Dance Advantage » Dance Styles

Not Your Daddy’s Boombox: Pioneer STEEZ

Nichelle (admin) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:30:21 +0000

The “boombox,” the first of which appeared in the 1970′s, reached its peak in sales and mass appeal during the early 80′s.

But, by the latter half of that decade the boombox (or ghetto blaster) was already on its way out as consumer interest began veering more and more toward personal, handheld devices. Yes, I had a Walkman, kids!

To most in this age of MP3 players and smart phones, the idea of a boombox might seem downright antiquated…

save for one particular population: dancers!

For crews and street performers, a box that can deliver is a must.

And if you’re a traveling teacher who has ever had to make do with tiny speakers, plugged into an iPod, in a large room full of talkative teenagers, you know the value of a subwoofer!

I’ve lugged around a portable CD/cassette player with detachable speakers to all kinds of rehearsal spaces and even classes and performances in unconventional locations (with unacceptable audio systems).

Enter the Pioneer STEEZ, a line of digital-age blasters, designed specifically with dancers in mind!

STEEZ Solo (top), Duo (center), and Crew (bottom)

The good folks at Pioneer, a company long associated with electronics and audio, allowed me to test drive the Duo, one of three models in this line.

Dance-specific features of all three include:

tempo control that doesn’t affect the pitch,
the ability to create custom cues in the music on the fly,
an 8-beat skip,
a non-stop mix option, complete with transition effects and beat matching,
an audio boost to intensify the beat,
an automatic Battle Mode, complete with voice prompts and countdown,
and the ability to activate these controls via a remote.

Now, before my contemporary teachers start to squee, let’s be clear that the true target consumers for this product are b-boys/girls and dance crews.

Still, a portable box that does all that with your digital music files (no CDs necessary), plus includes a dock for your iPod or iPhone? Pretty cool.(...)

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Tap Classics: In-The-Trenches and Over-The-Tops

Tristan Bruns — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 14:45:00 +0000

Toots Davis is one of the unsung innovators of tap dance flash steps, and his contribution of the in-the-trenches step is testament to that fact.

He was a chorus member of the Darktown Follies and by 1916 worked his way up to a solo spot, where he began to develop his dancing amongst an atmosphere of competitive camaraderie. Each evening’s performance found cast members inventing new steps and embellishing on old ones.

In-the-trenches may be the most universally known flash step.

Created by Toots Davis, in-the-trenches is not limited to tap dance; jazz dancers aren’t afraid to throw down this traditional dance step.

A dancer, bent ninety degrees at the waist, alternates extending straight arms and legs, giving the performer the appearance of a full-on sprint, while at the same time being unaffected by gravity as the dancer’s staccato toe tips glide frictionless across the floor.

In-the-trenches has remained intact for just about one hundred years! When performed correctly, it matches descriptions of the original, described as a bent over version of the popular circle dance, the cakewalk.

The origin of the step’s name has to do with a little something called (...)

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© Tristan Bruns for Dance Advantage, 2012. | Permalink | Category: Blog, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Tap, Terminology | Who's talking about this article?

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Protecting Your Toesies For Pointe

Lauren Warnecke — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:22:17 +0000

I started pointe at age 9 –

(too young by some teachers’ opinions, but that’s another article), and my teacher was thoroughly set on having all of her students wear pointe shoes without padding. Her philosophy was that if shoe fit correctly then there wasn’t any need for padding.

That’s a nice theory but, unless you have a custom-made shoe, it’s unlikely that you’ll find a shoe out there that will mold exactly to your foot. The other problem with this particular teacher’s point of view is that she required all of her students to wear Capezio brand pointe shoes. There’s nothing wrong with Capezio shoes, it’s just that if you’re going to make dancers dance on pointe without padding and request a “perfect fit”, then you had better give her as many options as possible!

Still, I walked out with my shiny new size 3 Capezios and a year later I had ingrown toenails, the beginning of bunions and bunionettes, and nearly constant abrasions and blisters. There just wasn’t a Capezio shoe that fit my foot with enough efficacy to wear it without padding.

I eventually changed studios and, at age 14, I essentially started over. I was asked to go to a professional pointe shoe fitting by a woman named Sylvia.

Sylvia, a purest in her own right, always started with Grishko and very rarely strayed to other brands, only allowing lamb’s wool as padding. This time, however, I got a bit lucky and wound up with the Grishko Elite, which happens to be the best shoe out there for my foot.  I haven’t bought another shoe since.

I’ve recently been working on developing an e-course about pointe preparation and came across Nichelle’s great article on pointe readiness during my research.  I found all the comments and differing opinions about shoe types, brands, construction, and padding options really interesting.

Even when I found “my perfect shoe”, I still needed padding.

So, the focus of this post is to break down your options and help you get to the bottom of the pointe shoe padding conundrum.

I’ve tried pretty much everything in my shoes, including:(...)

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© Lauren Warnecke for Dance Advantage, 2012. | Permalink | Category: Ballet/Pointe, Blog, Dance Bag, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Dancing, Featured, Health and Wellness, Practice | Who's talking about this article?

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History Moves: Using the Creative Process to Explore Dance History

Heather Vaughan-Southard — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 14:24:48 +0000

The history of dance is far from dull and including dance history in your classes doesn’t have to be either.

When we think of learning about history, most people see lectures, thick books, and discussions about plenty of dead people. There are ways to incorporate information about the traditions of dance and the people who shaped them while relating it to the material that students may find more exciting.

Last month I provided a list of ten ways to move beyond steps, making dances that venture outside the norm of assembling favorite movement to popular songs. This enriched way of working leads to many possibilities for students to become aware of their dance heritage and the methods dance icons have used for creating dance.

Photo by George Joch / Courtesy Argonne National Laboratory.

To recap:

Concert Dance, to me, is determined by process – the ways movement is inspired, how it is developed, edited, and finally presented. The style of dance is irrelevant in many respects; it is all about the intent and the journey, which lead to the product.

Let’s draw on those same ten ideas to outline two ways to practically include dance history lessons while going about the usual business of making dances:

A: For a single artist’s view, I have chosen modern dance heavy-weight Merce Cunningham whose development of his own technique, innovative ways for crafting dances, and pushing the boundaries in dance technology provide ample opportunity to explore many aspects of dance.

