By Kristy Johnson.

With over 15 years of international industry experience, The Squared Division is a force to be reckoned with. Two singular talents, Antony Ginandjar and Ashley Evans, join to equal a powerhouse team in high demand both in Hollywood.

Collaborating with some of the hottest names in the industry such as Ke$ha and Taylor Swift, Antony and Ashley fuse their love of fashion, recording, styling and choreography to produce one-of-a-kind events.

Dance Informa caught up with the boys to chat about their start in the industry, and continued international success.

Can you tell us how The Squared Division came about?

Antony
We were professional dancers before we met. We actually met back in 2005. We both dabbled in choreography, but on the side Ashley was always working in fashion styling and I had an interest in song writing and recording. So it wasn’t until 2007 that we officially joined forces and decided to put everything we loved doing under one umbrella: styling, recording and choreography. From there, The Squared Division was born.

Taylor Swift with Antony Ginandjar of The Squared Division

How well do you think you complement each other?

Ashley
We really complement each other. For the most part as creative directors, we deal with the lighting, designing, set prop design and camera shots; then choreography is the next step. We have such a large scope of duties and we really know how to delegate according to each other’s strengths. I guess that shows the 100 percent trust we have in each other. We’re able to stand back and critique each other’s work objectively and come up with something we both love.

Ashley, would you say fashion is what inspires you with your choreography?

Ashley
Art and fashion really inspire us. Alexander McQueen and Givenchy; I think clothing can change a performance. That piece of clothing also allows us to transport to another time and place. That’s where we get our direction from, and then the choreography as well.

When you’re working with stars such as Ke$ha or Taylor Swift, do you have an input as to what they wear?

Antony
Definitely. I guess that’s where the creative direction side comes into it. We put together what we call ‘creative treatments’ that involves not just the stage, lighting and choreography, but also the costumes for the dancers and performers. From there, we direct the artist’s personal stylist with what vision we’re seeing. They will then come back with their thoughts and it becomes kind of like a collaboration.

What is it like working with Ke$ha?

Antony
What we love about her is that she’s crazy in a really good way (laughs). She allows us to push boundaries and she pushes us quite far out of the box. We really love that. She’s a pop star but at heart she’s a rock god fusing her crazy rock and roll with her pop songs.

Ashley
We’ve been working with her for three or four years now, so we know exactly what she’s thinking.

Ke$ha and Antony Ginandjar

Which choreographers inspired you when you were first starting out in the business?

Antony
I think for both Ashley and myself, the big one would have to be Bob Fosse. Then growing up in the pop era, Wade Robson is someone we have always looked up to. Kelley Abbey is a major inspiration for us as well.

When was the last time you had a ‘pinch yourself’ moment?

Antony
I guess the last time would probably be late last year. It was when Ash was back in Australia and he was working on the finale for the X Factor Australia, and at the same time I was in LA working on the American Music Awards with Ke$ha. It’s not often that we have to split up but we had two massive jobs on, so we had no choice. And then on top of all that, we got a call from our US agent telling us we just booked Taylor Swift! That was a spin out! After the meeting I called Ash on opposite sides of the world and we couldn’t stop laughing with amazement. We were literally pinching ourselves, thinking this was crazy, really stressful, and yet wonderful all at the same time!

Do you ever feel pressure living in LA?

Ashley
Not really. Every time we’re in LA we’re working. I guess we’ve been really lucky that as soon as we’re here in LA we’re working on big jobs. We haven’t experienced too much pressure yet (laughs). We’re very much day-by-day people and look forward to what the future may hold.

Kylie Minoque with Ashley Evans and Antony Ginandjar

How important is teaching to you?

Antony
We always say we wish we could do it more often. Master classes are definitely our way of getting back out there and seeing how the younger dancers are coming along. Hopefully we inspire them as much as they inspire us.

Ashley
At the end of the day, we’re only as good as our dancers. We really pride ourselves in working with amazing talent.

Where do you hope to see The Squared Division in the next five or so years?

Antony
I guess our goal is to continue to build our business in the US and all over the world, as well as continue to be strong in Australia. It’s always been a goal of ours to direct or choreograph an arena or stadium show for a music artist. That would be in five years or even less! And we’re both really passionate about the film industry, so all those things are on our cards.

To find out more about The Squared Division and keep up with all the news, visit www.thesquareddivision.com and www.facebook.com/THESQUAREDDIVISION.

Photo (top): Ashley and Antony of The Squared Division. Photo by Marvin Joseph.

Interview with tap talent Joseph Wiggan

By Winston Morrison.

Would you like to tour in a world-class show? Winston Morrison catches up with tap dancer Joseph Wiggan to discover how he made it to the Cirque du Soleil Michael Jackson Immortal tour, and his life behind the scenes.

What training and experiences did you have to become the dancer you are today?

I started when I was nine in Paul and Arlene Kennedy’s dancing school (LA). They had a kids performing group and after joining that company, we began to look for more information and who else we could also learn from. We performed at dance venues, random variety show jobs, on the morning news, at benefits and did stuff for the homeless. 

So you looked for opportunities yourself?

Yes, we sure did. Our teacher was quite ill when we began to learn with him so there was a point when the repertoire that we had already established wasn’t being added to. So my dad, who was our first manager, began to look around and see what was up in the Los Angeles area. If it weren’t for him we wouldn’t have made any progress. We would have kept doing shows, but he began to look elsewhere to make sure that we were continuously challenged.  

What was the next turning point?

When I was 16, I met Jason Samuels Smith who had moved down to LA. He started jam sessions and he started a company of his own. That was really the beginning of my professional work. Before I met Jason, my sister and I were improvising and were able to perform choreography, but Jason is a master and dances at a very, very masterful level – nothing like I’d ever experienced.  

My sister and I began to practice with a different focus after meeting Jason. He showed us that there was no limit to what you can practice. In his jam sessions he would take a 20-minute solo and be like “Okay, your turn. You do the same thing.” That really made you dig deep because at 10 minutes you are already tired and have exhausted all your steps!

Who are your mentors?

Dr. Harold Cromer really encourages us to not stick to one thing, as that limits us. He says, “Learn everything, do everything. Make sure you know how to sing, play instruments. Make sure you know how to act, speak languages. Make sure you know how to create a show, sell a show. Make sure you know how to dress.” I think it’s very valuable because I really appreciate the 1940s-1950s where the performance level was such a high standard. All of those elements were in every production.

Dr. Arthur Duncan said “You’ll never know when you get your break. Just be ready when you get it.” He said he got his break in his 50s on the Lawrence Welk show. He wasn’t sure if he was going to ‘make it’, but he just kept practicing and practicing.

Joseph Wiggan with his sister Josette Wiggan. Photo © Kristie Kahns.

How did you get into Cirque du Soleil?

