# Joseph Victor Gonzales

Joseph Victor Gonzales (born June 22, 1960) is a Malaysian choreographer, professionally known as Joseph Gonzales.

## Brief biography

Joseph Victor Gonzales was born in the city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 22 June 1960. He received his education at the La Salle Primary School and the La Salle Secondary School in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.
In 1986, he graduated from the Mathematical Department of the Faculty of Natural Sciences University of Malaya. He received dance training and choreographic education at the Davis Ballet School in Sussex (1987-1990), and the London Studio Center (1991), simultaneously completing the Royal Academy of Dance and Imperial Society of Teachers of Dance accreditation (1992) in England. In 2006, he completed his master's program at Middlesex University, and in 2010, he defended his doctoral dissertation at University of Malaya. He later completed his Master of Buddhist Studies at the University of Hong Kong in 2022. In 2024, he completed his M.A. degree in Cultural Management at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
He is the brother-in-law of former Olympic field hockey player Datuk Arumugam Sabapathy and retired Malaysian ambassador Dato’ Ramanathan Vengadesan. He is also the uncle of writer/journalist Martin Vengadesan.

## Dancing and teaching activities

Gonzales started dancing as a student. In 1981-1984 he participated in the choreographic ensemble "Kesuma" of the University of Malaya and at the Frances Ballet Academy, and in 1984–1986 at the Federal Academy of Ballet. In 1992-1994 he was a full-time ballet, modern dance, tap and jazz dance teacher at the Federal Academy of Ballet.
He further served as Assistant Artistic Director to Lee Lee Lan for the Kuala Lumpur Dance Theatre. From 1994 he worked as a lecturer at the National Academy of Arts, Culture and Heritage (ASWARA formerly known as National Arts Academy), and became Dean of the Faculty of Dance in 1998. He remained in this position until 2015.
He served as President of MyDance Alliance (1999-2001), co-chairman of the Asian Dance Committee in Seoul, South Korea (2011-2017), and adjudicator for both the Singapore Youth Festival since 2008 and Sprouts, a young choreographers’ platform in Singapore. He also took on the role of Vice-president South East Asia World Dance Alliance (2011-2016).
In Malaysia, he championed a multicultural system of dance education. This resulted in dance graduates with the capacity to inhibit numerous dance languages that enabled them to create exciting choreography and educational pathways locally and abroad. Students under his tutelage went on to pursue higher education on full scholarships to Hong Kong, Korea, USA, England, Taiwan, and Germany. This has seen a new generation of young Malaysian dance graduates with postgraduate degree qualifications.
He has also been committed to raising performance standards, with students majoring and performing across cultures and borders from classical ballet to Bharatanatyam. He was responsible for the revival and revitalization of numerous Malay dance forms incorporating it into the curriculum or presenting them as part of public performances from 2000 to 2015. These include "Tari Inai", "Terinai", "Joget Gamelan", "Zapin", and many more. This work has continued through ASK Dance Company which was established in 2011.
In 2016, he was appointed as a professor and Head of Academic Studies/MFA Program Leader in Dance at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.

## Works

At ASWARA, he produced productions celebrating traditional dance and multicultural identity such as "Main Zapin", "Tapestry", "Asyik", "Crossing Borders in Bharatanatyam", "Hang Li Po" as well as being the artistic director of the international Tari series, a festival of international universities of the arts from 1998 to 2014. His productions have been described as avant-garde ballet and cutting-edge contemporary dance, notable for their originality of dance ideas and techniques. His credo: "Dance and you will enjoy freedom".
Other productions have included: "P. Ramlee, Musical " (2007) at the Palace of Culture in Kuala Lumpur, “Hamlet” (2007), “Passion” (2007) at the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Center, ”Rhythms in Bronze” (2011), The Two (2013) ), "Rise" (2013) in the Penang Center for the Performing Arts, "Enter/Exit" (2014), "Suara (2011) "The Last Tea Party" (2013) for ASWARA, "Becoming King... the Pakyung Revisited" (2014 and 2015), and "Seru" (2016).
In 2011, he established a professional dance company ASK Dance Company that presents work in Malaysia and at international festivals. The company also promotes and revives traditional Malay dances through its Forging Traditions outreach program supported by the Sime Darby Foundation. http://www.askdancecompany.com/

## Awards

* "Outstanding Service" (Ministry of Culture, Art and Tourism of Malaysia, 2001)
* "Best production of the year" (Society of Art Lovers "Kaki Seni", 2003.2008)
* "Crosscultural Champion of the Arts" (Boh Cameronian Arts Awards (2007).
* "Outstanding contribution to the development of dance" (Academy Kshetra, 2010)
* "Outstanding contribution to the development of dance" (Rotary Club, 2011)
* "Outstanding Service" (National Academy of Arts, Culture and Heritage, 2011)
* "Best Choreographer of the Year" (2016)
* "Game-changer of the Year" (Kakiseni 2019)
* "Lifetime Achievement in the Arts" - Sugam Arts and Heritage Foundation, 2024.

## Publications

* Joseph Gonzales & Imran Syafiq. Forging Traditional Dance in Malaysia. https://doi.org/10.54165/9789887928522. Published. 2021-10-18
* Joseph Gonzales. Makyung in Contemporary Malaysia: Strategies for Preservation and Proliferation. Crossref DOI link: https://doi.org/10.1080/15290824.2019.1683564. Published: 2021-04-03
* Joseph Gonzales. Dancing the Malaysian. Kuala Lumpur: SIRD, 2010. ISBN 9789675832345
* Joseph Gonzales. Dancing Mosaic: Issues On Dance Hybridity. Mohd Anis Md Nor (Ed.). Kuala Lumpur: Cultural Center University of Malaya & National Department for Culture and Arts, Ministry of Information, Communication and Culture, 2012. ISBN 9789670380179
* Joseph Gonzales. South East Asia report. - in: Asia-Pacific CHANNELS. Newsletter of the World Dance Alliance 2, December 2012. Australian Dance Council-Ausdance Inc.
* Joseph Gonzales. Malaysian Dancescapes. Kuala Lumpur: ASWARA, 2014. ISBN 9832538203
* Joseph Gonzales. Koreografi Kontemporari Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur. SIRD, 2019. ISBN 9789672165538