All – Tagged "TALKING POINTES" – Page 4

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Becoming Emma Wiggle

Many of you will know Emma Watkins as the supremely talented Emma Wiggle. Emma grew up like many aspiring dancers, dreaming of becoming a ballerina but her dreams took an unexpected change after sustaining an injury as a teenager. Her dreams changed direction and she embarked on a different path, one that led her to university, film editing, and to ultimately becoming the iconic Yellow Wiggle. In this wonderfully generous and personal interview, Emma talks about her years of ballet training in Sydney, how she auditioned to join the Wiggles first as a dancer, and then being selected to become...

TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Mao's Last Dancer Speaks Auslan

Li Cunxin, artistic director of the Queensland Ballet, joins us for episode five of Talking Pointes. Most of you will know Li from his early life: he is Mao's Last Dancer. Li was born into complete poverty in rural China, where he was plucked from obscurity to join the Beijing Dance Academy. He was put through years of brutal training, up to 16 hours a day, to become a dancer.

TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Marie Walton Mahon's Personal Best

On episode four of Talking Pointes, we speak with a woman many of you will know, Marie Walton Mahon. Marie, or Miss Marie, as many still call her, has taught and trained literally thousands of dancers here in Australia and around the globe. A dance prodigy in her own right, she was selected as a teenager to train in France with the great Rosella Hightower, and then danced professionally in Marseille, under the artistic directorship of the late, great, Roland Petit.

TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Adam Blanch, the Real Billy Elliot

Today, I'm speaking with my lifelong friend, Adam Blanch. Adam's story has often been compared with Billy Elliot. He grew up in a tiny town in regional Australia called Weston. It's about an hours drive west of Newcastle. In this tiny town everyone can always remember that Adam was dancing. And so, at the age of six, Adam's mum and dad enrolled him in the local ballet class, held in a local hall. He was the only boy. And so, his life in dance began. In this very candid and courageous interview, Adam opens up about his childhood, the bullying...

TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Lana Jones Gives Back

Lana Jones' journey in ballet seems like the dream run for many aspiring youngsters. As a teenager, she won the silver medal at the international ballet competition, the Genée Awards in London, was accepted into the Australian Ballet School, graduated dux and was accepted straight into the company. From there, the dream continued. She rose through the ranks, won the Telstra Ballet Dancer of the Year Award, married a fellow dancer and was promoted to Principal.

TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

David McAllister's Finnish Odyssey

David McAllister is probably the most well-known face of dance in Australia. He was born in Perth and he was accepted into the Australian Ballet School as a 17-year-old. He graduated and joined the company directly, wowing crowds across the globe. His final performance was in “Giselle” in 2001. And then, three months later, he was named Artistic Director of that same company.

TALKING POINTES | Claudia Lawson

Talking Pointes

Talking Pointes is a ballet and contemporary dance podcast that interviews some of the most extraordinary and famous dancers, artistic directors and choreographers. In our 2021 season we’re bringing together ten beautiful interviews to explore not just the inspiration and careers of our guests, but all the other stuff that surrounds dance—inspiration, regrets, bullying, body image, sexuality, retirement, lifelong friendships and even how to start a new career when the curtains finally close.

TALKING POINTES | Rachel Elderkin

Dance Dialogues

Join London-based dance artist and writer Rachel Elderkin for Dance Dialogues: A Podcast. Each episode a guest from the dance world will join us to discuss their life, work and what matters in the dance world right now. From artists and choreographers, to directors and critics, this lively, conversational podcast has the dance world covered. Listen to the latest episode here or find us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

Featured Reads

REVIEWS | Lorna Irvine

Teenage Angst and Institutions

Watching Matthew Bourne's reworked version of the “star-cross'd lovers,” I was briefly reminded of Veronica, played by Winona Ryder, in the dark 1988 comedy by Daniel Waters and Michael Lehmann, Heathers, and her line, “my teen angst bullshit has a body count.” Yes, this is the darker side of Bourne's repertoire,...

INTERVIEWS | Marina Harss

The Me of Today

The choreographer Alexei Ratmansky reflects on the war in Ukraine, the connection between geopolitics and ballet, and joining the house of Balanchine.

REVIEWS | Rachel Howard

Starry Nights

Beneath blue California skies, manicured trees, and the occasional hum of an overhead airplane, Tamara Rojo took the Frost Amphitheater stage at Stanford University to introduce herself as the new artistic director of San Francisco Ballet.

REVIEWS | Faye Arthurs

America, F**K Yeah

After a week of the well-balanced meal that is “Jewels”—the nutritive, potentially tedious, leafy greens of “Emeralds,” the gamy, carnivorous “Rubies,” and the decadent, shiny white mountains of meringue in “Diamonds”—the New York City Ballet continued its 75th Anniversary All-Balanchine Fall Season with rather more dyspeptic fare.

REVIEWS | Emily May

Acosta Danza’s Choreographic Soup

An “Ajiaco” is a type of soup common to Colombia, Cuba, and Peru that combines a variety of different vegetables, spices, and meats.