THE MAGAZINE
Secret Ballet History: Agrippina Vaganova’s Narrow Escape From Arrest
Legendary Russian ballet pedagogue Agrippina Vaganova was almost arrested under Stalin. Read on to find out more.
Furnishing a Woman’s Mind: Isamu Noguchi’s Vision for Martha Graham’s Stage Worlds
It was in the artistic milieu of Greenwich Village that Modern Dance icon Martha Graham met Isamu Noguchi (1904-1988), the Japanese-American sculptor who would become her longtime collaborator. Read on to find out more.
Étoile: What Does it Mean to Put Dance on Screen?
Television keeps trying to bottle the world of ballet, and most attempts slip through the frame. In this article, TWoA looks at Étoile and why a series filled with extraordinary dancers still couldn’t capture movement, risk, or the pulse that keeps artists glued to old rehearsal clips. Read on for a clear look at what televised dance needs—and why so few shows manage it.
Anastasia Cheplyansky, Dutch National Ballet: “Studying While Dancing Brought a Lot of Balance Into My Life.”
Balancing a dance career with an academic degree sounds impossible until you hear Anastasia Cheplyansky explain how she did both. In this article, TWoA looks at her path from Atlanta Ballet to Dutch National Ballet, and how studying psychology reshaped her approach to training, pressure, and performance.
A Life in Dance: Back to School Book Recommendations
As the school year begins, reading lists shift from summer novels to the books that shape a creative life. In this article, TWoA highlights three essential titles—Allegra Kent’s memoir, Twyla Tharp’s creative guide, and The Swans of Harlem—each revealing what it really takes to build a career in dance and the arts.
Ballet Across the Globe: Rudolf Nureyev and the Paris Opera Ballet
Rudolf Nureyev’s tenure at the Paris Opera Ballet didn’t just add new ballets to the repertoire—it transformed the company’s technique, taste, and identity. Read more to see how his directorship reshaped French classicism, expanded the repertory, and forged a generation of dancers who still define the company today.
Interview: Zenaida Yanowsky, Coach and Former Principal Dancer, The Royal Ballet
For many years, Zenaida Yanowsky was one of The Royal Ballet’s most singular principals—rigorous, magnetic, impossible to forget. Now a coach shaping dancers across major companies, she speaks with TWoA about precision, presence, and the quiet authority behind great performance. Read on.
Ballet Across the Globe: Marius Petipa
If ballet has dialects, the Russian one was written by Marius Petipa. His choreography for Swan Lake, Don Quixote, La Bayadère, and The Sleeping Beauty set the template for classical ballet as we know it today. Read on.
Ballet Across the Globe: Bournonville and the Danes
August Bournonville’s choreography gave Denmark a ballet identity of its own: rounded arms, delicately musical footwork, and allegro that seems to float rather than land. Learn how this nineteenth-century master shaped a national style that remains unmistakable on stages today.
Pointe Shoe Rewind: A Brief History of Ballet’s Signature Shoe
In the fashion world, pointe shoes have been having a moment. But pointe shoes are anything but a recent phenomenon; despite their current aesthetic popularity, their origins date back as early as the 1730s.
Whispers in the Wings: Meet Josephine Baker, Dancer and Spy
Josephine Baker (1906-1975), an icon of the Jazz Age, was a woman of many talents. In addition to being a groundbreaking dancer, singer, and actress—even being the first Black woman to star in a motion picture—Baker was a World War II spy and a civil rights activist.
Chun-Wing Lam, Paris Opera Ballet: “I never danced so well before I had my wealth management firm.”
Paris Opera Ballet’s Chun-Wing Lam is probably the only dancer in the world to combine a successful dance career with running his own wealth management firm. TWoA talked to Chun about moving from Hong Kong to Paris when he was fourteen, about the unique promotion system at the Paris Opera Ballet, and about the artistic and mental benefits of having two careers at the same time.
Death in Springtime: The Uncanny Power of Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”
Perhaps you notice patterns within yourself that stir as the winter colours into spring or the summer burns into autumn. Russian avant-garde composer Igor Stravinsky captures this most masterfully in The Rite of Spring.
Choreographer Spotlight: Jean-Christophe Maillot
Choreographer spotlight on Jean-Christophe Maillot of Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo! His choreography appears so naturalistic on his dancers, it seems to flow from the soul onto the stage…it’s tough to think of anything better than that.
Choreographer Spotlight: Justin Peck
Renowned for his energetic footwork and playful musicality, Justin Peck has forged an incredibly prolific career as New York City Ballet’s Resident Choreographer. Peck began his choreographic journey in 2005 as a student at the School of American Ballet, NYCB’s affiliated ballet school, and now twenty years later, he has produced over 50 ballets.
Interview: Chloe Helimets, 15, Prix de Lausanne 2025 Finalist
Chloe Helimets, 15, is one of eighty-six dancers selected to compete at this year’s Prix de Lausanne taking place from 2 to 9 February 2025 in Lausanne, Switzerland. TWoA talked to Chloe about growing up in a ballet family, her ballet journey, and about the best way to approach competitions.
Joseph Markey, American Ballet Theatre: On Turning “Crime and Punishment” into a Ballet
Fedor Dostoevsky’s dark psychological novel Crime and Punishment is a masterpiece of world literature. Last autumn, you could find it in the dance bags of many dancers at American Ballet Theatre: choreographer Helen Pickett and co-director James Bonas were turning the book into a ballet for American Ballet Theatre. The company will perform the production at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts ins Washington on 12-16 February 2025. TWoA talked to ABT dancer Joseph Markey, who created the part of Luzhin, and who will have his debut as Raskolnikov in Washington.
It’s Movie Night: Dancer Edition
Curling up and watching a movie during the cold winter months is one of the best ways to unwind. For those who wish to continue to learn and indulge in dance while recuperating from stressors like Nutcracker performances or final exams, check out some of these beautiful dance films.
Interview: Paloma Livellara Vidart, 19, Prix de Lausanne 2024 Prize Winner
There are some performances that stick with you. Paloma Livellara Vidart’s interpretation of Christopher Wheeldon’s “You Turn Me On, I’m a Radio” at the Prix de Lausanne 2024 is one of those. TWoA talked to the Prix de Lausanne 2024 prize winner about her dance journey from Buenos Aires to Monaco and about her first couple of weeks at New York’s ABT Studio Company. Get ready for some deeply personal insights.
Edges of Ailey: A Celebration of Alvin Ailey
From 25 September 2024 until 9 February 2025, Edges of Ailey will inhabit the entirety of the 18,000 square-foot fifth floor of Manhattan’s Whitney Museum. It is the first commemoration of this size and breadth of choreographer and director Alvin Ailey, celebrating the many themes Ailey grappled with in launching a dance company that sought to center Blackness as a gift in the concert dance world.