arthur mitchell

Book Review: How They Became Famous Dancers – A Dancing History

April 26, 2017 by 4dancers

by Catherine L. Tully

This lovely book was sent to us by Anne Dunkin (the author) for review, and it’s easy to recommend. Dunkin has assembled a very interesting resource that would serve as a great tool for those teaching middle school, or even to have on hand at a dance studio library. It’s also a good read, just to add to your own personal knowledge of dance. It tells the stories of 12 dancers (6 male and 6 female) from various parts of the world, focusing on their childhoods and rise to prominence as a dancer.

Many different places are represented, including Mexico, Japan, India, Africa, and the United States. Every chapter begins with the dancer’s background, and outlines their journey to becoming a dancer. The information is coupled with black and white photographs, as well as a “Create A Dance” section at the end of the chapter, which is designed to give children a feel for the type of movement that particular dancer was known for. The dancers that are included in this book span a variety of different genres, ranging from ballet to Bharata Natyam, to Modern dance. There is even a little map in the beginning that shows where each dancer was from for reference.

This unique and interesting approach makes the book an especially good resource for teachers, since material of this nature is often difficult to find. The chapters lend themselves to either being used in their entirety, or as rich material to add to a lecture. The dancers that are covered here include:

Louis XIV
John Durang
Marie Taglioni
William Henry “Juba” Lane
Anna Pavlova
Rudolph Laban
Doris Humphrey
Michio Ito
Mrinalini Sarabhai
Pearl Primus
Amalia Hernandez
Arthur Mitchell

I’ve been in the field for over 40 years, and I learned quite a bit from reading this book myself. Don’t hesitate to add it to your library!

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10 Questions With…Ikolo Griffin

September 10, 2012 by 4dancers

I met this lovely man at Dance USA when he came up to talk to me after the panel on Dance Writing–he had a pretty cool idea that he wanted to share–and now I’m pleased to be able to share it with you…

1. What is your dance background?

When I was in third grade, San Francisco Ballet’s Dance In Schools Program (led by Charles McNeal) came to my school, and following the residency I received an outreach scholarship. I started training at the San Francisco Ballet School from the age of eight until I graduated at eighteen. After ten years in the School, I became the first outreach student to get into the professional company as an apprentice in 1993. At that time SFB was becoming a world-class company, and I was very blessed to grow up watching and then performing with some of the best dancers from all over the world.

In 2001, after seven years performing professionally with the San Francisco Ballet, I moved to New York to join Dance Theatre of Harlem as a soloist. Under the guidance of Arthur Mitchell, I felt myself become more than just a dancer, but a true artist. I felt real satisfaction and fulfillment as I was promoted to a principal dancer and given the opportunity to dance leading roles in many iconic neoclassical ballets. For two weeks we performed at Lincoln Center, the heart of dance in America, and I felt I had reached a very high point in my career.

Unfortunately, after only four years dancing with DTH, the company closed its doors. I was blessed enough to join the Joffrey Ballet in Chicago and landed nicely on my feet (as always!). After my experiences in San Francisco and New York, I felt confident in my abilities as a technician and as an artist. One of the highlights of my two years at the Joffrey was working with Sir Antony Dowell on the role of Oberon in Frederick Ashton’s The Dream.

My time in Chicago was short and sweet, and in 2006 San Francisco called me home again. This time, I had the fortune to dance with Smuin Ballet. Michael Smuin was one of the best artistic directors I have worked with. He had a way of bringing out the best dancing in me and giving the audience a really great show. Mr. Smuin had been the director of San Francisco Ballet when I was just a kid, and we had worked together at Dance Theatre of Harlem as well. It was great to work with him on a full time basis because I felt he appreciated me as a dancer and as person. Up until the day he died in the studio, my experience with Smuin was marked by some of the best dancing I’ve ever done.

Since I left Smuin in 2008, I’ve been freelancing around the Bay Area. I am currently working with the San Francisco Opera as a resident corps dancer. One of the best things about working with the Opera is being back on the War Memorial Opera House stage. This is the very same stage where I did my first Nutcracker as a Mother Ginger kid. It feels like home, and the opera singers are amazing too…

2. What is “Just Turns” and why did you decide to found it?

Just Turns is an interactive classical ballet workshop. The two-hour Just Turns workshop is designed to focus the student’s approach and maximize turning technique in order to increase confidence and ability in all kinds of turns. The class structure and progression are designed to break down every part of turning technique— training spot, balance, force control, and placement from the ground up. Students are encouraged to ask questions, experiment, and take notes throughout the workshop in order to realize their ideal turning method.

