Category: Pop Culture
Austin Goodwin Uses Humor to Tell It Like It Is
You caught us. We’re undeniably hooked on Austin Goodwin’s flair for hilarious honesty about the dance industry. In one of his wittiest Instagram videos, he asks his landlord if he can pay rent with “exposure,” since that’s the form of payment he often accepts from freelance jobs. “How many times have we heard ‘Look, there’s…
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Dance Magazine’s Top 8 Stories of 2021
With its massive ups (live shows back in theaters!) and massive downs (COVID-19 cases and supply-chain issues canceling far too many of those shows), 2021 has truly been a year like no other. Throughout it all, Dance Magazine has worked to cover the trends, the changes and the inspirations that have kept us going. Here…
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From Billy Elliot to Bernardo: David Alvarez’s Journey to “West Side Story”
It was clear to anyone who saw David Alvarez in the musical Billy Elliot more than a decade ago that there was something remarkable about this teenager debuting on Broadway. Even at 14, he had a gravitas beyond his years. His dancing was both expressive and explosive—it said something about the character’s inner life, and…
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12 Holiday Gift Ideas for Your Favorite Dancer
As rewarding as it is to see the excitement on someone’s face when they unwrap the holiday gift you’ve given them, finding that gift can be stressful. When you’re shopping for someone who spends most of their days in the studio, gift giving can feel like even more of a challenge. Whether you’re looking for…
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Why Some Dancers Are Finding an Outlet in Burlesque
If you hear that someone’s a burlesque performer, you might call to mind Gypsy Rose Lee’s journey from vaudeville youngster to snobby stripper in Gypsy, or even the painted ladies of Moulin Rouge! Burlesque, however, is neither. And for the growing number of women who have found their way to nightlife performance from a concert-dance background, burlesque can…
Read MoreOur Favorite #FosseChallenge TikToks
Some things—like Fosse’s iconic choreography—never go out of style. One of the latest trends to take over TikTok is the #FosseChallenge, where everyone from pro dancers to amateurs are taking a stab at moves from Sweet Charity‘s “Rich Man’s Frug.” Even some original Fosse performers have been getting in on the action. In what seems…
Read MoreWhat Copyright Protections Do Choreographers Have Over Their Work?
When choreography is created, is it protected by copyright? Yes and no. JaQuel Knight is facing this question today in his journey to copyright his iconic choreographic work with artists like Beyoncé and Megan Thee Stallion. Thanks to U.S. copyright law, the process has not been easy. Through a partnership with the Dance Notation Bureau,…
Read MoreWhat Makes a TikTok Dance Go Viral?
Kara Leigh Cannella, a senior dance major at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, was scrolling through TikTok one day this fall, when she came across a sound that caught her attention. It was a 15-second clip called “HOOPLA,” by the user known as @kyleyoumadethat, and it instantly made her want to dance. She…
Read More12 Childhood Pics and Videos That Prove These Stars Were Born to Dance
When you hear names like Maria Kochetkova, Sutton Foster and Robbie Fairchild, you immediately picture flashes of them as the fully-formed, phenomenal performers they are today. But even when they were kids, they had a glimmer of their future star power, giving a glimpse of what was to come. Thankfully for Instagram, we’ve got the…
Read MoreLearn Center Stage’s Iconic Jazz Choreo From Susan Stroman Herself
If you’ve ever wanted to master the iconic jazz-class combo from Center Stage, now’s your chance. In celebration of the movie’s 20th anniversary, choreographer Susan Stroman is teaming up with Broadway Dance Center and Open Jar Studios to lead a tutorial on the infectious “Higher Ground” routine for the first time ever. Join Stroman, a…
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