Teaching
He’s the One
Broadway Knight Michael Bennett
A dancer’s ornamentally unfurling arms and catlike spine develop under a spotlight. Alone in a dark, empty space, she watches her haloed dancing figure in a mirrored triptych, whose three panels resemble … Continue reading
Get Real
At every competition or performance, there’s always one dancer who stands out—for all the wrong reasons. She has strong technique and a nice facility, but her exaggerated facial expressions are less than winning. Her mugging … Continue reading
Collaborative Curriculum
In Minnesota, dance educators swap lessons online.
In the 1980s, Minnesota governor Rudy Perpich and his wife Lola dreamed of creating a performing arts school, à la the “Fame” high school in New York City. Because … Continue reading
John Bubbles
The soul of rhythm tap
John Bubbles entered the Hoofers Club for the first time in 1920 when he was just 18 years old. Already a singer, he had hopes of becoming a dancer, too, and … Continue reading
Recommended: Leaps in the Dark: Art and the World
Leaps in the Dark: Art and the World
by Agnes de Mille
edited by Mindy Aloff
University Press of Florida, 2011
Though Agnes de Mille (1905–1993) is best known for her work on the stage—especially her … Continue reading
Stepping In
For Laura Young, a former Boston Ballet principal who teaches at the Boston Ballet School in Newton, Massachusetts, the request to substitute often occurs in the form of an emergency phone call. Instantly, her mind … Continue reading