B: If you are more interested in covering a variety of artists, here is a sampler of artists that have made interesting decisions during the work they’ve created.

1. Choosing Content.

Find content with enough depth that it can be explored from multiple angles, voices, and perspectives.

Merce Cunningham: Creating dances “about” the movement potential of the human body, the potential of movement within an established movement vocabulary

George Balanchine, founder of New York City Ballet: Balanchine’s choreography is known for its visual relationship to the musical score. Balanchine’s early work included direct narratives (Prodigal Son, The Nutcracker), his later work revolved around identifiable themes without demonstrating a clear plot (Agon, Serenade). In this sense, Balanchine offers three different ways in which content can be explored.

2. Choosing Genre.

Which style of dance best suits the idea or concept you are presenting?

Merce Cunningham: Modern Dance choreographer whose movement relates well to other types of dancers. This example allows for the discussion of how technical concepts are experienced differently or similarly based on styles of dance. Example: Cunningham’s use of spine, port de bras, and weight shift can be compared similarly to classical ballet and yet very differently to other types of modern dance such as release technique.

Twyla Tharp, versatile choreographer with major works in post-modern (Eight Jelly Rolls, The Fugue), contemporary ballet (When Push Comes to Shove, Sinatra Suite), and musical theatre “jazz” (Hair, Movin’ Out).
If any choreographer epitomizes versatility, it is Twyla Tharp. Working from a strong personal point of view, Tharp relies heavily on technique and the fundamentals of movement and thus can easily relate to many kinds of dancers and audiences.

3. Choosing Movement.

Is the idea behind the piece best represented by technical movement, gestural movement, or a combination?

Merce Cunningham: Again, creating within an established movement vocabulary, Cunningham explored possibilities physically first but later in his career used a computer program, Dance Forms, to inspire new movement threads before teaching them to his dancers.

Bill T. Jones: a self-proclaimed liberal artist. This is a choreographer who masterfully ebbs and flows between codified and gestural movement based on what the piece needs. Please note, when looking for video samples be sure to preview before watching with students. His work takes on many topics and some are more suitable for high-school aged dancers and older.

In jazz, Bob Fosse offers a rich example of stylized movement vocabulary that allows each piece to look different while still reflective of the Fosse trademark swag.

4. Choosing structure.

Dances don’t have to be choreographed from beginning to end. Try creating large movement phrases that can be ordered in different ways, layered in contrasting movement, or fragmented.

Merce Cunningham: The pioneer of chance operation as a choreographic device, Cunningham created methods such as rolling dice to determine the order of movement, order of works within a concert, and other production elements.

Explore the range Romantic, Classical, and Neo-Classical ballet to discuss structuring story and structuring movement. Martha Graham offers great examples of how to structure these principles as well as movement for solos or large groups.

5. Choosing sound.

Does the piece need music or could it be danced to text, silence, or unconventional sound?

Merce Cunningham: search out his collaborations with John Cage or the use of dueling stories in How to Pass, Kick, Fall, and Run.

Pearl Primus, a modern dance choreographer and anthropologist: Primus created Strange Fruit, set to the poem of the same title by Lewis Allen. This is also a nice example of how dance can be used to discuss other subjects such as the African-American experience within American culture.

6. and 7. Choosing alternate methods for coaching ideas and movement within rehearsal.

Find the unison in intent rather than (just) the unison of performance.

Watch choreographers rehearse their dancers in A Lifetime of Dance about Merce Cunningham and Dancemaker, about Paul Taylor.

Check out Daniel Nagrin‘s book, The Six Questions: Acting Technique for Dance Performance.

7. Choosing production elements.

What kind of showing is best? How important are costumes? Lights?

Merce Cunningham and collaborators believed dance, music, and set design should co-exist in space and time rather than depend upon one another.

Explore choreographers such as Anna Halperin, Doug Varone, and Liz Lerman and their use of site-specific dance. Google site specific dance for a long list of artists (and video samples of their work) creating this way both in the past and in the present. Although site-specific dance does not necessarily mean outside, here is article that offers valuable information on non-traditional performance spaces.

8. and 9. Choosing your value system and Choosing your method for reflection.

What determines good v. bad? How do you measure the success of the process as well as the success of the work?

Consider re-evaluating how you talk about choreography. Some interesting reads on this are by Larry Lavender (Dancers Talking Dance) and Liz Lerman (Critical Response Process: A Useful Method for Getting Feedback On Anything You Make from Dance to Dessert).

The artists listed here are a mere sampling of a larger pool of artists that relate easily to any and all of these segments of the creative process. Many of the artists listed are established modern dance choreographers, however, there are a great many choreographers from ballet and jazz worlds also working within the concert dance philosophy and developing interesting creative processes, too.

In developing lesson plans, realize how important it is for students to SEE dance and include opportunities to do this.

The newly available Jacob’s Pillow Interactive, dance company websites, clips from Youtube, PBS broadcasts available for purchase, or materials available through your library should make much easier than even a few years ago.

Here are some additional ideas for teaching the History and Evolution of Dance, and for leading students through the process of making their own dances.

How do you explore dance history in your classes?
What recommendations for source material would you add to those above?

© Heather Vaughan-Southard for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Choreographing, Dance Media, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Film/Video, For Classroom, History of Dance, K-12, Modern/Contemporary, Teaching | Who's talking about this article?

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Tap Classics: Paddle and Roll Heroes, Lon Chaney & Bunny Briggs

Tristan Bruns — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:42:08 +0000

Lon Chaney and Dr. Bunny Briggs did not invent the paddle and roll, but instead developed the step to its maximum potential.

There are four elements to the paddle and roll: a dig, a back brush of the ball of the foot, stepping on the ball of the foot, and a heel. The “paddle” constitutes the dig and the brush, while the roll is the action of dropping the toe and heel in a smooth and controlled motion.

Other names for the paddle and roll include the drumming term paradiddles and the gangster-inspired Tommy Gun.

Some say that the paddle and roll originated in the Midwest as an answer to the East coast style of dancing, and dancer/choreographer Buddy Bradley owes the step to the Flamenco style of dancing. Regardless of its origin, the paddle and roll has become one of the most popular tap steps and is often the first step that comes to mind when students are asked at random to show off some steps.

