Dance Magazine articles from March 2007

Dance Magazine archives from March 2007

Welcome to the second annual jobs issue.
March 1, 2007... Welcome to the second annual jobs issue. If you are looking for your first job in dance, or your second, or your umpteenth, you'll find valuable real-world listings in our Jobs Guide. The openings range from ballet companies and modern troupes...

Struggle gives strength.(Letter to the editor)
March 1, 2007... Mamie Air's story ("Dancer vs. Doctor," Dec. 2006) was really moving. I stopped dancing because of an injury and I didn't have support from my parents and wasn't strong enough to fight my way back alone. Ballet is still a part of me. The way I...

Loving Levien.(Letter to the editor)
March 1, 2007... Thanks for publishing Julia Levien's obituary ("Transitions," Dec. 2006). Julia was a remarkable woman, unafraid to keep the repertoire of Isadora Duncan alive during a time when her work was not in vogue. In the latter part of the 20th...

Laudable looks.(Letter to the editor)
March 1, 2007... Today I bought Dance Magazine for the first time. I'm 13 and have been dancing since I was 4. I think the magazine is great because of all the beautiful pictures and well-written articles. There was a German ballet magazine at the store, but I...

Getting their due.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
March 1, 2007... I am surprised that Kansas City Ballet was barely mentioned in your recent piece on Twyla Tharp restagings ("Tharp All Over," Jan.). No one has done more to remount her works than Kansas City Ballet and artistic director William Whitener...

Corrections.(Correction notice)
March 1, 2007... In "Hip Tips," (Jan. 2007) it was incorrectly stated that glucose decreases inflammation. It should be glucosamine. In the "Summer Study Guide" (Jan., 2007): Liz Lerman Dance Exchange is located in Takoma Park, MD, not VA. For American...

Bungee-jete.(Wired Aerial Theatre)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Ever wonder how to get better hang time in a leap? Wired Aerial Theatre has found an answer in "bungee-assisted dancing." The UK-based company--which combines contemporary dance, physical theater, gymnastics, climbing, and flying--performs...

Flamenco for the soul.(Susana di Palma, Zorongo Flamenco Dance Theatre)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... "One dark night/fired with love's urgent longings/ah, the sheer grace!" begins St. John of the Cross's 17th-century poem, Dark Night of the Soul. Susana di Palma and her Zorongo Flamenco Dance Theatre will interpret this poetry in Noche Oscura...

Liturqy of love.(ballet dancing)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Christopher Wheeldon's Liturgy (2003), made for New York City Ballet's hallowed partnership of Wendy Whelan and Jock Soto, has a quality of tenderness that's cool and warm at the same time. Last fall Liturgy traveled down to Miami City Ballet,...

Duato's dos.(Nacho Duato's Compania Nacional de Danza 2)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Almost every great artist has a muse to inspire his creativity. For choreographer Nacho Duato, that muse is his second company, Compania Nacional de Danza 2, which he brings to six American cities this month. Created in 1999, the Spanish...

All but her braids.(VITAL SIGNS....)(Meredith Monk has donated her donated her collections to the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... As a pioneer in performing arts for more than 40 years, Meredith Monk has accumulated a lot of stuff--programs, reviews, notes, notations, photographs, compositional scores, videos from rehearsals... and that's just in the first 70 boxes that...

Tap along a lake.(Carolyn K. Peterson)(Finger Lakes Tap Dance Festival Day)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Grab your tap shoes and head upstate. The mayor of Ithaca, NY, Carolyn K. Peterson, has proclaimed April 1 as Finger Lakes Tap Dance Festival Day. The weekend-long festival, starting Friday, March 30, will include a tap jam, a performance...

Summertime in the spring.(Tempo De Verao's Marcia Milhazes)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Brazilian choreographer Marcia Milhazes is heading north for the spring. Milhazes and her company will tour Tempo De Verao (Summertime), a fluid and sultry work inspired by her fascination for waltzes. The dance, which has won several awards...

70 years of Sokolow.(Anna Sokolow )(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Anna Sokolow and Dance Unit performed their first program at New York's 92nd St. Y in 1936. Seventy years later, the relationship between the company and the uptown venue is still going strong, despite Sokolow's death in 2000. In December, 70...

