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Men In Dance:
In Their Own Words
Check out the companion piece to this article, Men In Dance
. . .
click here
 Alex
Hathaway,
age 11, has performed in Detroit in the Radio City
Christmas Spectacular and the Joffrey Ballet’s
Nutcracker. He has participated in the NYCDA Nationals.
Memorable moments:
The
Radio City Christmas Spectacular was an awesome
experience. To be so lucky to have a professional job at 11
was amazing. All of my friends and teachers came to see me and
I met great people from all over the country.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Be yourself
and be confident in what you love doing. If you hide it and
act like you’re embarrassed about dancing, then you’re an easy
target. Keep your true friends involved with your life – let
them know about great stuff that’s happening to you because of
your dance.
Idols/mentors:
Professional dancers like Gregg Russell and Andy
Blankenbuehler inspire me. They are not only great dancers but
great people. At my studio we have some older guys that are
great. Ryan Steele has always been a huge influence. We also
have a guy who’s at Juilliard, Brandon Cournay. He’s worked so
hard and it has totally paid off.
 Art
Stone
works with
his wife, Nancy Stone, at Dance Olympus, Danceamerica,
International Dance Challenge, and Art Stone/The Competitor.
Perspective:
I started
dancing because my father made me. I hated it from the time I
started at 3 until I entered college, and then it became my
whole life. Since then, everything I have been involved in
pertains to dance. It has made my life exciting and
interesting, and it has given me a purpose, I have met so many
wonderful dancers and teachers on my tours around the country,
and I look at life from a whole different angle. I couldn’t be
happier.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Explain [to
those who criticize them] that some of the biggest athletes in
the country, in many fields, take dancing to improve their
jumping, coordination, and stamina.
Idols/mentors:
From years
ago, a dancer named Swen Swenson, Gene Kelly of course, and
Patrick Swayze, who is known as an actor but whom I consider a
terrific dancer. As for a mentor, I had the best: my father,
Jules Stone. He was a teacher, an inspiration, and my best
friend.
Bob Mann
is in his 41st year of teaching at the Robert Mann Dance
Centre and serves as national executive secretary of Dance
Masters of America.
Perspective:
Most people
my age start to reflect on our accomplishments. Did I do what
I set out to do with my life? I think for the most part I did.
I think I did my parents and my mentor proud. I have had many
students, male and female, who have become successful as
performers and dance educators. My former students keep in
touch all the time, letting me know how they are doing or
asking for my advice.
Memorable moments:
My first
audition, for the original Gypsy with Ethel Merman, for
one of the Newsboys. I made it to the end! Opening my first
studio—I spent all the money I had saved and borrowed a few
hundred dollars. Getting a call from J. Howard Ferguson,
telling me that the advisory committee would like me to teach
tap at the National Convention in Boston. Seeing my students
recognized at the national competition was a wonderful
experience. Becoming the youngest president of the New York
City Chapter of DMA. The proudest day of my life was being
elected national president of Dance Masters of America.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Today there
are many more opportunities for dancers, especially for men.
If you are serious about your dancing (by that I mean you
attend classes regularly, to study how to dance, not just to
dance) you will make it. In today’s market you have to be good
at everything. When you attend an audition, you never know
what they are going to want, so you have to be prepared. That
includes all types of dance training, vocal training, and
acting. Those who really want it and are hungry enough to work
for it will get the parts.
Idols/mentors:
I admire
Matt Mattox for his passion in everything he taught; Leon
Danelian for his encouragement; Robert Joffrey for making me
aware of my ballet potential; Bob Audy and Phil Black for
those wonderful days in tap class. My mentor has been [my
first teacher], Miss Vickie Sheer. She has always been the
most influential person in my dance life.
 Brandon
Cournay
is a
freshman at The Juilliard School in New York City.
Memorable moments: Traveling and performing across the
country I have met so many awesome people that I still am
friends with. I would never have had these opportunities if I
weren’t dancing.
Advice
for young male dancers:
If you want
to dance, dance! Do what makes you happy! Being tormented at
school is very hard to deal with, but if you really want to
dance, then go for it. Mean people at school aren’t going to
make it as far as you, because you have a goal and a desire to
do what you love, and in the long run you will be happier.
