Each year the Vail International Dance Festival, helmed by former New York City Ballet principal Damian Woetzel, presents a festival of dance stars in Vail, CO, from July 27 through August 10. Vail’s programming regularly features top ballet dancers from around the country, and this year’s artist in residence will be none other than soon-to-retire […]
Misty Copeland isn’t the only ballerina to grace the glossy pages of mainstream magazines these days. The August issue of Glamour magazine features First Position star and Dutch National Ballet coryphée Michaela DePrince and her remarkable story. DePrince’s childhood in an orphanage in Sierra Leone and her rise to prominence in ballet’s world of swans […]
Almost two years ago, Destiny Wimpye shared her goals and dreams with Dance Spirit, and left readers with this quote: “Following your dreams is definitely difficult, especially if you’re a ballet dancer of color. You have to work twice as hard, but hard work always pays off!” Who could have guessed that right now—yes, even […]
Fashionistas, this one’s for you. A new exhibition titled “Ballerina: Fashion’s Modern Muse,” running at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City from February 11–April 18, ties together a few of our favorite things: fashion, dance history and, of course, ballet. Organized by MFIT deputy director Patricia Mears, the exhibition […]
Wonder what’s going on in ballet this week? We’ve pulled together some highlights. ABT Wraps Up Its Met Season with Whipped Cream American Ballet Theatre’s eight-week summer season at the Metropolitan Opera House, will wrap up this Saturday. From July 2-7, the company will perform Alexei Ratmansky‘s Whipped Cream. This candy-coated surrealist ballet features wacky, […]
Stella Abrera as Giselle (photo by MIRA, courtesy ABT) At Pointe, we’re always ready to watch a good ballet video, especially one that takes us behind the scenes with some of today’s most talented performers. An episode of the series NYC-ARTS, which aired on PBS yesterday, pretty much hits the video jackpot. It profiles not […]
Ballet training and all of its associated fees provide a serious barrier to entry for many aspiring dancers. Tuition, appropriate dancewear, pointe shoes and summer intensives add up, and up…and up. Nowadays, many students also compete and the cost to travel to competitions, pay for custom tutus and contract private coaching is astronomical. Then there’s […]
As you know, our June/July issue features three fantastic dancers that are climbing the ranks: Ashley Murphy, Misty Copeland and Ebony Williams. Their stories about facing adversity in ballet are absolutely inspirational. (If you haven’t read them yet, well, what are you waiting for?) Yet, these stars’ triumphant careers are, for the most part, exceptions […]