A sparkling muse.(Freixenet S.A.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Angel Corella sweeps Gwyneth Paltrow off her feet--literally. They make a handsome duo on-screen when they star in ads for Freixenet, a Spanish sparkling wine company. In the commercial, Corella, principal with American Ballet Theatre and...

Pipe dreams.(VITAL SIGNS....)(Tania Isaac's performance)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... This month see Tania Isaac ("25 to Watch," Jan. 2006) perform standpipe, inspired by the main water source in the rural Caribbean. This two-year project co-commissioned by the Painted Bride Art Center, the National Performance Network, and...

Drew Jacoby.(Quick Q&A)(ballet dancer)(Interview)
March 1, 2007... Drew Jacoby is known for her sumptuous extensions and powerhouse attack. At 22 the Dance Magazine "It" Girl and Princess Grace Award winner has already made a name for herself. This February the former member of Alonzo King's LINES Ballet left...

Martha in the middle.(ANNIVERSARY GALLERY: MARTHA GRAHAM COVERS)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Martha Graham is all about the center--in her technique (all of her movements start from the center of the body) and in her career. "A long time ago, I decided that my place was front and center. That's where I chose to be, and that's where I...

Dance boom redux: ticket sales soar.(DANCE MATTERS)
March 1, 2007... It sounds like an executive director's dream come true: For many dance companies across the country, ticket sales are steadily climbing; some are even soaring. Last year, things had been looking bleak for the dance world. Some critics...

Art works: doubling up audiences.(DANCE MATTERS)
March 1, 2007... With a resurgence of the crossover between dance and the visual arts, Dance Magazine looks at two cities where this trend has taken off: Charlottesville and London. For over a decade now, a long, rolling tide of arts awareness has been...

A new organization called United States Artists announced 50 USA Fellowship grants totaling $2.5 million.(GRANTS AND AWARDS)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... A new organization called United States Artists announced 50 USA Fellowship grants totaling $2.5 million. Grantees included Ronald K. Brown, Alonzo King, Ralph Lemon, and EiKo & Koma.

Tapestry Dance Company.(National Endowment for the Arts's finance)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Tapestry Dance Company of Austin, TX, received two grants from National Endowment for the Arts: $10,000 for its annual Soul to Sole Festival, and $25,000 for tour of The Souls of Our Feet--A Celebration of American Tap Dance!

Dayton Ballet Association.(GRANTS AND AWARDS)
March 1, 2007... The Dayton Ballet Association received a $10,000 grant from the Martha Holden Jennings Foundation in support of Dayton Ballet's Young Audience Program.

The 2006 Princess Grace Foundation grantees are Leonides Arpon of Armitage Gone! Dance; Adrienne Benz of BalletMet Columbus; Sara Esty of Miami City Ballet; John Mark Giragosian of Maryland Youth Ballet; Laurel Keen of Lines Ballet; Riley Watts of The Juilliard School; Camille A. Brown of Urban Bush Women; and Adam Hougland of Ballet Memphis.(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... The 2006 Princess Grace Foundation grantees are Leonides Arpon of Armitage Gone! Dance; Adrienne Benz of BalletMet Columbus; Sara Esty of Miami City Ballet; John Mark Giragosian of Maryland Youth Ballet; Laurel Keen of Lines Ballet; Riley Watts...

Jorma Elo.(GRANTS AND AWARDS)
March 1, 2007... Jorma Elo received the $75,000 from Prince Charitable Trust for his piece From All Sides that he created for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago.

Among the awardees at the 2006 Australian Dance Awards: Graeme Murphy and Janet Vernon of Sydney Dance Company.(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Among the awardees at the 2006 Australian Dance Awards: Graeme Murphy and Janet Vernon of Sydney Dance Company, who received lifetime achievement awards (see "Transitions," pg. 104); Australian Dance Theatre's Devolution for outstanding...

Martha Swope.(GRANTS AND AWARDS)
March 1, 2007... The League of Professional Theatre Women honored Martha Swope with a lifetime achievement award for her outstanding photographic images of theater and dance.

Doubt no doubt.(Philippe Decoufle)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... A mercurial dancer who treads the line between eccentric dancing and rubbery clowning, Philippe Decoufle is dancing solos at The Joyce this month. You might remember him as the wizard behind the visually awesome Shazam! at BAM, but he is also...

