Travis Wall had a vision. He wanted to spend his days doing what he loves—creating movement—with his best friends. And rather than waiting for some director or choreographer to potentially make that happen for him, 24-year-old Travis took action. Enter Shaping Sound, Travis’ contemporary company. It’s stacked with 26 talented dancers who include the leading […]
Sam Wheat (Richard Fleeshman) and the cast of the West End production of Ghost:The Musical (Sean Ebsworth Barnes, courtesy the Harman Group) There’s no question that Patrick Swayze plus Demi Moore plus a pottery wheel equals one of the most romantic scenes in movie history—but what if they broke into a love ballad as they […]
Critics noticed remarkable similarities between Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker’s Rosas Danst Rosas, pictured here, and sections of Beyoncé’s “Countdown” video. (©Herman Sorgeloos) When the music video for Beyoncé’s hit song “Countdown” premiered last fall, fans were charmed, not alarmed, by its references to Audrey Hepburn’s zany dancing in Funny Face and its incorporation of popular […]
Larry Keigwin looks on during a K + C rehearsal. Every time they walk into the rehearsal studio, KEIGWIN + COMPANY dancers must wonder what the heck they’re about to become. Runway models? Birds? Aliens? Some bizarrely awesome combination of all three? Helmed by fearless leader Larry Keigwin, K + C has produced a string […]
The cast of “Smash” (Will Hart/NBC) First there was “Fame,” then there was “Glee” and now there’s a new you’ll-want-to-sing-and-dance-along show coming to the small screen: “Smash,” from executive producer Steven Spielberg. The show is about a musical composer named Tom (Christian Borle) and a lyricist named Julia (Debra Messing), who are working to get […]
Picture this: Three couples—one heterosexual, one lesbian and one gay—perform a whirlwind of passionate movement, with the dancers embracing, lifting and rolling over each other. Choreographed by Jeff Amsden for Broadway Dance Center’s 25th Anniversary Gala last May, their dance portrays that nerve-racking, exciting moment in a relationship just before the first “I love you.” […]
Try these exercises in preparation for intimate partnering work. If you’re feeling nervous about the “touching” part of partnering work, try these exercises from contact improvisation teacher Jen Abrams, who has taught at Dance New Amsterdam and other studios around NYC. They are intended to get dancers used to being close to and in touch […]
Contemporary choreographer Jessica Lang has a flair for the dramatic. Whether she surrounds her dancers with large, realistic set pieces or places them in a more abstract stage world, her choreography is passionate and the performers’ emotions are almost tangible. Lang, a Julliard graduate who performed with Twyla Tharp’s company, explains, “It’s not that I […]