Dancer and dancemaker Jodi Melnick brings her unique sensibility to a variety of projects. Not everyone grows up wanting to become a ballerina. Jodi Melnick, whose bare feet are firmly planted in New York’s downtown dance world, is a case in point. “I do think there’s an idea that if you’re a modern dancer it […]

Call it the scandal issue. First of all, we have the centenary of The Rite of Spring, which ignited the biggest artistic scandal of 1913. Instead of giving you a verbal history, we offer a photo collage of various choreographers’ versions, including of the original Nijinsky Sacre du Printemps. What was the scandal? Nijinsky’s choreography […]

Earth Dancing Every year the Thunderbird American Indian Dancers hold a rousing powwow on the Lower East Side. A New York troupe founded in 1963 by a group of Native Americans, the Thunderbird dancers represent a variety of nations descended from Mohawk, Hopi, Winnebago, and San Blas peoples. They are not professional, but they’ve handed […]