Your dance teachers and parents are great people to talk to
about being teased at school.
Idols/mentors:
I look up
to Andy Blankenbuehler [a teacher at Broadway Dance Center and
with New York City Dance Alliance] very much; he is the most
inspiring teacher I have ever taken from. He has a strong
masculine quality in the way he moves. I also have a lot of
mentors from my studio back home. Having so many older guys to
help me along the way, I’ve established friendships for life.
 Brian
Friedman
teaches
around the world and has been choreographing in Los Angeles. A
choreographer for So You Think You Can Dance, he
says he’s been living in a whirlwind since the show’s success.
Memorable moments:
Dancing
onstage for up to 80,000 people in concert, seeing major
motion pictures that I’m in at the theater, and dancing on my
first award shows. As a choreographer, the highest points are
seeing world tours come to life onstage and being nominated
for choreography awards.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Once you
get out of school, you realize what a small part of life that
is. You have to stay true to what your heart wants, and if
it’s dance, you can’t let anything or anyone stand in your
way.
Idols/mentors:
As a young
dancer I looked up to other local Arizona male dancers, but as
I got older looked up to choreographers, including Bob Fosse,
Vincent Paterson, Michael Peters, Jamie King, Kenny Ortega,
Marguerite Derricks, and Mia Michaels.
 Butch
Theisen
has been
teaching for 33 years with his own teacher and mentor,
Marjorie Sellers. He has owned his own studio for 17 years and
teaches and judges around the country. He is the national
second vice president of Dance Masters of America.
Memorable moments:
I was
taking a class at a DMA convention in NYC many years ago from
Charles Goddertz. At the end he asked me to perform with him,
for the entire convention class, the number he had just
taught. Another time I had been taking tap class for two weeks
at Broadway Dance Center.
The teacher
had injured his foot and asked me to demonstrate his classes
for him while he sat and conducted the classes.
Advice
for young male dancers:
If you have
the will to dance and want to do it, forget what others might
say. It’s your life, not theirs. Live life to the fullest, and
if dance is part of it, give it your 100+ percent.
Idols/mentors:
Fred
Astaire, for his finesse and grace; Donald O’Connor and Ray
Bolger for their ability to perform many types of dance; Bob
Hope and Gene Kelly. Jack Stanly, whom I only got the chance
to take one lesson from, would probably be my male mentor.
Most of my background in tap, jazz, and choreography is from
him. He was a choreographer before his time.
 Chuck
Kelley
teaches tap
and acrobatics/ tumbling at Broadway Dance Center in New York
City and is head of Dance Educators of America’s teacher
training programs. He travels the country conducting master
classes.
Memorable moments:
I was
teaching a workshop for Dance Masters in Miami, FL, some 30
years ago. The first acrobatics class that I taught was for
the teachers, and I suddenly realized that sitting in the
front row taking notes was my teacher and mentor, John Plaza,
who had taught for DMA many times. It was nerve-wracking
teaching a subject that I had been trained in by the man who
was now scrutinizing everything I was doing. When I finished,
he stood up and said, “This young man came to New York as a
14-year-old student from Connecticut and has for over 14 years
been a student of mine. When I retired I turned my classes
over to him. He knows as much about acrobatics and how to
teach the subject as I did, and probably now knows more than I
do.” The entire room stood up and applauded.
Advice
for young male dancers:
In this day
and age, most boys who decide to dance can overcome ridicule
from classmates because they are more knowledgeable about the
arts field. But those who have a hard time fending off remarks
about being gay or sissy because they dance have to be
strong-headed and ask those lowly people, “Can you do a
round-off back handspring?” or “Can you jump and change feet
in the air four times?”
Idols/mentors:
I had many
great male teachers. I went to New York because my small-town
teacher, Evelyn Macfarlane, wanted me to further my education
with better teachers. She sent me to Jack Stanly’s school,
where all the teachers were male. When New York teachers
started to teach modern jazz, I studied with Matt Mattox,
Peter Gennaro, Claude Thompson. My mentor was John Plaza.
 Dan
Barris
is
co-director of Dancers Inc., a competition and convention
producing organization; director of Dance Relief, a nonprofit
organization that helps dancers in need; a dance studio owner;
and a master teacher and lecturer on tap.
