Michael Montoya is a professional dancer, choreographer, and dance educator with over 30 years’ experience in the field. In addition, he is also a fully certified teacher currently working with the New York State Education Department providing technical support to school districts and community-based organizations in the areas of LGBTQ student support, juvenile justice initiatives and state grant programs.
Michael’s interest in doing research on gender and sexual identity in the field of dance stems from his own experiences first as a female, lesbian identifying dancer and now as a transgender male dancer as well as by the experiences shared with him by fellow queer dancers over the years. The documentary, Out From the Wings, shares interview footage with dancers from the LGBTQIA+ community discussing how expectations and rules regarding gender and sexual identity in the world of dance have affected them both personally and professionally.