They saw a clip of my sister and me and asked us to come in for a call as they were casting for a show back in 2008. The clip they saw was from the LA Tap Festival show; a piece my sister and I choreographed in four hours on a carpet in our living room the morning of the show because we said, “We gotta do something!” We ended up going to Los Angeles to audition and after a few months of corresponding through email, they booked us. The show (Banana Shpeel) was a lot of fun. It didn’t open but we performed a segment of it on TV. That show really changed my life because I’d never been a part of a production of that nature and with the circus arts. The dedication of the other artists in the show really inspired me. It was a great experience with so many different artists, jugglers, contortionists, singers, hip-hop dancers and ballerinas.

There was one entire tap dance act – a tap dance number that happened towards the end. My sister and I actually had a duo tap act, the rest was kind of Charleston, hip-hop dance.

Tell us about Derick Grant’s show Imagine Tap!?

That was amazing. I can’t wait for it to return. That was the most difficult show of my life actually, probably because of the amount of work. If there were eight dances in the first act, we’d be in six out of those eight. Derick would say “You really have to give your maximum – after a while your body will catch up with stamina.” It was so difficult, but it was so wonderful to be around six wonderful tap dancers from different generations, different styles and different cities.

Being one of the best visual tap dancers out there, what have you done to make your visual aspect strong?

I think most of the visual work came from my first teachers focusing on my posture. I try to make dancing easier for myself and I know that if I stand a certain way, it will allow me to dance better. My teachers were about being as polished as possible. I don’t dance in front of a mirror much these days at all, but I try to be as polished. I try to create a strict form (posture) for myself, even down to my toes. 

I enjoy using the floor. My teacher used to say, “You can’t fight the floor, because the floor will win.” If you really want to be able to dance for a long time, you have to find a way to bounce. Instead of jarring, find a way to place the foot just right and have a certain bounce, as little or as much as you need, to help you continue on to the next step. Jarring will only tire you out.

What are you thinking when you are dancing? What’s actually going through your mind?

I’m trying to be as clear as possible so the audience can hear exactly what I’m trying to share and also the band at the exact same time. Clarity is the most important thing. And I try not to do too much, to really find what areas the taps can fit into what’s happening. 

Joseph’s Top 4 Career Values:

1. Happiness. “Do what you like.”

2. Forgive yourself and forgive others.
“Rather than taking things personally, I do my best to forgive.”

3. Give what you can.

4. Work hard for your job.

Joseph’s Top 3 Life Values:

1. Relationship with God and Jesus Christ.
“With that relationship, other values come with that. I love the Lord and I really want to stay connected to him. God is really at the forefront of everything that I do. Whether I’m dancing, attempting to sing or attempting to play the sax, I try to do it unto him. I found the joy in dancing because of him so I do it for him.”

2. Sharing all that I have with everyone, my family and friends.
“Whether through the arts or conversation. Everything else is secondary.”

3. Everyone should take care of their parents and their family. 

By Grace Edwards.

‘Success is sweeter and sweeter if long delayed’ is a saying that will find no argument from 18 year-old Sydney native and new Houston Ballet apprentice, Joel Woellner. Though he chose not to compete the first time he qualified for the semi-finals, Woeller’s patience has been ultimately vindicated after winning two prizes at this year’s Prix de Lausanne.

Over 250 hopefuls aged between 15 and 18 years old submitted DVDs to this year’s Prix, from which 20 competitors made it to the final round. Woellner was the only student from an American ballet school [Houston Ballet Ben Stevenson Academy] to win a prize. Ranking sixth overall out of 78 international competitors, he was awarded not only a scholarship but the competition’s contemporary prize.

Congratulations on your success Joel! How would you describe what you were feeling when you heard that that you had won two prizes?

Surprised, yet a huge amount of satisfaction! Having had such a vigorous training schedule, putting so much energy into Prix, then having it rewarded, is one of the best things I have felt. But even if I hadn’t placed, just being on stage at the finals of Prix de Lausanne is a moment in my life that I’ll never forget.

How did you prepare for the Prix?

The first time I was accepted [for the 2012 competition], Houston Ballet decided to hold me back for a year, so I didn’t go. This time though, I started my training for the Prix as soon as I heard that I was accepted. My teachers had agreed on my variation, so I went to YouTube to learn the choreography and to draw inspiration from the videos of professional dancers who had done it in the past. Once I’d learnt the steps to the variation I began visualizing myself in costume on the stage of Prix de Lausanne.

I was then given rehearsal time with one of the Houston Ballet teachers, Andrew Murphy. Together we set the steps to music and slowly began to correct the variation. A few weeks later we were running the variation through and working very hard on perfecting every step. Mr. Murphy is well-known for running variations multiple times to build stamina and I was not an exception. After each rehearsal my legs were on fire, my lungs burning and my heart about to pump out of my chest. In each rehearsal, however, I visualised myself onstage dancing the variation perfectly.

I found that once I had gotten to Prix, dancing my variation on stage was easier because I had already been onstage in my mind. For me visualising is essential and a great tool that gives me confidence.

How did you select and prepare your contemporary solo?

I first saw my contemporary solo on the website of the Prix de Lausanne and instantly fell in love. The combination of the music, and the fluid and effortless movements of it captured my attention. I really love to tell a story through movement and emotion and I knew this solo was going to let me do that.

I started rehearsals with my contemporary teacher, Pricilla Murphy. Her coaching was incredible! She taught me how to articulate my movements, as well as to keep a strong centre. Throughout my rehearsals with her I learnt so much about my body and how to dance in a truly contemporary style.

Joel Woellner performing his contemporary solo at Prix de Lausanne 2013. Photo by Gregory Batardon

The day before I left for Switzerland a showing was put on in the studio theater at Houston Ballet. The company members, the artistic staff and the Artistic Director were invited to watch, so many people came. This experience was a ‘dress rehearsal’ of what the Prix was going to be like. I was very nervous but I was well prepared so the performance went smoothly and the experience gave me so much confidence. I felt very self-assured afterwards and I knew that Prix was going to go well.

What do you think the judges were looking for most in their potential Prix prize winners?

I think the judges are looking firstly at the dancers’ technique and physique — can they dance steps confidently and do they physically look the part on stage? I also think they look at whether or not a particular dancer can survive in a professional environment.

From the small amount of company life that I have witnessed, I have noticed that the ability to learn and apply corrections to choreography is crucial. Someone that can take on board what a choreographer or artistic director is asking will always succeed. Having rehearsals with the choreographers of the contemporary solos represents a chance to showcase and improve upon this ability.

How have your wins affected your training goals?

Being a scholarship winner allows me to receive an apprentice contract with an associate company of the Prix de Lausanne. I’m proud to say that I have been offered and have accepted an apprentice contract with Houston Ballet. However, I know I’m not the ‘finished product’ as a dancer. Being a part of the company and dancing beside so many amazing artists will push me even more. I aim to work as hard as I can so that one day I may be as good as the people I’m dancing next to.

Prior to the Prix, you had also competed at the YAGP in 2010, at which you were offered and accepted a Houston Ballet II full scholarship. Do you think international competitions are important to a dancer’s development?

