Dance-Enthusiast.com Features

IMPRESSIONS: Norte Maar’s CounterPointe13 Presents Original Collaborations by Women Choreographers and Visual Artists

The Dance Enthusiast — Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Brooklyn-based arts organization Norte Maar’s CounterPointe is a singular performance series that centers on pairing women choreographers with women visual artists to produce original pieces on pointe. Their CounterPointe13 presented at The Mark O’Donnell Theater in Brooklyn, marked the 13th anniversary of the series and showcased six imaginative ways pointe and visual art can coexist." Kristen Hedberg, Brooklyn

IMPRESSIONS: The Choreographic Ensemble of the Paris Conservatoire at the L’Alliance New York

The Dance Enthusiast — Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"There is a beautiful mix of hope and brilliance in watching the next generation of dancers hold legacy through the works of contemporary choreographers Leïla Ka and Robyn Orlin. The Choreographic Ensemble of the Paris Conservatoire, made up of ten pre-professional dancers, performed two imaginative works at L’Alliance New York’s Florence Gould Hall as part of the 2026 Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels Festival. " Miranda Stück

IMPRESSIONS: Monica Bill Barnes & Company in "Lunch Dances" at The New York Public Library

The Dance Enthusiast — Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"What an excellent balance of spoken word, dance, history, architecture, and humanity!" Deirdre Towers, New York

IMPRESSIONS: Hiroaki Umeda's Somatic Field Project in "Moving State 1" and "assimilating" at Japan Society

The Dance Enthusiast — Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Hiroaki Umeda’s stunning two-part program at Japan Society. In the first part, Moving State 1, four lithe women of Somatic Field Project scuttled and squirmed, froze and darted, curled up and wriggled around the floor, and threw in a few pirouettes and grand jetes, maybe just to show they were dancers. If part one was life on earth, part two -- titled assimilating -- is life on the sun, or maybe in the middle of the Big Bang that ushered in the present age. Umeda himself pops, wiggles, wacks and undulates – then plants himself in an inverted Y, while the cosmos goes bonkers on a full screen behind him. - Tom Phillips, New York City

DAY IN THE LIFE OF DANCE: "Graham 100: The Architecture of Emotions" at SUNY Purchase

The Dance Enthusiast — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"For students in the Conservatory of Dance at SUNY Purchase, the centenary of the Martha Graham Dance Company offers a rare opportunity to immerse themselves in the legacy of this great choreographer, who was a pioneer of American modern dance. The 10th edition of the lecture series, titled Graham 100: The Architecture of Emotions offered insights into Graham’s ballets Dark Meadow and Night Journey, on March 11th." — Robert Johnson, Purchase, New York

THE DANCE ENTHUSIAST ASKS: Elodie Dufroux, CUNY Dance Initiative Recipient, on the Premiere of “Un-Spoken”

The Dance Enthusiast — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Having access to beautiful spaces like the BMCC Tribeca! The seats are on a staircase that descends towards the stage, so the audience surrounds the performers; it feels like the audience is embracing the dance [...] It's very special to have the opportunity for my voice to be heard." — Elodie Dufroux, New York

DAY IN THE LIFE OF DANCE: In Motion with Jodi Melnick

The Dance Enthusiast — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"I’m making a dance about dance, about dancing […] I’m thinking of it as a 'dance bomb,' [...] "I want to just unwind the yarn, the knot — keep making knots of movement and unwinding and see what happens. I believe in the body. It’s all here." — Jodi Melnick, New York

POSTCARDS: Elisa Clark, Mark Morris Dance Group's Rehearsal Director, Reflects on 20 Years with the Company

The Dance Enthusiast — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"My hope is to encourage anyone and everyone who comes across this POSTCARD to come see the Mark Morris Dance Group as we celebrate our 45th anniversary. I invite you to show up, to give, to receive, to experience, to support, to feel, to witness, to think, to engage and to be present to dance at a time when it is essential to keep choosing the arts." — Elisa Clark, Brooklyn

IMPRESSIONS: Soa Ratsifandrihana in “g r oo v e” at New York Live Arts

The Dance Enthusiast — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Since 2021, choreographer and performer Soa Ratsifandrihana has toured to stages around the world with a study of her personal groove in her aptly-titled long-form solo g r oo v e [...] The French-Malagasy artist draws as much from her heritage as her résumé, gathering and seamlessly merging an array of social dance forms with postmodern minimalist structures." — Sarah Cecilia Bukowski, New York

IMPRESSIONS: Loretta Thomas and Moving Visions' "The Widening Gyre" at The Mark O’Donnell Theater

The Dance Enthusiast — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Veteran dancer Loretta Thomas teaches young female students of all shapes and sizes at her Moving Visions dance studio. On March 8, she assembles them on stage around herself and a couple of other veterans, namely Catherine Gallant and Faith Kimberling, in her ambitious and mostly beautiful program, The Widening Gyre, at The Mark O’Donnell Theater in Brooklyn." — Henning Rübsam, Brooklyn

THE DANCE ENTHUSIAST ASKS: American Dance Guild Book Fair Authors on Reading, Writing — and Dancing

The Dance Enthusiast — Fri, 20 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Founded in 1956, the American Dance Guild has long supported dancers and choreographers across the field. With its second annual book fair, it’s turning its attention to something dance doesn’t always make space for: books." — Christine Jowers

IMPRESSIONS: New York Flamenco Festival (Part 1)

The Dance Enthusiast — Fri, 20 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"New York remains a source of inspiration for Spanish dancers performing here on tour [...] Rafael Estévez and his colleague Valeriano Paños were among the featured guests at this year’s New York Flamenco Festival."— Robert Johnson, New York

IMPRESSIONS: American Ballet Theatre in Lar Lubovitch's "Othello: A Dance in Three Acts" at Lincoln Center

