Partnering. It’s a huge part of a male dancer’s job. For some, partnering feels difficult and they hate it. For others, it’s comes naturally, and they love it. No matter where you or your son fall on this spectrum, it’s necessary to become a good partner to succeed in a dance career. Male dancers who […]
Dancing Des Grieux: An Artistic Director’s View
It’s not often a dancin’ mom gets to have a long chat with her dancin’ son’s artistic director—especially when he dances professionally. However, I had the unique opportunity to interview Aaron Watkin, the artistic director at SemperOper Ballett in Dresden, Germany, just after my son, Julian, danced the biggest role of his career, Des Grieux […]
The Power of Thanking Your Teachers
Two weeks ago Julian had the opportunity to take a three hour master class with Desmond Richardson of Complexions. He was upset because he didn’t get a chance to thank him properly. The class ended late, and we were in a hurry to leave for an information session at Alvin Ailey/Fordham University. He gave Richardson […]
Salim Gauwloos (Part 3): How to Succeed as a Dancer and a Choreographer
Maybe the fact that Salim Gauwloos appreciated Julian’s ballet technique was one of the reasons Julian enjoyed dancing with him in New York. Julian had just completed the six-week American Ballet Summer Intensive and had improved considerably during that time. Of course, he had a sound foundation in ballet after three years at Ballet San […]
Denise Wall On Raising Dancin’ Boys (Part 3)
In this third, and last, part of my interview with Denise Wall, owner of Denise Wall’s Dance Energy in Virginia Beach, VA, and coach of such star dancers as her own sons Danny Tidwell and Travis Wall (Travis is also a star choreographer), she offers tips on raising boys who dance. (To read the first […]
Tips from Finis Jhung for Boys Attending Summer Ballet Intensives
I’m still trying to get a really great post from someone on how to get in shape for a summer ballet intensive – little late for Julian, who will have completed his first day at the American Ballet Theatre summer intensive by this time two weeks from now. In the meantime, however, I did get […]
Interview with Duncan Cooper (Part 2): Need For Technique & Movement that Tells a Story & Portrays Emotion
Sorry for the delay in writing another post. Things have been a bit crazy at my end. I had a trial period for a writing gig I didn’t get (which took up an enormous amount of time for four weeks). I’ve been gearing up my new column at Examiner.com. Plus, we’ve had time spent on […]