PillowVoices: Dance Through Time
62 episodes - English - Latest episode: 2 days ago - ★★★★★ - 22 ratingsPillowVoices: Dance Through Time brings listeners closer to notable dance artists connected with Jacob's Pillow, from 1933 to today. Each piece exemplifies Jacob's Pillow's mission to 'support dance creation, presentation, education, and preservation; and to engage and deepen public appreciation and support for dance' by utilizing archival recordings brought to life in the personal stories and narration of current thought-leaders and scholars. Jacob's Pillow, lauded by The New York Times as "the dance center of the nation," is a National Historic Landmark, a recipient of the prestigious National Medal of Arts, and home to America’s longest-running international dance festival, located in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.
PillowVoices is directed and produced by Jennifer Edwards. Ellis Rovin and James Sleeman are our composers and engineers. Music for the opening is by J.S. Bach and the closing theme is by Jess Meeker, both performed by Meeker. Content curator is Norton Owen, and associate curator is Patsy Gay.
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Episodes
Dancing Puppets & Emerging Technology
April 27, 2024 12:45 - 26 minutes - 24 MBLisa Niedermeyer hosts this episode exploring the connections between puppetry in contemporary dance and emerging technologies such as augmented reality, artificial intelligence and spatial computing. The episode focuses on a piece titled "Underground River" which was conceived and directed by Jane Comfort and developed in residency at Jacob’s Pillow. We hear from puppet artist Basil Twist, the director and choreographer Jane Comfort, and one of the performers, Stephen Nunley. Watch an exc...
Susan Marshall and Ralph Lemon: A Compelling Conversation
March 30, 2024 12:45 - 19 minutes - 18.2 MBJacob's Pillow Associate Archivist Patsy Gay hosts this episode featuring excerpts of a 1998 PillowTalk. In this conversation between choreographers Ralph Lemon and Susan Marshall, we hear insights about their own beginnings in dance along with their individual ways of creating work.
Spoken Word in Dance
February 24, 2024 13:45 - 24 minutes - 22.8 MBPoet and dance writer Karen Hildebrand hosts this episode focusing on how text and spoken word are used in dance. Included are examples from works by Liz Lerman, Joe Goode, and Carmen de Lavallade. Hildebrand is the former editorial director for Dance Magazine, and a past editor in chief of Dance Teacher magazine. *Of note: the music that underlies Martha Wittman's monologue in Liz Lerman's piece, "Of Fertile Fields," was composed by Robert Een.
The Dance Between Choreography & Technology
January 27, 2024 13:45 - 23 minutes - 21.8 MBChristy Bolingbroke, Executive / Artistic Director of the National Center for Choreography - Akron, hosts this episode focused on the the relationships of choreographic practice and various technologies. Referenced in this episode are works by David Parsons, David Rousseve, Compagnie Kafig, Rennie Harris/Puremovement American Street Dance Theater, and Ragamala Dance Company. Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive David Parsons Caught David Rousseve/REALITY Stardust
Remembering Gus Solomons jr
December 30, 2023 13:00 - 26 minutes - 24 MBJennifer Edwards hosts this episode honoring Gus Solomons jr, the celebrated choreographer, writer, and teacher. As the first Black dancer in the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, Solomons was both a trailblazer and a trendsetter, forming his own company and making more than 150 works before his death in August 2023 at the age of 84. In this episode: Excerpts from Mondays with Merce: Episode 14 Merce as Model (2010). Director/Producer: Nancy Dalva. (c) Merce Cunningham Trust. All rights reser...
