Dance

When Asha Bala was born, her mother looked at her and declared that she would be a dancer. Her country, India, was a newborn as well, recently independent from British rule. So many parents were keen to revitalize ancient cultural and spiritual practices like Bharata Natyam dance, once practiced in the temples and based on epic tales and mythology.

Legendary dancer and choreographer Bill T. Jones was inspired to create his dance trilogy “Analogy” after reading W. G. Sebald’s novel “The Emigrants.” The book, like Jones’s resulting oeuvre, deals with issues of persecution, trauma, war and memory.

African-American women have fought against discrimination in the ballet world for decades. Debra Austin was the first black ballerina to become a principal dancer in a major American dance company. She broke through the racial barrier, but her career was not without challenges.

A new dance piece by choreographer and educator Camille A. Brown digs into the nuanced way black girls play and communicate. “Black Girl: Linguistic Play” documents the historical roots of street games like double-dutch, stepping, and tap. It also examines how they’ve been used to connect and communicate for centuries. 

Lar Lubovitch is known in the performing art world as a breakthrough choreographer in modern, ballet and jazz dancing.

One of his most heralded works is called "Concerto 622," which depicted two men in a loving relationship for the first time on the modern dance stage. It gave a face to the AIDS crisis in the mid-80s.

Award-winning choreographer Bill T. Jones' newest creation, Analogy/Dora: Tramontane, is based on interviews he conducted with his 95-year-old mother-in-law, Dora Amelan, a Jewish nurse who survived the Holocaust.

Asheville is the largest city in western North Carolina.  It is known for its scenic views, artsy culture and terrific music scene.  But one native, along with several of his friends, is hoping to also make Asheville a home for dance. Nick Kepley is an acclaimed dancer who founded MOTION Dance Theatre to bring the skills and values he learned performing around the nation home to Asheville.  This summer the theatre is hosting a three-week creative laboratory where visiting dancers and choreographers are given the time and space to create without boundaries.  

The world renowned performance artist Taylor Mac is in North Carolina this week with the show 1910s - A 24 Decade History of Popular Music.  The performance is part of a larger project that involves 24 separate performances, each based on a single decade since 1770.

Mac says the 1910s were a critical decade of change in the history of America.

South African choreographer Gregory Maqoma grew up hearing the story of his ancestor, a 19th century Xhosa warrior. The man is remembered for his long fight to preserve cultural traditions and resist colonial rule. In the dance piece, "Exit/Exist," Maqoma explores the connections between his past and present while live musicians sing in the Xhosa language.

The American Dance Festival kicks off today. ADF's mission is to support modern dance, and as a part of that they commission artists to create new work.

This year, there is a push to get a younger audience. Jodee Nimerichter directs the festival.

In 2010, Jenifer Ringer starred as the sugar plum fairy in the New York City Ballet's performance of The Nutcracker. And when a New York Times dance critic insinuated in a review of the performance that Jenifer was overweight, she responded.  Her recent book Dancing Through It: My Journey in The Ballet talks about how she overcame that criticism and her struggle with health and weight (Penguin/2014). 

For centuries, countless dances were born out of the disbursement of African people.  Dancing The African Diaspora, a new conference at Duke University, explores dances by people of African descent.

In the past, the clothesline was a place where a community’s women met to hang laundry. 

The poet Lightsey Darst found inspiration for her new book “Dance” (Coffee House Press/ 2013) from some unlikely sources: the Zodiac, Dante, the Guinness Book of World Records and Vogue magazine. 

In dance, Darst finds a metaphor for Hell, Earth, and Paradise.  Host Frank Stasio speaks to Lightsey Darst about dance, writing and her latest work.

Three years ago, Camille A. Brown made the decision to form her own dance company, Camille A. Brown & Dancers.

Legions of fans will flock to Lake Lure, NC this weekend for the third annual Dirty Dancing Festival, a celebration of the 1987 movie starring Patrick Swayze.

Every summer, over 300 professional dancers, choreographers and dance students flock to Durham. They come for the American Dance Festival. It’s a summer school and a series of world-class performances open to the public. This summer's theme is "Something New, Something Treasured" and features the work of established choreographers like Bill T. Jones and Paul Taylor, as well as emerging talents like Rosie Herrera. The festival starts June 9 and runs through July 23.