As a musical-theater teacher, Rachel Leigh Dolan feels a certain obligation to honor the music she’s using in class. After all, it’s right in the name of the genre, she points out. “I take that label seriously,” she says. “There’s never a time when music isn’t intentional.”  That means that a song is always her starting point for any combo or bigger piece of choreography. But the deliberate hand-picking of tracks really begins with the warm-up playlist that she uses for all of her classes at Steps on Broadway and Pace University. As a long-time yoga teacher, Dolan designed it […]

The ballet studio has historically had rigid gender-normative standards. But making it a space where artists of all genders feel affirmed and respected in their identities will only enrich the art form. “I think to have an interesting future for ballet requires developing creative humans that can play,” says educator and Ballez founder Katy Pyle. “Can we all imagine a future where we have the most talented dancers onstage and not just the dancers that fit into the archetypes that have been prescribed from history?”  There are concrete steps the people at the front of the room can take to make […]

Kavyaa chose the timeless ragamalika varnam composed by Dandayudapani Pillai to convey the angst of the Virahotkanditha nayika.

Mumbai-based Noel Alexander, who has his roots in Kerala, is overwhelmed by the response for the video

As a member of the ground-breaking dance collective Judson Dance Theater in the 1960s, Trisha Brown carved out a reputation as a highly innovative choreographer. Over six decades, she created a diverse body of more than 100 works, using a process-oriented approach and rule-based structures. Born in Aberdeen, Washington, Brown studied ballet, tap, jazz and acrobatics as a child. After receiving a dance degree from Mills College in 1958, she taught at Reed College in Portland, Oregon. In 1960, she attended pioneering dance artist Anna Halprin’s summer workshop near San Francisco. She was inspired by Halprin’s use of structured improvisation. […]

Natalia Gonzalez sets the tone for every Miami HEAT dancer’s audition by reminding hopefuls that each “no” is a chance to learn and improve. Gonzalez would know—she auditioned for the team four times before making it. Originally from Miami, Gonzalez grew up dancing ballet before attending New World School of the Arts. It was there, she says, that she realized dance was something she could do for the rest of her life. After school, Gonzalez took a handful of professional dance jobs and toured with performing artists before deciding to build her dance career in her hometown.  Four auditions, four […]

As a teen, I vividly remember struggling with focus in dance classes. Whether learning combinations or receiving generalized feedback, my mind would zigzag in and out of the studio. Realizing I was no longer mentally present, I would panic, fearing my teachers would notice or I was stunting progress. Yet, somehow, once beckoned to dance, my anxiety would subside and I became laser-focused, recalling exercises, counting music, and applying corrections all at once. In hindsight, signs I had attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were clear. Still, it took nearly 25 more years to stumble upon my diagnosis. I believe we best […]

An ambitious new exchange between the Rambert School in London and The Juilliard School in New York City will give students the chance to experience different training methods and styles. The culmination of this collaboration will be a world premiere by British choreographer Wayne McGregor, to be performed in London in May 2026 by students from each school (19 from Juilliard and 15 from Rambert School).        The Rambert–Juilliard partnership will unfold in three phases. First, students on their respective campuses will work with artists from Studio Wayne McGregor, creating original works to be performed at their respective schools. Juilliard will […]