It’s clear that international competitions provide exposure and the chance to be offered places in professional schools. International competitions also allowed me to compare my abilities with the rest of my age group around the world.

That year [at the YAGP], I didn’t make the finals. I remember being disappointed, but I have always looked at this experience as a positive and I really think that’s how all competitions should be viewed. I knew that I wasn’t yet up to scratch with the rest of my age group so I was determined to make sure that I was.

For me, competitions are what started my professional career.

Without whom do you believe you might not have made it this far?

I decided that being a professional ballet dancer was what I wanted to do with my life around the time I started high school, so I moved dance schools and started taking ballet classes with Jo Ansell and Kim Traynor [at Ettinghausens Dynamic Arts, Sydney, Australia]. Both took an immediate interest in my career. Their wisdom and knowledge helped me to improve my technique and choose the best path for my career. Ms. Jo and Ms. Traynor have been so influential in my career, and I want to thank them for their dedication and the hard work they have put into me. I truly believe that I would not be where I am today without their help.

What advice would you give young dancers who want to compete in the Prix?

The advice I would give is: Number one, absorb everything you can from the week. Every correction the teachers and coaches give you is invaluable. Stay in contact with every friend you make because the ballet world is so small that at some point down the road you are likely to bump into them again.

Number two, try not to think of the Prix de Lausanne as a competition and get hung up on whether you make the finals or not. Instead, look at the week as a way of enhancing your abilities technically and artistically.

Photo (top): Joel Woellner competes at Prix de Lausanne 2013. Photo by Gregory Batardon.

By Tara Sheena.

Each year, hundreds of dancers move to New York City from all over the world to pursue their ‘Big City’ dreams. Whether that means performing, choreographing or teaching, a move to New York is just as individual as each dancer who has done it. Dance Informa got the scoop from four dancers who live and work in NYC. They may have had their entire lives to prepare for this or, maybe, just four days, but one thing is for sure – they are all determined to forge a career in dance on their own terms. And, what better place to do it in? Remember, if you can make it here…

Austin Selden
Dancer, Shen Wei Dance Arts
Choreographer, Sarah Konner and Austin Selden Dance Collaboration

“My move to New York City was progressive. Right out of college I moved to Philadelphia with Sarah Konner, my collaborator who I meet at the University of Michigan, with the idea of moving to a city that had a dance community but wasn’t New York City. We did it for a couple different reasons, but Philly was convenient because it was so close to New York. We could visit friends or go to any auditions we thought worthwhile. I didn’t find work in Philadelphia, in any field – dancing, coffee houses, administrative work, nothing. One weekend in April I was commuting to New York for a rehearsal with my old professor, Amy Chavasse, when New York-based company Shen Wei Dance Arts happened to be holding auditions that I was able to attend.

Austin Selden with Sarah Konner. Photo by Wen Chun Liu.

To my surprise, I was one of the five men selected for the Metropolitan Museum performance, and so I found myself commuting from Philly to New York for weeklong chunks, couch hopping at my friends’ apartments. Soon after that project was over, I was asked to do the next project, so the commuting in weeklong chunks continued. I still wasn’t finding work in Philadelphia, but the rent and living expenses were so low that the occasional week long chunks of rehearsals were sustaining me. I however hated commuting by bus and felt guilty for taking advantage of my friends’ couches, so, after living in Philly for more than a year, I decided to finally move to New York. Both of my roommates joined me in the move, and our first New York apartment was a 15 minute walk to the last stop on the 4 train in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, with all three of us sharing a one bedroom. In comparison to Philadelphia, I moved knowing the city, having two jobs and plenty of people I knew and trusted. New York was easy.

Matthew Powell
Teacher, Broadway Dance Center
Ballet Master, Brooklyn Ballet

My first months in New York provided a valuable lesson in quality versus quantity. We all know that New Yorkers (out of necessity) tend to lead fast-paced lives, but over my years in the city, I’ve actually seen that sense of hurriedness translate into some of the work seen on the New York stage. I don’t believe this phenomenon is the fault of choreographers, dancers or artistic directors. There is no question that the talent in the Big Apple is top notch – but with scarce rehearsal time and funding cuts running rampant many performances are like the lives of New Yorkers, rushed to the limelight not fully prepared. With that said, I truly think that if freelance artists, particularly choreographers, stick to their artistic ‘guns’ when they arrive here, and work their best to think outside the box and not sacrifice their art for the sake of time or money, the work produced will ultimately have huge personal and artistic pay-off.

Living here has taught me that your resume, as wonderful as it may be, will only get you so far. Dancers should immerse themselves in the scene and get their faces out and about as much as possible! By networking, you can also offset some of the jitters that inevitably set in during your first weeks and months in New York. It is not an easy task in this city of twenty-seven hour workdays and eight-day workweeks, but it can be done!

Kristi Ann Schopfer. Photo courtesy of Kristi Ann Schopfer.

Kristi Ann Schopfer
Certified Personal Trainer
Dancer, Rebecca M. Sproul Dance and BARKIN/SELISSEN Project

I forever maintained the idea that I would move to a closet in Manhattan and sacrifice an ample division, if not an entire lifetime, to what I considered a ‘career’ in dance. What that actually necessitated however, eluded me until only recently. In an improvisation class seven years ago, Miguel Gutierrez once said to us that rather than focusing on bulking up your performance resume or devastating your self-worth as a dancer by attending auditions for companies that are considered ‘successful,’ as a true artist you should catapult all of your efforts and passion into projects that you find genuinely artistically satisfying regardless of their value on the ‘success scale.’ It was only after moving to Manhattan with fifty dollars and a few dancing friends that I discovered what having a career in dance actually meant. I was genuinely surprised to find that through a part-time job at a respected gym I could launch myself into the career even Senior Seminar for your typical BFA student couldn’t prepare me for.

By obtaining the Certified Personal Trainer certification through the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) and being able to afford a trainer who is equally dedicated to physically enhancing my performance as passionately as I am, I’ve been able to devote a thousand percent more as a dancer (now well-conditioned and injury-free) to Rebecca Sproul, who I have been loyally dancing for since my first year of college in 2007.

With the time and facility these combined efforts provided, I found myself available and lucky enough to be a part of the choreographic process in recent work as a new member of the BARKIN/SELISSEN team. This snowball-effect of equally complimentary circuiting hard work and discovery is how I define a true career as a dancer.

Iain Young. Photo courtesy of Iain Young.

Iain Young
‘Henry’ in the Broadway cast of Newsies

I had a good idea that I wanted to live in New York after I spent a summer there for the Juilliard Summer Dance Intensive. It was always my plan to be in New York for my career.

After getting the call for Newsies I had only four days to pack up my life in Michigan and learn to live on my own. After traveling to New York many times for dance competitions and training intensives, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what life here would be like. I may have been wrong. Nothing can prepare you for everything that the city brings to the table. You have to learn to take care of yourself and manage your time in a whole new way.

