A decade ago when David Wilson invited me to create the New York Dance Scene column for DanceArt.com, the Internet was in its infancy and many of you were still pre-dance students! Back then, before the turn of the last century, most of the major dance studios in the Big Apple didn't have e-mail access let alone web sites of their own. Dancers paid for class with cash or checks because credit cards weren't accepted. Now you can pay in advance online and then present a barcode tag to be scanned before class.

As for getting around town, subway and bus tokens hadn't yet been replaced by MetroCards. Beyond that, Starbucks establishments hadn't sprouted on every other street corner with coffee, tea, food, ambience, and free public restrooms. Times Square hadn't been transformed into a squeaky-clean, Disney-dominated playground. People had to use pay phones because cell phones were a rarity. Mobile devices for e-mail and texting were still on the drawing board.

What's more, as a Dot Com reporter, I had a hard time convincing the dance world that I was in fact a legitimate member of the press. Nowadays however, my Inbox is flooded daily with press releases for dance events all over town. People not only take the Web seriously, but no less a media guru than the publisher ofThe New York Times was recently quoted as saying "I really don't know whether we'll be printing the Times in five years. . . The Internet is a wonderful place to be."

Indeed it is! I for one am certainly glad to be here, and I'm especially happy to be celebrating my tenth anniversary with you. Speaking of anniversaries, there were several notable ones in NYC this year, as well as plenty of other news. Keep on scrolling to read all about it!
 

MOVING AND IMPROVING

NEWS IN BRIEF

• The Young Dancer Summer Workshop at ABT



Franco De Vita, Principal of the American Ballet Theatre's Jacqueline Kennedy Onnasis School, headed a stellar teaching staff that nurtured a select group of 9 to 11-year-old dancers in the company's NYC studios for the first time during the summer of 2006. This year there will also be a program on the other coast. The ABT Young Dancer Summer Workshop will be hosted in Los Angeles by the Colburn School. Click on the link for more information about the programs.




• Christopher Wheeldon's new company, Morphoses

  In January of 2007, Christopher Wheeldon, the prodigiously talented 33-year-old resident choreographer of the New York City Ballet, announced his plan to start a company of his own. Skeptics immediately chimed in with doubts about his ability to compete for sufficient funding, and other nay-sayers pointed out that his initial troupe is actually a pick-up company of international stars. The jury is still out, but I for one wish this courageous young maverick well in his brave new venture.
  
  
  

• New Conductor for the New York City Ballet

  Fayçal Karoui, one of the leading young conductors in his native France, became the new Music Director of the New York City Ballet. He made his debut performance to great acclaim as a guest conductor for Peter Martins’ full-length production of Swan Lake in January of 2006 and he continued to appear regularly before his appointment in December of 2006.
  
  
  

• John Rockwell retires as Chief Dance Critic of the New York Times

  In my 2005 Updater I bristled about various reviews written by John Rockwell, a former rock critic who was not in my opinion well suited to his new post as chief dance critic of the New York Times. Then in 2006, I deigned to give Rockwell slightly better marks simply because he had boned up on dance history in order to attempt to do the job justice. Now here I am in 2007 to let you know that Rockwell's brief tenure is over.

  Please welcome his successor, Alastair Macaulay, who has an impressive resume that includes a stint as chief dance critic of The Times Literary Supplement in London. Macaulay was the founding editor of the British quarterly Dance Theater Journal and he has served as a guest dance critic at The New Yorker. Not only that, but he has taught dance history at the university level and he is the author of a biography of Margot Fonteyn, among other dance books. Things are looking up!
  
  
  

• A Generous Gift to The Yard

  Founded in 1973 by Patricia Nanon on Martha's Vineyard, The Yard is a summer colony that provides residencies for choreographers and dancers. On February 1, 2007, I attended a gala reception in New York City honoring Nanon for her gift of the land on which the colony operates. The property is worth over two million dollars. When I spoke with Nanon, a petite powerhouse with an abiding passion for dance, she said the gift was meant to ensure that "The Yard will survive as The Yard." It is, after all, her legacy - and an illutstrious one at that. Along with such dance luminaries as Theodore Bartwink, Lynne Taylor Corbitt, Carmen deLavallade, and Lawrence Rhodes, I joined in an ovation for Nanon's life work and her generous contribution to the art we all believe in with a passion equal to hers.
  
   

• The 30th Anniversary of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs

  The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs is the largest public funder of the arts in the country, bigger even than the National Endowment for the Arts. On the evening of Monday, October 30th, 2006, I was privileged to attend the presentation of The Mayor's Awards for Arts & Culture in celebration of the 30th anniversary of DCLA. The festive event, held in the dazzling Frederic P. Rose Hall at Jazz at Lincoln Center, honored an impressive roster of awardees including the dance world's own Mark Morris. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg was a genial host after making a charming surprise entrance pretending to play a trumpet.

