Category: dance

“Movers & Makers sits down with Founder & Artistic Director Joan Myers Brown for an engaging discussion on how she dealt with overwhelming bias to attain success in the world of dance as a ‘Black Ballerina’ in the era of segregation. We also talk with Brenda Dixon Gottschild, author of a biography on Brown.” (video) – WHYY (Philadelphia)

This is part of the traditional dance of the Mari, the region’s indigenous nation. Its sudden intrusion into an otherwise classical production is no coincidence. It is part of an experiment that seeks to tackle the some of the most crucial challenges facing the post-Soviet provincial stage: how to use Soviet traditions to create art for a new Russia, while still standing on par with global artistic developments. – Calvert Journal

The choreographer created Immediate Tragedy in 1937 as Franco’s Fascist campaign raged on. Before the COVID-19 shutdown, the Martha Graham Dance Company had been working on a reconstruction of the piece, using photos, a written description by José Limón and other archival material. But once the studio was closed and the dancers were quarantined, company artistic director Janet Eilber decided to reconceive the re-creation for multiple dancers working remotely. Gia Kourlas finds out how she and the company did it. – The New York Times

George Balanchine rightly said that watching dance on TV was like reading about a murder in a newspaper—a poor approximation of the terror of the real event. And, for all its offerings, the new online dance world feels cramped and constrained. Dancers are a kind of urban wildlife, and as they crop their bodies to Zoom squares we can almost feel their horizons shrinking. They can, too. – The New Yorker

Over the past few months, with live performances canceled or on hold, dance artists have been mobilizing on multiple fronts to transform flawed and outdated systems. The Dance Artists’ National Collective, a group working to organize for a freelance dancers’ union, has seen record attendance at its virtual meetings. In early May, a webinar about a collaboratively written, 140-page, in-progress text called “Creating New Futures: Working Guidelines for Ethics & Equity in Presenting Dance & Performance” drew nearly 7,000 viewers, a large audience for a relatively niche subject. – The New York Times

Kain claims she never imagined herself becoming the National Ballet’s artistic director. In this she is in a minority of one. After hanging up her pointe shoes in the fall of 1998 Kain accepted a position as part of the company’s artistic management team under then director James Kudelka. When he resigned in May 2005 it was generally assumed Kain was his obvious successor. – Toronto Star

Put simply, dancers who aren’t ready to go back shouldn’t have to. As desperately as we miss dancing, we have to put our health—and the health of our communities—first. But as artists who often lack employment protections, it may feel risky to draw a line in the sand. – Dance Magazine

George Floyd’s murder may ultimately be a catalyst for positive change in Minnesota and beyond, but in the short-term, the local dance community has lost vital spaces and resources, including El Nuevo Rodeo, the cantina and dance club where both Floyd and his accused killer worked as security officers. By day, the cantina served as a rehearsal space for Latin American children’s dance groups, and by night it was the place to salsa. – Dance Magazine

“Ballet companies are in a bizarre holding pattern right now. With studios and theaters shut down indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic, how do they keep the repertoire alive and dancers in shape? A handful of companies, including Pennsylvania Ballet and Dance Theatre of Harlem, are pressing on with rehearsals, even with no confirmed performances.” – Pointe Magazine

In sports medicine, a growing body of research suggests that specializing in one form of training increases the risk of injury and burnout in young athletes. Not all sports medicine research is analogous to dance, but some dance-medicine practitioners, and dancers, say it might be best for students to mix it up. – Dance Magazine