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 […]
At What Age Should Dancin’ Boys Begin Partnering?
Little dancin’ boys want to do what big dancin’ boys do. They want to dance with the girls—to partner. But how much partnering should your young dancer do and at what age? Knowing the answer to this question can make the difference between a long career or one that never begins. Julian was eager to […]
Time to Start Auditioning for Companies & Summer Intensives
The School of American Ballet (SAB) students receive guidance about summer intensives and company auditions just before Thanksgiving break. The boys are brought in to see Jock Soto, the head of the men’s division, and he asks them what summer programs they might be interested in attending. He then advises them on their choices. He […]
Rupert Pennefather on Being a Dancer
I do have news of Julian and how he is doing at SAB, but I thought I’d change things up a bit today. While I was in New York City I was contacted by email and offered the chance to air an “exclusive” video of Royal Ballet principle Rupert Pennefather speaking about some of the […]
Life in the Dance Lane
In case you were wondering, I haven’t abandoned this blog. I’ve been a bit busy…first with the Jewish High Holy Days and then with my second ACL surgery in 14 years. Yes…that fall down the stairs in New York ended me up under the orthopedic surgeon’s knife on September 29th (after a preliminary visit to […]
What I Learned from the ABT Summer Intensive Experience
For all the mother’s and father’s out there considering the pros and cons of sending their kids off to a summer intensive or of chaperoning them during the American Ballet Theatre summer intensive in New York City, this mother offers up the lessons she learned while chaperoning her son for seven weeks in New York this past summer while he danced.
How to Prepare for a Summer Ballet Intensive: Rasta Thomas Offers Advice (Part 1)
At long, long last, I have some really superb advice for all the boys attending summer ballet intensives. Actually, any boy attending any type of summer dance intensive will benefit from the advice offered by ballet great Rasta Thomas. I first “discovered” Rasta after I’d actually seen him perform as Eddie in the national tour of the […]
Interview with Duncan Cooper (Part 4): The Issues and Difficulties Faced by Male Dancers (How to Make Choreography Your Own)
Last, but definitely not least, here’s part four to my interview with Duncan Cooper. If you don’t remember who Duncan is, please go back to this post to read the brief bio I offered in the part one. Working on Flexibility and Weaknesses Continuing my conversation with Duncan, I wanted to know if he often saw the […]
Learning How to "Handle" a Partner
With the Second Stage show put to bed, Teen Dance Company has turned its attention to choreography for its big show, the spring Concert, which will be it’s 10-year anniversary event. The kids spent six hours in the studio on Sunday this past weekend working on their first piece of choreography. Each of the 4-5 […]
Looking Forward to Nutcracker 2009 as the Curtain Comes down on the 2008 Production
The Nutcracker production put on by San Jose Dance Theater, which featured my son, Julian, as both Fritz and one of the two Russian dancers, has closed its curtains until next year. Yes, while others gear up, we’ve cleared the stage for the next production, put on by Ballet San Jose’s professional company (sorry friends, […]
Who Needs Him Anyway????
I just received the December issue of Dance Spirit Magazine, and I found myself intrigued and just a bit outraged by an articled titled “Who Needs Him Anyway, A Close Look at All-Girl Partnering.” I showed it to Julian, who stuck out his lower lip in a big pout of dismay. While at Ballet San […]