"I have been a professional Middle Eastern dancer, or as it is called in the West, belly dancer, for ten years. I photographed this collection of images during a period of three years, in which I performed mostly around New York City's five boroughs, their vicinity and parts of New Jersey. I traveled to shows with a married couple, Israelis like myself, who were my agents. He was the drummer, she did the jewelry, so we were a small, tightly knit creative team, spending many hours together on the road. We sometimes did as many as six or seven shows an evening, each in a different location and for a different kind of audience. I danced for Americans, Greeks, Indians, Bukharans, Punjabis, Turkish, Chinese and Gypsy communities. I danced in fancy restaurants for celebrities, in middle-class family events, in sleazy bars, or for men gathered in poor-house basements. There is a tension between the dance's beauty, grace and technical sophistication, and the fact that it thrives on its off-stage settings. It is not just choreographically complicated, it is also direct, sexual, warm, alive. More than that, it is, in its own way, truly intimate. It could not be all that if it wasn't performed in ordinary settings, among, rather than in front of, audiences. This is, in fact, what I personally like so much about it. The mixing with the people, dancing in living rooms, being surrounded by families, grandparents and children at once, the smell of the food and the messiness of real life..." --Elinor Carucci
Confronting, confessional and wildly entertaining, Sunshine lays bare the business of stripping and what goes on in the backrooms of 'gentlemen's clubs'. Coming to TV in 2021! There are a lot of Ambers in the stripping world. And Aprils and Summers, and Skys and Rains. There are quite a few gems: Sapphires, Diamonds, Rubies and even an Amethyst. And exotic creatures: Tigers, Cheetahs, Phoenixes and Kitties. Plenty of weather conditions, like Misty, Stormy and Cloudy. There are, of course, a selection of fruits: Cherry, Berry, Peaches and Apple. And confectionery to go with it, like Candy, Lolly and Caramel. And then there are the generic hot-girl/sexy names: Lolita, Tiffany, Chanel, Lulu, Sasha and Brigitte. Meet Sunshine. That's her stage name. Follow her downstairs into the shadowy underworld of the so-called Gentlemen's Clubs, where men hide in dark corners and pay gorgeous women like Sunshine to take their clothes off. Follow her to the private rooms where the lap dances happen, the hustle plays out and the real money flows. Sit with her in the back room with the other dancers, her friends and colleagues, who laugh and cry and rake in the dollars and party as though a zombie apocalypse is on the horizon. Sunshine tells us in her own brutally honest and audacious words what it's like to work as a stripper, both in Australia and overseas. Confessional, confronting, revealing, wildly entertaining and often laugh-out-loud funny, Sunshine: The diary of a lap dancer will take you into a world that most of us can only imagine and that others know all too well. But only the dancers know what really goes on - and this book shows you their world stripped bare.
An irresistible inside look at one of the world's great dance companies, Winter Season is also a sensitive, intimate, and almost painfully honest account of the emotional and intellectual development of a young woman dedicated to one of the most demanding of all the arts. Bentley's association with the New York City Ballet began when she was accepted by the affiliated School of American Ballet at the age of eleven. Seven years later, she became a member of the company. In the fall of 1980, as the winter season opened, she found herself facing an emotional crisis: her dancing was not going well. At 22 she felt that her life had lost direction. To try to make something of her experience, on paper if not on stage, she began to keep a journal, describing her day-to-day activities and looking back on her past. The result is perhaps the closest that most of us will ever come to knowing what it feels like to be a dancer, on stage and off. It also offers memorable glimpses of some notable members of the City ballet, with, at the center, the man whose vision they all served--George Balanchine.
Have you been feeling creatively stagnant or distanced from dance? Meet your new rectangular dance partner. A whisper from the creative muses. "The Artist's Way" in dance form. A calling to get back to dance and get back to YOU. Because starting to dance - again or for the first time - is often easier said than done. (Cue the intimidation, body image issues, time constraints, etc.) But dancing regularly is a proven source of happiness and healing, and for many it's a way to revive a lost part of our souls. This book is meant to be danced with, alone in your room to start, with a series of inspiring stories and directive prompts that you can do anytime. No more need for excuses or endlessly searching for the perfect class... make your bedroom your dance studio and DANCE WITH THIS BOOK. Side effects may include: making more space for yourself, reconnecting to your body, boosting your creative energy, releasing stress and stuck emotions, and feeling less alone. No leotards or expensive leggings required.
