This article originally appeared in the Culture section of Bloomberg News on September 28, 2007. Sept. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Everyone who cares about classical ballet eagerly awaits the next great choreographer. But major dance-making talents are few and far between. The ``New Ballet'' program of chamber-scale pieces unveiled Sept. 27 at Columbia University's Miller Theater just rammed that point home. George Steel, the energetic director of the Miller, a performing-arts venue with ambitious and inventive programming, is determined to include … [Read more...]

This article originally appeared in Voice of Dance (http://www.voiceofdance.org) on September 27, 2007. New York Baroque Dance Company, with Company XIV and Concert Royal: "Points of Departure" / Mark Morris Dance Center, James and Martha Duffy Performance Space / Brooklyn, NY / September 21, 22, 28, and 29, 2007 New York Baroque Dance Company in Seth Williams's Point of Departure. Photo by Chris Woltmann. First it happened in the world of cookery--fusion cuisine replaced the more single-minded foreign cuisine as the next new thing. And … [Read more...]

This article originally appeared in Voice of Dance (http://www.voiceofdance.org) on September 21, 2007. Big Dance Theater / Dance Theater Workshop, NYC / September 19-22, 25-29, 2007 Big Dance Theater's The Other Here. Photo by Julieta Cervantes. Here's the recipe for Big Dance Theater's The Other Here, just arrived at Dance Theater Workshop after a February premiere at Japan Society and a tour including Jacob's Pillow. I don't think the auteurs of this dance-theater group, Annie-B Parson and Paul Lazar, will object to my going public with … [Read more...]

This article originally appeared in the Culture section of Bloomberg News on Sept. 17, 2007. Sept. 17 (Bloomberg) -- On film, swathed head to ankles in a tube of stretch jersey, the only bare flesh a face like an ancient mask and work-toughened hands and feet, Martha Graham dances ``Lamentation,'' her landmark 1930 solo that is the ultimate incarnation of grief. ``Lamentation Variations'' was concocted for the opening performance (significantly, on Sept. 11) of the Martha Graham Dance Company's two-week New York season. It follows the Graham … [Read more...]