We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Travis Prokop. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Travis below.

Hi Travis, thanks for joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

One learns to do something by doing it, in my case, dance education and choreography. In one of my favorite books, Art & Fear by Bayles and Orland, there is an example of a ceramics class. The ones who spent their time making pots and learning from their mistakes grew and improved, whereas those who theorized about perfection had nothing to show for their efforts. I apply this to my creative craft daily. The essential skills I’ve learned are to celebrate my uniqueness and live in my identity. The obstacles that stood in my way were the minimal examples of myself in the art I was exposed to.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Travis Prokop currently serves as Assistant Professor of Dance for the University of Houston. Travis received his B.F.A. from West Texas A&M University and M.F.A. from Sam Houston State University. Travis has taught in higher education for ten years, urging dancers to develop ownership of their movement style while exploring their ‘personal brand’ within dance performance. Travis specializes in teaching forms of jazz dance, contemporary dance (with modern dance principles), aerial silks, dance composition, dance history, and the appreciation of dance as fine art. Travis hopes to help dancers carve out their path in the dance industry.

Many universities have commissioned Travis as a guest lecturer to choreograph original dance works and for theatre productions, such as Everybody and Safe at Home, as well as musicals like She Loves Me and Urinetown. Professionally, Travis showcases his choreographic work across North America under the name ‘Prokop_Theory Dance.’ This collective focuses on integrating 2SLGBTQIA+ culture and history into concert dance. Travis’ choreography has gained notoriety from many industry adjudicators, who have deemed it “Yummy” (Rosanna Tavarez), “Powerful” (Shani Collins), and “Complex” (KT Neihoff).

Originally from New Mexico, Travis has been dancing for thirty years. His training spans from Los Angeles to Italy, allowing him to combine aspects of concert dance and commercial performance. Travis has been a soloist for Lone Star Ballet and dance captain for TEXAS: The Outdoor Musical. He has performed nationally with numerous dance companies from Houston, TX, and has appeared on multiple national television shows, music videos, and commercials. Travis’s performance style encourages authentic and spontaneous movement with personal interpretation, and he continues to engage, educate, and entertain the dance industry.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My work involves integrating queer culture into concert dance. It explores LGBTQIA+ history, grapples with gender and sexual identity, and highlights non-traditional relationships. I guide the audience through LGBTQIA+ topics, creating works anyone can relate to. Harvey Milk said, “How can they change their minds about us if they don’t know who we are?” Relating or identifying with someone in art affects how others see us and how we see ourselves, which in turn guides real-world discourse and action.

Queer people are four times more likely to commit suicide than other individuals. Showcasing examples of LGBTQIA+ culture in concert dance expands the avenues available for queer people to cope with their experiences. With an emphasis on the anthropology of the LGBTQIA2S+ community, my goal is to expose all generations to queer stories and ensure that queer youth have access to an LGBTQIA2S+ catalog for self-discovery. This is accomplished through dance performance and choreography.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

Art & Fear by Bayles and Orland is my creative “handbook,” so to speak. It teaches us that fear is expected, to focus on the process, make art you care about, accept yourself, be resilient, and not worry about mistakes.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prokop_theory/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/travis.prokop
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@travisprokop3649

Image Credits

Schuster Studios
Jean-Paul Fuentes
Pin Lim
Tim Trumble
Tati Vice
Jen Salter