Parades and Changes Over the Past 43 Years: an Interview with Anna Halprin

When choreographer and dancer Anna Halprin and her husband Larry perched themselves on the side of Mount Tamalpais in Marin County, they rooted their creative futures in a landscape of […]

Upaj (Improvisation) of Life Captured on Film

Having personally witnessed the development of Pandit Chitresh Das and Jason Samuels Smith’s relationship on and off the stage, I was thrilled when the announcement of a documentary to capture […]

A Legacy of Innovation Within Tradition: Talking About Creating New Work with Celine Schein and Rachna Nivas

I am in the Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco visiting the administrative offices of the Chitresh Das Dance Company (CDDC) and Chhandam School of Kathak, founded by dancer, choreographer and […]

A Promising New Partnership: José Manuel Carreño Takes the Lead at Ballet San Jose

Ballet partnerships are the stuff of legend: Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn, Mikhail Baryishnikov and Natalia Makarova, José Manuel Carreño and Susan Jaffe…and Julie Kent…and Gillian Murphy. Carreño, one of […]

The Choreography of Chinese Urban Spaces: A Book Review and Interview with Author, SanSan Kwan

I feel a pulsing and paradoxical sense of expanse and suppression as passersby move towards and immediately away. Every so often I am forced to veer as a meandering person […]

Collaboration as Beautiful Mystery: A Glimpse into Kim Epifano’s Botany’s Breath

Artistic collaboration is huge in today’s modern dance scene. And when something is so prevalent, there is a desire to categorize it; assign it a name and file it in […]

Dance Delights This Fall: Find Your Favorites and Discover What’s New

The fall has always been one of my favorite times to go see dance. Before the rain starts, those warm fall days in the Bay Area are the best for […]

A Diverse Career in the Corps de Ballet: With San Francisco Ballet’s Alexandra McCullagh Newman and Gaetano Amico III

At the age of three, Alexandra McCullagh Newman saw her first Nutcracker— immediately, she was in love. Fast forward a few years, and McCullagh Newman was well-immersed in the dance […]

SPEAK By Erin Mei-Ling Stuart

“There is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.” Lately, I keep thinking of that Leonard Cohen lyric. Because lately, I’ve been thinking about— and trying to […]

A Conversation with Bill T. Jones

IN LATE AUGUST, I had the distinct honor of interviewing Bill T. Jones while he was enjoying a brief respite from his slate of touring, artistic direction and impresario-sized intellectual […]