Black Ballerina: Documenting 
Diversity in Ballet
   
Amanda Smith, Charlotte Ballet
 
2015 saw a tremendous increase in awareness and conversation around the subject of diversity in ballet. Award-winning producer and director Frances McElroy seeks to broaden the discussion with her timely documentary, Black Ballerina. The film tells the decades-spanning stories of five dancers: PHILADANCO founder Joan Myers Brown; groundbreaking pioneers Delores Browne and Raven WilkinsonAshley Murphy, now a dancer with The Washington Ballet following 13 years with Dance Theater of Harlem; and Bianca Fabr�, whose struggle against structural barriers is representative of many young dancers' overwhelming challenges. The World Dances spoke with McElroy about the documentary, its message, and her hopes for the future of ballet. To contribute to Black Ballerina, click here .
 
After five years working on this project, what do you think are the major barriers today?
 
I think there's still this great interest in tradition. Until people can think about classical ballet as not an all white, all identical-looking group of people, "the way it's always been" is a barrier. 
 
How do you feel about the dance world's progress in this respect?
 
I really do think things are looking more positive. Some of the older dancers with whom I've spoken may not agree with that. They've been living with this for so long and I think they'd like to have seen more change by now. Change doesn't happen quickly, but I really do feel there's been significant progress made. People are talking about it and acknowledging it. I think documentaries like ours help focus that attention. The more people who see it, the more people at least think about it and hopefully talk about it. People talking about it leads to change. When you have someone like Misty Copeland, that brings in a more diverse audience. That's a good thing too. You get more and different people's voices in the conversation. It snowballs--not quickly, but I'm optimistic.
 
Delores Browne, former ballerina with New York Negro Ballet

What do you hope people take away from having seen the documentary?
 
I hope that it increases people's awareness about this beautiful art form. But Black Ballerina is a documentary about more than ballet. It's about diversity, inclusion and opportunity in all aspects of our society. Our hope is that the documentary will stimulate a broader conversation.
 
 
By Tamara Johnson



5 Tips to Get the Most Out of 
Your Audition Season
  
   
 
Audition season for summer intensives is just around the corner. This can be a stressful time of year, but it's also an opportunity to cultivate and apply skills--dance skills, yes, but also the easy to overlook soft skills you need as a professional. Auditioning is a fact of life for a dancer, and learning to do it as well as you can will help you. Here are five tips for upping your audition powers. Merde!
 
1)   Be polite and professional before you're even in the door.
You never know who will happen to be around in the parking lot, the registration area, or warm up space. A positive and gracious attitude doesn't go unnoticed. Nor does the opposite. 
 
2)   Be prepared.
It's important to look and be organized and composed, even if something goes wrong at the last minute. Carry an emergency kit with a needle and thread (or dental floss), extra bobby pins, a pair of tights without runs, and any other back-ups you might need. Also have an envelope with extra copies of your photos and r�sum�/CV, if you have one, in case of spills or rips.
 
3)   Do your research.
Know as much as you can about the program for which you're auditioning. Did someone from your school attend over a previous summer? Ask them about it! Look online. Ask your teachers if they have insights. Know why you want to pursue this program. Is it to learn a new style? To work with specific teachers? To get hired? Knowing this will help you to set your own intentions and prepare, and that kind of focus can help you stand out. It can also help you to stand out to succinctly articulate why a program is important to you when you thank the teacher and panel.
 
4)   Reflect honestly after each audition.
Following an audition, take some time to seriously consider what you think you did well and what you think you could do better next time. Go deeper than, "don't fall out of the quadruple pirouette." Ask yourself which behaviors you should repeat next time and which you should alter. If you fell out of a daring pirouette, maybe attempt one fewer turns next time to ensure you dance cleanly. Or, maybe you usually nail them and a repeatable behavior is to push yourself with confidence. It's up to you, but you'll improve if you take the time to genuinely review your performance and the factors behind it. You might consider keeping a journal to keep track--and to look back on your growth!
 
