Forging a Path in Motion: Tina Finkelman Berkett on Leading BODYTRAFFIC

(LOS ANGELES, Calif.) – Tina Berkett has forged her own way in the world of contemporary dance. While many dancers focus exclusively on dance from their earliest years, Berkett took a less obvious route to arrive at the helm of a world-class dance company. 

Berkett grew up in Queens, New York, the daughter of two immigrant parents who focused on academics.

“There was a lot of pressure on my brother and on me to do well, academically, to grow up to make this American dream come true,” she said.

She attended Stuyvesant High School in New York City where she loved to dance but never saw it as a career. 

“It felt somewhat unrealistic growing up in my family to pursue a career in the arts,” she said. “That wasn’t something anyone had ever done in my family.”

Berkett majored in math and economics at Barnard College but still made time to perform.  

Tina Berkett was a founding member of Mikhail Baryshnikov’s dance company (Courtesy: Tina Berkett)

Amongst the choreographers and artists who saw her was Russian-born ballet star Mikail Baryshnikov, who then invited her to be a founding member of his Hell’s Kitchen Dance company. That company also launched her into arts administration because she was the company’s dancer liaison in addition to performing.

In 2007, Berkett moved to Los Angeles and co-founded BODYTRAFFIC. 

“The company was launched as a platform, really, for me to have a dance career I felt proud of,” she said. 

As artistic director of the company, Berkett wears many hats. She is in close daily contact with the dancers as they train and rehearse, as well as the behind-the-scenes work that comprises running a non-profit organization. 

“I’m overseeing the staff, the strategy, the fundraising, [and] making sure the business is sustainable,” she said. 

Spending time with the dancers fuels BODYTRAFFIC Artistic Director Tina Finkelman Berkett’s love for her job. (Courtesy: Amy Perrette)

Bringing high-quality contemporary dance to Los Angeles and the wider domestic and international community is what drivers her, Berkett said. 

“This has been my life’s work here in Los Angeles,” she said. “How do I make sure that dance is accessible to as many people as possible?”

But her passion for her dancers, she says, is what sustains her.

“When I think back on my time, founding, building, and directing BODYTRAFFIC, I’m completely overwhelmed by my love for the dancers who have come through this family,” she said. “They’ve made this, as I often say, ‘the dream I never knew I had.’”