  “Tonight’s honorees embody why New York City supports the arts,” he said. “These individuals and organizations educate our children, support our artists, dance our dreams, stage our aspirations, and never allow us to forget the brilliant artists who have come before us."

  Also on hand was the Honorable Kate. D. Levin, Commissioner of DCLA. In her message on the agency's web site she points out that while DCLA funds large institutions, it also funds "some of the smallest startup dance companies in New York City." I know first hand that she's right. Ballet Ambassadors, the arts-in-education company I founded in 2001, received a DCLA grant in 2006 for our work with homeless children in the Bronx. Thank you, DCLA, and hats off to the agency that values the depth, breadth, and diversity of the arts in New York City!
  
   

• 80th Anniversary of the Martha Graham Dance Company

  Last year in this space I wrote about my former Interlochen colleague, Janet Eilber, when she took the helm of the Martha Graham Dance Company after the protracted legal battle that nearly caused the demise of that cherished American institution. This year I reconnected with Janet in person thanks to an e-mail exchange with another Interlochen alum, Kenneth C. Fischer, President of the University of Michigan's Musical Society. On January 27th, 2007, I attended a performance of the Graham troupe at the Performing Arts Center at SUNY Purchase College in Westchester where I had a chance to chat with Janet during intermission. The program featured Graham classics such as "Errand into the Maze" and "Diversion of Angels" as well as what was billed as a "preview performance" of a Graham revival that will have its official premiere later this year. Everything about the evening was world class, in particular the technique and artistry of the company's very fine dancers. How wonderful that this national treasure survived to celebrate its 80th season. The thanks goes in great measure to the astute stewardship of Janet Eilber. May there be many more seasons to come!
   

• 80th Anniversary of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

  

  There was plenty of dancing in the Macy's Parade this year including performances by the Ballet Hispanico School of Dance, Broadway Dance Center, Camp Broadway, Hung Sheng Lion Dance Theatre, Mike Miller Dance Team, the School of American Ballet, and the Universal Dance Association. In addition, dancers from all over the country were chosen to perform with the first annual Great American Marching Band, a tradition that will continue in 2007.

  On a personal note, I moved this year to 77th Street on the block across from the American Museum of Natural History where the parade balloons get blown up on Thanksgiving Eve. What spectacle that was! I'm already looking forward to next year.
  
  
  

• David Howard’s 40th Anniversary in America
  
  On November 19th, 2006, colleagues and students of David Howard shared a festive evening at Steps on Broadway to toast his 40 years of teaching in America. Truly a legend in his own time, David is beloved by everyone from adult beginners to principal dancers. His classes continue to be extremely popular. He gives a thorough, eminently musical barre that warms up the whole body. Some time ago, he added excellent floor stretches between barre and center. The center work includes luscious adagios, high speed petit allegro combinations, and fluid dance phrases full of stationary and traveling turns. He sets his combinations clearly but quickly so that the pace of his class is perfect. Also, he has superb accompanists. No matter what mood I’m in when I go to David’s class, I always leave feeling exhilarated. For the record, David is now teaching at Steps on Monday through Friday at 10:00 a.m.; Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 6:15 p.m.; and Saturday at 2:30 p.m. If you’re in town, don’t miss the chance to find out for yourself why we all flock to take class with the master!
   

THAT'S A WRAP

That's my Updater for this year, but before I close I want to congratulate two more of my Interlochen chums. First, Liz Lerman is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange which is based in the Washington, D.C. area. Click on the link to find out about her unique and brilliant work over the years. She's the recipient of a MacArthur "genius grant." After seeing her company perform at Dance New Amsterdam in NYC this year, I can understand why! Catching up with her over coffee before the performance was a real treat. As teenagers, Liz and I were among fourteen young ballerinas from the summer program at Interlochen who performed at the White House for President John F. Kennedy the year before he died. The choreographer for that momentous occasion was Sheila Reilly, and fittingly she is the second person I want to congratulate. She turned 80 in February. I can attest that she is as sleek and witty and inspiring as ever. Last summer, she traveled from her home in Milwaukee to visit me in NYC and she attended the Ballet Ambassadors performance at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center. What a joy it was to have her here. Happy birthday, Sheila!

A final thought: Although I started this column with a litany of what has changed in NYC over the last decade, I want to close by saying that what has remained the same is the joyous determination among all the talented dancers who continue to flock to the Dance Mecca of the World to make their dreams come true. In myriad and much appreciated ways, they help to make the city great.  To all of them and to all of you wherever you are, keep dancing!

Onward now to the next ten years of the New York Dance Scene on DanceArt.com!

Sondra