The Gallim Dream
Want to know why Brooklyn’s Gallim Dance is the new dream company? Read on for a sneak peek and meet the company’s core four dancers. If you can’t wait to get your hands on a copy of the February 2017 issue, then head to
dancespirit.com/digital
to download the digital edition instantly!
Allysen Hooks
Before Gallim
: Hooks studied ballet, tap and jazz at a competition studio, and earned a degree in dance from The Juilliard School. After graduation, she danced with Mark Morris Dance Group alum John Heginbotham. This is her fifth year with Miller, whom she met during a summer at Springboard Dance Montréal.
If at first you don’t succeed
: The first time she auditioned for a Gallim project, Hooks wasn’t accepted. But she kept coming back because Miller “demands so much of you in a way that’s more than just dancing. She wants to hear your opinions. Your heart.”
(photo by Lucas Chilczuk)
Gwyn Mackenzie
Before Gallim
: Mackenzie studied contemporary dance in Canada before attending SUNY Purchase. She started apprenticing with Gallim when she was still in college.
Why she loves Miller’s work
: “It was definitely vocab that I was drawn to. A lot of the work is about sensitivity and listening, and it’s not so form-based.”
What’s most challenging about dancing with Gallim
: “The rep is physically intense. It can get rough depending on the piece—each has its own pattern of soreness. So I’ve had to have a better awareness of what’s going on inside my body. The best counter: rolling out!”
(photo by Lucas Chilczuk)
Georgia Usborne
Before Gallim
: Usborne met Miller at Bern Ballet, where she danced until 2013. “When Andrea came to Bern she was so playful and open. You were trusted, your suggestions were heard. It was a two-way street,” Usborne says.
What’s most challenging about dancing with Gallim
: Like other members, Usborne says that Miller’s work can be exhausting. “It takes a lot of stamina, not just physically but emotionally. And when you’re developing that side of yourself, you become more vulnerable.”
What the work has taught her
: “What you put onstage doesn’t have to be polished, and you learn how to be OK with that.”
(photo by Lucas Chilczuk)
Paul Vickers
Before Gallim
: Vickers grew up dancing at a competition studio outside Chicago before joining a youth tap and jazz company. He got his dance degree from Loyola Marymount University in L.A., and freelanced for LEVYdance in San Francisco, and Mike Esperanza and Chris Masters in NYC. He joined Gallim in 2015.
On moving to NYC
: “Freelance work here is exciting, but also very challenging to navigate. I played that game for two years. I was exhausted. Gallim has given me the time and space to invest in the creative process.”
Why he loves Miller’s work
: “She allows each of us to be individuals, and to be so cooperative in the process.”
