MUSINGS ON BALLET’S FAMOUS FAUN The Tanaquil LeCercq Documentary Screens at the MFAH IMAGE ABOVE: From Afternoon of a Faun. Photo courtesy Kino Lorber, Inc.. Every now and then, I like geek out on ballet history. It’s such a strange and astonishing tradition. So, of course, I’m thrilled to see Nancy Buirski’s film Afternoon of a Faun: […]
DiverseWorks Presents Karen Sherman’s One with Others “I became a dancer by accident. Or, at least entirely, unintentionally,” says choreographer and dance artist Karen Sherman. “I just kept saying yes. For over 20 years.” Houston audiences have the chance to follow Sherman on a journey that uses all the major art forms — music, sound, […]
By Michael Wade Simpson Changing hoods is not always easy for an urban dance school. Sherese Campbell, whose company, City Dance, will present a concert, “Random Acts” on Saturday, April 26, at their new studio theater, says that when she moved her school not long ago from a home a block from Rice University to […]
Elephant in the Black Box Makes Their US Debut at Dance Salad A Conversation with Jean Philippe Dury By Michael Wade Simpson Jean-Philippe Dury began his career in the corps of the Paris Opera Ballet, and then moved to Spain as a principal dancer with Nacho Duato’s, Compañía Nacional de Danza de España. His own […]
By Michael Wade Simpson When Beth Gulledge-Brown from Uptown Dance Company approached Randall Flinn, director of Ad Deum, with an idea about collaborating, she wasn’t just asking him to choreograph for her company. Her idea was more radical—to turn both groups into one company over a two month period—a complete blending of dancers, directors and […]
Samskriti Dances the Stories of Vishnu Dashavatar. It has a simple meaning. “Avatar” means “incarnation.” “Dasha” means “ten.” Hence, Dashavatar refers to the ten incarnations of the Hindu deity, Vishnu. Samskriti, a Houston based Indian performing arts company, will be presenting Dashavatar on Sunday, April 6, at 5pm at the Cullen Theater, Wortham Center. Conceived […]
If you’ve been watching dance in Houston for less than a decade, it is possible the name Dana Nicolay won’t ring a bell. Nicolay’s company, Nicolay Dance Works, brings Timeline to The Barn (formerly Barnevelder Movement/Arts) February 28 and March 1. Those longer acquainted may recall that Nicolay first arrived as a Houston Ballet apprentice […]
Syria, Afghanistan, Sudan, Iraq: War, terrorism, and the atrocities committed daily by human beings against each other have become so widespread that it is almost impossible to take in. World War II seems a million years ago. Choreographer Carolyn Dorfman was raised by Holocaust survivors. Her mother and aunt escaped annihilation in a prison camp […]
Dance Month Honors Betty Morgan with New and Old Faces By Toni Valle Dance Month at the Kaplan Theatre is aptly named – it’s an entire month of dance works, choreographers, master teachers, companies and dancers. 2014 marks its thirty-fourth year, and though it may not seem like a milestone, it also happens to be […]
Escape is the chief appeal of fantasy. Whether it’s Narnia, or Middle Earth, or say, the world of My Little Pony, fantasy offers an alternate realm where imagination is the all-powerful prime mover. For Maggie Lasher, artistic director of ChinaCat Dance, fantasy is also the wellspring of creation. In addition to those adorable, starry-eyed equines, […]
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