Trisha Brown: Choreographer and Visual Artist
November 25, 2023 13:45 - 36 minutes - 33.2 MBJennifer Edwards hosts this episode focused on Trisha Brown, one of the most celebrated choreographers to emerge from Judson Dance Theater and the postmodern era. Brown is in conversation with Deborah Jowitt, the influential choreographer, scholar, dance critic, and educator. We also hear from art historian and Brown specialist Susan Rosenberg. Essay on Trisha Brown: https://danceinteractive.jacobspillow.org/themes-essays/women-in-dance/trisha-brown/
Creating with the Cosmos
October 28, 2023 13:43 - 25 minutes - 23.2 MBMany choreographers draw inspiration from their ancestors, nature, and the spiritual world, and Teena Marie Custer explores some examples with help from Sandra Laronde, Christopher K. Morgan, Ananya Chatterjea, Michelle N. Gibson, and others.
Umfundalai Technique with Dr. Kemal Nance, Part 2
September 30, 2023 12:45 - 26 minutes - 24.7 MBIn this second part of a 2-episode series, Dr. C. Kemal Nance examines the movements, meaning, and structure of the contemporary African dance technique known as Umfundalai. https://www.umfundalai.net
Kariamu Welsh, Founder of Umfundalai, with Dr. Kemal Nance, Part1
August 26, 2023 12:45 - 18 minutes - 16.7 MBDr. C. Kemal Nance hosts this episode honoring Dr. Kariamu Welsh and celebrating the dance technique that she developed called Umfundalai. https://www.umfundalai.net
Remembering Bessie Schönberg
July 29, 2023 12:45 - 22 minutes - 20.8 MBJennifer Edwards hosts this episode honoring the life and legacy of teacher and choreographic mentor, Bessie Schönberg. Included are excerpts of D.A. Pennebaker's documentary film entitled, "Bessie: A Portrait of Bessie Schönberg," with remembrances from Merce Cunningham, Jerome Robbins, Meredith Monk and from Schönberg herself. Schönberg speaking about how to watch dance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaAI6uyUn0Y
On Site Dance with Stephan Koplowitz
June 24, 2023 12:45 - 41 minutes - 37.6 MBWith the help of his colleague Elise Bernhardt, Stephan Koplowitz traces his early years at Jacob's Pillow, where ideas were planted that led to a fruitful, life-long career and his book entitled “On Site: Methods for Site-Specific Performance Creation.” Featured are inside looks at Dancing In The Streets and Grand Central Dances, as well as Joanna Haigood's thoughts about her work process as a site choreographer. Book, "On Site: Methods for Site-Specific Performance Creation" https://www....
Dramaturgy at Jacob’s Pillow
May 20, 2023 12:45 - 33 minutes - 31 MBPoet and dance writer Karen Hildebrand hosts this two-part podcast, focusing on dramaturgy and dance. In this second part, Hildebrand explores how dramaturgs have worked with choreographers at the Pillow, focusing on works by Bebe Miller, Jane Comfort, and Rennie Harris. Hildebrand is the former editorial director for Dance Magazine, and a past editor in chief of Dance Teacher magazine.
What is Dramaturgy in Dance?
April 29, 2023 12:45 - 15 minutes - 14.3 MBPoet and dance writer Karen Hildebrand hosts this two-part podcast focusing on dramaturgy and dance. In this first part, Hildebrand defines the role of a dramaturg, drawing extensively upon a 2014 PillowTalk with dramaturg Anne Davison and Scholar-in-Residence Maura Keefe.
Black Joy & Milton Myers with Dr. Iquail Shaheed
April 01, 2023 12:45 - 28 minutes - 26.4 MBDr. Iquail Shaheed offers a personal reflection on the life, work, and profound impact of his teacher and mentor, Milton Myers. Shaheed frames this exploration with thinking from his recent doctoral dissertation on Myers, a mainstay of The School at Jacob’s Pillow since 1985.
'Studio/Theater' at MoMA with Yve Laris Cohen
February 25, 2023 13:45 - 41 minutes - 38.2 MBVisual artist Yve Laris Cohen reflects on his exhibition at The Museum of Modern Art entitled 'Studio/Theater' with Jacob's Pillow Director of Preservation Norton Owen. The exhibition featured remnants of the Pillow's Doris Duke Theatre, which was destroyed by fire in November 2020. This is a sequel to Episode 44 with MoMA curator Martha Joseph and former Pillow Director Liz Thompson.