Coming from living in suburban Michigan, the biggest change for me was the commute. Having a 20-minute subway ride both ways to work was a huge change from my past 5-minute car ride to the dance studio. Your body and mind are always on alert when you’re out in the city. For me, this means that I have to give myself more time to relax at the end of the day before trying to sleep. On the positive side, there is everything here that you could ever want. You need something, you can find it in New York. I certainly love the amount of places that will deliver you food whenever you need it!

Photo (top): Matthew Powell. Photo by Brian Jamie. 

By Chelsea Thomas.

Veteran company member Brian Wallenberg recently danced his last performance with Atlanta Ballet after joining as an apprentice in 1998. Significantly, his last role was the same as his first, playing Jonathan Harker in Atlanta Ballet’s Dracula, choreographed by Michael Pink.

“It feels like the right full-circle experience and that’s what I want in life – for everything to come to a nice conclusion,” Wallenberg said in a phone interview between rehearsals and errands in early-February. “So this is basically the perfect end of an era for me.”

Wallenberg, now 35 years old and known for his quiet strength and seamless grace, was a late starter in the dance world. He didn’t begin dancing until age 16, and only started because he wanted to act on Broadway and reasoned he might need some dance training.

“I started dancing in Victoria, Texas with a woman named Debbe Busby. She taught me great basic ballet technique. It was pure classical ballet and it helped me get a good base,” Wallenberg recalled.

Brian Wallenberg and Jonah Hooper of Atlanta Ballet in ‘Dracula’. Photo by Charlie McCullers.

From there his interest in ballet only deepened. After training for only a year, he was invited to attend Houston Ballet Academy, under the direction of Ben Stevenson and Clara Cravey, where he took as many classes in ballet as possible. “I was learning and absorbing as much on ballet as I could. It was a very intense period in my training, but it was good because I learned so much,” he said.

When reminiscing on the path that led him to Atlanta Ballet 15 years ago, Wallenberg noted the importance of networking in the dance world. For him, the connection to Atlanta Ballet came through a ballet teacher.

“My ballet teacher in Houston knew one of the ballet mistresses in Atlanta. So my teacher contacted her, I came to audition in Atlanta and I got the job right away,” he said.

John McFall, Atlanta Ballet’s Artistic Director, also recalled the early days when Wallenberg auditioned and then joined the company.

“My image remains vivid and fresh of Brian the first day he joined us. Naive exuberance filled with the anticipation that an adventure was waiting just for him,” McFall reflected. “I think after a few weeks he realized that to reach the zenith of that adventure it was going to take an extraordinary effort. His was a compelling and virtuoso process that spirited him to the top.”

Brian Wallenberg with Kelsey Yip & Kristi Necessary of Atlanta Ballet. Photo by Charlie McCullers.

Through the years, Wallenberg climbed the ranks in the company and performed many soloist and principal roles. Some of his favorite roles were Peter Pan in McFall’s Peter Pan, Waltz Boy in George Balanchine’s Serenade, the Roasted Swan in Fernand Nault’s Carmina Burana and of course, Jonathan Harker in Michael Pink’s Dracula.

“Doing the role of Jonathan Harker in Dracula was definitely a huge highlight. It was the first lead role I did with Atlanta Ballet and it’s one of the reasons I got hired into the company. When John McFall saw me tackle this role I was offered a company contract with Atlanta Ballet. So that is a huge, huge highlight for me… It’s such a meaty role and I’m glad I got to take it somewhere even farther for my last performances,” Wallenberg said.

While most dancers dread the end of performing due to career uncertainties, Wallenberg said he is “looking forward to having more freedoms” and his life “shifting in good ways.” Instead of completely leaving Atlanta Ballet, he has been asked to stay on as the Social Media Coordinator and Videographer in the company’s Marketing Department.

This career development began after he started teaching himself filming and editing skills a few years ago. Soon thereafter, he started a video production company titled “Saturnblu Productions” with a focus on filming dance.

“A few years ago I started spending some serious time thinking about what was next in my career. It was very important to me to find something else I could be passionate about. The videography came out of that. To be able to work with dance on camera is the best thing ever.”

While still performing, he began working part-time in the ballet’s marketing department in 2009. By 2011, he was ready to embark on this new career full-time. He said it will be a “bittersweet” transition, but one he is ready for.

By being with Atlanta Ballet for 15 years, Wallenberg said he has experienced something few performers truly get to experience – the sense of family. Before retiring he was a part of the company’s veteran squad of older dancers, namely Tara Lee (17th season), Jonah Hooper (14th season), John Welker (18th season) and Christine Winkler (18th season).

“Every choreographer that has ever come to Atlanta Ballet has said something like, ‘Wow! You guys are really a family here.’ And it’s true. We’re really bonded. And I credit John McFall for picking personalities that really work well together that create that family environment,” Wallenberg said.

He has also been a part of the company’s recent growth and expansion, seeing the leadership change and new choreographers come in. Over the last decade he has witnessed a “solid company” become a “powerhouse.”

“It has actually been quite incredible to watch Atlanta Ballet take a new form and reshape itself. The company has grown and gotten so much stronger. The repertoire the company does now is fantastic. The choreographers that come in are world-class and they produce such amazing work… The repertoire has just gotten better, better and better,” he enthused.

Now in his new role in the marketing department, Wallenberg looks forward to sharing news about the company and its season performances. On this new chapter in his life he said: “I believe the universe opens up the right opportunities with where you need to go. I am really open to where this new career can and will go.”

McFall said it is obvious that Wallenberg “has become an advocate for dance and theater.” He added, ” In his new position as Social Media Coordinator and Videographer for Atlanta Ballet his handiwork will continue to inform and enlighten us.”

Wallenberg, even if now offstage, is certainly still someone to watch.

For more information on Atlanta Ballet’s 2012-2013 season, visit www.atlantaballet.com.

Photo (top): Brian Wallenberg in Carmina Burana for Atlanta Ballet. Photos courtesy of Atlanta Ballet.

By Emily Yewell Volin.

When school is out, dance students have more time to dedicate to training. Choosing a summer intensive program of study can be a challenge, though. How do you know if the program you are considering is a good fit for you? Dance Informa spoke with faculty from The Joffrey Academy, Cary Ballet Conservatory, Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts’ Next Generation and Patel Conservatory’s Dance Department to learn more about what constitutes a great summer program and how you can be prepared to get the most from your experience.

What should a student look for in a summer intensive program?

Deanna Seay, Ballet Mistress, Cary Ballet Conservatory
In looking at a summer intensive, each student needs to evaluate his or her own goals. Does the student want a program where the focus will be on improving technique? Is the student at an age when he/she wants to be considered potential company material? Does the student want an experience focused on one discipline, or does he/she want to use the summer to broaden his/her horizons? Defining these goals can help to narrow the possibilities. A student wanting to improve a lot can look for smaller programs where they will be able to receive personal attention as well as a place that provides many hours of instruction. Those on the verge of professional careers will want to find company related programs. Students wishing to broaden their horizons can look for programs that offer classes in a wide number of dance styles.

Students enjoy Patel Conservatory’s Next Generation Ballet Summer Intensive. Photo by Bill Kraulter.

