On Monday, July 7, Luke Hickey returns to Birdland with “Strike,” an evening of percussive conversation and an exploration into the musical expansiveness of the tap dance tradition. The evening includes original compositions as well as new arrangements of jazz standards featuring vibraphone, body percussion, drums, cajon, sand dance, and of course, tap dance.    Luke Hickey, “never unmusical” (New York Times) is a New York City based tap dancer, choreographer, actor, and teacher from Chapel Hill, NC. Named by Dance Magazine among their "25 To Watch" in 2020, Hickey began studying with his mentor, JUBA Award winner, tap educator and founder of the North Carolina Youth Tap Ensemble, Gene Medler, at the age of seven. As a choreographer, he has presented work at prestigious venues including Birdland Jazz Club, Chelsea Factory, Little Island, 92NY, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, and the American Dance Festival. As a longtime member of MacArthur Fellow, Michelle Dorrance’s, award-winning company Dorrance Dance, Hickey has performed across the US including The Kennedy Center, The Guggenheim Museum, the Joyce Theater, New York City Center and The Ford in Hollywood.   He has had the honor to perform with artists including Grammy winners Arturo O'Farrill and Keyon Harold, Michelle Dorrance, Ansel Elgort, Elizabeth Burke, Paul Arslanian, John Manzari, Marcus Gilmore, Ayodele Casel and Cartier Williams. Hickey is currently touring with acclaimed drummer Allison Miller in her multi-disciplinary show, "Rivers in Our Veins," at venues including the Detroit Jazz Festival, Savanna Music Festival, The Strathmore, and on WNYC's radio show Soundcheck.   Hickey is privileged to teach all over the world at tap festivals including the North Carolina Rhythm Tap Festival, American Tap Festival, Stockholm Tap Festival, Tap City Tap Festival, Oslo Tap & Swing Explosion, Chicago Human Rhythm Project, and the Monterrey Tap Festival. He is dedicated to sharing the wisdom his mentor so generously gifted to him and preserving the history of this great art form.