Dance and Belonging with Crystal U. Davis
January 28, 2023 13:45 - 33 minutes - 30.9 MBCrystal U. Davis, dancer, movement analyst, scholar, and author of Dance and Belonging: Implicit Bias and Inclusion in Dance Education, unpacks implicit and explicit bias as it relates to the relationship between audiences, dance-makers, and styles of dance.
Yve Laris Cohen's 'Studio/Theater'
December 17, 2022 13:45 - 29 minutes - 26.7 MBThe remains of the Pillow's Doris Duke Theatre were memorialized in an exhibition at The Museum of Modern Art by visual artist Yve Laris Cohen. In conversation are exhibition curator Martha Joseph and two participants in related performance events, former Pillow Director Liz Thompson and Preservation Director Norton Owen.
Artistic Directorship: Lourdes Lopez with Theresa Ruth Howard
November 26, 2022 13:45 - 26 minutes - 24.1 MBIn this episode, we join Pillow Scholar Theresa Ruth Howard in conversation with Lourdes Lopez on the occasion of her tenth anniversary as artistic director of Miami City Ballet. The entire talk can be experienced here: PillowTalk: Celebrating Lourdes Lopez *This episode was produced by Lisa Niedermeyer.
The ‘Secret’ Gay History of Jacob’s Pillow
October 29, 2022 12:45 - 18 minutes - 16.8 MBHosted by Brian Schaefer, this episode is an exploration of how gay history is intertwined with the Pillow’s very beginnings, often hiding in plain sight. Related episodes of PillowVoices: https://pillowvoices.org/episodes/barton-mumaw-a-cornerstone-of-the-pillow https://pillowvoices.org/episodes/ted-shawn-jacobs-pillow-founder-in-his-own-words *This episode was produced by Lisa Niedermeyer.
The Legacy of Katherine Dunham
September 24, 2022 12:45 - 40 minutes - 36.8 MBA recording of a conversation that took place in 2002, moderated by Reginald Yates. We hear the voices of Donald McKayle, Cleo Parker Robinson, and Julie Belafonte in addition to insights and reflections from Katherine Dunham herself.
Disrupting Complacency with Jane Comfort
August 27, 2022 12:45 - 36 minutes - 33.8 MBDance scholar Cynthia Williams guides a deep dive into two different political works made by choreographer Jane Comfort in the 1990s, revealing the striking connections to American social injustices escalating today. *This episode was directed by Lisa Niedermeyer.
The Body as Radical Canvas: Liz Lerman
July 30, 2022 12:45 - 22 minutes - 20.9 MBEllen Chenoweth hosts this exploration into the work of influential dance artist Liz Lerman, including the voices of Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, James Frazier, and Pamela Tatge, as well as numerous passages in Lerman's own words.
1941, When Ballet Came to Jacob's Pillow
June 25, 2022 12:45 - 23 minutes - 54 MBIn this episode, hosted by dance and costume historian Caroline Hamilton, we learn about the summer of 1941 and the events that led to the incorporation of the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival and the building of the Ted Shawn Theatre.
Barton Mumaw: A Cornerstone of the Pillow
May 28, 2022 12:45 - 14 minutes - 34.3 MBAs a founding presence at Jacob's Pillow from 1931 to 2001, Barton Mumaw embodied much of the institution's history, brought into the light by episode host Lisa Niedermeyer with Mumaw's own words.
An Homage to Martha Graham
April 30, 2022 12:45 - 39 minutes - 90.2 MBPillow Scholar Jennifer Edwards considers the imprint left by Martha Graham at Jacob's Pillow, with reflections from those she impacted, the work of Richard Move, and the words of Graham herself.