To say that any tap dancer is king of the paddle and roll may land you in hot water.

There have been plenty of contenders for that title. The first man to proclaim himself master of the paddle and roll was Walter Green, a tap dancer who had arrived in New York from Chicago in 1937. Green put out a challenge to all dancers that no one would be able to best his superior foot technique, the paddle and roll. Local tough guys Ralph Brown, Freddie James, Albert Gibson, and Chuck Green set him straight.

No other dancer is identified more with the paddle and roll than another tap icon, Lon Chaney.

A short, stout man, Lon Chaney danced into the floor, and his rippling paddle and roll variations created quick, staccato tapping combined with bold phrases of rhythm. At the end of tap dance performances, it is not uncommon for the tap dancers to form the so-called “Chaney track” or the “Hoofer’s Line”; at the climax of the show, the dancers form a line and rattle off a long stream of paddle and rolls. Each performer takes a small solo accompanied by the steady call and response chanting of “Ho-yeah, Ho-yeah, Ho-yeah, Ho-yeeaaahhh!” Needless to say, most tap dancers hold Lon Chaney in the highest regard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXTInxL1qG0

(Hoofer’s Line beginning at 1:12. Lon Chaney – farthest Stage Left)

Bunny Briggs is the antithesis of Lon Chaney; Briggs is slender, doe-eyed, and dances his signature paddle and roll style by lightly smattering a string of bop-inspired, staccato rhythms. Peppered with comedic body gestures, these lampoon popular dance vernacular of the ‘30s, ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s.

Bunny Briggs’ style of dancing, in contrast to Lon Chaney’s chunky rhythmic phrasing, sounds more akin to a Dizzy Gillespie melody sped up double time, which is no accident. Commenting on his time working as a singer and dancer in Earl Hines’ band, “Both Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker were in that band, and it helped me work out my own style of paddle and roll,” says Briggs.

Bunny Briggs worked with the cream of the jazz world, with musicians like Charles “Luckey” Roberts and Erskine Hawkins. But to me and many others, it was his work with Duke Ellington, and in particular the piece David Danced before the Lord with All His Might as part of a series of sacred music concerts that Ellington toured across the country, that was a stand out example of Bunny Briggs’ style and ear for musicality.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVZ9WnUyf9k

(Bunny Briggs: The most Super-Leviathonic Rhythmaturgical Syncopated Tapstamaticianisimist)

© Tristan Bruns for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, History of Dance, Tap | Who's talking about this article?

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Confessions of a 30-year old Grade III Grad: Why Cecchetti?

Lauren Warnecke — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 14:22:33 +0000

As I pulled my pink tights and black chiffon skirt out of the back of my sock drawer, I wondered: Why, exactly, am I still doing this?

The first post I wrote as a columnist at Dance Advantage was a reflective look at my Grade I Cecchetti teacher’s exam.

Nearly two years later, last month marked my completion of Grade III.

Disclosure: Normally an informative writer, citing evidence and pulling from research to form my opinions, this month, I’m writing from a purely biased, editorial place.

My colleagues going through the program with me are actively teaching ballet, and learning the Cecchetti Method translates directly to professional advancement for them since they teach at a studio active in the Council. For me, it’s been more about getting a weekly ballet class, keeping my “ballet brain” alive even though I’m not actively teaching ballet… and geeking out over fancy bun covers like this one.

Why Cecchetti?

Aside from the fact that I don’t have a legitimate professional reason to be pursuing the Cecchetti teacher’s certificates, there’s the whole humiliation of the exam process to contend with as well.

Standing in front of the Council’s elite in pink tights being berated about the quality of my developpés and position of my arms in 2nd position, explaining minutia like “so does the leg pass to the side of the knee when closing from a releve devant or does it pass to the back without stopping at the knee and go directly down to 5th?”**

…not my first idea of how to spend a Sunday afternoon.

So, why do I do it?(...)

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© Lauren Warnecke for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Ballet/Pointe, Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Community, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Teaching | Who's talking about this article?

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What The Ailey School’s Melanie Person Knew When She Was Twelve

Nichelle (admin) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 14:28:02 +0000

In 1977, Ebony Jr. featured a photograph of a young girl at the ballet barre.

The caption reads, “Dancing means everything to twelve-year-old Melanie Person, who wants to become a prima ballerina.”

By this time, Melanie Person had already been training for about 6 years, starting first in Jackson, Mississippi and later in Columbia, South Carolina. But in the winter of 1976 she auditioned for the Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) Summer Intensive. She was offered a full scholarship, went on to an apprenticeship and, after graduating from Professional Children’s School, became a full member of the company. For twelve years Ms. Person was a ballerina with DTH. She later earned her B.A. from SUNY Empire State College.

Then in 1999, Denise Jefferson invited her to join the PPAS ballet faculty at The Ailey School, appointing her a year later as Co-Director of the Junior Division beside Tracy Inman. Fast forward 11 years, and Ms. Person is again serving with Inman, but this time as Co-Director of The Ailey School, a position she’s held since Ms. Jefferson’s passing in 2010.

Ms. Person is Chair of the ballet department as well as Co-Chair of The Ailey/Fordham B.F.A program, and has served as a judge for Seoul International Dance competition and Japan’s Grand Prix.

Of course, I had quite a few questions for this teacher and administrator but first, I couldn’t resist a quick look back at the young dancer in that photograph.

Dance Advantage: What’s one thing you know now about a dance career that may have surprised this young lady?(...)

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© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Ballet/Pointe, Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Career, College, Community, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Dancing, Interviews, Training | Who's talking about this article?

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The Nutcracker: Unwrapped

Nichelle (admin) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 18:25:59 +0000

Hand-torn snow. 7,000 lbs of it.

Houston Ballet’s current version of The Nutcracker, choreographed by Ben Stevenson, premiered in 1987. And ever since, what falls from above in the Land of Snow is what designer, Desmond Heeley always wanted: Crepe paper, because of the way it looks, reflects the light and most importantly, because of the way it falls. Hand-torn because its densely textured surface makes it impossible to cut layers of paper without sticking and clumping.

