Colleen Callahan-Russell Bringing Dance to Diverse Schools and Communities
In 1984, Colleen Callahan-Russell was teaching dance at North High
School one of the Twin Cities’ most racially diverse schools. She’d
attended several basketball games and loved the players’ moves. So she
asked the team, state champs in basketball that year, if she could
choreograph a game for them. The players were game, especially when she
began rehearsals by working with the Harlem Globetrotters’ theme song.
By the time the piece reached the stage of the Walker Art Center as part
of a Choreographers’ Evening, Colleen had switched the music to
Vivaldi. Her dancer/athletes were unfazed and got a standing ovation. Read more about Callahan-Russell, Dance/USA 2014 Inspiration Award recipient.
Toward a New Definition of Arts Administrator
You might have heard the saying: “Those who can, do; those who can’t,
teach.” In fact, if you’ve worked in the arts, not only have you most
likely heard this, but you might also consider what I feel is the
implied third part of this phrase, “Those who can’t do either,
administrate.” This article is ultimately about arts administrators; read on for more.
Advocacy: Anywhere and Anytime
I’d never experienced face-to-face
advocacy firsthand to gain true insight into its meaning — and outcomes.
In imagining what my first governmental advocacy meetings might be
like, I wondered: How could I be the most effective voice in
representing a diverse field of artists? Do I need to be an expert on
the issues? Ultimately, what sort of impact can I make? Read on for more from Michelle Lynch Reynolds.
Sequestered
As a judge in any competition, you are expected to be “objective.” But there is no such thing as pure objectivity, since we all come with our own set of past experiences. I am aware of my personal
biases and try to move beyond them, but part of the value of my — or
anyone’s — feedback is in the passionate personal response. If we know a person from our past, we see more in their
performance than if we never laid eyes on them. This is why the
American College Dance Festival Association requires that its
adjudicators be kept away from the participants — “sequestered.” Read about dancer/critic Wendy Perron’s experience.
Balancing Acts: Dancers and Their Experiences With Motherhood
George Balanchine didn’t hide his disapproval of dancers having
children. Doubtless, such
overt pressure from a director would not fly anymore, but many issues
that more indirectly discourage parenthood have not changed. Dancers
still deal with issues like taking parental leave, juggling child care,
physical recovery from childbirth, and health care.
Dance and Parenthood: A Case Study
Despite the daunting landscape for independent and freelance dance
professionals, we’re seeing encouraging trends in how some dance
companies regard the family lives of their employees.
Moving On: A Close Up Look at the Closing of the Trey McIntyre Project
The announcement in January by the Trey McIntyre Project that its
performances June 25-29, 2014, at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival would be
the company’s last sent both shockwaves and shrugs through the dance
community. The shockwaves were because despite the company only being
a full-time entity since 2008 (it had begun in 2005 as a summer pickup
company); it seemed to be a model of success in a dance world that is
constantly searching for new blood.
What We Talk About When We Talk About Race, Part One
Art and arts organizations are not capable of solving racism on their
own. It’s not that the arts have nothing to say about race or that
diverse cultural expressions aren’t important, but in the absence of a
clear and shared understanding of the underlying factors that perpetuate racism,
I fear that arts-centric interventions can all too often end up being
little more than a band-aid – a way to reassure ourselves that we’re
doing something important and valuable when in reality we’re really
having very little impact at all. I believe that the sooner we as a
field start framing our efforts not around “what can we do as artists
and arts administrators to promote diversity?” but rather “how does
racial injustice manifest today, what are its root causes, and how can
we as human beings most effectively be part of the solution?” the
sooner we’ll actually have something to be proud of.
Affording Affordable Care
Many dance organizations have long been unable to afford health
insurance for dancers, even though they are the tools through which we
fulfill the missions of our companies. The Affordable Care Act and its subsidies to small businesses provide
an opportunity for dance companies to invest resources in their
employees’ health care, many for the very first time. Great! But, wait …
what options are available? What can we afford? Is my organization
required by law to provide insurance? What if my company can’t afford
insurance?? What are the deadlines???
Saving Our Collective Memory
Are we ignoring or squandering our 20th century modern dance legacy? As if the public agony of the Martha Graham Dance Company weren’t
enough, the tragedy of the Cunningham company’s disappearance should be a
wake-up call to all American dance companies and arts funders. Dance critic Robert Johnson examines this issue.