Regional Ballet: Pacific Northwest Ballet, Boston Ballet, Houston Ballet
March 26, 2022 12:45 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBPillow Scholar Nancy Wozny explores the history of regional ballet in America through conversations and stories of three distinct ballet companies. Featured are artists with Pacific Northwest Ballet, Boston Ballet, and Houston Ballet - three companies who came together here in 2021 for a program called 'Ballet Coast to Coast.' Additional Resources: Read - Point Spread: The Marvel of Regional Ballet, by Nancy Wozny Watch - (clip) Pacific Northwest Ballet, Second to Last Watch - (clip) Hou...
Lisa Niedermeyer Revisits Doug Elkins’ Fräulein Maria
February 26, 2022 13:45 - 24 minutes - 22 MBAs an artist, technologist, and former dancer with Doug Elkins and Friends, Lisa Niedermeyer reflects on her time with the company and her embodied memories of performing in Fräulein Maria, the uproarious and joyful dance based on The Sound of Music. We also hear from Elkins himself, recorded during two different Pillow engagements. https://danceinteractive.jacobspillow.org/doug-elkins-and-friends/fraulein-maria/
Dancerly Creativity and Technological Innovation
January 29, 2022 13:45 - 16 minutes - 14.8 MBHosted by Jacob's Pillow Associate Archivist Patsy Gay, this episode explores the intersection of dance and technology, diving into both history and current practice. Through the voices and perspectives of Marjani Forté-Saunders, Sydney Skybetter, Brian Brooks, Lily Baldwin, and Ilya Vidrin, we hear how technology can both hinder and enforce a dancer's embodied awareness.
Remembering Blondell Cummings, with Paloma McGregor
December 18, 2021 13:45 - 18 minutes - 17.4 MBPaloma McGregor remembers the life, work, and legacy of Blondell Cummings. McGregor frames this exploration through Cummings' dance work titled "Chicken Soup", designated as an American Masterpiece by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2006. https://www.dancemagazine.com/remembering-blondell-cummings-1944-2015/ https://danceinteractive.jacobspillow.org/blondell-cummings/chicken-soup/ https://www.xartistsbooks.com/books/blondellcummings
Dance On Screen
November 20, 2021 13:45 - 21 minutes - 19.6 MBPillowVoices composer and audio engineer Ellis Rovin ruminates on some of the ways that dance has been seen on film, drawing upon a PillowTalk by David Gere and considering examples from Fred Astaire to Merce Cunningham. Special thanks to New England Public Media, for their support of this episode of PillowVoices.
Focus the Lights: On Dance and the Field, with Adrian Madison Cario
October 30, 2021 12:45 - 24 minutes - 22.1 MBAdrian Madison Cario hosts this episode on the relationship between lighting design and dance, featuring some of the 20th century's most prominent designers—Tom Skelton, Beverly Emmons, Jennifer Tipton, and Mark Stanley. Now the CEO of San Francisco's Minnesota Street Project, Cario draws upon their beginnings in lighting design to illuminate different perspectives on design, collaboration, and building a world on stage. Special thanks to New England Public Media, for their support of this ...
Focus the Lights: On Dance and the Field, with Madison Cario
October 30, 2021 12:45 - 24 minutes - 22.1 MBMadison Cario hosts this episode on the relationship between lighting design and dance, featuring some of the 20th century's most prominent designers—Tom Skelton, Beverly Emmons, Jennifer Tipton, and Mark Stanley. Now the CEO of San Francisco's Minnesota Street Project, Cario draws upon their beginnings in lighting design to illuminate different perspectives on design, collaboration, and building a world on stage. Special thanks to New England Public Media, for their support of this episode...
CONTRA-TIEMPO: A Talk with Ana Maria Alvarez and Maura Keefe
September 25, 2021 12:45 - 36 minutes - 33.6 MBWe join Pillow Scholar Maura Keefe in conversation with award-winning Ana Maria Alvarez, the founder of CONTRA-TIEMPO, a multilingual Los-Angeles-based activist performing company dedicated to transforming the world through dance. This is a recast of a PillowTalk presented live on July 11, 2021. Special thanks to New England Public Media, for their support of this episode of PillowVoices.
