Conversations on Dance

Today on 'Conversations On Dance' we are joined by Evelyn Cisneros-Legate, director of the Ballet West Academy, and Allison DeBona, principal of the Ballet West Academy Park City location and founder of artÉmotion. Both women take us through how their careers as professional ballerinas impacted the work they do today as educators, how they are actively growing Ballet West's training programs and w...

Michael and Rebecca sit down for our annual "Best of 2023." Hop over to our Instagram account to comment and share with us some of your fave dance moments you experienced this year: @conversationsondance . Happy New Year and thank you for your support of Conversations on Dance this past year! LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE: Janet Eilber on Martha Graham Dance Company in 'Cave': https://www.conversationson...

The holidays are right around the corner, so today we are featuring some dance reads that make the perfect last minute gift for the dance lover in your life. On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by Miriam Landis, former Miami City Ballet dancer, Pacific Northwest Ballet School Faculty member, and author of the recently published book 'Lauren in the Limelight'. Miriam...

Today on 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by Lloyd Knight, a long time veteran of the Martha Graham Dance Company. We catch up with Lloyd about the work he has done in the past year with Twyla Tharp and on tours with the Graham company, as well as the time he's spent this year as one of the New York Public Library's Dance Research Fellows. The program this year is centered on Martha Gr...

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by Alastair Macaulay, esteemed critic and historian for the performing arts. Alastair previously joined us for a deep dive into the history of Balanchine's classic 'Serenade'; today he returns for critical analysis of one of the oldest and most beloved full lengths in ballet history, 'Giselle'. Alastair will be presenting a seminar...

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by internationally renowned choreographer Lar Lubovitch. We talk to Lar about his late start in dance, the benefits of creating works on his company and the differences in the creative process for the dozens of commissions he received over decades whether for the most respected ballet companies in the world, musical theater or ice...

On today's episode of 'Conversations On Dance', we are joined by the Artistic Director of Ballet West, Adam Sklute. Adam sits down with us to tell us about his journey from dancer to director, the positive changes he's enacted since he took over the role of Artistic Director in 2007 and to give us a deep look into the company's production of Willam Christensen's 'Nutcracker', the very first f...

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...