Music with Latin flair Ashlé Dawson’s versatility has created plenty of opportunities, including a spot in the top four on “So You Think You Can Dance” Season 1 and a contract with Cirque du Soleil. Some of her favorite dance moments, though, were spent socializing. “When I moved to L.A., I went salsa dancing sometimes […]
Music for contemporary dance and improvisation Even during his studies at the prestigious School of American Ballet, Alex Ketley knew his ultimate goal was to become a choreographer. So after just four years of dancing with the San Francisco Ballet, he abandoned performance to follow that initial creative spark. “There’s something very romantic about being […]
Music for contemporary ballet Armitage Gone! Dance director Karole Armitage at work Nicknamed the “punk ballerina,” Karole Armitage, artistic director of Armitage Gone! Dance, makes work rooted in the ballet vocabulary, accented with modern’s grounded, off-kilter sensibilities. It’s a taste she developed from her contrasting performance career with the Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève […]
Shifting between hard-hitting jazz and gooey contemporary movement, borrowing modern dance’s bare feet and layering character portrayals as bold as those found on Broadway, Al Blackstone’s choreography samples several techniques. “I always like to tell the story that my mom, dad and sister were truly my teachers because they surrounded me with the different styles […]
Music for modern and contemporary choreography Zoe Scofield After training at Walnut Hill School for the Arts and working with several modern dance choreographers, Zoe Scofield called it quits. “I had so much Balanchine training in my body, but I didn’t feel like a ballet dancer anymore. And on the other hand, I couldn’t find […]
Music for rhythm tap When Mike Minery’s students enter Wednesday tap class at For Dancers Only in Little Falls, New Jersey, they already know what technique drills are coming. “Soon after I first started teaching, I realized I was just coming up with combinations. I wasn’t really teaching technique,” says Minery. “Now I’ve made an […]
Music for ballet class At first glance, Arturo Fernandez’s ballet class seems like any other. But by the end of barre, the dancers have explored their complete range of motion, transitioning between parallel and turnout. In center, he asks dancers to change their facing and begin to use more expressive, contemporary port de bras. “Ballet […]
Music for street jazz dance Rhapsody James and her company R.E.D. Rhapsody James has choreographed for some of the music industry’s top artists: Beyoncé, the Jonas Brothers and The Pussycat Dolls, to name a few. And though she’s thankful for these successes, she admits that the work wasn’t always what she had dreamed it would […]
Soulful songs for contemporary choreography The versatility and quirk in Lauren Adams’ choreography makes her a hit on the convention scene. She attributes her success to a wandering imagination. “I get bored really easily,” she says. “I’m always looking to surprise and push myself, which also pushes the dancers.” That’s why Adams is always searching […]
Music to help dancers develop their personal movement voices The first year of college can be a struggle for dancers because their beliefs on technique and movement are often flipped upside down. “College is really about deprogramming them,” says Kiesha Lalama, associate jazz professor at Point Park University in Pittsburgh. “A lot of freshmen come […]