The Dance Enthusiast — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"American Ballet Theatre opened its three-week spring season at Lincoln Center with 'easy viewing' — choreographer Lar Lubovitch’s highly accessible Othello: A Dance in Three Acts (1997). Its story of jealousy and betrayal is easy to understand. Its plot, conveyed through crystal-clear gestures and astute staging, is not hard to follow, and its full-blown emotions are easily felt." — Lisa Jo Sagolla

IMPRESSIONS FROM CANADA: Ballet BC Presents INFINITY at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre

The Dance Enthusiast — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Ballet BC knocked it out of the park with their INFINITY program, which juxtaposed two brilliant choreographers: Jîrí Kylián and Crystal Pite. Both were dealing with deeply psychic processes in poetic ways." — Wendy Perron, Vancouver

POSTCARDS: Returning the Portrait to Its Subject — Brenda Zlamany and Julia Gleich

The Dance Enthusiast — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Making work in time, in space, in sequence, was genuinely new territory for me. Somewhere in the middle of this process I stopped fighting the time. I saw Julia's way of working and mine come together. Her movement and my stills became a single thing on stage." — Visual Artist, Brenda Zlamany, New York

IMPRESSIONS: Compagnie Hervé Koubi's "Sol Invictus" at The Joyce Theater

The Dance Enthusiast — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"The level of full-out physicality astounds me. I sit in wonder and awe as I witness this group of athletes perform airborne wizardry without a net or cushioning. Each and every part of their bodies seems to have a spring in it." — Henning Rübsam, New York City

IMPRESSIONS: Alessandro Sciarroni's "Save the Last Dance for Me" at Le Skyroom, L'Alliance New York

The Dance Enthusiast — Tue, 17 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"In the naturally lit Skyroom of L’Alliance in Midtown, choreographer Alessandro Sciarroni co-presents Save the Last Dance for Me in collaboration with Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels. While preserving the classic Italian folkdance polka chinata, Save the Last Dance for Me also shares the significance of trust and joy in partner work." — Miranda Stück, New York City

IMPRESSIONS: Manuel Liñán’s Fiesta Flamenca Co-produced by the 2026 Flamenco Festival and Baryshnikov Arts Center

The Dance Enthusiast — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Manuel Liñán designed this thrilling event, produced in collaboration with the 2026 Flamenco Festival (2026 FF) and Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC) [...] The mood snapped from cool to hot, as one by one, the artists performed Bulerías, the festive solo dance, with their body percussion and gestures reaching to the heavens. Each segment performed thereafter took us to a different part of BAC’s 4th floor Howard Gilman studio, with its wall of glass displaying NYC's resplendent lights." — Deirdre Towers, New York

IMPRESSIONS: French Choreographer Leïla Ka's "Maldonne" is "Womanhood Personified"

The Dance Enthusiast — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Leïla Ka's Maldonne speaks to the most joyous and tumultuous seasons of a woman's life with imaginative brilliance. It invites us to escape confinement, while holding authenticity and joy close." — Kristen Hedberg, New York

DAY IN THE LIFE OF DANCE: Sokolow Theatre Dance/Ensemble in "Rooms: America at 250" at the Museum of Jewish Heritage

The Dance Enthusiast — Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Rooms, Anna Sokolow's 1955 masterpiece, unfolds like a Beatnik poem and extracts the experience of urban isolation. Set to a textured, erratic jazz score composed by Kenyon Hopkins, eight dancers express moments of loneliness and hopefulness inside a New York tenement. In the current moment, full of uncertainties surrounding artificial intelligence and human disconnection, Sokolow's choreography feels more relevant than ever." — Stacey Menchel Kussel, New York

IMPRESSIONS: Choreographer David Parker on Trinity Irish Dance Company at The Joyce Theater

The Dance Enthusiast — Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"I expected Trinity's dancers to lay down choreographic dialogues about tradition, innovation, and genre along with their taps, and I was not wrong. But what surprised me was the warmth and directness with which they did it." David Parker, New York

IMPRESSIONS: Karen Pearlman’s “Breaking Plates,” a Film about the Not-So-Silent Women of Silent Film

The Dance Enthusiast — Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Blending documentary, comedy, dance, and inquiry, Karen Pearlman playfully challenges our self-image by juxtaposing the early clips of rebellious maids with those of today's young women." — Deirdre Towers, New York

IMPRESSIONS: New York City Ballet in Jerome Robbins' "Dances at a Gathering" and George Balanchine's "Diamonds"

The Dance Enthusiast — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

"Two glorious performances of Jerome Robbins’masterwork Dances at a Gathering paired with a newly costumed edition of George Balanchine’s Diamonds made the New York City Ballet shine and sparkle at the end of its winter season." — Henning Rübsam, New York

IMPRESSIONS: Jan Martens Presents "The Dog Days Are Over 2.0" at NYU Skirball

The Dance Enthusiast — Sat, 07 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0500

"The dancers in The Dog Days Are Over 2.0 shift their weight and lightly warm up before determinedly walking forward together to put on their sneakers, lined up at the front of the stage. They take their time to tie the laces, balancing on one leg or sitting briefly on the floor. All standing, they begin to bounce." — Catherine Tharin

IMPRESSIONS: Trisha Brown Dance Company in “Dancing with Bob: Rauschenberg, Brown and Cunningham Onstage” at BAM

The Dance Enthusiast — Thu, 05 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0500

"Dancing with Bob is a rare feat of programming and execution that brings these 20th century icons squarely back to the scale of the human. Through the generosity and honesty at work in the dancing bodies of this remarkable ensemble, the legacies of Rauschenberg, Brown, and Cunningham live on as a testament to their — and our — ephemeral and enduring humanity." — Sarah Cecilia Bukowski, Brooklyn