Dance Has Reached a Turning Point

Freed from the Studio, an Art Form Finds the Space to Transform

My shoulder is aching. I’m going up the escalator at the Macy’s in the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza. My purse is weighed down with notebooks, a portable speaker, water bottle, and of course, snacks. 

It’s March 2020. I’m teaching at the “Club WISE” program for older adults. I’m greeted warmly by a group of six women who, I’d guess, are mostly over 65. I’m told the group may be a little smaller than who registered, “The virus is keeping some people home.”

We set out to co-create a dance to Ravel’s …

When Choreography and Secrets Collide

A Collaborative Art Project Seeks to Turn Community Memories Into Dance

Does a work of art have to be created by one person with a singular vision? Our experience says “no.”

Art-making also works when a group of specialized artists—or even …

How to Find the Paul McCartney to Your John Lennon

You Can’t Engineer Great Collaboration, Says Joshua Wolf Shenk. But Brilliant Creative Pairs Have a Few Things in Common.

Most of us have been buoyed by synergy or thrived off the energy of another person. We know that chemistry is something that exists between certain individuals—like, say, John Lennon …

Teamwork Doesn’t Mean We’re All Equal

A Collaboration Expert Tells Us What Goes Into Successful Partnerships

I’ve been in the collaboration business for a dozen years now. Most people (including my parents) have no idea what that actually means. Fortunately, they assume that if I’ve been …

That Time Mozart Jammed with Michael Jackson

Which Creative Greats Would You Pick for a Dream Collaboration?

Even as teenagers, John Lennon and Paul McCartney saw themselves as “the next great songwriting team.” Sitting in McCartney’s living room with their guitars, they jotted down ideas in a …