Perspective:
For male
dancers, training options are limited. Many studio teachers
are not familiar with the needs of male dancers. They need to
find appropriate and tangible role models for these kids.
There’s nothing worse than feeling alone and powerless when
you are a young boy who is different than the others. Teachers
can help these young men grow and develop to their full
potential.
Memorable moments:
Playing
Rooster in Annie was one highlight, and seeing a former
student be nominated for a Tony was also quite exciting.
Having my former students come home from college at
Thanksgiving break and jump into my arms is the most rewarding
experience of all. They can’t wait to see me cry when they
say, “Thank you, Mr. Dan. I really left here prepared.”
Advice
for young male dancers:
Dream big!
And remember that you only need to stay in your hometown until
you graduate from high school. There’s a big world out there
that will appreciate you for your talents. Nurture your talent
and work on specific skills. Don’t be afraid of the
struggle—it’s part of your grow the experience. You need it to
become stronger. Find a mentor in your community and don’t
lose sight of your goals and dreams. Work hard and be humble.
Humility is only a short step from vanity, and vanity is not
becoming in anyone. There will always be someone auditioning
with you who is just as good as you, but humble beats out
attitude at any audition!
Idols/mentors:
Linwood
Dyer. He trained me as a child. A theatrical wing of a library
is dedicated to him now, and he received a Jefferson Award for
Contributions to the Arts and Theater from the Jacqueline
Kennedy Foundation.
 Gregg
Russell
teaches
professionally throughout the world with Company Dance, Dance
Olympus, and Global Dance conventions. He presents his own
workshops, 3D Dance Network, and an annual tap intensive, Tap
Into the Network, in Los Angeles. He is launching a new music
magazine, Studio Beat, for dance studios.
Memorable moments:
Two months
before he passed away, Gene Kelly invited me to his house and
we talked for over an hour. Another was dancing in the movie
Newsies. That was my first job in Los Angeles. Seeing
myself on television for the first time was awesome, and
getting interviewed and featured in TV Guide. And
directing my first commercial last year, for Carvel Ice Cream.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Despite how
tough it can be, don’t let others influence what you want to
do. If you are a guy and want to dance, then dance! If other
kids are playing soccer or sports and you want to fit in, try
their sport along with dancing. If that doesn’t interest you,
then be proud of your dancing and show it off in the
community. One tip is to learn whatever is popular
(break-dancing, gymnastics, etc.) and let ’em have it!
Idols/mentors:
My brother
was a big influence, just by seeing what he had to go through.
Also, Gregory Hines, Gene Kelly, Frank Hatchett, Henry LeTang,
and Mikhail Baryshnikov. These guys were strong male dancers
who you could meet on the street and not know they were
dancers. That was a big deal to me when I was growing up and
trying to fit in.
 Jason
Stotz
is a
sophomore at the University at Buffalo and dances with the
university’s Zodiaque Dance Company. He has trained at the
Rochester City Ballet summer intensive and plans to attend the
Joffrey Ballet School this summer.
Perspective:
I have been
training my heart out here and loving every minute of it. My
only wish is that I had found this passion earlier in my life,
so that I would not be so far behind today. I wish more males
could be exposed to dance at an earlier age, for if they find
that they love it and can make it through that initial
ridicule from peers, there would be nothing to stop them.
Memorable moments:
When I
first auditioned for the dance department I was blown away by
the company and didn’t have the talent for it. Now I’ve worked
hard enough to make it in. Standing out on that stage after my
performances, with the company I had watched just a year ago,
I realized that I had done the undoable.
Advice
for young male dancers:
It is such
an opportune field for males that if it is enjoyable,
then continuing in dance is a great path to follow.
Over time the ridicule will largely cease, and if it
doesn’t, while other guys hit each other full force
trying to get a pigskin and others roll around with
each other on the floor in Spandex, a male dancer gets
to spend his days with beautiful, talented women and
other men who share their passion for the art.
Idols/mentors:
Ever since
I saw [the movie] Center Stage I’ve wanted to
dance like Sascha Radetsky and Ethan Stiefel. This was
before I started dancing. Ethan does a switch leap in a
jazz class, and I remember thinking how I would never
be able to do something like that. Now switch leaps are
one of my favorite tricks. I also model myself
after one the upperclassmen at UB. He’s a very strong
dancer of a similar body type, and I’ve been working
toward rivaling him ever since I first saw him.