Peter Stark, Artistic Director of the David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts’ Next Generation and chair of the Patel Conservatory‘s Dance Department
Students should look for:

1. Training. The school should demonstrate a history of training dancers well. Check on their website for recent graduates that are dancing professionally.
2. A schedule that keeps a young dancer busy and working hard. More classes will increase strength and technique.
3. A focus on the type of dance a student wants to study (ballet, modern, jazz) with a sampling of other styles for diversity.
4. A performing and/or rehearsing opportunity. As a performance art, in dance it is important to learn new dances and to get on stage.

Alexei Kremnev, Artistic Director, and Amanda McAlpine, Communications Associate, Joffrey Academy and Community Engagement, The Joffrey Ballet
Students should assess the quality of a summer intensive program by it’s faculty members (their experience and background), brand recognition (affiliation with professional company), variety of classes provided, performance opportunities, location and length of program.

What are the advantages to training locally or going out of state? 

Peter Stark
A family must decide how far they want to travel for a summer program. There is an expense with increased distance. Summer programs can offer a great sampling of an area for future employment. There are many excellent programs worldwide that will improve a young dancer both near and far. Do check out the security of the city, school and dormitory to determine if it meets the family needs. Also, ask about transportation for the students during the program.

Students at the Joffrey Ballet Summer Intensive

Deanna Seay
The most obvious advantage to staying local is the possibility of staying at home while attending the session, or at least being close to home, which can be comforting to both parents and students attending boarding programs the first time. As long as students have access to local programs that provide the number of classes they need, there isn’t really a need to travel far at a young age. Once students reach high school age and are more mature, going out of state becomes an option parents might feel more comfortable with. That being said, there will always be those young students who have the talent and maturity for an out-of-state experience at eleven or twelve.

What advice do you have for those taking summer intensive auditions?

Alexei Kremnev and Amanda McAlpine
It is important to be as prepared as possible. Check the program’s website for any headshots or photos needed, audition fee and attire requirements. If it is possible to pre-register online, it will save you time during the day of the audition. During the audition, do your best and keep a positive attitude. If you excel in a particular area or step, be sure to stand in front or go in the first group. If you are not as strong in other areas, you may want to wait to go in the second group. Regardless, always look pleasant and smile. The judges may not realize that you may have made a mistake because they are concentrating on watching many other dancers too.

Peter Stark
Always dress neat in a dress code. Do not wear any warm-up shorts, skirts or jewelry. Have a head shot and dance photo (arabesque is good) available even if not specifically requested in the audition announcement. Have a positive attitude and try your best. Often schools are looking for potential, not accomplishment. If a combination isn’t perfect, that’s okay as long as you gave it a good try with a happy demeanor. Try to also pick up any nuance when the teacher is demonstrating the combination. What accents are they using in the music? How are they holding their hands and head? Be open to change and to trying something new.

Deanna Seay
PAY ATTENTION TO THE DETAILS! Watch everything the teacher does when demonstrating a combination and listen to everything the teacher may say. These details are part of what the teacher will be trying to teach the student, so the students need to prove that they are responsive, receptive and truly interested. Some teachers will be very specific about where students stand and how they enter or exit the dancing space and it is important to understand and adhere to their wishes. When changing groups, students need to walk into formation quickly and place themselves immediately in the starting position. Students should appear neatly dressed. Female ballet students need to wear pink tights and a conservatively colored leotard. Black is traditional and the best choice. Men need to wear the traditional black tights and white t-shirt, which needs to be tucked in. Absolutely under no circumstances should the student wear any sort of cover-ups. Shoes, whether flat shoes or pointe shoes, need to be properly sewn and all drawstrings, ribbons and elastics should be tied and tucked out of sight. Hair should be securely pulled away from the face in a bun, French twist or other practical, yet attractive, shape.

What does a summer intensive cost?

Students at Cary Ballet Conservatory’s Intensive Summer Training Program.

Deanna Seay
Families with students wishing to attend a five-week summer ballet intensive will need to prepare to spend about $5,000 for tuition, room and board. A few smaller programs may cost $1,000-2,000 less. Many programs offer financial aid and scholarships, so it is good to ask.

Peter Stark
On average most ballet summer intensive programs run about $1,000 per week, including tuition, room and board. However, this can vary greatly and many full and partial scholarships can offset some of that cost.

What benefits, aside from technical and artistic, are there to attending a summer dance intensive?

Peter Stark
Hearing the same correction from a different teacher can open a young dancers’ perspective greatly. Of course, each teacher also has new information that can improve a dancer technically and artistically. Summer programs also pool talent from smaller schools. Students learn from each other and being surrounded by talent can be motivational and create lasting connections through one’s performance career. Many dancers enter the field professionally at 18 and it is a big adjustment to be away from home. A summer program can start to prepare a dancer to be self-sufficient and strong in a new setting.

Deanna Seay
Aside from the artistic and technical improvement that is often seen during intense summer ballet sessions (attributed to the concentration of class hours), students have a chance to meet other like-minded students and make new friends. The student can become re-inspired by seeing himself/herself in a new setting. These summer programs also expose the student to other students from other schools, and can help the student identify where she stands in relation to her peers.

Alexei Kremnev and Amanda McAlpine
Attending a summer dance intensive helps a dancer grow and mature in many ways. Often times, students form lasting friendships, make valuable connections, gain confidence and widen their perspectives.

Have fun dancing this summer!

Photo (top): Students enjoy making friends at Cary Ballet Conservatory Summer Intensive.

By Laura Di Orio.

Everything that director-choreographer Mark Stuart embodies seems to have a commonality: extremeness. The now Executive/Artistic Director of his own New York City-based company, Mark Stuart Dance Theatre (MSDT), he went from never having studied dance to learning, from social dance to choreographing a production of the Broadway musical Swing!, even to forming his own dance company, which recently had the most successfully funded dance project on Kickstarter at 258% funded.

“I am a choreographer with no official dance training,” Stuart said. “It seems crazy, but it’s true. Everyone thought I was crazy to pursue this career and especially to have my own company. Thankfully, I’ve never been good at listening to people.”

His company, known for its extreme, athletic and almost dangerous partnering, is now working on its latest show, Standard Time. The company is also putting together a five-year anniversary gala for 2013 and is working on getting a season at the Joyce for next year.

Mark Stuart Dance Theatre in Interference. Photo by Richard Termine

Perhaps most remarkable about Stuart’s success as a choreographer and dance company director is his lack of dance training. Stuart never studied dance formally and only learned to swing dance by going out and social dancing every night. The first time he had any exposure to any kind of technique was on tour with the Broadway show, Swing!.

“Our first day of rehearsal, they taught a ballet barre for warm-up, and that was the first time I ever tried to do a plié or tendu,” Stuart recalled. “Thankfully, the girl behind me at the barre, who would later become a founding member of MSDT, was really friendly and kept whispering in my ear what each term meant so I wouldn’t be completely lost. It was hysterical!”

