A website for dancers, dance teachers and others interested in dance
If you are a Twitter user, the hashtag is your friend.
Hashtags are the # symbol, and on Twitter they are used to mark a certain subject for a search. For example, if I were to do this: #dance, it would categorize my tweet under dance in a search for that subject. While it doesn’t guarantee that people will find your tweets–it can really help!
Want to learn the details? Take a look at the Twitter page that gives you all the details.
Join us here at 4dancers over the next few weeks for a closer look at some of the people involved with the USA International Ballet Competition.
We’ll be talking with a competitor 2010 as well as others. If you have not yet heard of this wonderful event…take a closer look…
In this two-week, “olympic-style” competition; tomorrow’s stars vie for gold, silver and bronze medals; cash awards; company contracts; and scholarships. The event is designated as the official international ballet competition in the United States by a Joint Resolution of Congress. Presented under the auspices of the International Dance Committee, International Theatre Institute of UNESCO, the USA IBC is held every four years in Jackson, Miss., in the tradition of sister competitions in Varna, Bulgaria, and Moscow, Russia.
Professional and amateur dancers of all nationalities compete in two divisions: Junior Division (ages 15-18) and the Senior Division (ages 19-26).
For more information about USA IBC, visit www.usaibc.com or join their Facebook community.
Check back for the first interview this week with 2010 competitor, Elisa Toro Franky.
Today we have with us Meg Mahoney, a dance educator…
1. Can you tell readers how you became involved in dance and a bit about your background?
I started dancing late (18), when I was at Carleton College, an academically-focused school, majoring in Asian Studies. Dance was part of the PE department, but it was an inspiring class — taught by a professional dancer, Linda Osborne, who commuted from the Twin Cities. Linda danced in a company lead by Margret Dietz, a fabulously inspiring woman who had danced with Mary Wigman in Germany, and whose circle of students I joined. Unfortunately, Margret died in ’72, just after I graduated. I spent some time soaking up inspiration from her company while they were still together, but from there I moved to an artists’ community in Washington State, where I taught, choreographed & did some performing.
Think early 70s… a picturesque little town, an artsy community, funky jobs, bartering garden produce & art for food & services… add some hippie-looking folks to the picture & you’ll get the idea. I took classes and workshops wherever I was and whenever I could. Eventually I emerged & spent a year in NYC getting certified as a movement analyst at the Laban/Bartenieff Institute and then moved to Seattle, where I spent ~7 years teaching creative movement, modern, tap & what-have-you at private studios & preschools in Seattle.
Just after we started a family, my husband & I took a 2-year hiatus in Japan (oh my gosh, we’ve settled down?). After returning, I decided to give up teaching dance and get certified as a teacher (health benefits… consistent pay… school-schedule vacations…). I was a classroom teacher for 4 years, and then I found myself happily building a dance program in my current location, where I’ve been the only full-time dance specialist in Seattle School District for the last 10 years or so.
2. Do you have a “dance philosophy”?
Hmmm… not really! Dance is a prism with a kajillion facets, all of them fascinating… But at various decision-making junctures, I’ve found it valuable to identify my mission & a vision for my work. For a number of years, my mission has been thus: to build relationships, experiences, and exposure for children that guide them to learn, love learning, and live richer lives. That mission has played out in my professional vision — to build a dance program which uses dance as a basic component of education, supporting academic, social, emotional, and physical growth in children, and to expand the program by aiming for excellence, supported by contact with professional colleagues and my own professional development. Although both mission & vision are realities now, the “aiming for excellence” part makes for a forever-journey of growth & change, moving closer & never arriving.
3. You work in the public school system. Can you share a bit about the rewards and challenges?
Rewards: Watching the magic of dance work for all kinds of kids; seeing kids grow as dancers from kindergarten through 5th grade; empowering them to experience themselves as dancers & choreographers by the time they leave. And of course… a steady job; a salary; health benefits, insurance & retirement; a generous helping of vacations throughout the year that fit with a family’s schedule…
Challenges: Classroom management – I like bringing dance to every child in a school, but they’re not all there by choice or easy to reach! Isolation is a challenge – other teachers are great colleagues, but it’s different from collaborating with other artists. A full-time schedule is very consuming & less than ideal. Given a full schedule of teaching & other school responsibilities, it can be hard to take care of yourself physically (providing your own body with the warm-up it needs)!
4. How is working in a school different from teaching in a studio?
So many ways! I get to/have to work with everyone, regardless of their personal interest in dance. I get to/have to integrate other content areas. I get to/have to teach 30-40 classes per week, depending upon the schedule worked out by the school. I get to/have to work with boys & girls from many different cultures & income levels. The choice between “get to” & “have to” really depends upon your personality & goals. Working in a public school is the right place for me, because it gives me a chance to introduce dance to kids & families that wouldn’t have it otherwise.