 Jeremy
Raia
is a
premiere soloist with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de
Montréal, where he has danced for eight years. He says he is
working and living his dream, and has been since he was 9.
Memorable moments:
Getting
into and going to Juilliard—it was the best training I could
have gotten and it opened my eyes to so many aspects of dance
that the studio and competition world didn’t. Also, getting
offers from a few companies on my first audition run and
dancing the role of Romeo in Romeo and Juliet.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Kids will
make fun of anyone and anything that they don’t understand. I
had a passion to be a dancer, and no matter what people said
to me it was mine, and I wouldn’t let them take it away from
me. In a way it made the passion stronger. I think no matter
what you want to do, if it’s really inside you, you just let
the torment bounce off and push harder.
Idols/mentors:
I was
completely inspired by Gene Kelly when I was a kid. He was
able to do any kind of dance and make it look beautiful and
masculine at the same time. Now I am inspired by the other men
I dance with. They all come from different places and have
different things to offer. There is this unspoken bond because
most of us dealt with the same obstacles as kids and pushed
through to become successful artists.
 Kenny
Wormald
is on the
faculty at Millennium in Los Angeles. His professional credits
include the feature film You Got Served; JoJo, Mariah
Carey, and Madonna videos; and commercials for Best Buy,
Nissan, and iPod. At press time, he was directing and
choreographing a music video for Boniface.
Advice
for young male dancers:
There are
many benefits to being a talented male dancer, so keep your
head on straight and try not to let the kids in school run
your life for you. I was interviewed on TV when I was 10 years
old for dancing at the White House, and they asked me what the
kids at school said about my dancing. I said, “They make fun
of me sometimes, but I’ll be making the big bucks when they’re
picking up trash.” And 10 years later I’m living in Los
Angeles dancing for Mariah Carey and in movies and
commercials. I went back home to Stoughton [MA], and there it
was—two kids from my high school riding on the back of the
trash truck, picking up my trash from my house! So that’s what
I tell every young boy who’s dealing with the crap I used to
get.
Idols/mentors:
Growing up
in a studio that had male teachers was huge for me. I was
lucky enough to have trained at Sherry Gold Dance Studio,
where I had Rhee and Rennie [Gold] to look up to. Rennie was
my everyday teacher; I refer to him as a second father. He
showed me that I could dance like a man and filled the studio
with the best faculty, which taught me discipline and makes me
better as a professional dancer.
 Pearce
McLain
is
executive director of operations for International Dance
Challenge (IDC) and national director of Dance Olympus/DANCEAMERICA.
Perspective:
My career
in dance has served me well in every aspect of my life. I
operated a dance school, and one can never adequately express
the gratification that comes from being part of the
development of today’s youth. Teaching young people to
activate their minds and bodies as a unit, to yearn to be
downstage center, and to project their feelings to the last
row of the balcony [is unique to] the performing arts. I, at
48 years old, am proud to say that I am a former professional
dancer, and no matter where I say it, people are fascinated.
Memorable moments:
Spending my
senior year in high school in a touring company and being
dance captain was one of the greatest experiences of my life.
The travel and rigorous experiences prepared me for the
professional career that lay ahead. The high point of my
career was being named national director of Dance Olympus/DANCEAMERICA.
I grew up on the Dance Olympus ballroom floor, and to be in
charge of the operations of this great educational vehicle has
been the most fulfilling aspect of my career.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Pull
yourself up by the bootstraps and continue. I will never
forget the first time I returned home after living and working
in New York. I pulled into a gas station in my new Malibu
Classic Sedan and guess who was there pumping gas—the
ringleader of the gang who tormented me so in high school. I
loved having him service my car and clean my windows, while I
was on my way to the bank with a check from performing that I
am sure was more than he would see in a month. I eventually
went back to my hometown and opened a dance school. The best
part of continuing my dance career was when the same people
who had mistreated me brought their children to me for
lessons. It was a silent reinforcement that even though they
were so unkind as youths, their sensibility as parents allowed
them to make the right decision concerning their children’s
education. My passion has served me well and it always will.
