“Fifth! Fifth!” Daniel Catanach shouts during a brisk tendu exercise in his advanced-intermediate ballet class at Steps on Broadway. “That’s ‘fifth’ with a ‘th’!” he adds, making several students’ tense faces relax into smiles. Watching Catanach in action, two things are clear: He’s all about precision, and he wants dancers to enjoy his class. He’s […]
On a sunny Thursday morning in Berkeley, California, Robin Nasatir leads her modern class through a classic seated floor warm-up full of luscious curves and tilts to the soothing grooves of Bobby McFerrin. Though her modern style is rooted in traditional José Limón and Erick Hawkins techniques, the makeup of her class is far from […]
It’s nearing 5 pm on a Sunday in February, and Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” reverberates through University of South Carolina’s volleyball gym, where the Carolina Girls dance team is rehearsing a Nationals routine. What’s most striking isn’t the dancers’ radiating energy or the team’s precise unanimity. Instead, it’s the complexity of the choreography—the weaving formations, transitions, […]
To a certain subset of the New York City dance community, Gail Accardi is known as the Body Whisperer. For her part, Accardi calls her work “creative physical problem solving.” Whether she’s leading her Anatomy Awareness class for dancers, substitute-teaching Simonson Technique, or working with a private client one-on-one, Accardi has a clear vision: “I […]
In Antoine Hunter’s jazz class, students inevitably pick up sign language just by virtue of being his student. Though he doesn’t typically incorporate ASL into his class combos, this dynamic phrase, which is one of his favorites, includes four signs: “heart,” ” re,” “gone” and “deaf.” How Antoine Hunter Teaches an Urban Jazz Center-Phrase With […]
The tripod (demonstrated by LizAnne Roman Roberts) is one of the more standard Countertechnique tools, designed to challenge the body to maintain dynamic balance while multitasking through multiple trajectories. Aptly named, the tripod works in three different directions: as the lower body moves down, the upper body moves up and back, eventually spiraling into an […]
Taught by Francesca Harper and demonstrated by Naya Lovell, this step borrows from William Forsythe’s quest to take classical movement vocabulary and deconstruct the shapes created. “Let the momentum at the top of the développé carry you,” says Harper, “and see how your body intuitively has its own response.” Francesca Harper founded her own company, […]
Stepping into arabesque from développé effacé is tricky, says Kelly Slough of Mark Morris Dance Center, because it involves “that moment of truth”: changing weight from one leg to the other in one movement. To make that transition easier, Slough encourages dancers to complete the weight shift as quickly and confidently as possible—as counterintuitive as […]
This partnering move is all about the weight transfer, say Chris and Lauren Grant. “It’s not about Hulk-Hoganing someone,” says Lauren. The flyer and base must keep their hips together throughout, so that the weight of the flyer can pour gently onto the thighs of the base, rather than just dumping. Christopher and Lauren Grant […]
Robin Dunn loves to teach the sexy walk in her beginner hip-hop classes, because it’s a basic step, yet students can put their own mark on it. Two key things to remember: Maintain a light bounce and relax the upper body throughout. “Another key thing? Put your personality into it,” says Dunn. Robin Dunn is […]