For Ryan Corriston, James Madison University associate professor of dance, “everything about movement relates to play.” Spending his formative dance years at Anne Green Gilbert’s Seattle-based Creative Dance Center shaped his relationship to play, he says, as did a childhood of sports and “running around in the woods,” along with dancing. But Corriston says that […]
Dear Dance Colleagues, As a dance teacher, so many thoughts run through your mind every single day. So what better way to take the pressure off yourself than by inviting your students to attend not just one but two masterclasses with New York City Ballet extraordinaire, Tiler Peck. In the final two classes of this […]
There’s a reason Gus Solomons jr used to begin his semesters at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with a “handstand day” for his contemporary students. “You’re training your body to do all it can do, upside down is just another possibility,” he says. “When you get there, you see the world differently, […]
Dance teachers are on the frontline of a dancer’s journey through audition season. Celebrating successes, navigating rejections, and formulating backup plans are just some of the responsibilities that many educators experience alongside their dancers. But audition season is also a vulnerable time for dancers who may be feeling, more than ever, the pressures of an […]
As a dance educator, it breaks my heart when I hear my students talk about how they were discouraged from pursuing ballet or jazz growing up because they didn’t fit the bill for what their teacher deemed an “acceptable” body type. The truth is, the words and opinions of dance teachers matter to their students. […]
Dear Dance Colleagues, DanceTeacher+ is now live—and you’re invited to join us! Whether you’re a dance teacher or a studio owner, you know that investing in your own professional development is key to inspiring and advancing the next generation of dancers, leaders and thinkers. With DanceTeacher+—our all-new informative and impactful digital platform—you’ll receive access to […]
These days, it’s not unusual to see the word “welcoming” in a dance studio or dance institution’s messaging or marketing materials. Indeed, as dance education evolves to recognize the ways in which dance studios aren’t always healthy spaces and have historically excluded certain dancers, creating spaces that are truly welcoming to all is a much-needed […]
If you’re a dance studio owner, you may have started to breathe a little easier lately as operations have stabilized after almost two years of pandemic upheaval. So news of “The Great Resignation” is disconcerting. More than 19 million workers (and counting) have quit their jobs since April 2021, according to McKinsey & Company, and […]
Teaching isn’t just what happens inside the dance studio. Thoughtful dance educators know that preparing for class—developing combinations, laying out a structure, readying their minds and bodies to teach—can be as crucial as the actual time spent with students. Here, five dance teachers from across genres and settings share how they plan for class and […]
Spacing students in formations for a recital number, corps de ballet ensemble or competition routine can be like solving a Rubik’s Cube. Not only do you need to make sure every student is seen, but you also need to account for what best serves the piece choreographically. Whether it’s considering your students’ confidence, stage presence, […]