Eddie Martinez of Pina Bausch; photo by Donata Wenders

From Blog Director Jill Randall:

In the coming months, I am excited to run a new series on the blog about dancers over 40. This topic, I believe, still has so many questions to discuss, reflect upon, and unpack. 

To begin today, I wanted to share this great article from The Guardian about ballerinas performing after age 40, including Wendy Whelan (48) and Alessandra Ferri (52). I think audiences are still reshifting their focus when watching dance and now discovering the power and beauty of dancers over the age of 40.

I have featured numerous artists over the past three years who are over age 40. I will highlight some of their words and continue to interview more artists during the coming year. My list of questions and topics includes:

• Sharing your growth as a dancer (performer, teacher, choreographer) over time
• Serving as a mentor now for younger generations; the importance of mentoring
• Care of the body
• Current passions and curiosities within dance
• Current passions and curiosities outside of dance
• How technology has changed and impacted the field of dance
• Financial advice, including on retirement, for dancers
• What does "retirement" mean for a dancer? Retiring from what?
• Can we shift our language beyond using the phrase "still dancing?"
• Role models for you (dancers over 40)

As I begin, here are links to some fabulous artist profiles of dancers in their 40s, 50s, 60s, and 70s:

Choreographer Colleen Thomas (age 45)

Eddie Martinez, performer with Pina Bausch (age 51)

Choreographer Douglas Nielsen (age 66)

Linda C. Smith, Artistic Director of RDT (age 74)

Please join me on this journey during the coming months. If you have questions to add to my list, please leave a comment below. 

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