Much more than a kerfuffle - it's about skill, rehearsal, and money. The half-time dancers "frame the action. And in a space as vast as a football stadium, that’s paramount. They bring structure to the stage; like a corps de ballet, they complete the picture." - The New York Times
The position of resident choreographer, while it does not exist at every company and varies between organizations, represents job stability, resources, and artistic opportunity for choreographers, who otherwise tend to operate as freelancers or gig-workers. - Dance Data Project
Jamar Roberts, who only stopped dancing for the Ailey company last month and who remains its resident choreographer, says that the new work is very different than he thought it would be in the spring of 2020, when it was supposed to have premiered. - The New York Times
“We’ve been told forever that what you receive from your teachers, you are then passing on to your students. And I think in that way we are losing the accumulation of new research and information. As the information changes, sometimes we stay attached to our old language.” - Pointe
"We came up with the structural pattern that starts the ballet!" said the choreographer, who had been moving around building blocks with his toddler while listening to Caroline Shaw's Partita for 8 Voices — which is now the work's score, with sets by Eva LeWitt (Sol's daughter). - The New York Times
Students are taught mindfulness, yoga, talking therapy - and coping techniques, such as breathwork. "The aim is to counterbalance everything else they do, not only in their training but in their lives; to let go of pressure, judgement, expectations." - BBC
The ritual of sema (as it's called) is meant to be a sacred meditative practice, and its practitioners are devout Sufis uncomfortable with commercialization. On the other hand, the Turkish city where they live needs the tourist money. - PRI's The World
Says dancer/choreographer JaQuel Knight, who founded Knight Choreography and Music Publishing Inc. to address the issue, "Over the past year and a half, so many of the biggest records were directly tied to TikTok dances. Those songs made millions. And the creators of the dances received zero." - Dance Magazine
Of course: "Field cast participants — aspiring dancers, actors, singers and musicians recruited from local drill teams as well as theatrical, community and athletic groups — are expected to be grateful for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." But wait; it's 2022. - Los Angeles Times
Dance Data Project founder Elizabeth Yntema: "The lack of artistic and leadership opportunities for women in ballet has been talked about for years. But since nobody was putting numbers to it, it was all anecdotal. … Without data, it's almost impossible to measure progress." - The New York Times
The series, titled The Real Dirty Dancing and debuting on Fox on February 1, will feature eight celebrities learning routines from the film at the lodge where the original was shot. - Deadline
Jodie Gates —founding director of USC's Kaufman School of Dance, former assistant to William Forsythe as well as admired choreographer in her own right, former principal dancer at the Joffrey, Pennsylvania, and Frankfurt Ballets and Complexions Contemporary Ballet — begins her term on August 1. - The Cincinnati Enquirer
"In her first two years as UCLA's choreographer, Bijoya 'BJ' Das has set the internet aflame with three viral floor routines. … Breaking the internet has become an annual tradition in Westwood, but … Das keeps the focus on something simpler: fun. - Yahoo! (Los Angeles Times)
"Copeland says she believes it’s her responsibility to tell the untold stories of trailblazing Black ballerinas who came before her. ... She wants aspiring young Black ballerinas and parents wanting to put their kids into dance classes to know that they do belong." - WBUR (Boston)
