thINKingDANCE

Donate

Interviews

A group of five individuals, dressed in business attire, all gather together for a selfie in the velvet-carpeted lobby of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Jane, at the front left, is a white, brunette woman with a medium pixie cut. Clad in a magenta blazer and black turtleneck, Jane dons a bright, bespectacled smile. Grinning behind Jane, Mallory, a white woman with dirty blonde hair, wears a black and white gingham dress and holds a silver clasp. Malik, a tawny-skinned Black man in a black button-down and trousers, stands beaming at Mallory’s left. Allison and Chloe, dressed in a white button-down and a floral dress respectively, lean into the photo, offering their smiles as well.
Photo courtesy of Ashayla Byrd
  • Interviews, thINKpieces

The Leaders Behind the Headlines: Conversations with the Kennedy Center’s [Terminated] Dance Programming Team

Ashayla Byrd

What happens when political agendas take precedence over a nation’s desire to feel seen and supported in artistic spaces?

Male dance artist Kun-Yang Lin balances on one leg in flowing red silk, hands flexed gracefully, looking downward while holding a poised dance pose.
Photo: Bill H
  • Interviews

To Move in the In-Between: The Legacy of Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers

Lauren Berlin

Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers, among the country’s top Asian American dance companies, marks its final season with a lasting legacy.

Choreographer Charles Askegard guides a poignant moment as Oksana Maslova collapses into Sterling Baca’s arms. Her knees are drawn to her chest, toes pointed, arms extended overhead, lifted off the floor, expressing grief while supported by her partner.
Photo: Adrenaline Film
  • Interviews

The Art of Rising: Ballet Responds to the War in Ukraine

Lauren Berlin

Dance, War, and the Work That Became the Most Important of Maslova’s Career.

Various cast members of The Nutcracker at Ballet Theatre of Scranton pose and smile against a white background. They gaze at one another, wearing costumes from the show: tutus, a giant mouse costume, men in leggings and boots. The women wear diamond crowns and curls in their buns, and everyone looks delighted to be with one another.
Photo: Ballet Theatre of Scranton
  • Interviews

A Tale of Two Cities: “The Nutcracker” in Pennsylvania

Megan Mizanty

A behind-the-scenes look at a beloved annual performance.

Tender and frail. Eiko Otake, a slender, elderly Japanese woman dressed in a crumpled white gown, brow furrowed, worriedly looks at the ground in front of her. With bent limbs, elbows prominent, she clutches a woman familiar to her close to her body. Dressed in a lightly pinstriped red blouse with steel-colored trousers, this woman, Wen Hui, leans to the ground, gazing down at the edge of her fingertips.
Photo: Jingqui Guan
  • Interviews

Old Lessons for New Wars

ankita

We have all known war, but have we learned? 

Richard Move wears a tight sheer dress of a rich dark blue, with only their face, hands, and feet visible. Their legs are open wide, only the balls of the feet on the floor, and they extend their gripped hands to the left as they dramatically turn their head to the right. Fans of modern dance will recognize that this image is a recreation of the dance solo "Lamentations" by Martha Graham.
Photo: Josef Astor
  • Interviews

Being Martha at BAM

Brendan McCall

Richard Move on embodying Martha Graham in the 21st Century

Off center, an old woman sits on a metal chair in front of white curtains. Her hands sit comfortably on top of her stomach, and she smiles mischievously at the camera.
Photo: Ron Wyman
  • Interviews

Becoming “Not You” in Action Theater: An Interview with Skye Hughes

Brendan McCall

Skye Hughes talks about her experience with Action Theater

Christopher Kaui Morgan gazes off to the side, smiling serenely in a studio that radiates warmth. Outfitted in various shades of blue, his hands rest gently on his hips in the pockets of a navy cardigan, as his weight shifts over to one leg. He is an image of confident grace, wearing chunky high-heeled boots that add a splash of exuberance to his professional demeanor.
Photo by K.C. Alfred
  • Interviews

Infiltrating Institutions with Christopher Kaui Morgan

ankita

Christopher Kaui Morgan—infiltrator and advocate—holds the door open for Native Hawaiian and queer communities.

A composite still from Pajarillo, Como No Voy A Llorar? (Little Birdy, How Could I Not Cry). Travieso stands naked on concrete in front of an abstract gray digital background. With eyes closed, she holds a large black satin fabric that billows out to her left. Covering her body is an image of a large bird-like creature fallen on the ground in a desert landscape, with a child and adult looking on.
Photo: Yara Travieso
  • Interviews

Inside/Out Protest: Embodied Liberation with Yara Travieso

ankita

Softening into tender resistance and honest disobedience with NYC-based Cuban-Venezuelan artist Yara Travieso.

Caught in mid flight against a blurred background of golds, oranges, and blues, a Warbler arches its head up and pushes its wings down together in a lifting stroke. It has a golden brown head with a white throat under its small pointed beak. There is a small gold patch above its tail feathers and its wing and tail feathers are shades of black, grey, brown, and white.
Photo: Christine Cieslak
  • Interviews

Neighbor Watching

Emilee Lord

Dance and science create space for learning and hope.