Body and Soul

Dancer-choreographer Gesel Mason--of the DC-area based Mason/Rhynes Productions and Gesel Mason Performance Projects--discusses her wide-ranging work on behalf of diverse artists and audiences, as well as her celebrated project--"No Boundaries"--featuring historic and contemporary dance by Black choreographers such as Donald McKayle, Bebe Miller, David Roussève and Jawole Willa Jo Zollar. Program...

Bessie Award-winning choreographer Luciana Achugar brings a new work--"The Sublime is Us"--to a studio space at Dance Theater Workshop, beginning October 21. Program notes--http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Guest info at http://www.lachugar.org and http://www.dtw.org. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

Warren Adams, born and raised in South Africa, is among several choreographers whose dances will receive their New York premieres during BalletMet Columbus's return engagement at The Joyce Theater (September 30-October 5). Adams will present "The Audacious One," inspired by the speech that first brought Senator Barack Obama to national and international attention and acclaim. Created as a four-min...

Jane Goldberg--tap dancer and journalist--discusses her entertaining and insightful new book, "Shoot Me While I'm Happy: Memories from The Tap Goddess of the Lower East Side." Program notes--http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Guest info at http://www.janegoldberg.org. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

Bessie Award-winning choreographer Jane Comfort talks about "An American Rendition"--her new dance-theater work that addresses American addiction to Reality TV and avoidance of political realities such as our government's policy of rendition--the secret kidnapping, interrogation and torture of detainees in overseas prisons. Jane Comfort and Company will premiere this piece at the Duke on 42nd Stre...

Dancer-choreographer Adrienne Westwood discusses her upcoming premiere, "Lullaby in Surrealism" (September 25-27 at the Ailey Citigroup Theater) and talks about founding a collaborative dance company with several fellow graduates of North Carolina School of the Arts. Program notes--http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Guest info at www.viadance.org. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

Program notes--http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Guest info at www.gwirtzmandance.org. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

An interview with dancer-choreographer Ana Maria Alvarez, founder and artistic director of Contra-Tiempo, a Latin activist dance troupe based in Los Angeles. Program notes--http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Guest info at www.contra-tiempo.org. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

Choreographer Jill Johnson talks with Eva about her residency with Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet and her new dance installation, The Copier. Program notes--http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet info at www.cedarlakedance.com. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

Program notes--http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Guest info at www.alchemyperformance.com and www.miramania.com. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

Program notes at http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Guest info at www.risajaroslow.org. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

For program notes, see http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Guest info at www.keigwinandcompany.com. (c)2008, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

It’s immediately clear that Tom Pearson and Zach Morris of Third Rail Projects take great pleasure in their work and that the personal bond between them creates an atmosphere of trust and courage that nourishes their entire artistic team. The dancer-choreographers spoke with me today about their partnership, their creative process and “Vanishing Point,” a new presentation at Danspace Project (June...

Hilary Easton's creativity combines secure craft, sharp intelligence, hearty expression and fearless exploration. Here's a delightful conversation I had with the choreographer in a studio at New York's Lincoln Center. BIO Hiilary Easton has danced with Kinematic, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, XXY Dance/Music and many others. Ms. Easton has been commissioned to choreograph for many exciti...

If you can see this description text but missed the text for the previous two podcasts--the UF students and Emily Berry interviews--you can find that information on my blog, InfiniteBody. Thanks, once again, for your support! LINK http://infinitebody.blogspot.com Body and Soul is the official podcast of InfiniteBody dance blog at http://infinitebody.blogspot.com. Subscribe through iTunes or at htt...

“I believe that art has the power to create change,” says Emily Berry, artistic director of B3W and my guest for today’s podcast. Recently, Berry set a new dance on her students at Queensborough Community College, dealing straight on with the issue of race. Given the prominence of this issue–for better or for worse--in this year’s presidential campaign, I thought it appropriate to take a look at h...

A few weeks ago, I interviewed choreographer Neta Pulvermacher about her UF/NYC Dance Xchange program for dance majors from University of Florida's College of Fine Arts. The students are now here in New York, and I met them last evening at Judson Memorial Church where we attended a Movement Research performance. After watching dances by Rose Anne Spradlin, Rebecca Lazier, DD Dorvillier and Julian...

In Part 2 of our conversation about the 2008 La MaMa Moves! dance festival, co-curators Nicky Paraiso and Mia B. Yoo discuss a new addition to their festival schedule--a forum for choreographers. GUEST BIOS See Part 1. EVENT La MaMa Moves! -- May 2-June 1 For up-to-the-minute calendar and ticketing details, see the link below or call 212-475-7710. LINK La MaMa e.t.c. http://www.lamama.org/ Click o...

La MaMa Moves! again! Ellen Stewart's legendary East Village theater presents its big annual dance festival, starting this weekend with a presentation of Ivy Baldwin Dance. I spoke with co-curators Nicky Paraiso and Mia B. Yoo about all of their sensational events, including the "Dancing for Micki" benefit in honor of Micki Wesson, the great supporter and champion of New York dance. In Part 2 of o...

The Kitchen, located in Chelsea, and The Studio Museum in Harlem have a couple of exciting things in common. Both centers herald innovation in the arts. And now both have Hoofers' House--an intimate tap jam session celebrating tap dance on the cutting edge. Rashida Bumbray--who co-founded Hoofers' House at SMH and now serves as Assistant Curator at The Kitchen--joins me to talk about this new part...

Acclaimed dancer-choreographer Nora Chipaumire--recipient of a 2007 New York Dance and Performance ("Bessie") Award--joins me to discuss her vision and mission as a Zimbabwe-born contemporary dance artist of Shona heritage. She previews her April 30-May 1 solo season at Dance Theater Workshop. BIO Nora Chipaumire was born in Mutare, Zimbabwe during the Chimurenga Chechipiri, or second war of liber...

New York-based choreographer Neta Pulvermacher, who teaches at the University of Florida, joined me to talk about her plans for this year's big student field trip to New York--the Second Annual UF/NYC Dance Xchange (May 3-10, 2008)--and also share a preview of other exciting upcoming projects. BIO Neta Pulvermacher is the founder and project director of the UF/NYC Dance Xchange. She was born and r...

Brazil-born/New York-based Regina Nejman will bring "Reveal" to the Merce Cunningham Studio, May 1-4. This new dance-theater piece explores the meaning of privacy in today's technology-driven world, delving into the relationship between privacy and technology, and the impact of this relationship on everyday life. BIO Regina Nejman has been creating her own choreography since 1993. She formed Regin...

Alex Escalante's new evening-length work--"Clandestino"--pays tribute to his Mexican heritage, his immigrant parents, and the courage of undocumented workers, living in the United States, who, in the spring of 2006, turned out for massive rallies for their human rights. At a time when illegal immigration has become an exploited political flashpoint, Escalante asks audiences to confront their own f...

Here’s my conversation with Sandra Catena, popular belly dance instructor and performer, personal trainer and author of “The African Belly Dance”–the first murder mystery to feature a belly dancer as its protagonist. BOOK FACTS “The African Belly Dance” is a murder mystery featuring Santina Cole, a first generation Italian-American from Newark, New Jersey. Santina was raised in a blue-collar famil...