5. Do you have any tips for those who will be teaching in a school?
Work on pedagogy & management! Understand the conceptual approach to teaching dance (a la Rudolf Laban, Anne Green Gilbert, Dance Education Laboratory at the 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Center). Cultivate your knowledge, skills & an appreciation for hiphop. Plan on building your own position…
6. Can you tell readers a bit about your blog—how it came to be and what type of content it has?
I started it as a way of reflecting on (and improving) my teaching through reflection – and in order to connect with professional colleagues – both of which are aspects of my professional vision (question 2).
7. Would you share a highlight from your dance life with readers?
All of my best memories have to do with moments of exploring new territory:
The common thread is the growing/learning I’ve always found in dance.
8. What has made dance such a central part of your life?
I’ll defer to the “Why Dance Matters” entries on my blog!
9. Do you have any favorite dance figures? If so, who—and why?
When I’m watching professional dance, I’m looking for great choreography & dancers who can bring it to life. A few choreographers that come to mind are Alvin Ailey (Revelations is exhilarating every time I see it), Mark Morris (he devises fabulous patterns with multiple dancers), Pat Graney (quirky, original, thoughtful), Paul Taylor (I’ll never forget the first time I saw Esplanade). And it’s for the choreography that I watch SYTYCD (once the audition part is over).
As for memorable dancers, they’re not necessarily trained & they don’t do tricks. What they have is commitment! I think of Elijio, the 6-year-old who drives me crazy in class but totally nailed a full-out performance with his 1st grade class last week… of a stately couple dancing on an outdoor stage one Sunday in Merida in the Yucatan last year… of my friend’s son Josh who totally stole the show when he took the stage in his high school production of Beauty & the Beast last week!
10. What’s coming up on the horizon for you?
I’m investigating knee surgery. Medial compartment osteoarthritis has pretty much side-lined me over the last few years, and I’m hopeful that a partial knee replacement is going to put me back on my feet this summer.
As for my teaching life, I’m always looking for ways to accomplish more with my students: more dance styles, better technique, greater comprehension, more videos of dance, dances from more countries…
Meg Robson Mahoney has been a full-time Dance Specialist at Wing Luke Elementary School in the Seattle School District since 1996. Previous incarnations include: reading and math specialist; 5th-6th grade classroom teacher; English teacher in Japanese middle and high schools; Movement Educator in private schools and studios. Honored by the KCTS Golden Apple Award in 2006 and as NW District AAHPERD Dance Educator of the Year in 2002, she served on the Board of Dance Educators Association of Washington for 10 years and continues work with the Arts Assessment Leadership Team of the Office of Public Instruction. Degrees include a MIT from Seattle University, Certificate of Movement Analysis from Laban/Bartenieff Institute of Movement Studies NYC, and a BA in Asian Studies, Carleton College. A mother of two, she lives in Seattle, maintaining a garden and a blog: http://dancepulse.wordpress.com.
Today’s “10 Questions With…” features Anne-Sophie Rodriguez…
1. How did you get involved with dance and what brought you to the United States?
When I was three years old, I started telling my Mom I wanted to dance. I had never seen dance, yet I knew that was what I wanted to do… She was able to hold me off for a few months but when she could no longer take my persistent asking, we went around to all the ballet schools in town. They all said I was too young, the minimum age being four. When we got to the last one, my Mom and I had a little powwow and decided to tell a little white lie and say I was four. When I actually turned four, we confessed to the school’s director who said she had figured it out but that I was doing very well and that it was fine. My family moved to the United States for my Dad to work in the Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area.
2. How was your ballet training different in the US as compared to France?
I was still very young when I left France so I suppose I can’t really compare the two that much. Of course, in France, I had French training while in the US, where I trained at the San Francisco and Boston Ballet Schools, I mostly had Russian teachers.
3. What project(s) are you currently involved in?
I currently free-lance so I am open to whatever comes my way! Last year, I danced with the Metropolitan Opera Ballet for the first time: it was amazing to be on that stage! Most recently, I have been performing with Janusphere Dance Company, a contemporary company, and compani javedani, a more modern company. My training was very classical so I am grateful that Sahar Javedani, Artistic Director of compani javedani, gave me the opportunity to go out of my comfort zone. She choreographed a beautiful solo on me and we plan to collaborate again soon.
Other than dancing myself, I also teach. I give private lessons as well as coach for the Ellison Ballet Professional Training Program. The school was founded by Edward Ellison, my coach and mentor who shares my main teacher from San Francisco Ballet School, Larisa Sklyanskaya. EBPTP just concluded its fourth year and most of the graduates have gone on to professional contracts in a time when jobs are hard to come by. Coaching is something I absolutely love, especially when seeing a tremendous improvement as I have with most of the students I have worked with.