The History of Jazz Dance: Melanie George and LaTasha Barnes
August 28, 2021 12:45 - 46 minutes - 42.3 MBIn this episode we share a PillowTalk that took place at Jacob's Pillow on August 15, 2021. Pillow Scholar and Associate Curator Melanie George hosts this conversation with a foremost tradition-bearer of Black American social dance, LaTasha Barnes. Through her work, The Jazz Continuum, Barnes places jazz dance in the context of House, Hip-Hop, Waacking, and Lindy Hop. LaTasha Barnes is an internationally-recognized and award-winning dancer, choreographer, educator, performer, and ambassador ...
Remembering Anna Halprin
July 31, 2021 12:45 - 35 minutes - 32.4 MBIn this episode hosted by Jennifer Edwards, we celebrate the life, work, and impact of Anna Halprin (1920-2021). A visionary force in both dance and healing, Halprin played a crucial role in the evolution of post-modern dance and developing ethical social practice through art. We learn about Halprin's work from scholars Ninotchka Bennahum and Wendy Perron, from Halprin biographer Janice Ross, and from Anna Halprin herself. Special thanks to New England Public Media for their support of this...
Wendy Perron on Grand Union: Democracy or Anarchy?
June 26, 2021 12:45 - 25 minutes - 23.6 MBDance writer Wendy Perron, a former associate director of Jacob's Pillow, explores Grand Union, a maverick 1970s improvisation group based in downtown New York. Perron tells their story through the voices of four key members: Yvonne Rainer, Steve Paxton, Trisha Brown, and David Gordon. Special thanks to New England Public Media, for their support of this episode of PillowVoices.
The Complexities of Indian Dance at The Pillow
May 22, 2021 12:45 - 36 minutes - 33.4 MBProfessor of dance at UCLA and Pillow Scholar, Lionel Popkin explores the complicated history and relationship between Indian dance, American modern dance, and Jacob's Pillow. Posing pointed questions about the 'use' of Indian dance movement and esthetics in the work of The Denishawn Company, the curatorial lens applied to Indian dance over time, and ultimately the influence and legacy of those choices on the dance landscape of today. Introduction to Bharatanatyam Lakshmi Vishwanathan: htt...
Choreographing the Social Consciousness: Part 3, Making Sense of the World
April 24, 2021 12:45 - 32 minutes - 29.9 MBInto Sunlight trailer: https://vimeo.com/131009698 STILL: https://vimeo.com/476315913/3a7f9258bb
Native Contemporary Dance: No Longer in Sepia Tones
March 27, 2021 12:45 - 31 minutes - 28.5 MBExplore Artists Mentioned in This Episode: Christopher K Morgan and Artists Daystar Rosalie Jones Lemi Ponifasio Neil Ieremia Moss Patterson Santee Smith Red Sky Performance Rosy Simas Emily Johnson Maura Garcia Brooke Smiley Dakota Camacho Anthony Hudson Timothy White Eagle AKU-MATU Alison Akootchook Warden Deeper dive: Code Switch Episode, "The Hawaiin Language Nearly Died. A Radio Show Sparked its Revival." PillowPlaylist: Indigenous Dance of the Americas
Remembering Marge Champion
February 20, 2021 13:45 - 36 minutes - 83.5 MBAs mentioned in this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NckTgsBsrKE Author Mindy Aloff shares stories from her book Hippo in a Tutu: Dancing in Disney Animation along with screening brief film excerpts that illustrate the evolution of dance used in Disney animation from the 1930s to 1950s. Joined by Marge Champion, who is interviewed for Hippo in a Tutu and was the dancer and live model for both Snow White and the Hippopotamus Ballerina in Fantasia. Moderated by Jacob's Pillow Directo...
