Paul Taylor at Your Studio
At Dancewave's Spring Celebration 2009 students performed excerpts from Paul Taylor's legendary work, Esplanade. Can any dance school request Paul Taylor repertory? Yes! And any studio can hold Paul Taylor master classes.
In order to restage a piece or hold a master class, contact Paul Taylor Dance Company General Manager, John Tomlinson. Paul Taylor personnel must evaluate a studio individually in order to license the rights to perform company repertory. Company members, members of Taylor 2, or alumni from Mr. Taylor's companies, (chosen by Paul Taylor himself) will stage the work or run the master class, and fees/expenses are determined on an individual basis.
Thinking of booking master-classes or reconstructing older gems?
Diane Jacobowitz, Artistic Director of Dancewave, gives advice for teachers:
· When contacting companies, it's helpful to know someone, or have a contact with someone who knows someone or used to dance with that company. The bigger the company is, the harder to make cold calls.
· Have a good sense of your own school when describing your students. Speak to the quality of your program, and show a sense of respect and knowledge of the company you contacted. It's good to be knowledgeable about the technique so you know if the classes your students take will be complimentary to the master teacher or company's style.
· Schedule master classes around times when the company is touring, or will be in your area in order to cut down travel expenses. This gives students the opportunity to see the company perform in addition to participating in a class.
· When choosing pieces for performances, have a feeling of what is important for kids to learn. Give them a diverse menu of repertoire, and give students the openness and flexibility to know the difference between different techniques.
· Kids are like sponges, and if you expose them to as broad a range of repertory as possible at a young age, they are mentally more open and their bodies can handle it.
To learn more about Dancewave, read DT's article "Reaching for New Heights."
Will your students be in the NYC area? This August, Dancewave will offer dance intensives for students ages 10-18, where students can participate in a variety of techniques and styles like ballet, modern, choreography, African, jazz and hip-hop. Spots are still available, and auditions are June 22 and 24! Students in the summer program can audition for the Kids Company's fall season. For more information, visit dancewave.org.
Photo of Dancewave students by Nick Sowards
