Thayer Jonutz
Michigan, choreography
“I am a seasoned dance performer and choreographer who has accumulated over 30 years of soul expanding experiences in the arts. In this season of life as a dance artist I am in a sweet spot as a creative. My current work as a soloist creating biographical work and actively performing it continues to enrich my many responsibilities… If I have an idea, I go for it!”
At the Residency, Thayer plans to expand on a recent dance film project titled Scorched, sparked by a desert journey through Arizona's fire-scarred Superstition Mountains.
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Thayer was born and raised in California to a roofing contractor father who was a lifelong saxophonist and a Hawaiian dancing mother, in 1978. His California hometown was the small city of Diamond Springs, in El Dorado County. This is where he found dance as a 14 year old. Now 33 years later, Thayer’s world is imbedded in Oakland Township, which is found in Oakland County, Michigan. Thayer is happily married, raising 5 children, 2 biological and 3 adopted. The youngest, identical twin boys who are both nonverbally autistic add a unique level of daily adventure. All of this feeds into Thayer’s drive as a creator.
Thayer performed with Repertory Dance Theatre (RDT) from 2002-2007, before moving to Michigan, immersing himself in both historical and contemporary works. He earned his MFA dance degree from the University of Michigan before beginning his professorship position at Oakland University in 2009. As a seasoned educator and artist Thayer strives to continually challenge his comfort zone. His current multiyear creative process on the solo concert Hammer and Nail has pushed Thayer outside the typical modern dance aesthetic and has merged acting, vocalization, sound engineering, video projections, and integrative props to tell his pandemic survival narrative.
Hammer and Nail has enjoyed much success winning the 2023 Oakland University President’s Colloquium award, presenting it at both Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University January 2024, and performing it in Spanish for the Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica, July 2024. Both Hope College and the University of Michigan hosted the presentation of Hammer and Nail winter of 2025. Hammer and Nail will be presented at Alma College Fall of 2025. Bringing things full circle, Thayer is honored to return to his RDT home and present Hammer and Nail as part of RDT’s 60th anniversary, March of 2026.
