This Is What It Felt Like to Be a Black Dancer Downtown in the 1960s
I came to New York City in August 1961 to rehearse Kicks and Co., the Broadway-bound musical that Donald McKayle and Walter Nicks had hired me to dance in…
Looking Back at the Trailblazing Legacy of Arthur Mitchell—And How He’s Still Influencing Ballet Today
Arthur Mitchell was my mentor. He was the miracle who crossed my path and introduced me to the world of professional ballet.
From Civil Rights to Bruce Lee: These Are The Influences That Shaped The Birth of Hip Hop
The culture is born of struggle and oppression, resulting directly from the end of the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s and the culmination of the Vietnam War.
Is Dance “Enough” to Meaningfully Address Something Like Black Lives Matter?
I went to protests. I made donations. But when I was truly lost I did the one thing I could rely on: I made a dance.
TBT: Celebrating Gwen Verdon, Broadway’s Favorite Redhead
Born January 13, 1925, inimitable Broadway star Gwen Verdon was put in dance classes by her mother after suffering rickets as a toddler.
TBT: Talking Tap With Gregory Hines
“I can’t ever remember not tapping,” Gregory Hines told us in the December 1988 issue of Dance Magazine.
TBT: When Mel Tomlinson Added NYCB to His Stacked Resumé
When Mel Tomlinson made his New York City Ballet debut in November 1981, the then-27-year-old was already a well-known figure to New York audiences. He appeared with Dance Theatre of Harlem beginning in 1974 and, other than a two-year break to join Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, remained an electric presence there until his surprise […]
Flashback Friday: Celebrating Edward Villella
Edward Villella in many ways epitomized the American ballet dancer of the mid-20th century in his years with New York City Ballet. Born October 1, 1936, in New York City, he began training at School of American Ballet at age 10, and, after stepping away from ballet to earn his degree at New York State […]