States of grace.(Keely Garfield)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Keely Garfield has never feared the messier aspects of maximizing life's experiences--frolicking in wedding whites, or wallowing on cobblestones in a mermaid's tail. At Danspace Project from March 8-11, Garfield and a lustrous cast (including...

Turntable ballet.(Urban Ballet Theater)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Always aiming to attract new audiences to ballet, Urban Ballet Theater brings live DJs onstage in SPIN, a world premiere produced by Daniel Catanach, the company's artistic director. Throughout the 40 minutes of gritty ballet/hip hop fusion,...

The dance of breath.(breathing exercises for dancers)
March 1, 2007... Breathing is a dance with the atmosphere. We repeat a delicate exchange of gases some 20,000 times a day, nurturing every cell in our body. We take in oxygen and expel carbon dioxide with each breath. It sounds simple, but the actual physiology...

Advice for dancers: former New York City Ballet dancer Linda Hamilton, Ph.D., is a lecturer, a psychologist in private practice, and the author of Advice for Dancers (Jossey-Bass). She has been offering advice to Dance Magazine readers since 1992.
March 1, 2007... I think I'm going through an identity crisis. For most of my life, all I wanted to be was a ballet dancer--pink tutus, tiaras, the whole works. Then, I discovered modern dance. Graham, in particular, feels so right for my body. I'm confused....

The beauty of inflections: SFB's Muriel Maffre has built a stellar career on elegance and a maverick spirit.(San Francisco Ballet Company)(Biography)
March 1, 2007... Even in full company class where talent lurks everywhere. San Francisco Ballet principal Muriel Maffre draws your attention and locks in your gaze. She is the five-foot-ten dancer who is not looking into the mirror while she adjusts her...

Lighting the way.(Jennifer Tipton the designers)(Interview)
March 1, 2007... In Jennifer Tipton's hands, light is a living thing. Her designs have illuminated, both physically and metaphorically, the works of Paul Taylor, Trisha Brown, Twyla Tharp, Jerome Robbins, Antony Tudor, Jiri Kylian, and most recently,...

Enchanted by Cuba: Dance Magazine's editor in chief, Wendy Perron, travels to Havana for its International Ballet Festival.(Editorial)
March 1, 2007... Havana is a city where, when you tell a taxi driver to take you to the theater to see a ballet, he (or she) asks, "Who is dancing tonight?" Tickets for the biannual International Ballet Festival of Havana are sold out weeks in advance. The...

Beyond the strip: navigating the Las Vegas job scene.
March 1, 2007... Gamblers aren't the only people who are flocking to Las Vegas. With the Canadian invasion of Cirque du Soleil and Celine Dion, more and more dancers are placing their bets on Las Vegas with the hopes of big money, glamour, and a lifestyle that...

Desperately seeking dough: from corporate party gigs to classic car dealerships, dancers work a wide--and wild--range of jobs to pursue their dreams.
March 1, 2007... I've been a puppet, a pauper, a pirate, a poet, a pawn and a king..." sings Frank Sinatra in the song, "That's Life." How to add to that litany of occupations? Ask a dancer! Lots of top-notch movers take on offbeat tasks for extra cash when...

Don't cry for me ... I'm in 'Evita': summer stock jobs build discipline, stamina, and your resume--but not all are created equal.
March 1, 2007... For a musical theater dancer, the New York spring is crammed with auditions for regional theaters' summer seasons. But from May to August, the city turns into an artistic desert. So as I took off my character shoes, I thought hard about the...

Do you need a website?(Drew Jacoby, Rasta Thomas)(American Ballet Theatre)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... High-profile freelance dancers--like Drew Jacoby, formerly of LINES Ballet (see "Vital Signs," p. 16), and Rasta Thomas, who will be guesting with American Ballet Theatre this spring--use personal websites to publicize their projects and give...

Yes, you need health insurance.(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... While some dancers forgo health insurance to save money, we don't have to tell you how dangerous that is. Luckily, artist care services and insurance companies are getting creative and offering more affordable options. The Freelancers...

When it's time to renew your contract.(2007 JOB GUIDE)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Whether you're a principal or a corps member, renewing your contract can be tricky. It helps if you go in prepared. James Fayette, a former dancer and the dance executive for the American Guild for Musical Artists' NY division, says...

