Many companies—ballet, modern, or jazz—show diversity by adding one or two dancers of a different ethnicity than the dominant one of the group. However, a growing number of artistic directors are going beyond tokenism to a point where racial diversity is absolutely essential to their mission. They have carefully assembled a racially and culturally diverse […]
February Letters Quote of the Month: “When we accomplish something in the studio, we’re better able to deal with home issues. Dance can be the solution.” –Rockafella, “Passionate Partnerships,” p. 36 Bringing Sexy Back I loved the November 2006 issue. David Parker’s “Renegades in Birthday Suits” was a great read. As a presenter, I’ve seen […]
Q: The local chiropractor has been giving what I feel is false information about the dangers of ballet to some of my students. The mother of one said he told her that “Tap is OK, but don’t let your daughter do ballet; it’ll deform her back.” Maybe he was referring to the old days when […]
Last December a show called Tappy Holidays at Symphony Space in NYC celebrated a brilliant array of individual tap styles. There was Derick Grant, Jason Samuels Smith, Michelle Dorrance, Chloe Arnold and the two hosts, Ayodele Casel and Sarah Savelli. But it was a relative newcomer, Jared Grimes, who brought the house down with a […]
Is it possible to create a better arch? Unlike some dancers with great feet, I never got the chance to sculpt my body because I started ballet late. Now I’m 16, I’ve been studying three years and I want better feet. Do you think it can still happen? Taylor Chapman-Sutton Portland, OR If I were […]
Do you have a sprained ankle that won’t heal? It’s not that rare. Studies have shown that 10 to 30 percent of sprains will have symptoms later. So what is a sprained ankle anyway? It’s the most common injury in all of sports and dancing. Dancing pushes your body to its limit. If you roll […]
Alexei Ratmansky’s two-year reign as artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet has kindled an invigorating spirit in his company, as Londoners quickly discovered. After enjoying his jolly and droll Bright Stream earlier in the tour, audiences here were treated to Ratmansky’s tribute to Maya Plisetskaya, premiered last November. Go for Broke is pure dance—and pure […]
Why Is Naharin’s Work So Mesmerizing? After seeing Ohad Naharin’s Decadance performed by Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, you don’t come out of it saying This part was good and that part wasn’t. You come out of it having experienced humanity in a raw state. When Ebony Williams in bizarre feathery get-up on stilts, lip synchs […]
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.