Month: October 2024
Op-Ed: Should Dancers Say Yes to Every Opportunity?
The reality of a dancer’s life is often more complicated than what we imagined as young students. We must become not just powerful artists but also skilled marketers, social media managers, and self-care experts. This, coupled with the need to pay rent and buy food, can create a heavy schedule of work and art. Time…
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Monika Saigal on ‘Nourishing Dance’: Fueling your body for dance and life
There is a new book out that is a must-read for dancers, teachers and directors. It’s called Nourishing Dance: An Essential Guide on Nutrition, Body Image, and Eating Disorders by Monika Saigal MS, RD, CEDS, CDN. The research presented is essential to understand, but the best parts of the book are the practical, real-life tips…
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Op-Ed: How to Save a Doomed Geisha
The UK’s The Spectator recently published a piece by the Japan specialist Lesley Downer, historical consultant for the Northern Ballet’s 2020 production Geisha. In her essay, Downer wonders why claims of cultural appropriation so dramatically affected the reception of the work, which has not been remounted since its premiere. You can hear her frustration as…
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How Majorette Dance Became a Mainstream Phenomenon
At historically Black colleges and universities in the American South, the real stars of any football game are the majorettes. Their signature dance style, created by Black women and femmes, has attracted a cultlike following. It’s all about no-holds-barred spectacle, combining the precision of a kick line with the winking sensuality of burlesque, boldly embodying…
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Dancing at your desk: Mark Morris Dance Group and Breakthru create dance breaks for your workday
You’ve heard it before: most people don’t move their bodies enough these days. Office workdays are long, and the television calls once they’re done. (We all need to decompress, right?) Could the concert dance industry be part of making positive change there? Through initiatives like the partnership between Breakthru and Mark Morris Dance Group (MMDG),…
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