Jazz it up: a spotlight on shoes to shine in.(Buyers guide)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Repetto "Jam" leather jazz boot $75, 800.585.5855 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Angelo Luzio Jazz slip-on $42-$46, 800.56.DANCE [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Leo's Dancewear Aerojazz leather $32, leosdancewear.com [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]...

The long way time: a new Jerome Robbins biography explores why happiness eluded him.("Somewhere: The Life of Jerome Robbins")(Book review)
March 1, 2007... Somewhere: The Life of Jerome Robbins by Amanda Vaill. New York: Broadway Books, 2006. 675 pages. Illustrated. $40 Children of the baby boom knew the choreography of Jerome Robbins before they knew his name. All one had to do in those days...

Step, lines, and videotape: using DVDs and videos to learn repertoire.
March 1, 2007... In this technological age, computers, cell phones, and recording devices make our lives run faster and more efficiently--even though we sometimes feel trapped by them. And so it is in the dance studio. Videotapes have been used for more than...

Graham Technique.(Martha Graham)
March 1, 2007... Demonstrating a class for Martha Graham was always unpredictable. One day in 1959, in the hot, airless gym at the American Dance Festival at Connecticut College, 112 beginning students were wilting from the humidity and from Martha's relentless...

Despite being one of the most celebrated ballerinas of all time, Margot Fonteyn felt limited in her artistry because of her lack of education in music and art.(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Despite being one of the most celebrated ballerinas of all time, Margot Fonteyn felt limited in her artistry because of her lack of education in music and art. During the last 12 years of her life, she worked with close friend and colleague Ken...

Philadanco.(Philadelphia School of Dance Arts)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Classes resumed in the newly renovated facilities of Philadanco's resident school, The Philadelphia School of Dance Arts, on January 2. A fire demolished the building in January 2005, sending classes to church basements, music schools, and...

Balanced Body University.
March 1, 2007... Balanced Body is expanding programming to meet growing demand for Pilates teachers. Recent reports show that participation in Pilates classes has increased five-fold over the past five years. Balanced Body University now offers training...

Expressions Dance Company.(on tour)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Australia's Expressions Dance Company, based in Brisbane, is touring to elementary schools February through June as part of the company's dance-in-education program. Three company members will perform Take a Chance on Dance, a 50-minute...

The Campaign for CalArts.(dance companies)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... The Campaign for CalArts raised $105 million from 2,500 private donors during the private phase of the fundraising campaign. The donations will be used to increase scholarship support for students, attract gifted artists to teach on faculty,...

Virginia School of the Arts.(promotes Petrus Bosman)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Petrus Bosman has been promoted to artistic director emeritus at the Virginia School of the Arts. Once a soloist with The Royal Ballet, Bosman describes his 19 years teaching at VSA as "quite a ride." When he arrived, the school was on the...

The Jerome Robbins Foundation recently awarded a grant of $10,000 to The New Zealand School of Dance.(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... The Jerome Robbins Foundation recently awarded a grant of $10,000 to The New Zealand School of Dance. The money will be used to assist two Brazilian students, Pedro Cassiano and Carlos da Silva, with their living and accommodations costs while...

Rosanna Seravalli: teacher's wisdom.(Interview)
March 1, 2007... Rosanna Seravalli admits that she may not be the most well-loved ballet professor, but she is one of the most respected: She demands nothing less than complete commitment during class at the Conservatory of Dance at Purchase College, State...

Parisa Khobdeh: The Paul Taylor dancer flies high with playful sensuality.(Interview)
March 1, 2007... There's a hint of abandon in the way Parisa Khobdeh dances. Her movement has a free and easy quality. The steps seem to flow effortlessly, as though she'd heard the music for the first time and couldn't stop dancing. Her elegantly chiseled...

Riffing on Broadway: shows find new life as choreographers' inspiration.(On Broadway)
March 1, 2007... A confession: I've never liked Jerome Robbins' West Side Story Suite for New York City Ballet as much as I think I should. There are many reasons to be grateful for this anthology of dances from his great, groundbreaking musical. At a time...

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.(Dance review)
March 1, 2007... Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater New York City Center, NY November 29-December 31, 2006 Reviewed by Susan Yung This year's premieres challenged both dancers and audiences and pointed toward healthy artistic growth. The company premiere of...