Choreographing the Social Consciousness: Part 2, The Body Politic(al)
January 30, 2021 13:30 - 32 minutes - 30 MBIn part 2 of this several-part series, we explore how dancers and choreographers have embodied and confronted social constraints and constructs. Highlighing conversations between Pillow Scholar Maura Keefe and Carmen de Lavallade, Tere O'Connor and Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, we discover personal, artistic, and political perspectives on age, culture and queerness.
Choreographing the Social Consciousness: Part 1, Governmental Affairs
December 19, 2020 13:30 - 35 minutes - 32.1 MBIn part 1 of this several-part series, we explore how some artists and thought leaders position the role and influence of governmental programs and political figures on the arts, as well as how artists excavate politics and socio-political content for creative inspiration. Drawing from the work of Liz Lerman and Mark Dendy, we explore how some artists make such work. We also experience a conversation between political commentator Rachel Maddow and Pillow Scholar Suzanne Carbonneau as they dis...
Celebrating Jess Meeker: Pioneering Pillow Composer
November 21, 2020 13:45 - 24 minutes - 22.8 MBPillowVoices composer and engineer Ellis Rovin takes inspiration from the Pillow's earliest composer-accompanist, Jess Meeker, with rare interviews shedding light on dance in the 1930s and the early days of Jacob's Pillow.
Mic-check on Garth Fagan, Modern Dance, and Jacob's Pillow
October 31, 2020 12:30 - 30 minutes - 27.5 MBDance writer Gregory King explores the work of Garth Fagan from his own perspective as a scholar and former cast member of Disney's Broadway hit, The Lion King, which Fagan choreographed. Topics range from what it means to be a Black dancer / choreographer for a (mostly) white audience, being Jamaican in a Eurocentric dance ecosystem, and the power of embodied recognition stemming from identical cultural origins.
Joe Nash and the Power of Dance History
September 26, 2020 12:30 - 17 minutes - 16.1 MBHonoring one of his heroes, Director of Preservation Norton Owen focuses on pioneering Black dance historian Joe Nash, including the voices of Chuck Davis and Donald McKayle along with Nash himself.
The Origins and Value of Contact Improvisation in the Words of Steve Paxton
August 22, 2020 12:45 - 27 minutes - 24.8 MBIn this episode hosted by Jennifer Edwards, the history, practice, and importance of Contact Improvisation is explored through a revelatory 1998 conversation with the movement's founder, Steve Paxton.
The Value of Residencies to Choreographers and Their Creative Processes
July 25, 2020 12:30 - 14 minutes - 13.2 MBAssociate Archivist Patsy Gay hosts this exploration of Pillow residencies and their value to choreographers and their creative processes. Existing side-by-side, hear the voices and experiences of two choreographers, Trisha Brown and Ephrat Asherie, even though their residencies at the Pillow were 32 years apart.
Ruminations on Pillow History, Ted Shawn, and Adam Weinert
June 27, 2020 13:00 - 26 minutes - 24.4 MBDance Scholar Sydney Skybetter hosts this conversation with Norton Owen, Jacob's Pillow's Director of Preservation. Together they explore the intersections of choreographer Adam Weinert’s work with the history of both Jacob's Pillow and Ted Shawn.
Why We Dance, Why We Watch Dance
May 16, 2020 12:30 - 27 minutes - 25.1 MBThis episode is an exploration of why we dance, why we watch dance, and the relationships between dancers, choreographers and audience members. Jacob's Pillow Scholar Jennifer Edwards, who is also the Director / Producer of PillowVoices, draws from a wide array of voices and perspectives including: The Wondertwins (hip-hop artists), Derick K. Grant (tap dancer), Dr. Thomas E. Backer (psychologist), Faye Driscoll (choreographer), Steve Paxton (dancer / contact improver), and Edward Villella (b...
A Study of José Limón: Artist and Immigrant
April 18, 2020 12:30 - 15 minutes - 14.2 MBPillow Research Fellow and dance writer J. Soto hosts this study of José Limón and his Mexican roots. Soto examines the classic solo Chaconne, and issues related to both artistry and immigration.