Stuart danced in films, commercials and in lots of theater productions, but he never envisioned himself as a choreographer. During his time working as an assistant and associate choreographer for various productions of Swing!, however, he was asked to choreograph his own production of the show. After Swing!‘s success, Stuart was asked to choreograph another show. And another.

“The success of each production slowly gave me the confidence that I could one day have my own company,” Stuart said.

After continuing on this musical theater path for a few years, Stuart began to want more. He began to grow increasingly frustrated that not enough of the dancers could do the extreme partnering he envisioned. So, Stuart decided he wanted to seek out a group of classically trained dancers whom he could shape into a company of his own, one that would be unlike any other in the dance scene. Several months later, Stuart was dancing in a movie with 70 other dancers from ballet companies, music videos and Broadway.

Mark Stuart Dance Theatre in rehearsal for their newest work, ‘Standard Time’. Photo by Royce Becker.

“All of a sudden,” Stuart said, “I could see those people in my company and envision the final product. I started talking to a few of them about the company, and before we had even started rehearsing we had been invited to perform at a festival. Crazy!”

Now, the dancers from MSDT come from a variety of dance backgrounds and specialties. Since most of them are doing Broadway shows, television and movies, there is often a different cast for every show, and often those dancers aren’t even in the same room until show day. MSDT rarely holds auditions. Instead, Stuart tends to hire someone he either knows personally or knows of through the grapevine.

“We do extremely athletic and sometimes dangerous work, often with very little rehearsal, so it’s really important to have people who I can trust to take care of each other in any situation, no matter how crazy it gets,” Stuart said. “One of my mottos is, ‘No matter what happens, you catch the girl.’”

MSDT fuses his thrilling partnering with all different styles of dance, but beyond just movement, Stuart strives to use this fusion to tell “visceral” stories, to make people really think.

“I’ve never believed in dancing just to dance,” Stuart said. “I’ve always believed that dance should be about something, and that it has the power to portray those situations in life that words just don’t seem to do justice to. I think that dance can spark something in people and make them take a look at things a bit more objectively.”

MSDT’s latest work, Standard Time, is a prime example of Stuart using dance to depict a greater picture. For Stuart, the piece arose from a lifetime of not understanding why people can’t just get along.

“No matter what is happening in the world, we are constantly fighting,” he said, “Standard Time is my way of asking people to think twice about the way we treat each other.”

The 90-minute dance theater piece features 14 dancers, four singers and a live orchestra. It centers around three pairs of lovers in three different time periods, with each era providing the “standards” and dance styles that were popular at that time. The couples are observed by mystical Timekeepers who control time and ensure that they learn to withstand their love beyond any conflict and to live in peace.

Without any prior experience to the various online fundraising programs, Stuart decided to launch a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for the production. He set out to raise $12,000 in 30 days but ended up raising $31,000!

“The response was really incredible,” Stuart said. “None of us saw it coming, but everyone really got behind the idea of Standard Time and what we were doing.”

Standard Time remains to be MSDT’s immediate focus. The project is a large one, and most of Stuart’s previous work was actually built to be placed in a bigger show like Standard Time, although he says he didn’t know it at the time. All of his work seems to have a similar premise: to make people think differently about the way they treat each other. Most of the work that MSDT does is fairly serious, but Stuart admits that rehearsals with his company are anything but.

“If you ever walk into an MSDT rehearsal, you’d have a hard time believing that anything ever gets done or that these people could ever be serious,” Stuart said. “We have a bunch of clowns in our company, and there’s probably more laughter than actual dancing.”

Stuart admits there are struggles. So much time and energy is spent on the business aspects of the company and less on the actual work, and with today’s economy, keeping a company resilient and relevant can be a daunting task. But Stuart loves the challenge and remains to be passionate about his group and all they have to say.

“There are too many people who don’t pursue their dreams because they don’t think they have the skills, strength or knowledge to achieve them,” Stuart said. “Anything is possible if you just believe in it and never give up.”

For more information on MSDT and the company’s upcoming projects, including Standard Time, head to www.markstuartdancetheatre.org

Photo (top): Mark Stuart and dancer Jaime Verazin. Photo by Leon Le.

By Leigh Schanfein.

It’s rare when we meet someone who impresses us completely, not just with technical skill, musicality, humor, smarts or the ever-impressive ability to successfully juggle an intense schedule, but also with everything that they are as a dancer. A recent discovery of mine, who ranks ever so high on the impressiveness scale, is dancer, choreographer, teacher, photographer and former chef Breton Tyner-Bryan.

Breton is taking the notion of the ballet dancer and bending it to expand what she can achieve within the genre. She is traveling the world to dance and inform her own creativity, and bringing that world of knowledge to her students. As a dance instructor, Breton feels she may have found her calling.

Yet, she didn’t dream about becoming an instructor. The route took many turns and her drive to discover and push herself in new directions led her to become a skilled dance photographer and even to delve into culinary school. I asked Breton to share a little bit about what drove her to these various pursuits and what continues to propel her to discover new aspects of dance and art every day.

You have danced and performed in much of the English-speaking world (USA, UK, Australia). How did you come to perform for companies in these various countries?
I’ve always been an adventurous person and I can’t seem to say no to a challenge.  Some of my very close friends invited, inspired or encouraged me to make the leap across the pond. I spent many years seeking and searching for something that was outside of myself, and now I just laugh at my incessant appetite for the unknown. I was yearning for something to believe in, and in my heart I found that what I must invest in is myself. At times I crave solitude and traveling allows me a brief moment, or the illusion of anonymity! I’m a huge fan of culture, and my desire has always been to travel the world through dance.

Beautiful Breton Tyner-Bryan. Photos by Afshin Odabaee.

Do you find that the art form, under its various genre classifications, differs greatly between countries? Does culture affect the approach?
Culture absolutely shapes whatever essence is being generated from a particular location in the world, be it music, design, food, etc. Dance is no different. I find that origin also greatly affects how dance is defined. My friends in the UK have a very distinctive understanding of what “modern dance” is for example, and it’s directly associated with their perception of New York. I feel the type of movement being generated in the world will always be specific to its originators. However, as the world becomes smaller the opportunity for more cultural influences increases.

What do you think of the aesthetic of ballet today? It’s changing with contemporary styles and sensibilities. Are we going in the right direction?
Direction is really based on perception, and there is no map. I don’t have an attachment as to what ballet should become. However, I find training in America to be very speedy where ballet is concerned. We are a young, impatient country, and it is reflected in the training available here. Ballet cannot be rushed.

Moving out to New York City you are now much closer to family and where you grew up. How has your family shaped your creative choices?
My family is a bunch of crazy artists, musicians, singers, dancers, writers, woodworkers and painters. We are a very dramatic/physical bunch, and art was always supported and facilitated. Growing up was like living in a play with all of us leaping around the house and someone having a dramatic meltdown at any given moment. My brothers are highly skilled musicians who grew up playing rock and roll and then turned their focus to jazz. The house became a virtual conservatory, always filled with sweaty jam sessions. I thought it was madness, and in retrospect it was amazing. I am extremely blessed to come from a family that has always supported my artistic endeavors, and encouraged me to fly. Whenever I’m home I always leave a note on the fridge for my Dad, thanking him for letting me live my crazy life.

