"This is who I am. I am a dancer and this is what I have to offer the world." - Gloria McLean
Today's guest is Gloria McLean. Gloria is artistic director of LIFEDANCE/Gloria McLean and Dancers. LIFEDANCE is dedicated to the integration of body, mind and spirit through the creative process. Gloria's dances often collaborate with new music, art, language and the environment. Her choreography has been presented in NYC and internationally, including the American Dance Festival, festivals in Ireland, Paris, Montreal, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, Korea, and China. She first received acclaim as a leading member of the Erick Hawkins Dance Company from 1982-1993, performing major female roles in the repertory, teaching at the Hawkins School, and touring the U.S. and internationally. Currently McLean is President of the American Dance Guild producing festivals live and online. She teaches and performs from her base in New York City and Andes, NY.
For more on this episode: Movers & Shapers: A Dance Podcast
Today’s guest on Movers & Shapers are Joan Myers Brown and Kim Bears-Bailey of Philadanco.
Joan is the founder of Philadanco which was created in 1970 out of a need to provide performance opportunities and training for Black dancers. PHILADANCO! has since grown into a professional dance company that is recognized around the world for its artistic integrity, superbly trained dancers, and captivating performances. Of her many honors, she is the honorary chairperson for the International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD), an organization she established in 1991, and she received the prestigious National Medal of Arts Award and 2019 Bessie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Dance for her choreographic influence on black dance in America.
Kim joined Philadanco in 1981 and its current Artistic Director. She is a Bessie's award recipient and Associate Professor of Dance at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Kim is one of few artists granted permission to remount the works of many world-renowned choreographers including Talley Beatty, Pearl Primus and Gene Hill Sagan.
For more in this episode of Movers & Shapers: themovingarchitects.org/podcasts