Category: dance

“Although the ballet did not provide an explanation for letting her go, from the beginning, [Assis] Carreiro was a controversial choice for the role of artistic director. … Dancers wrote a letter to the organisation’s board late last year citing that 69% of them had voted no confidence in the artistic director. Eventually, one-third of the company left.”

“It is interesting to see any company in class, to glimpse behind the greasepaint and the glamour to see the sheer hard work and repetitive grind which makes onstage greatness possible. But it is particularly fascinating to watch the Mariinsky in action, partly because their dancers are so famous – but mainly because their style is so pure.” (includes video)

“In ballet, the muscles on the inside part of your legs work, but here you use the muscles on the outside of your legs. There’s a lot of pressure on the knees, which you don’t get in classical ballet, and you dance practically barefoot, which is also unusual. Lots of falling movements – when we were rehearsing we were covered in bruises, all beaten and battered!”

“Racism is less about what happens to you and more about what doesn’t happen to you.” As ABT’s Misty Copeland prepares to dance the White and Black Swans for the first time, she and several of her dark-skineed colleagues (including Carlos Acosta) talk about the challenges they still face (yes, including hate mail and physical threats) and the progress that’s being made.

“Officials at ABT said on Thursday that the New York company is donating its archives of more than 50,000 items of visual and written documentation to the Library of Congress. The donation coincides with ABT’s coming 75th anniversary celebrations.”

“Rayquan Perez is a 19-year-old dancer with 2Live, a group that performs on the 4 and 2 trains. He spoke to Brian [Lehrer] about what it’s like to flip and somersault through a moving subway car, and about the crackdown on dancers.” (includes audio)

“The Nashville Ballet is embarking on an unprecedented public fundraising campaign to finance an expansion project to grow studio space, renovate its Sylvan Heights headquarters and dramatically increase the number of students.” The campaign, called ELEVATE, “has already raised $3.7 million out of its goal of $5.5 million.”

“With performances during its inaugural season under its belt, organizers of … Ballet Latino de San Antonio, are working on the fall 2014 schedule as well as plans for performing abroad next year.” The company was established by the city’s ballet madrina, Mayra Worthen, who stepped down as Ballet San Antonio’s artistic director in 2011.

“The U.S. government’s lack of a proper infrastructure to adequately support the arts is matched by many philanthropic institutions that are often reluctant to support projects and activities beyond their own communities or outside U.S. borders.”

George Balanchine “had a very particular aesthetic. … As a result, great ballerinas in the American tradition (just like their Russian counterparts) are slender and taut. They have small heads, long limbs, and downward-sloping shoulders. They have tiny waists, narrow hips, and often a visible sternum. They are porcelain white. Then there’s Misty Copeland.”