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DANCE

“Nutcracker” Is So Yesterday. Meet “Graham Cracker”

In this version, Clara tries to get her hands on a coveted s’more during a holiday bonfire. She successfully sneaks one away, soon slipping into a sugar-induced hallucination, where the love between chocolate and marshmallow is forbidden, for their clans have been enemies for years. - WPFL

The Best Books About Dance In 2021

By chance, this year unleashed a profusion of memoirs about Balanchine and New York City Ballet. This ever-present magnet in our field is counter-balanced by stories about major Black ballet dancers. - Wendy Perron

The Best Dance Scenes From Non-Dance Movies

It's perhaps a cliché now to have the cast dance in some fashion, even when they're not in a dance movie like Black Swan or Dirty Dancing - but some movies and stars perform better than others. - The Collider

Florida School Called TikTok High, After Dance Videos

The videos featuring students – many of them uniformed athletes at Venice High School – dancing at the school with the staircase as their backdrop, as well as parody and reaction videos, have racked up millions of views in recent weeks. - Patch

A Dancer Who Doesn’t Look Like The Others

The 23-year-old has returned to dance from injury and uses his wheelchair and crutches to perform. He said it should be easier for others like him to enter the profession in future. - BBC

The Pivot That Got One Of L.A.’s Biggest Dance Centers Through The Pandemic

"In August, the Los Angeles-area stalwart the Lab closed its dance space, a 12,000-square-foot location. … Instead, it has transformed from a dance studio into a 'creative agency and lifestyle brand,' as its website says — a feat of survival, and a strategic one." - The New York Times

The Choreographer Who Designs Movement For People To Use Computers With

Lins Derry "is one of the world's foremost experts on the design of choreographic interfaces: the practice of using carefully designed bodily motions (think: using 'pinch-to-zoom' or swiping right or left on your mobile device) to bring humans and computers into productive dialogue." - Dance Magazine

Why Sexual Grooming And Abuse Seem To Happen So Often In Ballet

"Unfortunately, ballet's rigid hierarchy, job scarcity and conditioning of dancers to be compliant makes it a comfortable environment for perpetrators to thrive in." Kathleen McGuire examines how it happens and what might be done to prevent it. - Pointe Magazine

It’s Been Ten Years Since Robert Battle Took Over Leading Alvin Ailey Company

“The knee-jerk thing is to overcorrect,” he continued. “But sometimes you need to double down in your mission. Sometimes you have to think about what doesn’t change, what shouldn’t change.” - The New York Times

After 30 Years, Director Of Australia’s Flagship Indigenous Dance Company Is Stepping Down

Stephen Page became artistic director of Bangarra Dance Theatre in 1991, two years after its founding, and has led it to awards and acclaim throughout Australia and overseas. The 56-year-old Page will depart at the end of 2022, succeeded by company member Frances Rings. - The Guardian

Dance Companies Rethink Asian Stereotypes In “Nutcracker”

The changes are the result of a yearslong effort by performers and activists to draw attention to Asian stereotypes in “Nutcracker.” - The New York Times

The First NFTs Of Ballet (You Knew This Was Coming)

Natalia Osipova of London's Royal Ballet is selling specially-filmed of three duets with fiancé Jason Kittelberger, who says they hope to fund a new dance company with the proceeds of the sales. - The Guardian

Keeping The Coronavirus Away From The Nutcracker

At the Washington Ballet, for instance, "Dancers younger than 12 will be wearing custom-designed masks to match their party frocks, clown costumes and mouse fur. These kids will also need a negative coronavirus test 72 hours before any performance." - Washington Post

A Surge In Ballroom Dance In South America. But…

Latin America’s ballroom scene is relatively new. It started in 2013 when a group of dancers began hosting vogue battles in Brazil, and has since spread to Mexico, Chile, Costa Rica, Argentina and Colombia. - The New York Times

ABT Taps Beyonce Entertainment Exec As Its Next Executive Director

Janet Rollé, general manager of Parkwood Entertainment, Beyoncé’s media and management company, will in January assume the role of chief executive and executive director of Ballet Theater, one of the nation’s most prestigious ballet companies. - The New York Times

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