Conversations on Dance

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by Houston Ballet's Artistic Directors, Stanton Welch and Julie Kent. Stanton looks back on 20 years leading the Houston Ballet, while the two of them give us an inside look at what their shared leadership roles mean to both them and the organization at large, while also offering a glimpse into what audiences can expect from the company...

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by Michael Small, former reporter for People Magazine and the host of the podcast 'I Couldn't Throw It Out'. Michael tells us about a fascinating experience he had interviewing Martha Graham at age 95, an interview that Michael luckily held onto on cassette tape for nearly three decades because he, naturally, couldn't throw it out. We l...

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by Marina Harss, author of 'The Boy From Kyiv', the life story of the great choreographer Alexei Ratmansky. We talk to Marina about her own journey to writing dance, how she came to admire and love Ratmansky's work and what her process was researching and developing the book. You can purchase 'The Boy From Kyiv' at your local books...

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by choreographer Hope Boykin. We catch up with Hope about her retirement and transition to full time choreographer, as well as her process and preparation for her new work 'States Of Hope' that will premiere at the Joyce Theater this October 17th and run through October 22nd. If you are in the New York area and would like to purcha...

Today on 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by two forces behind dance at the Kennedy Center, Alicia Adams, Vice President of International Programming and Dance, and Jane Raleigh, Dance Programming Director. Jane and Alicia take us through their journey from young artists to arts management leaders, tell us how arts administration has evolved in recent years and talk about their collaborativ...

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance' we are joined by star ballerina and resident choreographer of the Paul Taylor Dance Company, Lauren Lovette. We talk to Lauren about the leap of faith she took in leaving New York City Ballet to freelance, how her choreographic voice has developed since being offered her role as resident choreographer and what to expect from her dual world premie...

Today's episode is a special bonus episode and cross over with Nashville Ballet's Inside the Ballet Podcast. In this episode, Michael takes the guest chair and chats with two members of the Nashville Ballet team, Briona Richardson, Senior Manager of Community Engagement and Nick Mullikin, Artistic Director. This episode gives a behind the scenes look at the work Michael did helping bring Just...

Today on 'Conversations On Dance' we are joined by Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell, Artistic Director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. We talk to Linda-Denise about her late start and quick catch up in dance, her years touring with Alvin Ailey and her plans to continue to bring Hubbard Street to all Chicago audiences through innovative programming. To purchase tickets to Hubbard Street's 2023-24...

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by Jakari Sherman, director of 'Drumfolk', a production by Step Afrika! currently on tour across the United States. Jakari tells us about his introduction to stepping, a percussive, highly-energetic style of dance, how he came to discover, join and eventually lead Step Afrika, and what audiences can expect from the concept and stor...

Today on ‘Conversations On Dance’, we are joined by Musical Director of the New York City Ballet, Andrew Litton. Andrew takes us on a journey from his days as a kid learning about music by sitting in the orchestra pit at the metropolitan opera, to the first ballet performances he played in accompanying Rudolf Nureyev, to the work he does now bringing scores to life rehearsing and conducting perfor...

Today on 'Conversations on Dance' we are joined by Moses Pendleton. Moses has been one of America’s most innova­tive and widely performed choreographers and directors for over 40 years. A co-founder of the ground-breaking Pilobolus Dance Theater in 1971, he formed his own company, MOMIX, in 1980. Mr. Pendleton has also worked extensively in film, TV, and opera and as a choreographer for ballet com...

It's just us this week. We chat about the 2023 Vail Dance Festival (listen to episodes from the fest here ) and catch up on what else we have been up to recently. Email us: info@conversationsondancepod.com Rebecca's website: rebeccaferraro.com LINKS: Website:  conversationsondancepod.com Instagram:  @conversationsondance Merch:  https://bit.ly/cod-merch YouTube:  https://bit.ly...

Thank you to friend of the pod, Kate Penner, for guest hosting this episode. Every year, the Vail Dance Festival brings in thousands of additional audience members through its social media and streaming content. For a live recording of the ‘ Conversations On Dance ’ podcast, videographer Nel Shelby and photographer Christopher Duggan will join to talk about how they bring the Festival to life for...

