All Blog Posts (40)

For three evenings in a row – April 26^th, 27^th, and 28^th 2012 – the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center in NYC was the venue for performances that concluded this year's Youth America Grand Prix. Launched in 1999 by two former Bolshoi Ballet dancers, Larissa and Gennadi Saveliev, YAGP has mushroomed into the world’s largest student ballet scholarship competition, awarding over $250,000 annually in tuition to the leading dance schools on the…

Three years have elapsed since Ballet Hispanico founder Tina Ramirez retired and handed the director's mantle to Eduardo Vilaro.  During this spring's New York season at the Joyce, evidence of his personal stamp on the company's repertoire and overall mission was evident. A product of Alvin Ailey training, the former director of Chicago's Luna Negra Dance Theater has a decidedly contemporary bent to his artistic choices. The Hispanic music and ethos are still evident, but the works – at…

Male Modern Dancers Needed

Opportunity:

Looking to hire 1-2 Male dancers for upcoming shows. Band of Artists is a performing arts troupe that explores tolerance through art and disability. Our current performance is "Intersection" and you can check out our promo video on youtube if you type the name Sutie Madison. We have, so far, 4 upcoming shows to prepare for which are:

Shows:

September…

The A-list of New York City's dance community came out in full force, not to mention glam attire, for the 2012 Martha Graham Gala at City Center on the evening of March 14^th.  Guest artist Diana Vishneva was the big name draw, but the rest of the dancers more than held their own during the brief but dazzling mixed bill that featured some of Graham's greatest works. What a joy to see this company, a true artistic treasure, looking so polished and exuberant after being saved not…

http://www.emilyyewellvolin.com

Gia Kourlas, a dance critic for "The New York Times," wrote a decidedly tepid review of a recent performance of "The Peony Pavilion" by the China Jing Ling Dance Company at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. She did manage some faint praise for what she flippantly called the "trippy" lighting and the costumes that created a "psychedelic universe," which she described this way: "Even when it's tacky, it's incredible." Yet she was not impressed enough with the dancing to say much…

Dear Dancers,

This post originally appeared on ThirdAge.com. The readers at that site are largely uninitiated when it comes to the dance world, but I thought you insiders here at DanceArt.com would enjoy my ballerina's eye view of the holiday ballet we all love and know so well. Feel free to add some "Nutcracker" memories of your own in the comment section!

Warmest holiday wishes,

Sondra

______________________________

"The Nutcracker" season is in full…

Among the awardees at the 35^th annual Mayor's Awards for Arts and Culture at Lincoln Center's recently refurbished Alice Tully Hall on Tuesday, November 2^nd 2011 was dance legend Mikhail Baryshnikov. He was cited for creating the Baryshnikov Arts Center in a once-decaying section of NYC's Hell's Kitchen. The evening's highest honor, the Handel Medallion, went to Broadway lion Steven Sondheim who looked and sounded far younger than his 81 years as he quipped that of all…

On Monday evening, I joined a bevy of NYC's dance elite and fans for "A Halloween Thriller," the 26^th annual benefit for Career Transitions for Dancers at the newly refurbished City Center. The audience, following the suggested dress code on the invitations, showed up in gala attire and elegant costumes. I opted for retired ballerina glam with a black sequined jacket, a long black velvet skirt, lots of sparkly bling, my hair in a sleek bun, and stage make-up. My date donned a…

Back in December of 2008 during my brief departure from DanceArt.com to the now-defunct Dance.com, I wrote about seven of the amazing ballet accompanists who play for some of the classes I take in New York City. The response to the post was so positive that I've decided to bring it back and add four artists to my original roster of those who know exactly how to inspire dancers. Many of the top-flight musicians on my list play from memory or improvise on the spot, feats that continue…

(First published on May 24, 2011 at The Mindful Dancer)

“creating without possessing,

acting without expecting,

guiding without interfering.”



~Tao te Ching (from the Stephen Mitchell translation)



Creating, acting, guiding, and (I might add) teaching without possessing, expecting, and interfering. This has been a guiding principle of…

The evening of June 14^th 2011 was unseasonably wet and chilly in New York City but the ebullient goings-on inside the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center chased away the gloom for the appreciative balletomanes in the audience. The occasion was the opening night of the Tuesday to Sunday run of mixed bills by the Royal Danish Ballet in its first New York appearance since 1998. Nikolaj Hübbe, a long-time and well-loved New York City Ballet principal dancer, has been Artistic…

Need a way to get more veggies in your diet?  Try this pasta sauce recipe that is adapted from the roasted vegetable sauce from The Essential Pasta Cookbook.  I make big batches when the veggies are in season (or on sale) and freeze them. 

Ingredients

4 large red bell peppers (orange works too - green works but looks way less appetizing in the end product)

1lb roma tomatos

3 sweet yellow onions

1 small eggplant (1…

As many studios and schools begin wrapping up the dance year, concerts, recitals and other end of year performances abound.  Here's a quick checklist for you during this hectic time of the year.

Venue

Touch base with the administration and make sure that everyone has the same dates / times reserved. When weather has been crazy, sometimes school functions will be booked over outside events and people doing the booking don't always remember to call…

Many dancers have the ability to hyperextend their knees.  The position of hyperextension feels straight to the dancer and breaking this alignment habit is hard to do. If you aren't familiar with the differences between hyperextension and straight, look at the pictures below.  The same student appears in both pictures, in the one on the left she is standing in what she considers her natural stance (hyperextended), the picture on the right is where she constantly corrects to now that she…