What is dance and how do we define it? Thesis before have attempted 

Dance is the use of self-objectification to produce art. We objectify ourselves to craft a product, or living idea that has emotional value. Since the choreographic process begins as an internally...

During the college audition process, my eyes were opened to a world of dance I hadn’t known before. I came from a studio that raised me. Parents were forbidden from playing a major role and certain aspects of the dance world were not disclosed. Of course, I was aware o...

Right now, most dancers in my department can be found scurrying about with applications and scholarships for summer intensive programs. From the day we enter, we’re reminded that connections are everything. Someone once told me that Robert Battle was stalked by a dance...

When I was little, my three older sisters and I would line up on the stairs leading to our bedrooms and perform “So Long Farewell” from the Sound of Music. I know what you’re thinking. That must’ve been the cutest thing ever and my parents must’ve loved it. Truthfully…...

I was teaching beginning ballet last summer and I told my dancers to hold their arms so that if they had a partner, they wouldn’t smack them in the face. A small, dramatic dancer waved her arms romantically and asked the girl next to her to be her male partner. One of...

Pictured above: The Tennessee Children's Dance Ensemble in Amman, Jordan with the Bedouin people of Wadi Rum 

Back home, my old dance company would take Wah Lum Kung Fu over the summer to supplement a Kung Fu/Modern dance fusion piece we had in our repertoire. I reminis...

You’re going across the floor in ballet with a Grand Allegro. The teacher stops to explain the combination and makes a variation for the men and women. She tells the men to go last and adds a fabulously daring tour for their finale. The women are instructed to do a sim...

When I was in high school, I attended a football-crazed school that neglected to show much support for the arts. Despite prodding from arts advocates in the area, our school (though ranked high) lacked an auditorium and had minimal funding for the visual and performing...

When I was seven years old, I did swim team. To my mom’s relief I spent hours at the pool over the summer (as she thought I was busy making friends and playing games.) To her surprise and dissatisfaction I’d actually invested in a stopwatch where I’d time myself over a...

When I was a sophomore in high school, my dance company, the Tennessee Children’s Dance Ensemble sent me along with a small delegate group to perform in Jordan. It was through a partnership with ArtReach, a non-profit based in Atlanta, GA that parallels our ideals rega...