Archive: Dance Writing, Reviews, and Podcasts

Join ARENA DANCES for our weekly Studio Stories podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week, premiering January 12, we sat down with Annie Enneking for Season 9, Episode 116.

Annie Enneking is a lover and a fighter. She writes unflinchingly vivid and nuanced songs about being a person in a world full of people, and frankly about having a body at a particular place in time. She fronts and founded the mischievous rock band, Annie and the Bang Bang.  Annie is quite famous from her days with Children’s Theater Company, a founding member of JAZZDANCE! by Danny Buraczeski, and is a 2010 Playwrights’ Center McKnight Theater Artist Fellow, a triple threat with all the chops of acting, singing, and dancing.

Visit here to listen, or check it out wherever you get your podcasts!

Join ARENA DANCES for our weekly Studio Stories podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week, premiering January 5, we sat down with Leslie Parker for Season Nine, Episode 115.

Leslie is a Rondo neighborhood St. Paul native artist with home art bases in Brooklyn, NY and the Twin Cities. Leslie is a dance artist/maker, improviser, performer, director, collaborator, and educator, a 2022 McKnight Choreographer Fellow, a Bessie Award recipient, and has received several other nationally distinguished awards for her work.

Visit here to listen, or check it out wherever you get your podcasts!

“Stories are among our most potent tools. We need to unearth old stories that live in a place and begin to create new ones. We are story makers, not just storytellers. All stories are connected, new ones woven from the threads of the old” (Robin Wall Kimmerer).

Join ARENA DANCES for our weekly Studio Stories podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week, on December 29, we sat down with Sherry Saterstrom for Season Nine, Episode 114.

Sherry is a dancer, an inventor of things physical, and a passionate teacher. She holds a BA in Norwegian, an MA in Dance/Humanities, and is a certified Body-Mind Centering practitioner.  

Visit here to listen, or check it out wherever you get your podcasts!

This Thursday, December 22 we chat with Brian J. Evans for Season 9, Episode 113!

Brian is presently a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow and lecturer in dance at Bates College, a 2015 McKnight Dancers Fellow, and a Citizen Artist probably most notably known for his time performing as a principal dancer and music director with Stuart Pimsler Dance and Theater.

Studio Stories airs Thursdays at noon.
Visit http://www.arena-dances.org to listen, or check it out wherever you get your podcasts.

Join ARENA DANCES for our Studio Stories podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week, we sat down with Stephen Schroeder to learn about his journey. Season 9, Episode 112 airs Thursday, December 15.

Stephen is a 2012 McKnight Dancers Fellow and presently the Technical Director at the Center for Art and Dance at St. Olaf College. The majority of us know him as a company member of Zenon Dance Company for 15 years while also performing with many other independent choreographers and companies; Nic Lincoln, ARENA DANCES, and Shapiro & Smith Dance to name a few. 

Visit http://www.arena-dances.org to listen, or check it out wherever you get your podcasts.

“Stories are among our most potent tools. We need to unearth old stories that live in a place and begin to create new ones. We are story makers, not just storytellers. All stories are connected, new ones woven from the threads of the old.” – Robin Wall Kimmerer, paraphrased

Join ARENA DANCES for our Studio Stories Podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week, we sat down with Holly Schramm to learn about her journey. Season 9, Episode 111 airs Thursday, December 8.

Holly was an original member of Ballet Herron, a founding member of the Dance Educators Coalition, board member of Minnesota Dance Alliance, and later performer as a company member with Margolis & Brown Company.

Visit http://www.arena-dances.org to listen, or check it out wherever you get your podcasts!

Join ARENA DANCES for our weekly Studio Stories podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week we kick-off Season 9 on Thursday, December 1 with Julia Tehven Sutton for Episode 110!

Julia, a 2004 McKnight Dancers Fellow, began her professional career with Minnesota Dance Theatre under the Artistic Director and Founder Loyce Houlton, performing in many of her original works as well as ballets of renowned choreographers such as Balanchine, Glen Tetley, Frederick Ashton, Petipa and Michael Fokine. In 1988 Julia joined Myron Johnson’s Ballet of the Dolls dancing in countless original works including the Children’s Theatre productions of Beatrix Potter and Worn Out Dancing Shoes (based on the 12 Dancing Princesses by the Brothers Grimm). Julia has also danced with James Sewell Ballet, Minnesota Opera, Chanhassen Dinner Theater and acted in the Jungle Theatre productions of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf, The Glass Menagerie and Bus Stop.

She has performed with local choreographers and was invited to join Robin Stiehm’s Dancing People for a performance in Ashland Oregon. She has taught ballet at Larkin Dance, Summit School of Dance, Minnesota Dance Theatre, Zenon, and most recently at the Reif Dance program in Grand Rapids, MN.

Studio Stories airs Thursdays at noon. Listen wherever you get your podcasts or find it here!

Join ARENA DANCES for our weekly Studio Stories podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week for the Season 8 finale on Thursday, November 17 we have Judith James Ries for Episode 109!

Judith was a company member of Danny Buraczeski’s JAZZDANCE from the beginnings of its second iteration to debut in the Twin Cities for its full 11 years. She is now Co-Chair of the Musical Theater Department at St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists and a jazz dance teacher in the dance program there with many other teaching gigs under her belt at Hamline, Concordia, Zenon, etc.

Studio Stories airs Thursdays at noon. Listen wherever you get your podcasts or find it here!

Join ARENA DANCES for our weekly Studio Stories podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week on Thursday, November 10 we have Heidi Spesard-Noble for Season 8, Episode 108!

Heidi is a product of Loyce Houlton’s Minnesota Dance Theater and went on to perform at Chanhassen Dinner Theater, later choreographing many musicals at Chanhassen as well as many operas with MN Opera.

Studio Stories airs Thursdays at noon. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or find it here!

“Stories are among our most potent tools… We need to unearth old stories that live in a place and begin to create new ones. We are story makers, not just storytellers. All stories are connected, new ones woven from the threads of the old” (Robin Wall Kimmerer).

Join ARENA DANCES for our weekly Studio Stories podcast, where each week we reminisce on Twin Cities dance history with a new special guest. This week on Thursday, November 3 we have Gretchen Pick for Season 8, Episode 107!

Gretchen Pick has been an active dancer, teacher and choreographer in the Twin Cities since 1993 and has been the Executive Director of Young Dance now for 22 years.

Studio Stories airs Thursdays at noon. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or find it here!