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Finding Balance: Dancing Through Summer

August 15, 2012 by 4dancers

The town of Minturn, CO taken on a hike in the mountains

by Emily Kate Long

Fun & Classes 128 Partnering class at SSDI (photo credit Susan Blackburn)

As I wrap up my summer travels, I’ve been working to identify a theme for the experiences I’ve had over the past two months. It’s been a summer of learning what to do and what not to do: in the studio as a teacher and student, onstage and in the audience, and in how I interact with other people and with myself. How do I take everything in during class while holding on to what I know works? What about carving out time for physical and mental rest and recuperation? How can I be an open yet critical audience member, and how can I more easily drop personal hang-ups and anxiety to fully experience each moment of performing?

To begin with, a great aid in approaching my physical needs honestly was Dr Linda Hamilton’s most recent book, The Dancer’s Way (St Martin’s Griffin, 2008). Hard science wrapped in compassion and empathy, The Dancer’s Way was a timely reminder that I’m not the machine I’d like to believe. My body—and everyone else’s—needs what it needs, period: fuel and rest. That means sufficient calories, macronutrients, and fluids every day. It means 8-10 hours of sleep each night. It means time each week for restorative activity. It means giving muscles a chance to forget about dancing for a little while and repair themselves every few months, and then giving them enough time to return to a full rehearsal schedule. Put simply, we are people first—physical beings with physical needs that must be acknowledged and met before we can demand anything more of our bodies or minds. The Dancer’s Way is the collection of information I would have loved to have when I was a student, and I plan on sharing a lot of this information with my students.

My strategy this summer was to avoid the trouble of getting back in shape by not planning any rest. Bad move. I would have avoided serious physical and emotional burnout, along with a lot of guilt and self-judgment, if I had just built rest into my schedule to begin with! It’s still a process, but realizing my body can’t take care of itself enabled me to relish being completely immersed in dance all summer.

Being present at two summer intensives (Saratoga Summer Dance Intensive and Vail Valley Dance Intensive) as both a student and a teacher allowed me to analyze every aspect of class. It was wonderful to take multiple classes per day and test endless hypotheses on myself and on others. On an interpersonal level, I got to observe and engage in many different communication styles, classroom organization strategies, and the particular learning processes of different age groups. Being in classes of mixed ability shone light on the importance of teachers’ knowing all the building blocks and progression of technique in order to accommodate students of different levels. [Read more…]

Filed Under: 4dancers, Finding Balance, Summer Intensives Tagged With: amar ramasar, ashley boulder, balanchine, balletx, christopher Wheeldon, dr. linda hamilton, emily kate long, firebird, martha graham, matthew neenan, new york city ballet, nycb, peter martins, saratoga summer dance intensive, stravinksy, summer intensive, technique, the dancer's way, vail valley dance intensive

10 Questions With…Bulareyaung Pagarlava

April 2, 2012 by 4dancers

Today we have 10 Questions With… choreographer Bulareyaung Pagarlava…

Choreographer Bulareyaung Pagarlava

1. How did you become involved in dance?

When I was 12, I saw a performance by Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan, though I didn’t know it was Cloud Gate until some years later. It was so inspiring that I made up my mind to become a dancer.

2. What are you currently doing in dance?

Mainly choreographing.

3. Can you explain your approach to choreography?

I don’t create work for the sake of creation. I am not a movement-oriented choreographer interested in analyzing physical moment.

All my choreography reflects my thoughts and emotion. Choreography is a medium of expression. It is my way of connecting to the world.

4. What role does the music play in your choreography?

In my work, music plays a vital role. It offers a room for imagination. In my earlier works, choreography began after I found my music. So the works were often built upon the structure of the music.

In recent years, new choreographic ideas come first, followed by the body moments, then I match them with music. When music comes into place, it’s like there’s a spark.

For the audience who does not enjoy my choreography, they can at least enjoy good music with their eyes closed.

5. Do you have other choreographers that you admire? If so, who and why? [Read more…]

Filed Under: 10 Questions With... Tagged With: Bulareyaung Pagarlava, choreographer, choreography, cloud gate dance theatre of taiwan, Jiří Kylián, Lin Hwai-min from Taiwan, martha graham, Pina Bausch

Interview With Author Germaine Shames

February 15, 2012 by 4dancers

Today we are happy to share this interview with author Germaine Shames…

Author, Germaine Shames

What is your background in dance?

Like the protagonist in my novel I began taking ballet classes at the age of four with a teacher whom, my parents liked to boast, had studied under Martha Graham. Like other young girls, I dreamed of becoming a prima ballerina.

But I was not like most girls.  Shy, stubborn, I balked at following choreography and often found myself stranded alone on one side of the studio while the class, moving as one body, occupied the opposite side.  And then suddenly, before I had mastered a single step, it was time for my first recital.  A chorus line of us baby ballerinas was positioned center-stage as the towering velvet curtain slowly, slowly opened.  One look at the audience and I froze, mouth wide-open, hands clamped to my cheeks.

My parents removed me from ballet class and enrolled me again thee years later—with similar results.  There would be no more recitals.

Flash forward half a century…

I have ripened into, not a ballerina, but a writer with abiding creative and emotional ties to dance and dancers.  My forthcoming ballet-themed novel You, Fascinating You will be released within days.

The protagonist of my novel, Margit Wolf, begins the account of her life, “They say ballet chooses the dancer.”  Regrettably, I was not among the chosen.  How I envy those of you who are!

How did you become a writer? [Read more…]

Filed Under: 10 Questions With..., Books & Magazines, Dance Gifts, Dance History Tagged With: ballerina, Ballet, book, dancer, germaine shames, margit wolf, martha graham, you fascinating you

Making Dances: An Introduction

October 11, 2011 by 4dancers

4dancers is adding a new column to the mix–Making Dances. Lauren Wernecke will be writing this series and today she is here with use to give readers an introduction this subject and some of her thoughts on the matter…

Lauren Warnecke

by Lauren Wernecke

Well, hi there.

I’m so honored to be joining the fabulous crew at 4dancers.  Making Dances is a unique writing experience for me, because, generally speaking, I tend to write about things I know a lot about.  Like the Achilles tendon.  And cheese.

I mean, what do I really know about making dances?  On a good day, not much.

There’s a saying that “the more you think you know, the less you know, you know?”

I don’t necessarily think that this is always true, but in the case of choreography, part of the process of making a dance is about figuring out how to make it.  Coming up with ideas is easy.  It’s the implementation of said ideas that makes our jobs hard…

…and in the end, no matter how many comp classes or choreographic devices you implement, the rules on how to make a dance are individual to each dancer and each dance.

My goal in writing Making Dances is not simply to tell you how to make a dance.  This is not Choreography 101.  It’s a biased view inside one person’s creative process.  However, my hope is that hearing my experiences in making dances will give you leave to reflect on your own creative process and to, in turn, articulate what makes YOU tick.

So, enough about me… [Read more…]

Filed Under: Editorial, Making Dances Tagged With: ballroom dancers, choregoraphers, choreographic devices, choreography, creative process, dancing with the stars, isadora duncan, lauren wernecke, making dances, martha graham, steve jobs, ted shawn

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