Kid Zone
Who says choreography can’t be taught? Not Ellen Robbins, a modern dance educator who has been teaching the art of choreography to young people in Soho for decades.
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Never Forget
Never forget!” With the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and International Holocaust Remembrance Day both having been recognized last month, these words, although unspoken, coursed through Melissa Barak’s first evening-length ballet, “Memoryhouse.”
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Shamel Pitts, Part of the TRIBE
Talk about having a banner year! In 2024 alone, dancer, choreographer and spoken word artist Shamel Pitts not only received a MacArthur Fellowship and the Doris Duke Award, but was also honored with the Knight Choreography Prize.
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A Muted Malpaso
Translated, “malpaso” means misstep, suggesting clumsiness. In the case of Havana based Malpaso Dance Company, the name is a clever misdirection, pointing to a sense of humor often present with this versatile and highly trained troupe.
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Winter Lake Effects
On the eve of George Balanchine’s birthday, the New York City Ballet opened its Winter Season with a killer all-Balanchine program: “Concerto Barocco,” “Allegro Brillante,” and “Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet.”
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Love and Lust
The connection between relatively new artistic director Tamara Rojo and longtime San Francisco Ballet fans has felt a little tenuous as the former Royal Ballet star and English National Ballet leader launches her second season programmed here on the West Coast.
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Brooke Cassen, Back in the Studio
Today we have the pleasure of speaking with former Australian Ballet dancer Brooke Cassen. On Season Three of Talking Pointes, I spoke with Brooke on what became one of our most listened-to episodes of all time.
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Inner Fire
New Yorkers who don’t have a fireplace during this deep January freeze can head to the Joyce Theater to see Ronald K. Brown’s Evidence A Dance Company, where the russet backdrops, rolling hips, and reggae beats give off plenty of warmth.
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New Voices from Japan + East Asia
Japan Society presented its 20th showcase of contemporary dance with works from emerging choreographers in East Asia over a mid-January weekend.
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On Endurance
In a four-day span of early January I saw: Monica Bill Barnes wrestle a giant beach ball at Playwrights Horizons; Malcolm-x Betts and Nile Harris shoot blanks into the rafters of the Chocolate Factory in honor of Judith Jamison’s spirit; Symara Sarai run in and out of a swirling lasso at New York Live Arts Studios; and Angie Pittman dart across a shallow stage, in character as a vampire, cape flying, at BAM Fisher Hillman Studio in a shared bill with Kyle Marshall Choreography. In short, it was APAP season.*
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A Century of Moderns
Sara Veale’s new book Wild Grace: The Untamed Women of Modern Dance (Faber & Faber) examines the lives of nine boldly subversive dancemakers over nearly a century, starting with Isadora Duncan and ending with Pearl Lang. Along the way, it provides a pared but potent mini-history on the emergence of women’s rights.
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Mighty Peace
No matter the theme, an evening with David Dorfman Dance is likely to uplift. The gregarious choreographer has a habit of engaging with the audience pre and/or post show with energy approaching that of a church revival gathering.
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Firebird Rising
Long before the dancers take the stage, Dance Theatre of Harlem’s season at New York City Center feels like one of the most energizing cultural events of the spring.
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Rare Birds
It is rare for George Balanchine’s grand, bedazzled “Symphony in C” to open a program. Its champagne-popping finale for 52 dancers tends to be a nightcap.
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The Spring is Blooming festival, by Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels, now in its fifth year, has become a highlight of the spring dance circuit.
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Jack of Hearts
As the audience come to their feet at the end of this ballet there is a noted difference to be seen on stage. Three women stand with joined hands, taking their call as the romantic leads of a loud and proud lesbian ballet.
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School Report
One of San Francisco Ballet’s greatest assets is its home venue, the Beaux-Arts style War Memorial Opera House, with four rings of seating that require performers to project their energies practically to the exosphere.
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