Grier Cooper's Blog, page 6
May 27, 2015
Top 10 Swoon-Worthy Ballet Boys
One of the first questions people ask in a discussion about ballet is: what’s up with the men? There are those who assume that if a man puts on tights he must be gay.But if that were true, why are droves of football players signing up for ballet? Regardless of the choices they make for their private lives,balletmen are some of the strongest, most athletic and graceful beings on the planet. As headliner Steve McLendonof the Pittsburgh Steelers says, “ballet is harder than anything else I do”.T...
May 13, 2015
New Ballet Fiction: OFF BALANCE by Terez Mertes Rose
If you are one of those people who feels a flutter in their heart when a new book is released–especially if it’s a book about ballet–then you’ve come to the right place. I’m pleased to share the news of this brand-new, hot-off-the-press novel from Terez Mertes Rose: OFF BALANCE.
Terez Mertes Rose is a writer and former ballet dancer whose work has appeared in theCrab Orchard Review, Literary Mama, Women Who Eat(Seal Press),A Woman’s Europe(Travelers’ Tales), thePhiladelphia Inquirerand theSan...
May 6, 2015
How To Make a Ballerina
Marilyn Miller
Note: This recipe will yield 1 premium quality ballerina.
Ingredients:
Take one part raw, unfiltered talent
Add:
• 3 cups technical skill
• 3 cupsartistic flair
• 2 pinchesdedication and tenacity
Combine ingredients and beat at high speed for 10-15 years. Spoon into proper container, cover loosely, and store in a warm, dry place until volume of talent has doubled. Cook under hot lights until rock hard to the touch and beautiful to behold.
Deposit center stage. Garnish liberal...
April 30, 2015
An Interview With FACT/SF Artistic Director Charles Slender-White
I was fortunate enough to catch up with FACT/SF’s Artistic Director Charles Slender-White as the company prepares for its upcoming new production, Relief.Mr. Slender-Whitehas createdover 20 works to-date, with commissions from the US Department of State, CounterPulse,Acid Rain (Chelyabinsk, Russia), Dialogue Dance (Kostroma, Russia), and others. Hischoreography embraces technical formalism while incorporating the risqué, macabre, andunexpected, and has been described as “paradoxical and...
April 24, 2015
How to Celebrate Bay Area National Dance Week
Bay Area Dance Week–a week of FREE dance classes, events, open studios and performances–officially kicks off today. Not content with having the highest dance per capita in the nation, the Bay Area takes it one step further with this annual celebration of dance. How cool is that? You can check out the offerings in your area here.
Oakland is jumping into the mix tomorrow as it hosts Dance-A-Vision’s Oakland Dance Festival.This event showcases the diverse typesof dance, dancers and choreographe...
April 16, 2015
What Happens When Dance Meets Humor
Here we are in the middle of April, a month typically associated with vibrant blooms, warmer weather, and…humor. While you may or may not get into playing elaborate April Fool’s Day jokes, who doesn’t appreciate a good laugh? Even better if it’s well-choreographed humor. From the world’s largest treadmill dance to ballet’s biggest bloopers, here’s to humor, graceful…or not.
Who knew you could get so creative with a treadmill? Using one as a prop really takes dance to a whole new level (excuse...
March 19, 2015
Ballet’s Most Loaded Question
When I was a professional ballet dancer I often felt penned in by a strange irony: although I’d been one out of crowds of thousands of dancers chosen to dance with Miami City Ballet, I found myself often questioning whether or not I was any good. I was also one of a handful of students chosen to study full-time at the School of American Ballet, arguably one of the top ballet schools in the world. But none of it mattered–at the end of the day I never could tell myself I was an exceptional danc...
March 12, 2015
Interview with Kat Roman, Artistic Director of Copious Dance
February 26, 2015
5 Dance Exhibits to Love
As February draws to a close there’s no reason to stop that loving feeling. This year brought about a change in perspective for me regarding February; since I’ve never been wildaboutHallmark Holidays, why not celebrate love–in all of its forms– for the entire month? Love feels good, doesn’t it? In the spirit of keeping love alive for all of February, I’ve searched for new dance-related things to love. This week we’ll close out the series by looking at 5 Dance Exhibits to Love. Enjoy!
Love Sky/...
February 19, 2015
5 Dancers–Turned–Authors to Love
Continuing with the theme of love in the month of February, I’m pleased to present more new things to love this week!. These 5 dancers–turned–authors towent fromrocking it on the stage to rocking it on the page– Hope you enjoy learning about them and find new books to love in the process.
Zippora Karz. Aformer soloist ballerina with the New York City Ballet (1983–1999),Zippora Karz performed numerous roles choreographed by George Balanchine and Peter Martins, among others. Inher memoir,The Sug...
