From the beginning of my training, I’ve worked with teachers who have a reputation for being tough on dancers. Julio Montano and Gissell Durand started my dance education at All American Dance Factory in Tampa, Florida, and were notoriously difficult to please. They were so strict that at times I thought I might never be […]
There are many dance teachers who have made me who I am today, but the main influence in my dance training is Risa Kaplowitz. She became my teacher in 2006, three years into my time dancing at Princeton Dance & Theater Studio with Susan Jaffe. For the next seven years, Risa took over my training […]
When Shuaib Dee Elhassan began his dance training at 12 years old at The Ailey School in New York City, he never imagined himself as a contemporary ballet dancer. “Ailey was all I knew—Ailey was the dream,” he says. But as he got older and was introduced to a range of classical and contemporary companies, […]
While studying at ABT’s Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School as a teenager, Complexions Contemporary Ballet dancer Andrew Brader shared a special moment with Susan Jaffe, who soon became his mentor. “It was the 10th-anniversary performance of the ABT Studio Company. Susan was coming out of retirement to do Le Spectre de la Rose, and I remember […]
William Forsythe teaching ballet class to BFA students It’s a good time to be a USC dance major. The USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance’s inaugural class of BFA students have some exciting opportunities coming their way this spring. Check out the agenda: – This month, students learned technique and repertory from RUBBERBANDance artistic director […]
Now in her fourth season with Complexions Contemporary Ballet, Ashley Mayeux values co-artistic director Desmond Richardson’s hands-on help with tricky partnering. “I can always count on Des to come in and try movement with me. Then, I can go back and tell my partner, ‘OK he’s doing this, and it really works for me.’ Desmond […]