5/13/18 O&A NYC DANCE: Mother (Isadora Duncan c. 1923)

Loretta Thomas performs Mother featuring choreography by Isadora Duncan (c. 1923) with music by Alexander Scriabin. Duncan bore two children, both out of wedlock. The first, Deirdre Beatrice (born September 24, 1906), by theatre designer Gordon Craig and the second, Patrick Augustus (born May 1, 1910),by Paris Singer, one of the many sons of sewing machine magnate Isaac Singer. Both children drowned in the care of their nanny in 1913 when their runaway car went into the Seine River in Paris.

Mother (Isadora Duncan c. 1923)

In her autobiography, Duncan relates that she begged a young Italian stranger, the sculptor Romano Romanelli, to sleep with her because she was desperate for another baby. She became pregnant by him, and gave birth to a son on August 13, 1914; the infant died shortly after birth.

 

5/4/18 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: Maya Plisetskaya Dances Bolero, And The Dying Swan

Shall We Dancemed_1408733786_image

Maya Plisetskaya, Prima Ballerina Assoluta of the Bolshoi Ballet, danced Maurice Bejart’s Bolero set to the famous Ravel score in 1975. Plisetskaya created a stunning theatrical experience. What makes the piece so compelling is that although Plisetskaya may be accompanied by dozens of other dancers mirroring her movement, the first and only focus is on the prima ballerina herself.  Continue reading

4/18/18 O&A NYC DANCE: Afternoon Of A Faun- Tanaquil LeClercq and Jacques d’Amboise

In Afternoon Of A Faun (1953) Jerome Robbins‘ genius take on the old Debussy/Nijinsky ballet. A 1955 Canadian broadcast of the two legends of the NYC Ballet (and the original ballerina in this) Tanaquil LeClercq and Jacques d’Amboise (Francisco Moncion original danseur). Continue reading

4/8/18 O&A NYC IN MEMORARIUM: Donald McKayle (July 6, 1930 – April 7, 2018)- Rainbow Round My Shoulder with Mary Hinkson

Dancer, choreographer, educator and author Donald McKayle passed on April 7, 2018 at age 87.  In honor of this dance icon O&A NYC posts his 1959 masterwork, Rainbow Round My Shoulder. Continue reading

4/6/18 (REPOST) O&A NYC LIFESTYLE/DANCE: Geoffrey Holder A True Renaissance Man

maxresdefault-1

Congratulation to Dance Theatre Of Harlem, Carmen de Lavallade and Leo Holder, Dougla was “simply marvelous”. This video honors Geoffrey Holder- a true renaissance man. It also includes rare footage and interviews with wife Carmen de Lavallade and son Leo Holder.  Continue reading

4/4/18 O&A NYC DANCE: Dougla Returns to Dance Theatre of Harlem Tonight

Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) begins their four performance New York season tonight at New York City Center. One of the season highlights is the much-anticipated revival of choreographer/Renaissance Man Geoffrey Holder’s Dougla. Dougla captures the pageantry, beauty and ritual of a the wedding day of a young Dougla couple from Trinidad. They are the offspring of Africans who were brought to the Caribbean as slaves and Indians who were brought as low cost labor after the abolition of slavery. Continue reading

(REPOST) 3/23/24 O&A NYC DANCE: Rudolph Nureyev: Encore Performance- Afternoon Of A Faun (1981)

NureyevPerformsAfternoonofaFauninPa

Vaslav Nijinsky choreographed Afternoon of a Faun, using the music of Claude Debussy. In this interpretation, Leon Bakst‘s scenery and costumes have been stunningly reconstructed by Ralph Holmes. The original choreography, designed to evoke the two-dimensional flatness of a Greek frieze, was reconstructed by Elizabeth Schooling and William Chappel. Continue reading

3/4/18 O&A NYC SUNDAY AFTERNOON JAZZ CONCERT: Mary Lou’s Mass-Excerpt Featuring The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Alvin Ailey’s collaboration with jazz pianist and composer Mary Lou Williams, two artists who shared roots and memories in the southern church, is a deeply spirited theatrical experience.
Continue reading

2/11/18 O&A NYC BLACK HISTORY MONTH SUNDAY AFTERNOON JAZZ CONCERT: Joséphine Baker: The First Black International Superstar

Josephine Baker was an entertainer, civil rights activist, French Resistance agent and the first Black international superstar. Her career was centered primarily in Europe, mostly in her adopted France. Continue reading

2/10/18 O&A NYC GOING BACK TO AFRICA WITH WaleStylez: How To Dance Like An African

By Adewale Adekanbi Jr.

How To Dance Like An African displays popular dances from across the African continent. Dances includes Pantsula (South Africa), Kuduro (Angola), Stonkana (Botswana), Borrowdale (Zimbabwe), Gumboot (South Africa and Swaziland), Azonto (Ghana), Chimwemwe (Zambia) and many more. Continue reading