I recently received a comment on my Ask Me Anything post that caught my attention. Michaela, an insightful dance student, recently decided not to pursue dance as a career path, and she was curious to explore the subject of competition, passion, and value in the dance studio. Because of the rarity of dance contracts and the … More Letter to a young dancer
I’m a little slow on the uptake here, since Julia was named soloist several months ago, but I wanted to dig into what it means to be promoted – especially at such a revered company as San Francisco Ballet. Promotions are some of the most sought after things in our world. After years of toiling in the … More Julia Rowe on being promoted to soloist at San Francisco Ballet
Welcome back, everyone. Here we are with another interview, this time with Cora Bos-Kroese. Cora recently set Jiri Kylian’s Bella Figura on us at Les Ballets de Monte Carlo, and she was a blast to work with. Back in the day she was a fantastic dancer who worked intimately with Jiri Kylian. These days she splits her time … More Cora Bos-Kroese on the audition process for Kylian ballets and the skills necessary to be seen (and chosen)
What is it like to be a dancer? What do we strive for? What do we fear? In my previous article, I wrote about my perspective of the pursuit of perfection in a ballet dancer’s life, and about what that might entail. I got a great response from all of you, but it made me wonder: “How … More 5 perspectives on the life of a professional ballet dancer
Hi everyone! The past few months have been an enjoyable exploration of putting down into writing the thoughts and the thought process that I go through during my days in the studio. I hope you all have enjoyed it as much as I have. But I realized, there’s just one thing missing: a two-way conversation.
Not too long ago, a friend aptly noticed that I often refer to our goal as dancers as “reaching as close as we can to perfection.” He wanted me to unpack that statement. What does that even mean? Are we talking about technical attainment? Power or finesse? Maybe something else? As Steven put it, we’re transitional … More On dancing and the pursuit of perfection
A few months ago, Sports Illustrated released an article entitled: “How a book on stoicism became wildly popular at every level of the NFL.” This article detailed how The Obstacle is the Way, a book about the benefits of applying the ancient greek philosophy of Stoicism to life in the modern world, has spread throughout the NFL, including football … More Why the ancient greeks are the best ballet dancers: a brief look at Stoicism
Are you a ballet dancer in America interested in hopping over the Atlantic and getting a job dancing in Europe? Or vice-versa? Do your homework first, and have an idea of what you’re getting yourself into. The professional dance world in Europe, while similar to America, is of a different breed, and it does’t always … More Five differences between American and European ballet
Welcome! Today I’m trying something new. I thought it might be interesting to interview one of the most prominent guest teachers in the business (art form?) to see what knowledge he could share with us about ballet culture and his long experience as a dancer and teacher. Yannick Boquin is a guest teacher at many of the most … More Yannick Boquin on ballet technique, physics, and how to teach a good class
How do you inspire a group of dancers to live up to their full potential? One of the most important skills to learn as an artistic director, ballet master, choreographer, or teacher is learning how to speak to and manage the group. All bosses have to do it. Organizing a large group of people can … More Correcting the crowd: how group feedback affects us
Corporal Culture 