2014 she joined the faculty of the Department of Theatre and Dance at UT Austin, where she taught for nine years. Dorothy’s approach to teaching is deeply informed by her twenty-four years of experience as a certified trainer of varied somatic disciplines, including Gyrotonic™, Gyrokinesis™, Pilates, Yoga, and The Feldenkrais Method.
In 2017, Dorothy founded Red Nightfall Dance Theatre, crafting films and immersive experiences that amplify voices often overlooked by traditional gatekeepers in the performing arts world. Two years later, she became a co-owner of First Street Studio, providing affordable rehearsal and performance venues to Austin artists. In 2025 this initiative will evolve in to East Side Performing Arts (ESPA), expanding to include a two-studio space with a configurable black-box theatre, further realizing Dorothy's vision of a dynamic, inclusive arts scene in Austin.
In 2023, Dorothy transitioned from UT Austin to focus on growing Red Nightfall Dance Theatre and establishing ESPA as a national performing arts center in Austin.