When you were younger you stubbornly thought you would never become a teacher but now you’ve taught as a regular instructor at some major dance institutions! Why do you think your plans changed?
I believe the universe enjoys proving me wrong, and revealing who I am to myself. I never intended to teach, so excelling at it became easy for me because my ego was never wrapped up it in. I just saw it as an opportunity to share what I love with others, and to facilitate them beyond their own perceptions of themselves. I always wanted to be a surgeon as a child but never had the stomach for it, so teaching became an avenue for me to help people, minus the blood and guts. Teaching gave me the gift of confidence, removed much of my shyness and became a great compliment to my income as a performing artist. For whatever reason I have a really good eye and can easily see what a particular dancer needs to hear or feel in order to make a positive change. My Dad has worked with Autistic children his entire teaching career, and his father was a professor at Harvard. I think it’s just in my blood.

I love dance. Ballet specifically is the most complete language and science for me, but its accompanying culture can be less than desirable for some. I have been very fortunate to work with many amazing artists and I love being able to offer that to my students. The world needs art, and dance enthusiasts keep it alive. Dance is for everyone!

Progressing from student to dancer to choreographer and teacher is a fairly standard route. Even venturing into photography isn’t unusual for someone who already works with aesthetic and form.  But what led you to study culinary arts?
To me the “arts,” that expression of passion, opinion and motivation, are all connected. It’s simply about the medium that appeals; it’s how someone chooses to “paint.” I’ve baked all my life, and grew up surrounded by the most immaculately beautiful Italian pastry shops. I went to culinary school because I wanted to eventually become a food photographer for the magazine Gourmet. I was interested in developing another skill to compliment my dancing. I also had a dream the night before I applied to CCA (California Culinary Academy) with a voice telling me I “couldn’t do this,” so I stubbornly did!  I worked in the very fast-paced kitchen of Traci De Jardins’ restaurant Jardinier in San Francisco.

You studied at University of Utah. Do you think it’s important for today’s young dancers to go to college?
I feel there is no set path for anyone. Life is going to unfold as it will, and each individual knows what’s best for him or her. College was really important for me because it afforded me four more years of training and strength building. I was a bit of a late bloomer, and sometimes think I still am since I finished growing at 21. I secured my first dancing job outside of being a student at 22, but I’d been offered an apprenticeship with a ballet company at 19. I wouldn’t have excelled in that environment at the time, so college became a necessary bridge to having a professional career.

With all that you do, what is your most important focus right now?
Performing, and finding joy in all of my shared and dancing moments.

Just for fun, who is currently your favorite dancer?
I’m a huge fan of Yujin Kim, Xavier Furla, Josephine Baker, Tony Jaa and Sylvie Guillem.  However, my favorite dancer currently is Greg Lau, an undergraduate student at Juilliard. I have never seen anyone move the way he does, utilizing an amazing facility to express a humanity that far exceeds anyone’s definition of “fierce”.

Coming up, Breton will be teaching and choreographing for Columbia Ballet Collaborative. Take ballet class with Breton on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8:30a at Peridance Capezio Center in New York City.

By Stephanie Wolf.

Ever since she was a little girl and saw her older sister in dance class, Anne-Tyler Harshbarger wanted to be a ballerina. She went on to achieve this dream through illustrious careers with Houston Ballet and Atlanta Ballet, performing a wide range of classical and contemporary repertoire. But, Harshbarger couldn’t be defined solely by her balletic aspirations. There was a different, creative energy brewing in her, which would eventually evolve into Harshbarger’s diva of the nightclub alter ego, DJ Anne-Tyler. Now, the former ballerina is making a name for herself in the Los Angeles and international DJ scene.

At sixteen, Harshbarger attended her first rave in North Carolina. “I was blown away by the unbelievable vibe the music created. There was a sense of unity and acceptance and love through dance that I had never felt before…this world was a non-judgmental one where I could explore movement in a safe place.” She was instantly hooked to the music and dance of the “underground party” world. “Collecting music became an obsession. Eventually, I got my own decks and the rest is history.”

Anne-Tyler Harshburger in Atlanta Ballet’s ‘Nutcracker’. Photo by Charlie McCullers, courtesy of Atlanta Ballet.

Her first DJ gig had her spinning vinyls in a derelict Atlanta warehouse for a designers’ showcase. “I prepared for hours for it,” says Harshbarger. It was a memorable night, which sent her on a new and exciting journey. From there, in conjunction with her career as a featured dancer with the Atlanta Ballet, Harshbarger found more success in the Atlanta DJ scene. Juggling two careers had its challenges, but that didn’t deter Harshbarger from pursuing both of her passions. “At times it was exhausting,” she says. “But the love of what I was doing kept me full of energy. I needed the variety and contrast of both classical and electronic to feel inspired.”

In May 2011, Harshbarger officially left Atlanta Ballet to focus on her budding DJ-ing career. As she transitioned, she noticed many similarities between the two professions. “They are both about letting go and expressing your true self, taking risks, overcoming fear, and connecting with an audience. Dancers and musicians are vessels through which the power of music flows.”

Anne-Tyler Harshburger performs with Atlanta Ballet. Photo by Charlie McCullers courtesy of Atlanta Ballet.

Like ballet, being a professional DJ isn’t the most conventional career trajectory, begging the question: how does one become a professional DJ? “A lot of it was being at the right place at the right time,” Harshbarger says in regards to the initial years of getting her career up and running. But, ultimately, she achieved success through her raw talent, gusto for music and movement, and diligence. “Word of my enthusiasm and talent traveled fast…I believe a big part of it was simply my desire to do it. When I want something, I make it happen.”

While the DJ scene has primarily been a “man’s world”, female DJs are starting to gain fame and recognition. Harshbarger feels grateful to be a part of this burgeoning demographic, but she doesn’t “preoccupy [herself] with gender” and pursue this passion solely to make a social statement. “I have faced both adversity and advantage as a lady DJ. Most important is talent. The music always comes first in my book.”

DJ Anne-Tyler likes to shake things up with her musical repertoire and often allows the ambience and vibe of a party to influence her mixes. “I started with house music and it will always be my fave to spin,” she explains. “But these days I play everything: techno, drum n’ bass, chill out, lounge, nu disco, 80’s, 90’s, indie rock, hip hop, R&B, pop remixes, dub step – you name it.”

Now, DJ Anne-Tyler is a mainstay in the LA nightclub world. She spins five nights a week at Los Angeles clubs like Supperclub, W Hotel Hollywood, Palihouse, Katana, and Caffe Roma, among others. Word of her skills has also taken her to a number of other U.S. and international cities. “In 2013 I’m very excited to return to my stomping grounds of Houston and Atlanta. Also on the agenda for the new year are Amsterdam, Berlin, London, Tel Aviv and Ibiza.”

