Life as a Modern Dancer

Category: Choreographers

  • Artist and Author Anabella Lenzu

    For me, writing is not so much a pleasure as it is a civic responsibility, and as an educator, my perennial goal is to generate appreciation for and understanding of the arts and of artists. Putting these words on paper forces me to be honest with myself. As a choreographer, I celebrate, meditate, respond, protest,…

  • Podcasts on Process: With Liz Lerman

    By Kirsten Marie Walsh, Curator Liz Lerman and I met in 2013 while I was a graduate student at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in the MFA in Curatorial Practice program. As the inaugural Graduate Fellow at The Contemporary, I was granted the incredible opportunity to shadow her and her team for two full years.…

  • Artist Profile #107: Debra Knapp (Las Cruces, New Mexico)

    Hometown: Vincennes, Indiana Current city: Las Cruces, New Mexico Age: 63 College and degree: BS Physical Education, Dance concentration, Indiana University Graduate school and degree: MS Physical Education, Kinesiology and Choreography concentration (age 35), Indiana University. Ed.D. Educational Leadership and Management (age 55), New Mexico State University. How you pay the bills: Professor of Dance, freelance choreographer and…

  • Artist Profile #106: Cynthia Oliver (Urbana, Illinois)

    Photo: Valerie Oliveiro Hometown: St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands Current city: Urbana, Illinois Age: 54 College and degree: BFA – Adelphi University  Graduate school and degree: MA – New York University; PhD – New York University Website: www.cynthiaoliver.com How you pay the bills: University professor All of the dance hats you wear: Choreographer, dancer/performer, teacher,…

  • Artist Profile #104: Dawn Stoppiello (Portland, OR)

    Dawn Stoppiello    Photo: Cameron Browne (2014) Hometown: I was born in Orange, NJ but left for Arizona then Oregon with my parents when I was 5. I have lived significant chunks of my life in Portland, OR (10 yrs), Los Angeles, CA (9 yrs) and Brooklyn, NY (15 yrs). Current city: I relocated back to Portland,…

  • Artist Profile #103: Adriane Fang (Silver Spring, MD)

    Hometown: Stevens Point, Wisconsin Current city: Silver Spring, Maryland Age: 43 College and degree: University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point, BAs in Dance and Psychology Graduate school and degree: George Mason University, MFA-Dance at 34 years old. How you pay the bills: Assistant Professor at the University of Maryland, teaching gigs, choreography gigs, performance gigs. All of the…

  • Artist Profile #102: Ashley Anderson (Salt Lake City, UT)

    Photo: Kelly Badger Hometown: Sandy, UT Current city: Salt Lake City, UT Age: 31 Websites: ashleyandersondances.com, lovedancemore.org College and degree: Hollins University, B.A.’s in Dance & English Graduate school and degree: Hollins University/the American Dance Festival, MFA under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield (age 22-23) How you pay the bills: A combination of teaching…

  • Artist Profile #101: Sarah Wilbur (Los Angeles, CA)

    Photo credit: Cathie Opie (2014) Hometown: Milwaukee, Wisconsin Current city: Los Angeles, California Age: 41  College and degree: B.F.A. (dance), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; graduated in 1996 at age 22 Graduate school and degree: M.F.A. (dance) UCLA Department of World Arts and Cultures/Dance; graduated in 2012 at age 35 PhD (current doctoral candidate), UCLA Department of World Arts and…

  • My Dance Week: Megan Bridge

    Photo: Bill Hebert I’ve been living and working in Philadelphia as a professional dancer and choreographer for fifteen years. From 2000-2005 I was a member of Group Motion Dance Company. I left the company after five years so that I’d have time to focus more on my own choreographic work, but I still love dancing…

  • What I Look for in a Dancer….

    Rebecca Lazier, Choreographer        Photo: Anna Finke What do you look for in a dancer? How do you find your dancers? From Rebecca Lazier (Brooklyn, NY): That is a tricky question! There is certainly a "je ne sais quoi" aspect to noticing which dancer that inspires me. I can see two equally accomplished dancers but one will be compelling…