At 18, Johnny Byrne began his career with Paul Taylor Dance Company after studying at NC School of the Arts, The School of American Ballet and the Juilliard School.

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After touring extensively with modern dance and theater companies, performing the work of Paul Taylor, Lar Lubovitch, Twyla Tharp and Jerome Robbins' West Side Story, Johnny expanded his work  as a choreographer and director in music video, film, television and stage projects.

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Johnny choreographed and co-directed Florence & The Machine's popular music video Spectrum with David LaChapelle, and as part of DLC Studio, Johnny continues to  collaborate closely with LaChapelle on film and print projects, in areas of research, casting, staging and editing. He often directs video portions of LaChapelle's print projects, including the recent KENZO SS19 campaign "Kenzotopia." 

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Johnny choreographed the 5-year run of Elton John's Red Piano Tour, which premiered at Caesar's Palace. He has staged music videos for artists including Mariah Carey, Elton John, Joss Stone, Lady Gaga, No Doubt and Mary J. Blige, to name a few.

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Notable commercial choreography credits include  Timberland, TARGET, H&M, Capital One, Kate Spade, Bacardi, USA Today and PEPSI and White House Black Market.

 

Johnny has choreographed for SYTYCD Canada Season 2, and served as a host and choreographer for STV's recent reality-dance drama "First Dance" in the UK.

 

He has appeared as a guest on the Oprah Winfrey show as well as NBC's Today Show, ITV's "Dirty Dancing the Time of your Life" and is the host of the top-selling dance fitness DVD, "Dirty Dancing the Official Workout." John directed SONY's live activation launch for the VAIO products, as well as live activations for America's Got Talent.

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His 2011 dance installation in New York's Lever House Gallery received favorable reviews from the NY Times and Backstage Magazine.

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Johnny served as Artist Director of Fort Wayne Dance Collective from 2015 - 2017, a non profit serving over 30 thousand people of all abilities throughout Indiana with dance programs in schools, hospitals and rehabilitation centers.

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For 15 years, Johnny has worked as an Arts Educator for Education In Dance and the Related Arts, a NYC program bringing movement, visual art, music and nutrition into over 60 under-served schools.

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Johnny continues to choreograph and perform original modern dance works, with recent performances at Rocca Di Frassinnelo in 2014 and Cape Dance Festival in 2018.