Illustration by Maria Manhattan
Savion Glover was born on November 19, 1973 and was raised by his mother and grandmother in Newark, New Jersey. As a very young child he displayed his unique rhythmic gifts and began drumming lessons. At five, he received a scholarship to attend the Newark Community School of the Arts. By the age of seven he was studying tap, and after seeing a rhythm tap exhibition he decided that was what he wanted to do. Glover made his Broadway debut in 1984 in The Tap Dance Kid. He made up his mind to learn as much as he could from the old tap masters—creating a new tap style called “free- form hard-core” while working with Gregory Hines, Henry Le Tang, and Sammy Davis Jr.
Savion appeared on Sesame Street and has won prestigious awards, including 1996 Tony Awards for his choreography and performance in Bring in “Da Noise Bring In Da Funk,” the 1996 Drama Desk Award for choreography, and the 1996 Dance Magazine Choreographer of the Year Award.