For the first few years, volunteers from the Houston Ballet Guild and the HB staff donated several days in the weeks before The Nutcracker opened to sit and tear paper into snowflakes, but over the years a new method was developed using spools and special blades. Now a crew of four can tear several layers at once more efficiently over a period of 2 weeks.

About 200 pounds of snow fall during each snow scene, after which (during intermission) the snow is swept up and placed in special boxes to be cleaned. The used snow is carefully sifted and cleaned to be used again in another show. About 30 minutes before curtain on each performance day, the snow bags are refilled with either new or newly cleaned snow that will majestically fall to the stage, to the delight of the Houston Ballet audience.

The Nutcracker Sugar Plum Fairy tutus and Soldier costumes in wardrobe storage.

Repair. Rebuild. Remake. Repaint.

Snow isn’t the only thing that’s reused and recycled in The Nutcracker, which is produced season after season for more performances than other ballet in the Houston Ballet repertoire.

According to HB’s Production Director, Tom Boyd, who has been part of its production team from the start, there have been the expected subtle changes in choreography over the years. But everything else has remained very close to what was originally conceived by Stevenson and Heeley. Even costume fabrics and trims, which literally endure the wear and tear of hundreds of performances, are replaced only with the best possible match to the original design.

Dressing the Cast

When asked which Nutcracker costume is her personal favorite, it seems an easy answer for Houston Ballet’s Wardrobe Manager, Laura Lynch. “The Snow Queen,” she pronounces. “Love that tiara.”

One-hundred and thirty costumes appear in a single Nutcracker performance. But if you break it down to the individual clothing pieces, like collars, petticoats, and more, that the wardrobe department maintains, there are over 650 items, not including tights, facial hair or wigs.

Because The Nutcracker is performed every year, the show’s costumes hang in the back wardrobe room at Wortham Theater Center all year long so that Wardrobe may continually restore and rebuild as necessary in the costume shop at Houston Ballet’s new Center for Dance (the largest professional dance company facility of its kind constructed in the United States).

Sugar Plum's costume tagged by Wardrobe and ready to go. Photo: Casey Ayala/Art Institute of Houston North

The Wardrobe department uses a dancer’s most current measurements to rebuild costumes and depends upon the fitting process to determine if Nutcracker costumes must be rebuilt or altered. Costumes are generally not re-fit on dancers who have performed the role previously, so it may surprise those visiting Wardrobe during Nutcracker preparation that seemingly there’s not much going on with the show. However, the department is always working on other productions as well. This season, you’d see costumes for the one-night-only Jubilee of Dance, photo shoots, Cinderella (opening in February), and academy performances.

How does Wardrobe keep track of all the measurements, alterations, and other costume details?

“LOTS OF ORGANIZATION,” exclaims Lynch. “We use an extensive inventory system to keep track of which costumes belong together. We also have a numbering system in all costumes to assist in charting who wears which costume.”

If you’re producing your own Nutcracker this year, Ms. Lynch has some tips: “Stay on top of keeping things clean. Spot cleaning and hand washing are very important and if left to wait will certainly damage the costumes.” She recommends you have a system in place and “stay the course.”

Making Theatrical Magic

In the second act of HB’s The Nutcracker, flying chef-angels zip across stage. Tom Boyd recalls the origins of this unique feature: “The idea came from the fact that Act 2 is the Land of the Sweets and the designer, Desmond Heeley, was quite interested in answering the question, that a child might ask, ‘Where do all the sweets come from?’ So, Desmond decided there should be bakers and cooks and some of them would be flying. And, if you look at the chandeliers you will see flying cooks on either side. Ben liked the idea so much, he decided to expand the concept with dancers flying to open the Act.”

According to Tom, the dancers rehearse the basic positions and timing in the studio as part of the regular rehearsals for many weeks prior to moving into the Wortham. When the flying rig apparatus has been installed in the theater, the dancers are called to be fit in their harnesses and work with a flight coach until they feel comfortable being in the harness and off the ground. Then, they rehearse the flying sequence to piano music with all the flyers, the flight coach, the stagehands (each flyer requires 3 each), stage managers, and artistic staff needed during the actual show. Throughout the entire run of The Nutcracker, the flying sequence is also rehearsed onstage during Intermission for the comfort and safety of the dancers and crew alike.

The Nutcracker set design by Desmond Heeley.

Though flying takes a great deal of coordination, it is the extremely complicated transition from the Battle Scene to the Snow Scene that Boyd describes as the most technically challenging. “The house scenery has to move off and fly out, with the enormous tree, and in its place is revealed the Land of Snow. This transition involves the entire stage crew, with 7 people pulling lines on the fly-rail, and 11 people moving scenery off-stage. Both stage managers are involved in calling cues, timing the moves to the music and the entire company of dancers are either running offstage, running onstage, or quick-changing costumes to be onstage.” All in a matter of seconds.

What are the essentials for staying organized and keeping The Nutcracker running smoothly?

“It helps to have very good archived records of how the show hangs, what is involved from scene to scene, how many people are required to do what,” says Boyd, “but, the most important element of all is to have highly skilled, dedicated, experienced people putting it all together. And, we are fortunate to have an outstanding production staff, stage crew, and wardrobe staff who all know that we have a duty to present this amazing company of brilliant dancers with the highest production value possible, whether it’s The Nutcracker or any other performance.”

So you want to be a…

During the 1980′s Boyd made the leap from dancing to managing productions and scenic design. If you’re planning to make a similar leap, Boyd says to pay attention to all that is going on around you. “Our audience sees only the tip of the iceberg when attending a performance, but as members of an arts organization we have the opportunity to understand and be involved with the entire infrastructure,” he explains.

“Find out what the other departments do, how they contribute to the final product. Any single performance and audience experience is the result of hundreds of people doing so many different things. Not only could you encounter interesting career options, you have an opportunity to capitalize on the experience you already have.”

Similarly, Laura Lynch, says the path to becoming Wardrobe Manager for a large ballet company requires experience. Lots of it, working in all aspects of Wardrobe. “I have a theater degree and have been working professionally in costuming for 27 years,” divulges Lynch. “I’ve done everything from stitching, patterning, cutting, dying, crafting, painting, shop supervising, freelance design, traveling with Broadway productions to community theater. To rise to the top hard work, good work ethic and a passion for what you do are necessary.”

