Terence (Terry) Marling, originally from Chicago, began his dance training with Larry Long at the Ruth Page Foundation School of Dance.

Marling danced with Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, then directed by Patricia Wilde and later by Terrence Orr, for nine seasons. During his time at PBT, Marling performed as a soloist in major classical ballets and in works by Ohad Naharin, Ib Andersen, Dwight Rhoden, and Kevin O’Day. Marling made his choreographic debut at PBT when Terrence Orr commissioned him to create two works for the company. From PBT Marling went on to join Nationaltheater Mannheim Ballet (NTM) in Germany with Kevin O’Day. During his two seasons at NTM, Marling participated in the creation of eight evening-length works.

In 2005, Marling returned to Chicago to join Hubbard Street for four seasons. At Hubbard, Marling danced the works of Ohad Naharin, Nacho Duato, Jiri Kylian, Jorma Elo, and Alejandro Cerrudo, among many others. While performing with the company, Marling was commissioned to create two works on Hubbard Street 2 and began teaching for intensives and classes on a regular basis. When Marling retired from performance in 2010 he became Rehearsal Director of Hubbard Street. In 2013, he was named director of Hubbard Street 2 and continued to choreograph new works for the main company, including a performance in collaboration with Second City.

In 2017, Marling transitioned to freelance teaching, choreography, and staging. Marling has choreographed works for Robert Moses’ Kin in San Francisco, restaged works by Alejandro Cerrudo and Ihsan Rustem, and taught at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Visceral Dance Chicago, The Chicago High School for the Arts, and A&A Ballet. Marling has worked with numerous university programs and frequently teaches private lessons and choreographs solos for competitions, auditions and accepts commissions from dance companies.

Photos by Joseph A. Hernandez