LI native Larry Keigwin at the Joyce

It all began for Larry Keigwin in fifth grade, when he played George M. Cohan in a Wading River elementary school production, lying to his teacher that he could tap dance. With borrowed tap shoes, he got onstage and . . . improvised. The applause was intoxicating.

Today he's still improvising, but the stages are bigger. Keigwin, 38, now helms Keigwin + Company, an eight-person contemporary dance troupe that has performed across the country. His latest work, "Exit," will make its world premiere at the Joyce Tuesday and run through Sunday.

He also hopes to make a mark on Broadway, currently choreographing "Tales of the City," a new musical based on the popular Armistead Maupin books, starring Betty Buckley, which opens in San Francisco this June.

So how does a kid from Wading River start to dance?

I have a twin and two older brothers, and they were all wrestlers. I was an athlete of dance without knowing it, always moving as a kid - doing cartwheels in the kitchen or gymnastics in the front yard, performing for passing cars, basically.

And formal training?

In high school. We could take a dance class instead of gym. I didn't know it, but Martha Graham technique, which is basically one of the roots of American modern dance. Then my mother started driving me an hour each way to Vic D'Amore's dance school [in Deer Park].

So there was no pressure to be another wrestler?

No. My parents really valued our individuality. But in high school, it was . . . ya know . . . I'd do a dance routine in Lycra for the talent show and I remember . . .

…Not getting the most positive response?

Dancing comes so naturally to me. It’s something I felt gifted at, and was so easy to share, so to have people resist that was very hard. But…it gave me focus. It definitely strengthened me, it gave me such grrrrr, almost like…not anger…but a hunger to prove. The fact that I found dance kind of late—

Sixteen, that’s late?

Yeah. Men in general start dance later because parents generally don’t put their boys in ballet class at age 4. You put your child in Little League—and I failed at Little League. Starting late, you’re at a disadvantage physically. You’re not conditioned to do it all. But that experience—it was like this whole world opened up to me.

Dance has gotten a boost in recent years, with TV shows like “Dancing With the Stars.” Why do you think they’re so popular?

It allows the viewer to be in the position of authority - someone's asking your opinion. And I wonder in a weird way if it's similar to sports, where you're able to root, and become a fan. And on another level, I feel that everybody wants to be a dancer. And so there's this fantasy of watching it and thinking, "I'm dancing with David Hasselhoff."

Everybody wants to be a dancer?

Well . . . or a rock star. I think there's a performer in everybody. We live in a very fame-conscious culture. Everybody wants their 15 minutes.

WHAT: Keigwin + Company's "Exit"

WHEN | WHERE: Tuesday through Sunday, Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Ave., Manhattan

INFO: Tickets, $10-$75, call 212-242-0800 or visit joyce.org.