Category: dance

“The word ‘Ballez’ was born, initially as a joke. We thought, ‘What could be more ridiculous than downtown, queer dancers expressing their values in a ballet?'”

“Scarlatti felt overshadowed by his composer father Alessandro and so left Italy to accept a position in what at that time must have seemed the far-flung and distant country of Portugal.”

“Lately, the world of ballet has been scrutinized and criticized for two things: its lack of diversity and the paucity of female choreographers. Dance Theater of Harlem has the first one covered. This season, it will do something about the second.”

“New York City Ballet announced Thursday that it would focus on new and recent works next season, with a spring festival dedicated to dances it has commissioned in recent decades, world premieres by Alexei Ratmansky and Justin Peck, and, after a notable absence of new works by women in recent seasons, premieres by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and Lauren Lovette.”

Choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and theatre director Nancy Meckler talk about creating She Said, a piece about Kahlo that Tamara Rojo commissioned for English National Ballet. (Rojo had not, at first, expected to take the title role.)

The loss of funds meant staff cuts and a shift away from the performance activities that Heritage had supported, towards more of the creation-support and artistic-development activities the Studio had always done. “We really developed our services to artists more.”

“Dancers from all over the world compete in the international tour of Juste Debout in the hope that they will get the chance to battle in the preliminary rounds in France and perform at the finals in Paris. This year, for the first time, the judges are all women who have previously won in the four main categories: popping, locking, hip-hop and house.” (video)

“Since retiring last year from London’s Royal Ballet where he was principal guest artist, the 42-year-old has gone back to his native Havana to found Acosta Danza. ‘My country made it possible for me to become a ballet dancer and I want to pass that on too,’ Acosta told a news conference.” (includes video)

“Moving around often, Ms. Lang said, ‘does have an effect on the work I create.’ So she has spent the past few years looking for a permanent home. She said the space in Long Island City provided an opportunity for the company to settle down.”

“Did the Washington Ballet approach you?

“Oh, yes. And to be quite honest, the answer was no. We have a very happy, deep life here in New York City. Our children are thriving. It’s one thing if you’re really looking for something, it’s another thing if you’re perfectly content.”