Photo: Eric Gillet In Fall 2017, Life as a Modern Dancer launched a new concept for post-performance discussion and writing. The goals are multi-fold: What are new ways to invite post-performance writing (since so few publications now print dance reviews, and there are fewer and fewer dance critics in the... Continue reading

From Blog Director Jill Randall: Please join us for several posts with choreographer Kristin Damrow throughout the next 3 weeks, leading up to the premiere of Impact at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Forum in San Francisco, January 31-February 2, 2019. Purchase your tickets here. For the first... Continue reading

Colors are an ever popular theme in dance classes. I was excited to see Laura Vaccaro Seeger's latest creation, Blue. You might be familiar with her book Green already. Explore this book with elementary age students. Start off with a group brainstorm - what do you think of that is... Continue reading

I am writing today's post on a very rainy day in the SF Bay Area. Rain, water, forms of water, and the water cycle - these are all favorite springboards in my dance classes. Whether we are talking about a 1st grade dance class or a 6th grade science project,... Continue reading

Nia Love. Photo by Ciceley Fullylove. From Blog Director Jill Randall: A colleague recently asked for my help to compile a reading list for her course. I thought that you might like this list as well. Please find below 16 artist profiles for your students to read throughout the semester.... Continue reading

For an Undergraduate Course: 45 Questions and Prompts for Post-Performance Discussions These 45 prompts are to spark reflection and dialogue after experiencing a professional performance. This can take many formats. It can be a whole-class discussion, a discussion in small groups, a writing assignment, or even a walk around campus... Continue reading

Photo by Julie Lemberger Degree offered: MFA in Dance Website:http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/dance/mfa Audition and application deadlines: Applications for fall 2019 are welcome until May 1, 2019. Scholarships are available. Search on the http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/dance/mfa website for more information. As Department Chair Carol K. Walker shares, “The new and unique MFA in Dance at... Continue reading

Photo by Robbie Sweeny Hometown: Mokena, IL Current city: San Francisco, CA Age: 35 College and degree:Carleton College, B.A. Anthropology/Sociology Graduate school and degree: University of Colorado-Boulder, M.F.A. (age 25-27), Harvard University, Ed.M. (age 27-28) Website: www.laurensimpsondance.com How you pay the bills: Teaching and residencies. My partner earns the majority... Continue reading

From Blog Director Jill Randall: The 2018 Artists’ Gratitude Project - a weekly practice. The potential for positivity, hope, change, and appreciation. I feel a sense of surprise as I write this 52nd post for this project. The year has zipped by us. I did appreciate, however, these weekly brief... Continue reading

From Blog Director Jill Randall: I love dance books so much, and I love the seeking and searching each year for new additions to our studies and our collections. Please find my compiled list for 2018 here, and please leave a comment below if I missed a title or two.... Continue reading

Are you a poetry lover, and love incorporating poems into your dance classes and projects with students in grades K-8? Consider adding this hefty book to your shelf. So many great options and springboards. So many poems! Sing a Song of Seasons is 319 pages of poetry - one poem... Continue reading

Do you work with students in grades 1, 2, and 3? I am in love with this book - Book of Bones by Gabrielle Balkan and illustrator Sam Brewster. The content and format of the book calls for us to make a group dance with the book. Check out the... Continue reading

Black Black Bodies Sonata - Kayla Farris and Nik Owens. Screen shot image from the film by Deborah Corrales and Kayla Farrish. From Blog Director Jill Randall: It was very fun to look back over the past 51 weeks and all of the content on the blog. I hope that... Continue reading

The 2018 Artists’ Gratitude Project: A Weekly Practice The potential for positivity, hope, change, and appreciation. Do you feel the dichotomy? Many artists come from an upbringing of extensive support and opportunity - with training, classes, private lessons, workshops, mentors, supplies, and equipment. Many go onto colleges, conservatories, and masters... Continue reading

By Alexandra Beller “I wish!” “If only…” “Do you ever do these as online courses?” “Come to Kansas and teach this please…!” These are the comments I often get when I post on Facebook about an upcoming workshop. Even for New York-based artists, the ability to commit to a live... Continue reading

Linda Tarnay in Doris Humphrey's "A New Dance." Photo courtesy of NYU. Remembering Linda Tarnay By TaraMarie Perri Linda Tarnay (March 29, 1943 - November 6, 2018) taught at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts for 38 years and at ADF for 16 summers. I am a graduate of NYU... Continue reading

The 2018 Artists’ Gratitude Project: A Weekly Practice The potential for positivity, hope, change, and appreciation. Do you feel the dichotomy? Many artists come from an upbringing of extensive support and opportunity - with training, classes, private lessons, workshops, mentors, supplies, and equipment. Many go onto colleges, conservatories, and masters... Continue reading

Photo: Robbie Sweeny Hometown: Born in Atlanta, Georgia. Mostly grew up in Clarendon Hills, near Chicago, Illinois. Current city: San Francisco Age: 51 College and degree: BFA in Dance from Western Michigan University Graduate school and degree: MFA in Dance Performance/Pedagogy from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (age 22) Websites:... Continue reading

From Blog Director Jill Randall: For this month, or this week, what about considering the idea of contentment in relation to your wellness? I am trying this one on. In much of the dance world, contentment is an unfamiliar word. We live in the arena of, "What are you working... Continue reading

The 2018 Artists’ Gratitude Project: A Weekly Practice The potential for positivity, hope, change, and appreciation. Do you feel the dichotomy? Many artists come from an upbringing of extensive support and opportunity - with training, classes, private lessons, workshops, mentors, supplies, and equipment. Many go onto colleges, conservatories, and masters... Continue reading

Photo: Robbie Sweeny In Fall 2017, Life as a Modern Dancer launched a new concept for post-performance discussion and writing. The goals are multi-fold: What are new ways to invite post-performance writing (since so few publications now print dance reviews, and there are fewer and fewer dance critics in the... Continue reading

We came, We saw, They conquered By Todd Courage The world premiere of Social Movement, a new collaborative work crafted by Molly Rose-Williams & Co., unfolded at Shawl-Anderson Dance Center in Berkeley on November 17th. The evening was a strange triptych of sorts: three distinct parts, only two of which... Continue reading

The 2018 Artists’ Gratitude Project: A Weekly Practice The potential for positivity, hope, change, and appreciation. Do you feel the dichotomy? Many artists come from an upbringing of extensive support and opportunity - with training, classes, private lessons, workshops, mentors, supplies, and equipment. Many go onto colleges, conservatories, and masters... Continue reading

From Blog Director Jill Randall: I just completed the quick read of the tiny book How to Not Always Be Working: A Toolkit for Creativity and Radical Self-care by Marlee Grace. The book is more like a personal essay in book form with a lot of author self-reflection, but I... Continue reading

From Blog Director Jill Randall: Hello community! I know that it has been many months since I posted for this specific column (though the Artists' Gratitude Project is deeply related as well...check it out here). Today I wanted to share about some books related to wellness. After many months of... Continue reading