My inspiration for Just Turns is in helping dancers with one of the hardest and best parts of ballet technique. While I was dancing in New York, I would take class at Steps on Broadway with Willy Burmann. In his class I really started to develop a great turning style. My turns were always good, but with the Mr. Burmann’s help they became great! When I returned to San Francisco, dancers would frequently ask me for help working on their turns after class. One day I was talking with my friend Vanessa Zahorian (principal dancer with SFB who is a great turner as well), and I thought, “How great would it be to bring back the ‘turning class’ that we would take during summer sessions?” That thought brewed in my head for a while, and when I started teaching ballet two years ago, it was time for Just Turns to be born. Now, as I am moving toward the next phase of my career as a teacher, I am finding my specific niche as a turning coach. Just Turns is my way of reaching the broader dance community and using my passion and specific expertise with turns to help dancers everywhere.

3. Who can benefit from the “Just Turns” approach? [Read more…]

10 Questions With…Elisa Toro Franky

June 17, 2010 by 4dancers

Today we have an interview Elisa Toro Franky–a 2010 competitor in The USA International Ballet Competition. Representing Columbia, she studies at Dance Theatre of Harlem and credits Arthur Mitchell as the most influential person in her dance career. (Arthur Mitchell is the 2010 USA IBC honorary chairperson.)

4dancers will be featuring other people who are associated with this “olympic-style” competition over the coming weeks, so stay tuned. And now…Elisa…

1. How did you wind up a dancer?

When I was a child, my parents always encouraged my brother and me to explore different activities besides the normal school. Art has always been highly important in my family, and therefore, when I was 8 years old, my mother suggested me to start Ballet classes. I was captured by Ballet from the very first lesson, and as years went by, I chose to pursue the dream of being a professional ballerina.

Elisa Toro Franky

2. What road has taken you to the USA International Ballet Competition?

Since I heard about the USA International Ballet Competition in 2005, I saw it as a fabulous challenge for a dancer; the ideal scenario to offer one’s talent and hard work, while learning from excellent dancers from all over the world.

I applied for the 2006 USA IBC, without success. Since then, I have had the chance to learn and to gather performing experience during the last 4 years with the Miami City Ballet, then with the Washington Ballet, and now with the Dance Theater of Harlem. This has propelled me into the selected group of competitors for the 2010 USA IBC.

3. How have you prepared yourself for this competition, both physically and mentally?

Physically and mentally go together. I focused on the development of the physical strength required for each solo, exploring every movement transition, every corner of motion. I reflected a lot about the energetic shape for each role. In addition, the encouragement and support I received from my family, friends and co-workers was crucial in the process.

4. Do you have any advice for other dancers who are going to compete in dance?

Be very organized in the preparation process and do not waste valuable time. It is all about self-discipline and love for your art.

5. You have said that Arthur Mitchell is the most influential person in your dance career…can you explain why that is?

He is such an honorable man! He created a company that welcomes all races in one stage, where it is the mere quality of the craft that is important, not the race or the ethnicity. He opened a door for equal opportunities for African-American dancers and for dancers from over the world, and they excelled before a worldwide audience. Arthur Mitchell is respected and truly admired by all of us at the Dance Theatre of Harlem.

6. What is it like to study at Dance Theatre of Harlem?

I believe that the diversity of their repertoire made me a versatile dancer, which is essential in a dance career. The artistic faculty is there to coach us, to guide us toward the greatest dancers we can become. However, they are very strict and demanding, which impulses us to higher levels of performance.

7. Would you share something special from your dance career so far?

I find special the fact that I willingly left my country, my family and friends, in order to pursue advanced studies and a professional dance career in USA. I was 17 years old when I had to go far away from my nest in Colombia, so I could get closer to a professional Ballet environment abroad.

8. Have you had any challenges in terms of your career so far?

Everything has been a challenge, I approach it that way. Earning soloist roles, auditioning, going on tour, experimenting with my own choreography for the first time!

9. Who are your favorite dancers?

Viviana Durante, from the Royal Ballet, to mention one of many dancers I admire.

10. What is next for you?

I am looking forward to continue to dance with the Dance Theatre of Harlem Ensemble. I am looking forward to the concrete projects they have for re-opening the main company. That has been the greatest hope cherished at DTH during the last few years.

About the competition: The USA International Ballet Competition is a two-week, “olympic-style” competition where 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.

For more information about USA IBC, visit www.usaibc.com or join our Facebook community.

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