David Dorfman Dance.(Dance review)
March 1, 2007... David Dorfman Dance BAM Harvey Theater, Brooklyn, NY November 14-18, 2006 Reviewed by Elizabeth Zimmer Chicago-born David Dorfman, now 50, had a successful career as both a choreographer of community-driven events and a stand-up...

BalletMet Columbus.(Preview)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... A murder mystery is afoot in the world premiere of Susan Hadley's Whodunit? Set to an original score by composer Bradley Sowash, the full-length, film-noir--ish ballet features a rich heiress, a bumbling police detective, and a super sleuth....

Eifman ballet.(Preview)(Boris Eifman)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Insanity, sexual deviance, and emotional torment are just some of the afflictions that plague the characters of Boris Eifman's ballets, which center on the inner lives of historical and literary personages from Tehaikovsky to Anna Karenina. The...

Oguri and Honeysuckle.(Preview)(Oguri and Honeysuckle Dance Troupe)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Shovels, old black suits, and barbed wire set the scene for a butoh exploration of William Faulkner titled Caddy! Caddy! Caddy! after the tragic heroine of The Sound and the Fury. Oguri and Honeysuckle Dance Troupe present a rich weaving of...

Sydney Dance Company.(on tour)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Often described as "radical" and "liberating," Sydney Dance Company is Australia's premier contemporary dance troupe. Now resigning after 30 years (see "Transitions," p. 104), artistic director Graeme Murphy brings the company on a farewell...

Resignation.(Graeme Murphy resigns from Sydney Dance Company)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... After 30 years as the leaders of Australia's Sydney Dance Company (SDC), artistic director Graeme Murphy and associate artistic director Janet Vernon will step down in April after their current U.S. tour. A new director has not yet been named....

Fernand Nault (1920-2006).(Obituary)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Until he discovered dance, Fernand-Noel Boissonneault, the only son of a poor Montreal family, was destined for the priesthood. Although devout throughout his life, he traded a cassock for tights in his late teens, and as Fernand Nault embarked...

Craig North (1956-2006).(Obituary)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Dancer, choreographer, and teacher Craig North (see "Brave New World," Dec. 2005) died of MDS-related causes last summer. He was a member of the Larry Richardson Dance Company in the 1980s, and performed and choreographed musical theater road...

Marriages.(Michael Flatley marries co star Niamh O'Brien)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... In October, lord of the dance Michael Flatley, 49, married his co-star Niamh O'Brien. The wedding was held at St. Patrick's Church in County Cork, Ireland. The couple met in 1993 on the set of Riverdance. O'Brien, 32, has also performed with...

United States.(DANCE FINDER)(Directory)
March 1, 2007... ALABAMA ALABAMA BALLET Wes Chapman, Artistic Director Alice Cox, Director of External Affairs 2726 1st Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35233 (205) 322-4300; Fax (205) 322-4444 www.alabamaballet.org ALABAMA DANCE...

International.(Directory)
March 1, 2007... ARGENTINA MANUEL VALLEJOS DANCE JAZZ STUDIO Lavalle 1579 C.P. 104-8-Buenos Aires Tel/Fax (541) 371-6811 AUSTRIA SALZBURY INTL. BALLET ACADEMY (SIBA) Yehuda Maor, Ballet teacher/Master Salzburg Ballet. Phone...

Somatic practices, movement arts, and dance medicine.(Directory)
March 1, 2007... Certification and training in somatic and movement-based arts. Contact: dcastro@dancemogazine.com AERIAL DANCE/ ACROBATIC/CIRCUS ARTS LAVA HOME STUDIO/BROOKLYN, NY Acrobatics & trapeze emphasizing strength, flexibility,...

Fusing all over.(A CAREER & LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE)(Fusionworks celebrates its 20th anniversary)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Fusionworks, a modern dance company based in a historic firehouse in Lincoln, RI, is celebrating its 20th anniversary. The company, run by artistic director Deb Meunier (above top with Kerry Gallager), has performed at Jacob's Pillow and the...

Attitudes.(dancing)
March 1, 2007... Sixty years is a fairly long time, especially for a dance company, and especially for a dance company in the English-speaking, institutionally challenged world of the performing arts. Why this backwardness in such institutions is so marked I...