In addition to supervising in HB’s wardrobe and costume shop, she has also designed costumes. If you’re a dancer with a passion for ballet fashion, Lynch says, “Research! Everything, from fashion to theater.” She explains that exploring museums and art history are two great ways to research and learn, and that paintings offer an enormous wealth of fashions throughout history. “Get involved and keep learning new skills,” Lynch encourages.

Of course, what Nutcracker feature would be complete without a few stories from those who’ve seen it all?

I couldn’t help but ask Boyd about something a little mouse told me: That HB used to stage an elaborate “Nutty” Nutcracker for audiences at the close of the run.

“The Nutty Nutcracker was a tradition for a number of years,” explains Boyd. “It was a way to close out a very long season of The Nutcracker performances, and to let the dancers and audience have some fun within a very traditional framework.”

“I think my fondest memory was when Drosselmeyer brought out his trunk of dancing dolls to entertain the children, and pulled out Lauren Anderson dressed as Tina Turner doing her signature song, ‘Proud Mary’,” he recalls. “That one was so popular, she made several cameo appearances in subsequent shows, even when it made no sense, just for the fun of it.”

Last year on Dance Advantage, corps member Madison Morris, shared her favorite wardrobe malfunctions involving rats. Lynch recalls a year when one of the rats’ ears came unglued and was barely hanging on to the head. “Lots of flopping about… luckily the rat was done for that show and we were able to re-glue for the next show.”

Boyd says so many things happen behind the scenes, most if not all unseen by the audience, that it’s hard to pick one thing that he can look back on and laugh at. “The ones I remember weren’t funny when they happened, and unfortunately, they really aren’t funny in retrospect. Oh, I guess they are just a little bit. But, each little hiccup in the otherwise smooth running of a show, is a reminder that there is an enormous level of detail that needs to be constantly monitored in a show like this and one can never, ever take it for granted or think you can phone it in.”

He does relay one instance of flying gone wrong: “The flying cooks are supposed to meet at center and hold hands until they are flown off to their respective sides of the stage,” he says. ” Well in this performance, the stagehand in charge of traveling the flyers to their marks went so far past his mark that instead of stopping at center stage, the dancer from stage left went past the one from stage right, and they spun around each other getting their flying cables hopelessly entangled. So, they were just stuck together center-stage, 15 feet above the floor, staring at each other.”

Oh no, what then?

“When the stage manager realized they were not going to untangle themselves, he instructed both sets of crew operating the flying rig to travel the flyers off stage right until they were in the wings.” To a round of cheers from the audience, of course.

Featuring breathtaking scenery and costumes by Tony Award-winning designer Desmond Heeley, Houston Ballet’s The Nutcracker is ideal for introducing children to the power and beauty of classical dance, and a delightful way for the entire family to ring in the holiday season. Thirty-three performances run November 25 – December 27, 2011 in the Brown Theater at Wortham Theater Center in downtown Houston. For tickets call 1-800-828-ARTS, or visit www.houstonballet.org.

More of The Nutcracker Behind-the Scenes:

Houston Ballet’s The Nutcracker By the Numbers

CultureMap goes Art & About and wants to know…

Team Sugar or Team Snow?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ermOlzjFAZE

Nancy Wozny, aka Culture Sis, aka dancehunter, and Joel Luks, aka Culture Bro, go behind the scenes at the Houston Ballet to learn why Ben Stevenson’s version has been a hit for 24 years.

© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Ballet/Pointe, Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Costumes Etc., Dance Companies, Dance Styles, Featured, Interviews, News and Events, Performing | Who's talking about this article?

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Tap Classics: Frank Condos and 5-Count Wings

Tristan Bruns — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 13:30:57 +0000

Many steps straddle the line between “flash” and “rhythm” steps, but unique amongst the aerial steps are wings. To quote Marshal and Jean Stearns in Jazz Dance, “The Wing, with its combination of taps with an upward spring, holds two opposing impulses in balance, creating a dramatic fusion which can be thrilling.”

In the 1920s, wings were all the rage, and many variations existed. The Pump, the Pendulum, the Saw, the Double Back… like time steps, most dancers had a signature wing variation.

Gibson's New Standard Theater, Philadelphia, PA, circa 1919

But there was one variation in particular that caught the public’s attention, and it was the 5-count wing, created by Frank Condos.

The step gave him and his partner Mateo Olvera, billed as the more memorable moniker of King and King, that earned them the title as “the greatest of all Wing teams.”

Basically, the 5-count wing is a shuffle and a wing done without any break in the rhythm and can be enunciated as shuh-full-and-a-wing. This may seem like no great feat, but at the time, tap dance was just getting off of flat feet and up onto the toes. While a respectable wing usually had dancers getting three inches off of the ground, Condos and Olvera were getting five or six inches of lift.

“There wasn’t many teams copying Mattie and me,” says Condos, “because we did those Wings faster than anybody else.”

Frank Condos grew up working in his father’s restaurant, the Standard Restaurant, across the street from the Standard Theatre in Philadelphia. It was while running orders to the theatre that Frank was exposed to the best Negro acts in Vaudeville, class acts like Covan and Ruffin and Buck and Bubbles. It wasn’t until he saw The Three Eddies, which featured dancer Chick Horsey, whose specialty was the wing, that Frank got the idea for what would become the act of King and King.

After his split with Olvera, Condos formed the team of The Condos Brothers with his brother Nick, whom he trained in his trademark step. Later, he would train his other brother Steve, who would take his place in the group after Frank Condos’ retirement from performing in 1937.

Nick and Steve Condos went on to have illustrious careers, stars of both stage and screen. But it all started with Frank Condos, whose daring and innovative spirit is felt even today as tap dancers continue his legacy of pushing the art form to its creative and physical limits.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5clBG8-elU

(The Condos Brothers, Nick and Steve Condos. See Steve hitting their signature 5 count wings at 2:15.)

More Tap Classics:

Tap Classic: Jimmy Slyde and his Signature Sliding

© Tristan Bruns for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Dancing, Featured, History of Dance, Tap, Terminology | Who's talking about this article?

