List: 5 Dance Documentaries to Inspire Your Students
January 7, 2015

Dancers know that even the most thrilling fictional dance films (Black Swan, we mean you!) can’t compete with the blood, sweat, tears and drama of real-life dance. Give your students a burst of inspiration for the new year by recommending one of these always exciting—and true-to-life—dance documentaries.

First Position MPI Home Video; 95 minutes Six young dancers enter one of the world’s most renowned ballet competitions, the Youth America Grand Prix. Expect amazing talent, insane work ethics and last-minute injury drama.

 

 

Pina The Criterion Collection; 103 minutes The late Pina Bausch’s dancers and friends muse on her legacy as a pioneer in German dance theater and perform several of her visually stunning works.

 

 

Paul Taylor: Dancemaker Docurama; 98 minutes It’s an oldie (1998) but a goodie: Get a rare glimpse into notoriously shy choreographer Paul Taylor’s process as he creates a new piece for his company (the tango-inspired Piazzolla Caldera).

 

 

Every Little Step Sony Pictures Home Entertainment; 93 minutes A 5, 6, 7, 8! Find out what really goes on during auditions for a dance-heavy Broadway show as A Chorus Line’s creative team mounts the 2006 revival of the 1970s smash hit.

 

 

Jig Screen Media; 93 minutes Wigs. Fake tans. Tiaras. Welcome to the 40th Irish Dancing World Championships, where thousands gather in Glasgow for one exciting—and heartbreaking—week of competition.

 

 

 

 

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