August 2008
Jun 12, 2008
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Jul 31, 2008
Mark Baldwin: Putting His Own Voice On Tradition
Mark Baldwin is an imposing figure radiating excitement in his voice and movements. Born in Fiji and raised in New Zealand, his interest in dance began with his balletomane mother...
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Jul 31, 2008
Ballet Biarritz: A French Ballet Company Tackles Spanish Themes
Escaping the hot pavements of one summer afternoon in New York City to sit in the air-cooled Joyce Theater and listen to a fine recording of Maurice Ravel and Manuel de Falla music was a bit of nirvana–and oh yes, there was dancing, too.
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Jul 31, 2008
Artichoke Dance Company’s U R Here
“Choose WHAT you want to see & hear, WHEN” reads the blurb on the flyer. Artichoke Dance Company’s U R Here is an intriguing concept and much of it is clever. The piece begins and ends in distinct spots—Brooklyn’s JJ Byrne Park...
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Jul 31, 2008
“No, No, Nanette” at Encores!
It was like being at a pink or blue baby shower; everything was warm and fuzzy. Not a nasty song, dance or line of dialogue to be heard. The Encores revival of this 1920s popular show “No, No, Nanette” was...
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Jul 31, 2008
Staying Healthy On the Road, Part II: Conditioning and Cross-Training for Dancers On the Road
How does a person keep any normal activity in their life when they are confined to a seat in the plane that was invariably designed for a person with severe osteoporosis? Flight attendants frown on jogging...
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Jul 31, 2008
Philadelphia – Contemporary Collaboration
There may be cities with as many contemporary companies as Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but they’d find it hard to challenge Philadelphia’s spirit of collaboration. The locals think it’s part of their heritage.
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Jul 31, 2008
The Finer Pointes: A Fitting with Pointe Shoe Expert Karen Schultz-McGuire
I am waiting for my next appointment to arrive for a pointe shoe fitting. The customer has been referred to me by Cheryl Abbott-Madeux, a former dancer with Joffrey Ballet and American Ballet Theatre...
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Jul 31, 2008
The Spectrum of Contemporary Ballet: Giving Your Students a Leg Up
To discuss dance, we grapple with a variety of terms: modern, post-modern, classical, neoclassical, contemporary, contemporary ballet and more. We volley this lexicon back and forth, assuming that the meaning...
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Jul 31, 2008
The Washington Ballet Celebrates its Metamorphosis
After years of lukewarm reviews, the critics of The Washington Ballet (TWB) now say the company “looks like a million bucks.” The “tornado” that hit TWB in 1999 still reverberates: Septime Webre became artistic director...
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Jul 31, 2008
Where are the Female Ballet Choreographers?
In all likelihood, if you have ever taken a ballet class, about 85 percent of your fellow dancers were female. This tends to be true whether you are an eager 6-year-old conscientiously stretching your leg forth in tendu at the bar, a BFA
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Jul 31, 2008
Going Green?
The worst part of running your studio is the pile of paper screaming at you, demanding your attention, fighting for your time, competing with…business! And now, paper is politically incorrect.
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Jul 31, 2008
Managing Teachers
On the subject of studio management, few issues are more important than hiring good teachers. But what is the key to finding the right match? And what do you do when an instructor who seemed ideal...
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Jul 31, 2008
The Teacher Becomes the Student
Dancer, choreographer, teacher and now filmmaker, Charlotte Griffin still considers herself, above all, a student. A graduate of Julliard, and winner of the prestigious Martha Hill Award, Griffin has taught at Marymount Manhattan...
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Jul 31, 2008
Dance the LINE
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Jul 31, 2008
The Dream Makers’ Ballet
Long before there was a ‘Dr. McDreamy’ on TV’s “Grey’s Anatomy”, there were two McDreamy entertainers who lit up the performance stage. Brought together through collaboration with modern choreographer Twyla Tharp...
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Jul 31, 2008
Penny Jacobus: Technically & Artistically Savvy
These days, children are asked what they want to be when they grow up and are told they have the option to be whatever their little hearts desire. In middle school, Penny Jacobus wanted to be an astronaut...
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Jul 31, 2008
Rhythm Tap Hits Oklahoma
February rain and snow did not chill the energy of the first tap festival held at the Edith Kinney Gaylord Center-Ann Lacy School of American Dance located on the campus of Oklahoma City University.
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Jul 31, 2008
Dancing Dean: Ethan Stiefel Leaps Into a New Role at the North Carolina School of the Arts
On the eve of his performance as Solor in American Ballet Theatre’s “La Bayadère” opposite Julie Kent, Ethan Stiefel takes a moment to speak with me about his new appointment as Dean of the School of Dance at the...
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Jul 31, 2008
Cyd Charisse - Who brought the beauty of bellet to the movies, Dies at 86
In the legendary MGM musical "Singin' in the Rain," a gorgeous woman is seen
leaning into a chair wearing an electric green dress and puffing on a long
cigarette holder.
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Jul 30, 2008
The Spectrum of Contemporary Ballet: Giving Your Students a Leg Up
To discuss dance, we grapple with a variety of terms: modern, post-modern, classical, neoclassical, contemporary, contemporary ballet and more. We volley this lexicon back and forth, assuming that the meaning...