5)   Take care of yourself!
It's intense to add auditions to your already-demanding schedule. Be sure to eat well, get enough sleep (or as close as possible), and try to minimize other pressures during audition season. This entails getting organized with your academic work in advance. The last thing you want to be thinking about when you're being shown a combination is a paper due the next day. Think about your priorities and obligations ahead of time and try to make--and stick to--a schedule that will distribute your stress with as little drama as possible. That said, taking care of yourself also means keeping perspective. Whatever helps you do this--meditating, talking with friends, yoga, movie binges, reading, etc.--find some "you time" to enjoy it.
 
By Tamara Johnson
 

Must-see January Dance

INTENSIO NYC Dance Project: Ken Brower-Deborah Ory
 
The month of January boasts fabulous dance to see all over the nation!  We've included a few of the outstanding performances you'll want to get tickets for right away.  Here's to getting out this month to see lots of dance near you!  Let us know about the great dance you see this month -- or are planning to see in the next few months -on Twitter @TheWorldDances, on Facebook at The World Dances and at [email protected].
 
NYC - Daniil Simkin's INTENSIO at The Joyce Theater       January 5 - 10  https://www.joyce.org/performance/daniil-simkins-intensio/#.VosTKjZ-BlI
 
NYC - American Dance Platform at The Joyce Theater     January  12 - 17.  This year's festival features companies representing different regions throughout America and pairs emerging companies with those that are more established. The festival is curated by Paul King and Walter Jaffe, the founders and directors of White Bird, the acclaimed dance presentation series based in Portland, Oregon. 
 
Washington D.C. - The National Ballet of Canada Presents Wheeldon's The Winter's Tale at the Kennedy Center     January 19 - 24 http://www.kennedy-center.org/calendar/event/BQBSD
 
San Francisco -   FRESH Festival 2016, San Francisco's 7th Annual Festival of Experimental Dance + Performance   January 3 - 23. Check out the monthly calendar at http://www.freshfestival.org
 
Chicago - aMID Festival  January 21 - 31 celebrates the underserved performative body of the aging artist and challenges commonly held views regarding the age demographic of a dancer or physical performing artist. The aMIDFestival is a Links Hall Artistic Associate residence curated by Michelle Kranicke. 

 
 

TheWorldDances E-Newsletter Team

 

Publisher:  Karla Johnson

Editor:        Tamara Johnson

Producer:   Ester Rodriguez 

January 7, 2016 


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Congratulations to the December 2015 Harlequin Floors Scholarship Winners

Happy New Year from all of us at Harlequin Floors and The World Dances!  Harlequin Floors has been celebrating and supporting dancers for decades and is proud to award $1000 in scholarships every month to help make dancers' dreams come true.  We're excited for you to see the videos of the four December 2015 Harlequin Floors Scholarship winners in this newsletter. Please share your dance video with us today to enter the January 2016 scholarship contest on TheWorldDances.com 




 
 
 
 

Judges' Choice 
Harlequin Scholarship Winner
 Hailey Beasley
Tears of an Angel
 
 

 

 
Judges' Choice 
Harlequin Scholarship Winner
 
Payton Meuwissen
The Drift
 
  

Viewers' Choice 
Harlequin Scholarship Winner
Brookwood High School Dance Dept.
Car Radio
     
 
 
 
 

Viewers' Choice 
Harlequin Scholarship Winner
Ashley Sartell 

   
 
 
The World Dances 
Check out our Pinterest page for 
more inspiring photographs of dance from around the world.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Jobs in the Dance World

Are you ready for a new job in the new year?  Find many new job openings in the arts that may be the perfect fit for you. Bowen McCauley Dance is looking for well-qualifed teaching artists.  Pennsylvania Ballet seeks a company pianist. Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre wants to find the right corporate development manager.  Are you the best fit to be Nashville Ballet's new Managing Director/COO or the Assistant Arts Professor at NYU Tisch?  Jessica Lang Dance in Long Island City, NY has three specific openings.  Search now for career opportunities to match your skill set.