Aaron Kent Osborne (October 16, 1947 – December 13, 1995)[1] was an American modern dancer known for his performances in works by José Limón, Maggie Black and Lar Lubovitch. Also a dance teacher, he was the cofounder of a San Francisco presenting organization, Dancer's Group, and its associated dance school, Footwork Studio.
Osborne started dancing only during his college years, when he was a premed student at the University of Oregon.[2] He transferred to the Juilliard School, where he studied techniques associated with Martha Graham, Merce Cunningham, and José Limón, whose work he especially admired for its attention to human psychology.[2] Between 1969 and 1974, he performed with the José Limón Dance Company.[2] Limón created the central role of his late dance work Orfeo (1972) especially for Osborne,[2] and he was praised for the strength of his performance in this physically demanding, high-energy role.[3] Other Limón works he danced in included La Piñata (1969), The Unsung (1970), And David Wept (1971), and Carlota (1972).[4]
Osborne subsequently danced with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company in works such as Time Before the Time After (After the Time Before).[2][5]
Later in his career, Osborne moved to San Francisco, where he taught modern dance, especially Limón technique.[2] In 1982 he cofounded and served as the artistic director of a pair of nonprofits, Dancer's Group (which presented performances) and Footwork Studio (which offered dance classes); both were housed in a building in the Mission District.[6] After a few years, he left to teach dance at the New Performance Gallery, then the home of the Margaret Jenkins Dance Company.[6] Known as a generous and inspiring teacher, he occasionally taught master classes as well.[7]
Osborne died of AIDS.[8]