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Tap Classic: Jimmy Slyde and his Signature Sliding

Tristan Bruns — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 13:25:48 +0000

Sliding has long been a very popular move as it gives the impression that the dancer is off-balance and could fall at any minute, like a juggler trying not to drop his pins.

The ease at which this step garners “ooos” and “ahhhs” makes sliding an appealing step for tap dancers, but few tap dancers have as broad an appeal as Dr. Jimmy Slyde, whose popularity is in part due to his signature move: his slides.

While no two slides were ever exactly the same, his technique, grace, and laid back composure made his brand of sliding unmistakable.

The novelty of the slide comes from the illusion that the floor has somehow slicked, replaced with an invisible, icy layer. This is accomplished by jumping in the air and sliding one or both feet, usually flattened by pressing the heel into the floor. The tricky part is adjusting to the disorientation of momentary weightlessness.

Especially difficult is sliding a single leg inward, towards the center of the body, or outward, to the side. It is difficult because (...)

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Talking Fusion, SYTYCD, and Futures with Dwight Rhoden

Nichelle (admin) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 13:24:52 +0000

Did you know, dear Reader, that in addition to Dance Advantage I write about dance happening in Houston? If you follow me on Twitter or perhaps Facebook, you may.

This Friday, October 14 Houston’s Society for the Performing Arts will present Complexions Contemporary Ballet, the 17-year-old company founded by former Ailey dancers Desmond Richardson and Dwight Rhoden.

You may also know their work from So You Think You Can Dance:

I previewed the event for Dance Source Houston. The interview with Dwight Rhoden below… ahem, rocks! And I wanted to share it with you. Enjoy!

Rise. Photo by Jae Man Joo.

Complexions Contemporary Ballet Ready to Rock Houston

What does a dance company have in common with U2, one of rock music’s biggest acts?

With a big smile on his face, Dwight Rhoden quips, “I think dancers are rockstars”.

Rhoden’s New York City company, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, is about to rock… and roll through Houston on October 14 with a program that includes musical accompaniment big and bold enough to blow off the Wortham’s roof: The Rolling Stones, Roy Buchanan, “The Hallelujah Chorus,” and, of course, U2. The evening will close with Rise, a work set entirely to tunes from the Irish rock band’s catalog.

Rhoden gets no argument here about the exceptional qualities of dancers. However, as I see it, the troupe he founded with dancer Desmond Richardson in 1994 is like U2 in other ways, too. Both have accessibility and wide appeal, traits which some in their respective fields dismiss as if it were harder to be obscure. Both groups resist being bound by or excluded from the circles of commercial and “high” art. Both even have a frontman (in Complexions’ case, Richardson) who can command a stage like few others.

Now in his 40’s, Richardson is retiring as a touring dancer at the conclusion of this season. Still at the top of his game, he’s been Dwight Rhoden’s muse since their days in the Ailey company. On Saturday, Richardson will perform CLICK, a solo choreographed by Rhoden about a man at a crossroads just before everything “clicks” into place.

Below, Rhoden sets the stage for this new work, gives his spin on So You Think You Can Dance, and illustrates why Complexions exemplifies the times.

Dance Source Houston: Tell us about CLICK and its significance in light of this being Desmond’s last year to tour.

Dwight Rhoden: Desmond is a dance legend and a national treasure. His artistry is on a continuous quest to find more. He has danced and I’ve created just about every type of work one can imagine for him. At this time in his journey I felt the dance icon, Desmond should play with the music icon, The Rolling Stones. The significance of CLICK for him is he’s playing a character that is a bit of a clown and has many contrasting qualities. Like Desmond, it’s all about fun now.

DSH: Rise looks like a lot of fun. Was there ever any doubt that movement could compete with the anthemic sounds, lyrics, and familiarity of U2′s music?

DR: My inspiration for Rise was the anthemic qualities of the music. I never once had any reservations about creating to it. U2′s music rocks and it dances to me. I had a visual movement vibe in my head every time I listened to their music.

DSH: You’ve choreographed over 80 ballets for Complexions, not to mention works set on other companies. You must occasionally stumble into familiar territory during your artistic process. What do you do when you find that you’re repeating yourself?

DR: I have developed a signature style to my work over the years but I always try and look for new possibilities and a fresh take on things. However, when I feel I need to stretch more, I look to my dancers to help influence the work, as well as using basic tools of the craft of choreography and composition.

DSH: Your company dancers come from many different countries. How does this fusion of languages and diverse cultural backgrounds affect the rehearsal process?

DR: It’s always fun to watch the dancers at first as they communicate and try to understand each other with various accents. Our Associate Artistic Director,

Jae Man Joo runs rehearsal with his thick Korean accent, meanwhile the dancers are speaking Spanish, Italian, Russian, French. That diversity lends itself to a very interesting creative process. Everyone has such a different back-story, as well as cultural differences that can only bring dimension to what is being created. I’ve been around the world but feel I’ve learned so much from my dancers.

DSH: The work you do is also a fusion. Though billed as a contemporary ballet company you blend many dance forms. Is this the future of dance?

DR: I think it has to be the future. We have to keep pushing the form and continue to make dance relevant to the time we live in. The classics will always be around. They are still beautiful, necessary and are a part of our history that is the basis for how we stretch the form.

Artists have always made work that reflects the world around them. Desmond and I feel we’ve taken it a step further with the creation of a company like Complexions. We celebrate the differences that make us individually interesting, putting them all together and thereby creating that hybrid that is like our world today.

DSH: Speaking of cultural relevance, you’ve choreographed and appeared on So You Think You Can Dance for three seasons. What will those familiar only with your work on that show find different about your work for Complexions?

DR: I think audiences will find a greater level of diversity in the choreography, music, as well as being able to see an idea be developed a lot further. There is a depth that can be developed with more time. On SYTYCD you usually have only 1-2 minutes. And choreographing for the camera is very different than creating for a live audience.

DSH: I imagine that you sometimes encounter those who know your work on the show but are surprised to learn you have a 17-year-old dance company. Critics of SYTYCD see a failure on the part of producers and guest artists to leverage the popularity of the show for support of dance elsewhere. How do you respond to the naysayers?

DR: In my opinion SYTYCD….

READ ON at Dance Source Houston!!

© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Beyond the Bubble, Blog, Dance Companies, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Featured, Interviews, Modern/Contemporary, News and Events | Who's talking about this article?

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Tap Shoe Review: The Capezio K360 (Brazilian)

Tristan Bruns — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 13:33:13 +0000

About Shoe Reviews:

For my reviews, I personally wear, practice, and perform in the shoes. The demands that the shoes are subjected to are rigorous and must be considered when compared to the skill level for which the shoe is intended. ~ Tristan

Look for more tap shoe reviews in The Great Tap Shoeganza.

Capezio’s K360 (Brazilian)

I chose to review the Brazilian-made K360 on the grounds that it is the shoe that the majority of professional and pre-professional dancers will buy. Costing roughly $200 and up, these are the shoes you are more likely to find on store shelves and on the internet.

The Capezio website directs buyers to Amazon.com to purchase their “Kays”, and the only make available on the site is the Brazilian-made K360. An American-made pair is only available through select retailers, like Dancing Fair, and if you are lucky enough to find one in a retail store, be prepared to dish out up to $400 for a pair (taps not included).

VS

There is a heated debate among tap dancers concerning the Capezio K360 and where it is made. A dancer spends a good deal of time and money getting what is considered the Cadillac of tap shoes only to hear, “Oh, those are the Bazilians? I like the Americans much better.” Good luck getting them to tell you WHY they don’t like the shoe. I think and I heard are more than likely to accompany their lambasting lamentations.

I sat down with my tap shoe consultant, Matthew A. Shroepfer, to get the rundown on the actual differences between the Brazilian and American made Capezio K360.

Let’s take a look at the similarities:(...)

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Brand Spotlight: Capezio and their Tap Shoes

Tristan Bruns — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 13:27:09 +0000

Capezio

Photo courtesy Crossett Library Bennington College

Salvatore Capezio opened his first store in New York City in 1887, the sign above the door reading The Theatrical and Historical Shoemaker. Located diagonally across from the old Metropolitan Opera House, Capezio made a name for himself repairing pointe shoes for the Met’s dancers. Capezio tried his hand at dance shoe construction and, appreciating the challenge of combining his cobbler expertise with the complex engineering of dance shoes, Capezio made the transition from cobbler to shoemaker.

Today, Capezio is considered by many to be the leading brand producing shoes for dance as well as dance wear. What began with pointe shoes has now expanded to soft ballet, jazz, modern/contemporary, TAP, character and theatre dance, as well as offering a full line of bodywear, legwear and accessories. Though spread out across the globe, Capezio has kept up it’s homely pretense of being a “family business” by involving family members in almost every aspect of the enterprise. The company’s reputation for maintaining long-lasting professional relationships and willingness to produce custom orders for individuals is well known.

Capezio Tap Shoes

Receiving my first pair of Capezio K360s as a child felt like an initiation into the the larger tap community. At the time, all of the best tap dancers were wearing the K360, or “Kays” as they are affectionately called, and soon all the best tap dancers in my studio had a pair. The Kays were heavy, both in weight and in price tag, and pressure to use them was a task that I was delighted to undertake.

Photo by Metromoxie (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Recently there has been an undercurrent of disapproval for the Capezio K360. Claims that the quality has dropped while the price has risen has caused much movement in the tap shoe industry. Hearing the outcries of distressed dancers, other companies have stepped up to the plate to appease the rising number of tap dancers looking for professional level shoes, in particular Bloch and So Danca. Regardless, many dancers still stick with their Kays claiming that, while admitting frustration with the manufacturer, that the Capezio K360 is so far ahead of the game that it is still the optimal choice for advanced and professional level tap dancers.

The way I see it, a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. While the K360 may be the reigning king of tap shoes, we must not forget that they have an extensive line of tap shoes to choose from. As a professional tap dancer I always wondered if the shoes make the man, or vice versa, and the only way to find out is to wear them and practice in them myself.

For information regarding key terms, types of tap shoes, shoe making materials and shoe making procedures, please refer to the previous TAPography articles in The Great Tap Shoeganza, whose table of contents can be found at Introducing The Great Tap Shoeganza!

© Tristan Bruns for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Blog, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Product/Website Reviews, Tap | Who's talking about this article?

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New Piano Music for Ballet Class: A Little Patience, Please.

Nichelle (admin) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 13:35:40 +0000

Patience Clements is the company pianist for Charleston Ballet Theatre and has been accompanying dance classes for over 30 years, beginning when she was still a teen. She studied both ballet and piano growing up in Washington D.C. and attended Interlochen Arts Academy, American University, and Manhattan School of Music. Patience has played master and company classes for Nashville Ballet, ABT, Alvin Ailey, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Eliot Feld Ballet, Harkness Ballet, Susan Jaffe, Gelsey Kirkland, Jill Eathorne-Bahr, Paul Vasterling, and many highly respected teachers.

New Piano Music for Ballet Class is a series of four CDs of original music for ballet class created to provide proper tempos and accents for all barre and center work in the serious ballet class.

Ms. Clements sent two of her discs for review and I’m pleased to be able to share my thoughts on them with you. Either (and perhaps all four) would be great additions to your studio music library. Both are available on Amazon, iTunes, CDBaby, Asgard, and more. Our links to Amazon (click the pics) and iTunes can be found below.

New Piano Music for the Dedicated Dancer with Susan Jaffe

This, the fourth album in the series, is the result of a collaboration between Ms. Clements and former American Ballet Theatre dancer, highly regarded teacher, and choreographer, Susan Jaffe. Each piece was created for Ms. Jaffe’s class at her Princeton Dance and Theatre studio and later recorded in the studio.

Teachers will really appreciate the assortment of tracks for both barre and center, variety of tempos, and clear yet dynamic phrasing. Students will enjoy the diverse musical styles and almost singable melodies.

Most unique about the album is that a few of the compositions feature synthesized guitar or other string instrumentation. I personally like the change-up, knowing that students tend to respond favorably when given something a little out of the ordinary. But for those that prefer the more standard keyboard accompaniment, a duplicate solo piano version is usually provided side by side with the augmented track.

New Piano Music for the Dedicated Dancer has 35 tracks and is ideal for your intermediate or advanced classes.

