Kurt Kelly — Actor, Dancer

Like many at Westbeth, my artstic outlets are very varied. I am a former dancer (worked with everyone from Debbie Gibson to Eartha Kitt, toured the world in productions like West Side Story and A Chorus Line, and dance captained the Broadway show How the Grinch Stole Christmas), current actor (studied with William Esper and Wynn Handman, worked in theaters like LaMama, Theatre for the New City, and Primary Stages), and sometimes writer (had a play performed in a NYC festival and am always trying to write the perfect poem). Heck, I even worked for a puppet company, Hudson Vagabond Puppets, early in my career. My living these days is mainly earned though background and stand-in work on films and TV, but I am hopeful to change that soon. (I was a principal stand-in on 8 major productions including The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Daredevil, and briefly photo-doubled for Brad Pitt, so there have been some cool experiences along the way.)
I’ve lived at Westbeth for a little over a year now. In that time I’ve worked at the Westbeth Flea Market, joined the Beautification volunteer gardeners (putting my horticultural certificate from The New York Botanical Garden to good use), attended classes like Feldenkrais and Singtime Sessions, assisted at Open House New York and WestFest Dance festival, worked a few shifts in the Westbeth Gallery, and even helped the Nancy Meehan Dance Studio winterize their windows.
I look forward to the journey ahead and all the new artistic endeavors we will share.