This won’t be Harshbarger’s first time DJ-ing in Ibiza, Spain, the world’s electronic music Mecca. In the summer of 2008, she was a resident DJ at the city’s hot nightclub, Amnesia. She continues to go back each summer, expanding the scope of her international fan base and challenging herself as a maestro of the turntable. Her life of mixing music and beat juggling for the world’s hottest clubs and parties keeps her on the move a lot, but she doesn’t mind the go-go-go lifestyle. “I love to travel. It is very exciting for me to go on these adventures.”

Photo by Havana Club, ATLnightlife.com

Dancing is still very much a part of Harshbarger’s life and, likely, will always be in some capacity. “I still go out dancing a lot, I dance in my apartment all the time, and I do barre on my terrace sometimes.” She adds, “Since I’ve been in LA I’ve taught private lessons and have some master classes coming up. I also produce an event every Friday in Beverly Hills where I dance and create the costumes. It’s a Euro-style performance art house music scene.”

When she’s in Hollywood she isn’t holding back. Harshbarger has found many other artistic outlets such as acting, modeling, and building her new clothing line. She’s graced the pages of magazines like MODE, Jezebel, and The Atlantan; and her film and television credentials range from established shows like The Walking Dead, Drop Dead Diva, and What Not to Wear, to commercials and music videos.

The future is looking prosperous for DJ Anne-Tyler. On November 30 she was seen as a DJ in the world premier of the motion picture horror flick The Collection. She is also the brains behind ENJOYMUSIC ENJOYLIFE, a “whimsical lifestyle brand created for DJs, musicians, and music lovers.” Find out more about it at enjoymusic.com. Through her mash-up of beats and her graceful moves, DJ Anne-Tyler hopes to inspire others to chase their dreams.

Top photo: Anne-Tyler Harshbarger by Jonah Hooper

By Leah Gerstenlauer.

By habit, dancers crave approval. A parent’s proud applause, an instructor’s silent nod of appreciation, a critic’s sparkling write-up — such external approbation is food for a dancer’s soul. But for choreographer Kate Ladenheim, a discouraging remark or a skeptical review is just as desirable as the highest of praise.

“I love getting people to talk about my work, even if they hate it,” she said. “It’s like when you go to a museum and see a beautiful landscape right next to a canvas painted yellow… Everybody talks about the canvas painted yellow because they think it’s really weird. But that yellow canvas made them think. I want to be that yellow canvas.”

At the age of 23, Ladenheim has yet to face any terribly scathing reviews. Though she has met with her fair share of rejection, she speaks about her work with remarkably easy self-assurance and conviction, characteristics that other artists spend their entire careers cultivating. And indeed, she has no need to doubt her creative capabilities. Within a year of her graduation from Boston Conservatory’s undergraduate dance program in 2011, Ladenheim had formed her own project-based company, The People Movers, with which she began to present her work at festivals and venues throughout the Northeast. Her desire to “be that yellow canvas” — to attract notice, engage minds and elicit strong responses — has her in perpetual motion, and she shows no sign of slowing down.

The People Movers perform ‘Bee Stings in My Bedroom’. Photo by Megan Cignoli

As Ladenheim’s dancers can attest, her energetic career path is a direct reflection of her choreographic philosophy. “Dance is physical,” the young dance-maker asserted. “I feel very strongly about that. I’m not good at stillness… I’m interested in the physical act of dancing. I’m interested in athleticism. I’m interested in exhaustion and how the body deals with that.”

Dancer Andrew Trego, also a Boston Conservatory alum and Ladenheim’s frequent dance partner, copes with this intense creative atmosphere by taking to the studio, the gym, the yoga mat — anything that will help him to keep pace with his energetic friend. “Kate is a magnificent machine,” Trego reported. “Her choreography demands endless energy, both physical and emotional, but I love the challenge.”

Equally valuable to Trego is the work environment that Ladenheim generates: “She trusts us and asks for our input. If something isn’t working, I let her know and we fix it together. Dancing for Kate is not just business, it’s personal.”

The pair’s sturdy creative partnership will prove useful in the coming months as Ladenheim continues to construct Pillars of Salt, a powerful duet that will premiere at the experimental New York performance space Dixon Place on April 2. Inspired by the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, the project began as a physical exploration of love, loss and regret.

Kate Ladenheim and Andrew Trego in ‘Pillars of Salt’. Photo by Nir Arieli

“I was thinking about what it means to miss someone so much that you would brave the perils of the land of the dead to bring that person back,” she explained. “We’ve all missed someone like that. We’ve all lost something that we desperately wish we could get back.”

Not content merely to imagine the lovers’ plight, Ladenheim asked a friend with expertise in Greek mythology to write a script for her characters, to tease out what words the ill-fated pair would exchange had they had a chance to speak in the aftermath of Orpheus’ tragic mistake. But rather than clarify her artistic vision, this collaboration infused Pillars with a new depth. By the time the piece previewed in Boston and New York last year, Eurydice had become the biblical figure of Lot’s wife, and the focus of the work had shifted from a mere reflection on lost love to a statement on the gender politics of guilt — the variety of provocative, potentially controversial, subject matter Ladenheim loves to address. “If I feel that an idea generates movement, then I’ll work on it,” she said, even if that idea is not exactly easily digestible fare for her audience.

Yet as much as Ladenheim relishes challenging her viewers’ minds and her dancers’ bodies, she seems to savor opportunities to push her own limits much more. Near the end of 2012, she braved her greatest feat to date: sharing the creative reigns with artists outside of her tight-knit group. When commissioned to craft a piece for composer Peter Lane and the Juventas Music Ensemble last fall, Ladenheim found herself choreographing on a theme and to music not of her choosing for the first time. Anxious about the logistics of the project, but truly honored by the request, she dove into the making of Hackpolitik with an open mind. She said she ended up enjoying the process immensely.

“I knew that if I didn’t connect with the music for this piece, it would’ve been impossible,” she said, especially given the rather unusual topic — the true stories of Anonymous, an enterprising group of young computer hackers. “There’s a lot of movement written into the music Peter Lane created, a lot of nuance, and I actually think my choreography complements his score very well. It was never a struggle to come up with the next thing.” Ladenheim will expand Hackpolitik into an hour-long piece for its official world premiere in the latter half of 2013.

Busy as she is with her two current choreographic endeavors and a part-time job that helps to keep her and her company financially afloat, Ladenheim rarely rests in her search for more festivals, projects and possibilities to pursue.

“I work really hard — it’s not easy or cheap to do this. But I’m just not someone who gives up,” she said. “I moved to New York City so that I can have all of this dance and all of this art around me; so that I can be constantly inspired and shown something better than me and be pushed to improve in that way.”

If we’re lucky, maybe she’ll bring us along for the ride.

To learn more about Kate Ladenheim, visit kateladenheim.com. For more about The People Movers, visit peoplemoversdance.com.

Top photo: Kate Ladenheim by Jesse Weiner