New Piano Music for the Young Dancer

This album for beginning to intermediate dancers has 15 “Barre,” 10 “Center,” and 12 “Allegro” compositions. Though, as Ms. Clements urges in her album cover these may be interchangeable, everything is tidily arranged with plenty of lively tunes to keep younger or new students engaged and moving.

The tracks on this album are titled, conveniently giving clues about the musical style of each. There are Polonaise, Tango, Ragtime, Waltzes, and plenty of Polka. There’s even a hint of Broadway among the 37 compositions. New Piano Music for the Young Dancer features longer bands for beginners to fully explore each exercise and, once again, you’ll find tempos that are clear and appropriate for novice dancers.

This time, Ms. Clements’ Dance Advisor and collaborator is Kathleen Callaghan, artistic director of the Centennial Youth Ballet and a ballet instructor for the acclaimed dance program of Metro Nashville Parks and Recreation.

Looking for more class music? More reviews and recommendations:(...)

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© Nichelle Strzepek for Dance Advantage, 2011. | Permalink | Category: Ballet/Pointe, Blog, Dance Styles, Dancethropology, Music, Product/Website Reviews, Teaching | Who's talking about this article?

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I’m A Better Backpacker Thanks To Ballet

Guest Contributors — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:45:48 +0000

Melanie Doskocil is a ballet teacher, former professional, and writes over at Ballet Pages. You may recognize her name, as she’s guested at DA before with articles on managing stress as a teacher and a woman, and the realities and pressures of elite training. This time she investigates a lighter but no less insightful subject in the first of a series of posts we’re calling Ballet’s Un-X-pected Lesson Files. Enjoy!

Ballet has helped me be a better backpacker!

No, it’s not because I have better balance, or coordination, and certainly not because my body is stronger, or healthier, or more flexible. My history includes enough injuries that it’s surprising I can even hike, much less lug a huge backpack 15 miles into the wilderness.

Melanie on a snowfield in the Holy Cross Wilderness in Colorado

Actually, I’m a better backpacker because, thanks to ballet, I am spatial.

It’s not a typo. I did mean spatial, not special.

Though, any non-dancer who has spent time in the company of a group of dancers knows how “special” we dancers are!

We have our own language: a mixture of french, English, arm and leg waving.

We have no qualms about jumping up in the middle of a restaurant or other public place to demonstrate something funny that happened in class that morning.

We have little if any personal space boundaries with our dance friends, which often makes our non-dance partners uncomfortable.

We can be caught at any hour of the day, mumbling over steps and trying to solve choreographic problems.

We give up family functions and holidays because the show must go on, yet…

We’ll happily join you at the dance club after an 8 hour day of rehearsal, just to let off some steam.

Spatial Awareness

What I’m talking about is an extra sense that dancers develop from years and years of training.

Whether you’re a ballerina, a tap dancer, a hip-hop dancer, it doesn’t matter. We’ve all had to learn to(...)

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Dance Advantage » Dance Styles

Not Your Daddy’s Boombox: Pioneer STEEZ

The “boombox,” the first of which appeared in the 1970′s, reached its peak in sales and mass appeal during the early 80′s.

save for one particular population: dancers!

Enter the Pioneer STEEZ, a line of digital-age blasters, designed specifically with dancers in mind!

Tap Classics: In-The-Trenches and Over-The-Tops

Toots Davis is one of the unsung innovators of tap dance flash steps, and his contribution of the in-the-trenches step is testament to that fact.

In-the-trenches may be the most universally known flash step.

Protecting Your Toesies For Pointe

I started pointe at age 9 –

Even when I found “my perfect shoe”, I still needed padding.

History Moves: Using the Creative Process to Explore Dance History

The history of dance is far from dull and including dance history in your classes doesn’t have to be either.

To recap:

Let’s draw on those same ten ideas to outline two ways to practically include dance history lessons while going about the usual business of making dances:

1. Choosing Content.

2. Choosing Genre.

3. Choosing Movement.

4. Choosing structure.

5. Choosing sound.

6. and 7. Choosing alternate methods for coaching ideas and movement within rehearsal.

7. Choosing production elements.

8. and 9. Choosing your value system and Choosing your method for reflection.

How do you explore dance history in your classes? What recommendations for source material would you add to those above?

Tap Classics: Paddle and Roll Heroes, Lon Chaney & Bunny Briggs

Lon Chaney and Dr. Bunny Briggs did not invent the paddle and roll, but instead developed the step to its maximum potential.

No other dancer is identified more with the paddle and roll than another tap icon, Lon Chaney.

Confessions of a 30-year old Grade III Grad: Why Cecchetti?

As I pulled my pink tights and black chiffon skirt out of the back of my sock drawer, I wondered: Why, exactly, am I still doing this?

Why Cecchetti?

What The Ailey School’s Melanie Person Knew When She Was Twelve

The Nutcracker: Unwrapped

Hand-torn snow. 7,000 lbs of it.

Repair. Rebuild. Remake. Repaint.

Dressing the Cast

Making Theatrical Magic

So you want to be a…

Of course, what Nutcracker feature would be complete without a few stories from those who’ve seen it all?

More of The Nutcracker Behind-the Scenes:

Houston Ballet’s The Nutcracker By the Numbers

CultureMap goes Art & About and wants to know…

Team Sugar or Team Snow?

Tap Classics: Frank Condos and 5-Count Wings

More Tap Classics:

Tap Classic: Jimmy Slyde and his Signature Sliding

Talking Fusion, SYTYCD, and Futures with Dwight Rhoden

Complexions Contemporary Ballet Ready to Rock Houston

Tap Shoe Review: The Capezio K360 (Brazilian)

Capezio’s K360 (Brazilian)

VS

Brand Spotlight: Capezio and their Tap Shoes

Capezio

Capezio Tap Shoes

New Piano Music for Ballet Class: A Little Patience, Please.

New Piano Music for the Dedicated Dancer with Susan Jaffe

New Piano Music for the Young Dancer

I’m A Better Backpacker Thanks To Ballet

Ballet has helped me be a better backpacker!

Actually, I’m a better backpacker because, thanks to ballet, I am spatial.

Spatial Awareness

How do you explore dance history in your classes?
What recommendations for source material would you add to those above?