Conversations on Dance

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The post (273) Houston Ballet’s ‘Sylvia’ with Stanton Welch, Connor Walsh, and Karina González appeared first on tendusunderapalmtree.com.

(272) Karole Armitage, Artistic Director of Armitage GONE! Dance Company Mar 01, 2022

Show notes

Today we are joined by Karole Armitage,Artistic Director of the New York-based Armitage GONE! Dance Company. Karole has had an extensive career as a dancer and choreographer. She began her professional career in 1973 as a member of the Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève, Switzerland, under the direction of George Balanchine. In 1976, she was invited to join Merce Cunningham’s company, where she remained for five years, performing leading roles in Cunningham’s landmark works.

She began her choreographic career in 1979, showcasing her unique voice in the dichotomy of classical and modern dance. Requests for commissions came in quickly once she started creating dance, from companies such as the Paris Opera Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, and companies throughout Europe. In 1990, she choreographed Madonna’s now iconic music video, “Vogue,” then went on to choreograph for Michael Jackson’s music video, “In The Closet.”

In 2004 she founded her company, Armitage GONE! Dance, which will be onstage this month at New York Live Arts. We caught up with Karole as she was at the studios between rehearsals to hear about her expansive career, stories of working with Balanchine and Cunningham, choreographing for two of the most prolific pop stars of all time, and about her company’s upcoming shows. Don’t miss “A Pandemic Notebook” at New York Live Arts March 16-19, 2022. Tickets are available at https://newyorklivearts.org/live-arts-plus.

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LINKS:

Cleveland School of Ballet:

Trainee Program Auditions – https://clevelandballet.org/trainee-program-auditions/

Summer Intensive Auditions – https://clevelandballet.org/summer-intensive-2022/

Join our email list: https://bit.ly/3basX5g

Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/conversationsondancefriends

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(271) Lynn Garafola, Dance Historian, on Bronislava Nijinska Feb 23, 2022

Show notes

Today we are joined by Lynn Garafola, dance historian and author of ‘La Nijinska: Choreographer of the Modern.’ Ms. Garafola is Professor Emerita of Dance at Barnard College, Columbia University. A dance historian and critic, she is the author of Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes and Legacies of Twentieth-Century Dance, and the editor of several books, including The Diaries of Marius Petipa, André Levinson on Dance (with Joan Acocella), José Limón: An Unfinished Memoir, and The Ballets Russes and Its World.

She has curated several exhibitions, including Dance for a City: Fifty Years of the New York City Ballet, New York Story: Jerome Robbins and His World, Diaghilev’s Theater of Marvels: The Ballets Russes and Its Aftermath, and, most recently, Arthur Mitchell: Harlem’s Ballet Trailblazer.

We talk with Lynn about her new biography of Bronislava Nijinska. Overshadowed in life and legend by her brother Vaslav Nijinsky, Garafola has written the first book to document the full scope of Nijinska’s creative work. Nijinska was a remarkable dancer in her own right with a bravura technique, a teacher, and a prolific choreographer, working with leading figures of twentieth-century art, music, and ballet, including Stravinsky, Diaghilev, Frederick Ashton, Alicia Markova, and Maria Tallchief. ‘La Nijinska: Choreographer of the Modern’ will be released next month, wherever books are sold. Pre-order now on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3BYWi1r.

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LINKS:

Cleveland School of Ballet:

Trainee Program Auditions – https://clevelandballet.org/trainee-program-auditions/

Summer Intensive Auditions – https://clevelandballet.org/summer-intensive-2022/

Join our email list: https://bit.ly/3basX5g

Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/conversationsondancefriends

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(270) Monica Stephenson, Miami City Ballet Director of Community Engagement Feb 14, 2022

Show notes

Today we are joined by our friend, Monica Stephenson, who just started work at a new post as Director of Community Engagement at Miami City Ballet. Monica is originally from North Carolina and is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and the Professional Training Program at the Houston Ballet Academy. In 2002, she received her first professional contract with The Washington Ballet. She went on to perform with the Dance Theatre of Harlem Ensemble from 2003-2005 before joining the Los Angeles Ballet as an inaugural season company member. Monica was previously a member of the Education Staff at American Ballet Theatre as both a Teaching Artist and the Project Coordinator for Project Plié, an initiative to increase diversity in classical ballet. An engaging dancer, teacher, and administrator, Stephenson joined MCB in January 2022 from The Washington School of Ballet where she served as Head of School for the SE Campus in Washington, DC.

We chat with Monica about leading The Washington School of Ballet’s SE campus through the pandemic, what brought about this opportunity at Miami City Ballet, what this position entails, and what she is looking to accomplish in the Miami community. To hear our first chat with Monica, tune into episode 141.

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LINKS:

Cleveland School of Ballet:

Trainee Program Auditions – https://clevelandballet.org/trainee-program-auditions/

Summer Intensive Auditions – https://clevelandballet.org/summer-intensive-2022/

Join our email list: https://bit.ly/3basX5g

Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/conversationsondancefriends

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(269) Olympic Figure Skating with Kate Penner Feb 09, 2022

Show notes

Today we are joined by our friend Kate Penner. Kate is figure skating super fan, so we decided to chat with her and have her to give us the run down on the sport to give us a better idea of what to be looking for during the 2022 Beijing Olympics. Throughout the discussion, we compare and contrast the sport with ballet. At the end, she answers questions that were submitted to us by listeners via Instagram.

As a note, this episode was recorded on Tuesday, February 8th, 2022. Since this has been recorded, there has been significant developments regarding drug test results from the Russian team that arose on February 9th.

