Tag: upfront

Bolshoi Babylon

Ever wish you could go behind the scenes of the often-cloistered Bolshoi Ballet? This month, HBO is airing a new documentary that does just that. (Courtesy HBO) Bolshoi Babylon began filming in 2013, during the aftermath of the acid attack on the company’s (then) artistic director Sergei Filin. The gruesome act of violence had caught […]

9 Things to Expect From the Hamilton Documentary

A year after Hamilton‘s Broadway opening, people are still buzzing about the show and its famed creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda. Adding to the excitement, this month PBS will air Hamilton’s America, a behind-the-scenes documentary featuring the show’s entire journey—from inception to Broadway debut, and everything in between. It’ll be a wonderful all-things-Hamilton extravaganza, but here’s what […]

Up Front: Buzz with Paul Taylor Dance Company

The vision for Paul Taylor’s reimagined company, Paul Taylor’s American Modern Dance, becomes fully realized this month with its spring season, opening March 16 and running through April 3. Rather than its usual all-Taylor programming, the group will perform commissioned premieres by choreographers Larry Keigwin and Doug Elkins, as well as Diversion of Angels by […]

A Star-Crossed, Cross-Atlantic Lover

Lamb as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (photo by Johan Persson, courtesy Royal Opera House) It’s hard to believe that Kenneth MacMillan’s iconic Romeo and Juliet turns 50 this year: It hasn’t aged a day! In fact, the production is still danced by many ballet companies around the world. To celebrate the work’s golden anniversary, […]

Making History Dance

Hamilton, which had its first run at NYC’s Public Theater earlier this year, is an unlikely success story. Who would’ve guessed that a musical based on the life of founding father Alexander Hamilton would be such a hit? But thanks to the show’s creative dream team, which includes writer and composer Lin-Manuel Miranda and choreographer […]

Fond Farewells

Körbes in Swan Lake (photo by Angela Sterling, courtesy Pacific Northwest Ballet) Carla Körbes’ Words of Wisdom After an illustrious career at Pacific Northwest Ballet, ballerina Carla Körbes is leaving the company this June. But as sad as it is to say goodbye, the happy news is Körbes, who’s been a PNB principal since 2006, […]

Mia Michaels in Neverland

There’s nothing Mia Michaels can’t conquer. With work for her own dance company (Mia Michaels’ RAW), concert productions (for both Madonna and Celine Dion), feature films (Rock of Ages) and TV shows (“So You Think You Can Dance”) already under her choreographic belt, you may be thinking “What’s left?” But the three-time Emmy Award–winner is […]

Reimagining a Classic

As a student at Wayne State University, Sonya Tayeh had one of those experiences that seem to change everything: She saw Martha Graham’s seminal solo, Lamentation. Fast-forward a decade or so, and Tayeh is revisiting that defining moment. Fresh off another groundbreaking season on “So You Think You Can Dance,” Tayeh was one of four […]