Laura Selle Virtucio

Laura Selle Virtucio, originally from Sioux Falls SD, was a student-athlete before discovering a passion for dance. She pursued a BFA in Dance from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and made the Twin Cities her home. For more than 20 years, Laura maintained a vibrant performance career in the Twin Cities and toured nationally with several artists and companies, most recently continuing her long history with Shapiro & Smith Dance, as a performer and Artistic Associate, as well as creating new works with choreographers Chris Schlicting, April Sellers and Mathew Janczewski. Laura has graced several of the nation's best-known stages such as the Joyce Theater in NYC, and Danspace Project at St. Mark’s Church in NYC, the Guthrie Theater, and The Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. Laura was a long-time company member and teaching artist with Stuart Pimsler Dance and Theater, Zenon Dance Company, and Carl Flink’s Black Label Movement. While at Zenon Dance Company, she had the pleasure of creating and performing new works by Kyle Abraham, Luciana Achugar, and Daniel Charon, just to name a few. In her work with Shapiro & Smith Dance, Laura consistently restages the company's work across the county. Most recently, she staged dance work at Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company in Salt Lake City, Pheonix Dance Company (UK), and previously at universities such as Boston Conservatory and Western Oregon University. Laura received a 2007 McKnight Fellowship for Dancers and a Minnesota Sage Award for Best Performer. As an arts educator, Laura taught contemporary modern and jazz dance techniques at the St. Paul Conservatory for the Performing Arts for eight years and has extensive experience working in communities of non-dancers. Last spring she assisted Stuart Pimsler Dance and Theater co-director, Suzanne Costello, in an arts and healthcare residency at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Laura is a senior teaching specialist at UMN as well as the director of the University of Minnesota Dance Theater Program. She serves on the Theater Arts and Dance Diversity Equity and Inclusion committee.