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LINKS:

• Conversations on Dance Reading List, our favorite dance-related reads: https://bit.ly/3GFVWi8

Join our email list: https://bit.ly/3basX5g

Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/conversationsondancefriends

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(268) Colleen Neary, Artistic Director of Los Angeles Ballet Jan 31, 2022

Show notes

Today we have the pleasure of being joined by Colleen Neary, Artistic Director of Los Angeles Ballet. Born in Miami, Florida, Neary trained in New York at both the School of American Ballet and Harkness House for Ballet Arts. From 1969 to 1979, she danced as a soloist with New York City Ballet under the direction of George Balanchine and became one of his quintessential ballerinas. Colleen’s career path led her to Europe in 1979 when she became Rehearsal Director and Choreographic Assistant at Switzerland’s Zurich Ballet. In 1986 she accepted the position of Principal Dancer with Pacific Northwest Ballet, then returned to Europe in 1992 to spend a decade with The Royal Danish Ballet as Rehearsal Director, Company Teacher, and First Instructor in charge of productions. In 2004, she and her husband, Thordal Christensen, founded Los Angeles Ballet.

Today we take a deep dive into Colleen’s career, where she shares with us what it was like dancing at SAB as a young dancer while her older sister, Pat Neary, was in the company, her relationship with Balanchine, and her unusual path to join NYCB. She shares delightful stories with us about working with Balanchine and Jerome Robbins, and where her career took her after leaving the company. You won’t want to miss a moment of this chat, so we hope you all enjoy!

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LINKS:

• Jule Dancewear: juledancewear.com code COD15 for 15% off.

• The Rhode Island Women’s Choreography Project has released its application cycle for performances on May 21 and 22 of this year. Visit the website at riwomenschoreographyproject.com for more information and apply by February 13.

• Conversations on Dance Reading List, our favorite dance-related reads: https://bit.ly/3GFVWi8

Join our email list: https://bit.ly/3basX5g

Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/conversationsondancefriends

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(267) Megan Fairchild, principal dancer with New York City Ballet Jan 24, 2022

Show notes

Today we are joined by New York City Ballet principal dancer, Megan Fairchild. Megan was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, and began her dance training at the age of four. She went on to train at Ballet West Conservatory, where she was also a Ballet West trainee. In 2000, Megan continued training at the School of American Ballet and in November 2001, she became an apprentice with New York City Ballet. In October 2002 she joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet, was promoted to the rank of soloist in February 2004, and in January 2005, she was promoted to principal dancer. Megan made her Broadway stage debut playing the role of Ivy Smith in the 2014 revival of “On the Town,” which opened on October 16, 2014 at the Lyric Theatre. She received the 2015 Theatre World Award for her performance.

We chat with Megan about her origins in dance, her early years with the company, receiving featured opportunities at a young age, a quick rise through the ranks, dealing with performance anxiety, and returning to dance after having children. In 2021, Megan published a book, “The Ballerina Mindset: How to Protect Your Mental Health While Striving for Excellence.” Megan tells us about how the idea for this book came about and what she hopes that readers will take away.

Get “The Ballerina Mindset” at book retailers nationwide and on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3tV6LbW.

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LINKS:

• Conversations on Dance Reading List, our favorite dance-related reads: https://bit.ly/3GFVWi8

Join our email list: https://bit.ly/3basX5g

Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/conversationsondancefriends

The post (267) Megan Fairchild, principal dancer with New York City Ballet appeared first on tendusunderapalmtree.com.

(266) Robert La Fosse, former principal dancer with ABT and NYCB Jan 18, 2022

Show notes

Today we are joined by educator, repetiteur, and former principal dancer with American Ballet Theater and New York City Ballet, Robert La Fosse. Robert was born in Beaumont, Texas. He moved to New York City to further his dance education with David Howard at Harkness House and Stanley Williams at The School of American Ballet. He joined American Ballet Theatre in 1977, where he danced as a Principal Dancer for nine years. Then, in 1986, he was invited by Jerome Robbins to join New York City Ballet as a Principal Dancer.

Throughout his career, he has danced leading roles in a broad repertoire, including originating roles in Jerome Robbins’ works. In addition to his work in classical ballet, Mr. La Fosse has also starred in numerous Broadway productions. Robert works now as an educator and repetiteur. He currently teaches at American Ballet Theatre’s Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School. He has worked with American Dance Machine for the 21st Century since 2013 staging the dances from Jerome Robbins musicals.

Learn more about American Dance Machine for the 21st Century at adm21.org.

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LINKS:

• Company XIV’s Nutcracker Rouge tickets: http://goldstar.com/new-york

• Conversations on Dance Reading List, our favorite dance-related reads: https://bit.ly/3GFVWi8

Join our email list: https://bit.ly/3basX5g

Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/conversationsondancefriends

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(265) Welcoming 2022, with Rebecca and Michael Jan 11, 2022

Show notes

It’s 2022 and COD is back! We are ushering in the new year by celebrating some of the great things that friends of the pod have been up to recently, discussing the complexity surrounding dancer promotions, and how the change in the social media landscape in the past few years is affecting content that dancers and companies are putting out. Plus, we tease next week’s guest.

We have lots of exciting things coming your way this year, so thank you for tuning in and for supporting the pod.

In the beginning of this episode, we mention our close friend, Jovani Furlan, who has created a Go Fund Me page for help with family medical expenses. You can read Jovani’s story here: https://bit.ly/3FlnOpI. If you are able to give, that would be greatly appreciated. Please also feel free share the link with people who might be interested. Thank you all.

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LINKS:

Conversations on Dance Reading List, our favorite dance-related reads: https://bit.ly/3fl7F97

Join our email list: https://bit.ly/3basX5g

Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/conversationsondancefriends