Luna Dance & Creativity (formerly Luna Dance Institute), a nonprofit organization based in Berkeley, California, is one of a kind. Founded by Patricia Reedy in 1992, Luna exists to bring creativity, equity, and community to every child’s life through the art of dance. The institution accomplishes its mission through a myriad of ways—in-house studio classes, partnerships with K–12 public schools, parent–child programs for reunification in the welfare system, research and advocacy in the dance field, professional learning opportunities for educators around the globe, and more. Luna has reached over 500,000 children since its founding three decades ago, and it hopes […]

In this video, writer and mental health advocate Kathleen McGuire Gaines and Dr. Elizabeth Hutter, school principal of New Ballet in San Jose, California, and president of the American Psychological Association, discuss how to help your students cope with performance anxiety, unpack your personal self-criticism, and manage the day-to-day stresses that come with teaching. The post Watch DT+ Teacher Talk: “Managing Perfectionism and Performance Anxiety” appeared first on Dance Teacher.

The post Managing Perfectionism and Performance Anxiety appeared first on Dance Teacher.

Listening to Dr. E. Macias describe her approaches to teaching and performing, a certain word keeps appearing: “collaboration.” Whether it’s a lecture course at the University of California, Irvine, or a solo performance she’s creating, Macias is “activating connections.” This includes connections between humans and more-than-humans, meaning animals, atmospheric elements, and land.  Macias’ investment in collaboration informs every aspect of her teaching: from the knowledge she shares to how she shares this information. Traditionally, in lecture courses, faculty members are expected to be experts on a topic, like “dance history,” and to speak about a range of styles and time […]

Conceived and choreographed by S. Premnath, the performance abides by the aesthetic values set up by Rukmini Devi at Kalakshetra.

Premiered 12 years, the production sustains interest with its visualisation and music.

Picture this: You’re a studio owner busy teaching a class when a grandparent trips on some unsecured carpeting during drop-off. Or maybe some dancers lean on and accidentally crack the mirror, so now you need to replace it. Or perhaps a student is injured while trying a trick in class and is blaming the teacher.  In any of these scenarios, an important question is: Do you have liability insurance to cover the costs of defending yourself and settling any claims? “Even when the school or the instructor is not at fault, you still have the stress of finding an attorney, […]

Jazz dance is in Nan Giordano’s blood—and so is leadership. In her four decades at the helm of Giordano Dance Chicago, the company founded by her father, jazz luminary Gus Giordano, she’s worked hard to balance legacy with innovation. “We stand on the foundation my father built, but we don’t live in the past,” she says. “We honor the history, embrace the present, and push it forward.”  This mission was evident at GDC’s spring season in Chicago this year, April 4–5. SOARING: Life, Light, and Legacy featured new works by Giordano, associate artistic director Cesar G. Salinas, and resident choreographer […]