A major highlight for the Vail Dance Festival every year is the NOW: Premieres program, a jam-packed evening of ten newly commissioned dances with an array of artists that only the Vail Dance Festival could manage to bring together. Internationally acclaimed choreographers and artists Kyle Abraham and Melissa Toogood join this live recording of the ‘ Conversations On Dance ’ podcast to talk about...

Vail Dance Festival has always been a laboratory for new creations and experimentation, and 2023 is no exception. This live recording of the ‘ Conversations On Dance ’ podcast will feature choreographers Jamar Roberts and Caili Quan, and cover their creative processes at Vail Dance Festival and how it differs from their choreographic undertakings year round. This Monday August 7th, The Vail Dance...

Ballet X has been a Festival favorite for over a decade, while Dance Aspen had its splashy debut just last year. This live recording of the ‘ Conversations On Dance ’ podcast will welcome the artistic directors of these respective companies, Christine Cox and Laurel Winton, to talk about their visions and missions for their organizations and why performing at the Vail Dance Festival is such a cove...

Vail Dance Festival has long committed to bringing artists at all different points in their journey and development, and 2023 is no different. The ‘Conversations On Dance’ podcast is joined by this year’s Scholar-In-Residence Spencer Lenain and his childhood dance idol esteemed American Ballet Theatre principal James Whiteside for a live podcast recording.  The pair will talk about how having...

Adji Cissoko is an artist of striking elegance and daring, whether as a performer or choreographer. With Cissoko’s selection of 2023’s Artist-in-Residence, Festival audiences will be treated to ample amounts of both. For this live recording of the ‘ Conversations On Dance ’ podcast, Adji will talk about her years at the Vail Dance Festival past and what the opportunities as Artist-in-Residence mea...

Tap dancing is inseparable from its relationship to music. In a live recording of the ‘ Conversations On Dance ’ podcast, tap master Leonardo Sandoval and bassist/composer Gregory Richardson of Music From The Sole will dissect that relationship as they discuss their work on ‘I Didn’t Come To Stay’, which will have its Vail Dance Festival premiere on August 2nd. This episode was recorded live on Ju...

Los Angeles Dance Project has been bringing a vast and varied repertoire to audiences in Los Angeles and throughout the world for over a decade, expanding the boundaries of dance and how the art interacts and relates to movement in the modern world. This live recording of the ‘ Conversations On Dance ’ podcast feature artists of LADP discussing the company’s return to the Vail Dance Festival, in i...

Author Jennifer Homans first made her mark ten years ago with the release of 'Apollo's Angels', an exhaustive work tracing ballet's roots from the Renaissance to modern times. Now she's back with a new release, 'Mr. B: George Balanchine's 20th Century', following the choreographer's life and work in one of the most comprehensive ways ever committed to the page. Homans sits down to with the hosts o...

Martha Graham Dance Company is one of the most storied and celebrated dance institutions in America and a Vail Dance Festival fan favorite. In recent years, the company has been steadily building its repertoire beyond the Graham classics. This live recording of the ‘ Conversations On Dance ’ podcast will talk with the company’s Artistic Director, Janet Eilber, about her storied career, working wit...

This week on Conversations on Dance, we are joined by Savannah Green, dancer with BalletX. Savannah was born and raised in New York City, receiving her initial dance training from Manhattan Youth Ballet. In 2017 she graduated from University of California, Santa Barbara with a BFA in Dance and a minor in Political Science. She has been a member of BalletX since 2020. Savannah has been going to the...

This week on 'Conversations on Dance' we are joined by Philip Duclos, corps de ballet dancer with the Royal Danish Ballet. We talk with Philip about his training at the School of American Ballet and his first year in a company. He gives us a preview of what he will be dancing this year at the Vail Dance Festival, and tells us how he first came to be invited to the festival in 2021 while he was sti...

Today we are joined by the Artistic Director of Pacific Northwest Ballet, Peter Boal. We have had the pleasure of having Peter on the podcast a handful of times in the past, but today we were happy to get to speak with him about his new memoir which was released in June, 'Illusions of Camelot: A Memoir.' Peter tells us about how he built the concept of the book, what he wanted to convey, and the e...