“Who am I? I’m a man; an American, a father, a teacher, but most of all, I am a person who knows how the arts can change lives, because they transformed mine. I was a dancer.” In this rich, expansive, spirited memoir, Jacques d’Amboise, one of America’s most celebrated classical dancers, and former principal dancer with the New York City Ballet for more than three decades, tells the extraordinary story of his life in dance, and of America’s most renowned and admired dance companies. He writes of his classical studies beginning at the age of eight at The School of American Ballet. At twelve he was asked to perform with Ballet Society; three years later he joined the New York City Ballet and made his European debut at London’s Covent Garden. As George Balanchine’s protégé, d’Amboise had more works choreographed on him by “the supreme Ballet Master” than any other dancer, among them Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux; Episodes; A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream; Jewels; Raymonda Variations. He writes of his boyhood—born Joseph Ahearn—in Dedham, Massachusetts; his mother (“the Boss”) moving the family to New York City’s Washington Heights; dragging her son and daughter to ballet class (paying the teacher $7.50 from hats she made and sold on street corners, and with chickens she cooked stuffed with chestnuts); his mother changing the family name from Ahearn to her maiden name, d’Amboise (“It’s aristocratic. It has the ‘d’ apostrophe. It sounds better for the ballet, and it’s a better name”). We see him. a neighborhood tough, in Catholic schools being taught by the nuns; on the streets, fighting with neighborhood gangs, and taking ten classes a week at the School of American Ballet . . . being taught professional class by Balanchine and by other teachers of great legend: Anatole Oboukhoff, premier danseur of the Maryinsky; and Pierre Vladimiroff, Pavlova’s partner. D’Amboise writes about Balanchine’s succession of ballerina muses who inspired him to near-obsessive passion and led him to create extraordinary ballets, dancers with whom d’Amboise partnered—Maria Tallchief; Tanaquil LeClercq, a stick-skinny teenager who blossomed into an exquisite, witty, sophisticated “angel” with her “long limbs and dramatic, mysterious elegance . . .”; the iridescent Allegra Kent; Melissa Hayden; Suzanne Farrell, who Balanchine called his “alabaster princess,” her every fiber, every movement imbued with passion and energy; Kay Mazzo; Kyra Nichols (“She’s perfect,” Balanchine said. “Uncomplicated—like fresh water”); and Karin von Aroldingen, to whom Balanchine left most of his ballets. D’Amboise writes about dancing with and courting one of the company’s members, who became his wife for fifty-three years, and the four children they had . . . On going to Hollywood to make Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and being offered a long-term contract at MGM (“If you’re not careful,” Balanchine warned, “you will have sold your soul for seven years”) . . . On Jerome Robbins (“Jerry could be charming and complimentary, and then, five minutes later, attack, and crush your spirit—all to see how it would influence the dance movements”). D’Amboise writes of the moment when he realizes his dancing career is over and he begins a new life and new dream teaching children all over the world about the arts through the magic of dance. A riveting, magical book, as transformative as dancing itself.
Finalist, the Arts Club of Washington Marfield Prize A look inside a dancer’s world Inspiring, revealing, and deeply relatable, Being a Ballerina is a firsthand look at the realities of life as a professional ballet dancer. Through episodes from her own career, Gavin Larsen describes the forces that drive a person to study dance; the daily balance that dancers navigate between hardship and joy; and the dancer’s continual quest to discover who they are as a person and as an artist. Starting with her arrival as a young beginner at a class too advanced for her, Larsen tells how the embarrassing mistake ended up helping her learn quickly and advance rapidly. In other stories of her early teachers, training, and auditions, she explains how she gradually came to understand and achieve what she and her body were capable of. Larsen then re-creates scenes from her experiences in dance companies, from unglamorous roles to exhilarating performances. Working as a ballerina was shocking and scary at first, she says, recalling unexpected injuries, leaps of faith, and her constant struggle to operate at the level she wanted—but full of enormously rewarding moments. Larsen also reflects candidly on her difficult decision to retire at age 35. An ideal read for aspiring dancers, Larsen’s memoir will also delight experienced dance professionals and fascinate anyone who wonders what it takes to live a life dedicated to the perfection of the art form.
This unique journal and activity book offers little dancers the ideal way to record their progress and reinforce their lessons. Thirty charmingly illustrated pages are packed with practical checklists, inspiring tips, fill-in-the-blanks, and a dictionary of terms every ballet dancer should know. A special place to note dance class highlights and goals, this book offers families a keepsake treasure.
My Dance Journal is not a book you just read. It's a creative space for all dance mad kids to write in, draw in and doodle all over. Soon it will be your own little catalogue of everything to do with dance. A space where you can record your ideas, share your thoughts, work on yourself and fill with passion. Soon it'll be a handmade map that can guide you back to your happiest self, back to your sweet spot in life; something that you love... DANCE!