4. Can you share the best piece of advice you have ever heard in terms of dance?
My teacher Larisa had many great sayings including “Don’t try, just do” as well as “you think you are, but you’re not.” She taught us to use the mirror as a tool to make sure our feelings matched up to what was actually happening. Most of the time, it wasn’t but little by little, we retrained completely and started to see the improvements we thought we were feeling at the beginning. I think a great piece of advice in life and in dance is that you are responsible for your own thoughts and actions. No one is to blame for anything but yourself and, with hard work, you can do anything you set your intentions on.
5. What was your best moment so far as a dancer?
I can’t think of a single best moment as a dancer. I have loved every part of rehearsing and performing. Even when everyone got bored with the numerous Nutcrackers (up to 50+ a year in Boston Ballet), I always reveled in each show. I enjoy bringing characters to life as well as dancing the same steps that have been passed down through generations and making them my own. I also love having work created on me.
6. What has been your biggest challenge as a dancer?
I think my biggest challenge has been that most directors see me in class and think I am very classical and that that is all I can do. It is true that, since most of my training was very Russian, that is what comes most naturally to me, however, with time to get it into my body, contemporary work is very enjoyable and I feel it looks good on me as well.
7. What would you say to a young ballet student who wants to do this as a career?
In order to be a dancer, you have to be fully committed. Dance is something you have to love as it is hard work and not always easy. However, fully committed does not mean not taking part in life outside the studio. Your experiences and relationships will inform your choices on stage, so be sure to get out there. The second part of my advice would be to get to know your body and what works and doesn’t work for it. Cross-training and injury prevention are necessary. Personally, I love yoga as it has the mind body connection that is so important in dance. Yoga has helped me become more aware of my body and how it moves in space. I also have an amazing body worker who does trigger point therapy and myofascial release, both of which I highly recommend for all dancers. Lacrosse balls are a great massage tool (to work on calves, gluteal muscles, etc) and I can no longer warm up properly without one!
8. Do you have a favorite step or combination? If so, what is it and why do you like it so much?
I am more suited to adagio-type work, not because I have especially high extensions but because I try to feel every moment and every note of the music. I take special care of my port-de-bras and pride myself on it. I also enjoy turning but I am not a trickster per se. Jumps are not my favorite in class, however they are more fun in rehearsal and on stage depending on what we are doing.
9. What type of pointe shoes do you wear, and do you have any special “tricks” you use to make them your own?
I have worn Russian Pointe, E 38 V3 W3, since they first brought them to the States. They mold to my feet well and are very comfortable. I unsew the back the fabric in the back and sew the vamp so it fits my foot well as there are no drawstrings in that style. I tend to glue the box after wearing them once so they will last longer. I find that gluing them before wearing them will make them too hard to break in.
10. What is next on the horizon for you?
As of right now, more of the same, dancing and teaching. I have been working on my BA with the L.E.A.P. program (Liberal Education for Arts Professionals) for the past couple years. The program started out in San Francisco and I was part of the inaugural NY group. We receive credits for our dance experience as well as life experience (as demonstrated by essays). I am enjoying the process, however I do hope to finish soon. Homework is the hardest part!
Bio: Anne-Sophie was born in France and started her studies there before moving to the San Francisco Bay Area. She spent most of her training at the San Francisco Ballet School with such renowned teachers as Larisa Sklyanskaya and Irina Jacobson. She later graduated from Boston Ballet School, having relocated there to study with Madame Tatiana Legat. Anne-Sophie has performed with such companies as Boston Ballet, Tulsa Ballet, The Norwegian National Ballet, The Metropolitan Opera Ballet, and Ballet Internationale. She currently free-lances, dancing with Janusphere Dance Company and compani javedani, and is very happy to be on the faculty of the Ellison Ballet Professional Training Program where she has the opportunity not only to work with mentor Edward Ellison but also with his dedicated students.
I had been teaching already for about ten years when I realized something very important…let me go back and tell you how it all came about…
I was 29 years old and was getting ready to start my latest ballet class for 3 and 4 year olds. We were all sitting on the ground in a circle, learning names. A little uncomfortable, I uncrossed my legs and crossed them the other way.
Every single little girl there did the exact same thing.
That’s when it hit me–the power of modeling behavior with kids that age is tremendous. They mimic what you do. I had been trying hard to come up with explanations in bite-sized words that I thought the children would understand.
Turns out all I had to do–was do it.
Now this isn’t to say that you should not teach verbally. You should. But never underestimate the power of what you are doing. This includes simple things such as standing up straight and walking lightly.
Remember…those little eyes are taking it all in…