7 Shows Hitting Screens, Stages or Scenic Settings This Month

Spring is in the air, and performance calendars are (dare we say it?) almost as busy as they ever have been, if still largely housed on the internet. This mix of online screenings, outdoor events and indoor performances for limited audiences caught our eye this month. Caged In Stefanie Batten Bland’s Kolonial Maria Baranova, Courtesy […]

Moving Forward by Looking Back: A Week at the L.A. Tap Festival Online

I turned to tap at the outset of the European lockdown as a meaningful escape from the anxiety of the pandemic. As a dance historian specialized in dance film, I’ve seen my fair share of tap on screen, but my own training remains elementary. While sheltering in place, my old hardwood floors beckoned. I wanted […]

Celebrate National Tap Dance Day with American Tap

Thirty years ago, U.S. Joint Resolution 131, introduced by congressman John Conyers (D-MI) and Senator Alphonse D’Amato (R-NY), and signed into law by President G. W. Bush declared: “Whereas the multifaceted art form of tap dancing is a manifestation of the cultural heritage of our Nation… Whereas tap dancing is a joyful and powerful aesthetic […]

JoJo Smith, Broadway and Film Star, Dies at 80

JoJo Smith, known as “The King of New York” for his extensive contributions to Broadway and the dance industry, has died. He was 80. Smith, who died from complications resulting from a major stroke suffered late last year, had been credited with giving some of Hollywood’s most notable dancers their rhythm. With a career spanning […]

Our 2018 Cover Stars Shared Their Biggest Hopes for the Year Ahead

It’s that time again: Everyone’s looking at the year to come and thinking about what they might want to get out of it. So we asked our cover stars from Dance Magazine‘s 2018 issues what they’re hoping for. Their answers spanned everything from more growth and more touring, to more family time and more rest. […]

These Three Tap Legends Argue That Tap Deserves More Respect

In 1989, Congress passed a resolution naming May 25—the birthday of tap legend Bill “Bojangles” Robinson—as National Tap Dance Day, and it has been celebrated annually on that date ever since. For years, the May issue of Dance Magazine featured a tap dancer on its cover to coincide with the holiday and highlight the form. […]

They taught me to…

Top dancers on how their favorite teachers shaped their dancing     Behind every gravity-defying leap, each soul-wrenching solo, each flawless fouetté is a great teacher who worked tirelessly to hone a young dancer’s potential. Ask any successful dancer how they got to where they are today and they will always thank a teacher (or […]