Idols/mentors:
Gene
Kelly—his athletic style of dance proved that the male form
could be strong and artistic at the same time. I have to give
John Travolta credit for bringing the role of the male dancer
to the foreground in the late ’70s. His masculine demeanor
showed that men can dance and still evoke manly traits, yet
yield to a sensitive side that had not been portrayed in film.
Terry
Lindholm
is a talent
agent who represents dancers and choreographers in Los Angeles
and New York.
Memorable moments:
Dancing
with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago for Chicago’s 15th birthday
celebration, and teaching for Tremaine Dance Conventions.
There is nothing more rewarding than teaching. Also, touring
with Reba McEntire—she and her husband are the epitome of
professionalism and I have never been treated as well by
anyone. Sitting on the board of the American Choreography
Awards is rewarding because we present an evening that
acknowledges our peers and reminds us that we are part of a
community that we must cherish.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Standing up
for yourself and what you believe is important. Being smart
about picking which battles to fight is important because
sometimes all people want is for you to engage. The best
defense is an offense—being successful shuts people up. If you
really want to dance you will find a way to make it work and a
group of people that accepts you.
Idols/mentors:
Gene Kelly,
Bob Fosse, Jack Cole, Jerome Robbins. These people brought
such passion and diversity to their craft. They incorporated
ballet, jazz, and tap into their choreography as well as an
individual style that is incredibly inspiring.
 Tom
Ralabate
is
associate professor of dance at the University at Buffalo
[NY], where he has held such positions as assistant chair of
dance, director of dance, and director of Zodiaque Dance
Company. His research area investigates the multicultural
traditions and histories that inform American jazz dance and
the comparative study of multiple jazz dance techniques and
styles.
Memorable moments:
Winning the
U.S. Latin Ballroom Dance Championships and representing the
U.S. in the World Latin Dance Championships with my sister,
Kippy. Also, being the third recipient of the DMA Ivy Hall
Award, which was first presented to Gene Kelly.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Find
support through family and friends for what you love to do. I
believe that nothing can destroy one’s passion or destiny to
dance. Dance is a calling.
Idols/mentors:
Mikhail
Baryshnikov personifies the word “artist.” He was not afraid
to take chances in his career. He crossed over into many
artistic endeavors: from classical ballet to modern, from
Broadway to film to television. I admire master teacher Joseph
Giacobbe, the artistic director of Delta Festival Ballet, for
his knowledge of dance and understanding of how to develop an
artist.
 Tony
Bougiouris
is a demi-soloist
with Les Grands Ballet Canadiens de Montréal, where he has
danced for four years.
Memorable moments:
Winning Mr.
Dance of America 1999 and getting accepted to Juilliard.
Living in New York City and attending such a remarkable school
with such talented dancers was a life-altering experience.
Getting my contract with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens before
graduating was also a great moment. I felt like I could grow
as an artist and try different types of choreography.
Highlights of my career in the company have been working with
Mats Ek and Ohad Naharin. Their work is amazing, beyond
physical, but exhilarating to perform.
Perspective:
Being a
dancer is not an easy occupation. You need to take care of
yourself and listen to your body. It can be challenging, but
you need to connect and reconnect to why you are there in the
first place. For me, that is because I have to express myself.
When times get tough I go into a studio, put on some music,
and just move. I don’t worry about whether it looks bad or if
I am being dramatic or whatever. I just move and let myself
get lost in whatever I am doing. That helps me. If what you
are working on is not that inspiring, inspire yourself.
Advice
for young male dancers:
Find a
group of people that you feel comfortable with and that you
can be yourself with. Surround yourself with their positive
energy. That is going to be really helpful. You are the only
person who can judge yourself. If you are kind to yourself,
you will have a much easier time. Work toward a goal. It is
not always easy to attain it. Ironically, when you tell
yourself to chill out, your body responds to that. Your
muscles relax and function more properly, especially for
ballet. Just focus on one thing at a time. Slowly, things will
improve.
Idols/mentors:
I look up
to my peers. Seeing their strengths helps me to work on
myself. At Juilliard, the late Benjamin Harkarvy and my ballet
teacher, Alexandra Wells, helped me find my place in the dance
world and in the world in general. They were great teachers.
Check out the companion piece to this article, Men In Dance
. . .
click here
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