Dance is competitive, we all know that.  Anyone who wants to become a professional has to have a thick skin to survive all the corrections given by teachers and choreographers.  But what do you do if you are told time and time again that you'll never live your dream?  What if your problem is not your attitude, your work ethic or your training, but is instead the one thing you can't change - your body?  Read on to hear how one professional tap dancer - Laura Chiuve - overcame both the odds and the limitations of her own anatomy to succeed not only in tap, but in other forms of dance as well.

On May 10, 1899, Mrs. Austerlitz gave birth to a little baby named Fred in Omaha, Nebraska.  Seven years and one name change later, little Fred Austerlitz hit the stage as Fred Astaire, partnering his older sister Adele in a popular brother-sister act that would endure until Adele's marriage in 1932.  Although modern audiences know Fred Astaire for his on-screen partnering of Ginger Rogers, he was equally (and in some cases even more) suited to dance with hats, canes, coat racks, firecrackers, sports equipment and animated mice.

Here's Fred in one of my favorite numbers, though some of you may like the clip after the jump more.

I recently had the honor of interviewing Mark Yonally, one of the tap world's most innovative and accomplished choreographers.  His vision of tap is utterly unique and becoming more and more popular every year.  As Artistic Director and principle choreographer of Chicago Tap Theatre, he's taking artistic risks that no one else is, all while bringing in new audience members by the truckloads.  It's quite a story.

Evolution Dance Center presents the 2008 EDC Awards:

"Imagine, Create, Evolve"
Directed by Gee Bethancourt

May 31st, 2008!  Tickets on sale now!

For more info, please visit our website:
www.Evolution-Dance.com

Last weekend, I had the honor of judging the USASF Worlds dance team competition held at Epcot Center in Orlando, Florida. The top teams from across the country and around the globe competed in divisions of pom, jazz and hip hop for the chance to be considered the best of the best. Dancers attended from 30 countries, including China, Germany, Chile, Mexico, Italy, Japan and the Ukraine.

This is the third in a series about tap amplification issues.  We've covered microphone selections in general, as well as mic selections for solo tapping in a jazz club.  Now we're going to get the insights of Ira Bernstein - an extraordinarily versatile percussive dancer and repository of a wealth of information on sound amplification for dance - regarding tapping in a concert dance environment.

We just cannot seem to be rid of winter, here in Minnesota.  Yes, yes, I know that if you live on the coast-East or West, you probably think it is ALWAYS winter here, in good, old Minne-snow-da!  With global warming supposedly everywhere, what is up with our COLD and snow this spring?  It is always fun to chat with business associates in New York, LA, Atlanta or Portland.  Living in Minnesota, we always have something to talk about here, anyway.  One day we have cold, another day we have heat, one day rain and gloomy and another day sunny and beautiful.  That is why I love living in Minnesota!  As the story goes-if you do not like the weather, just wait a day!  As I explained today to someone, via telephone conversation, yes we have it cold in the winter, but we also get an average of 15 days or so, each summer, in the 90s with some nasty humidity!  And some 100s, which I can do without.

It was sunny and in the 60s a few days ago.  Only in the 40s today, maybe snow flurries tonight? The grass is greening up, the robins are out, but we had snow ON THE GROUND last Saturday morning.  We had a few 70+days a couple of weeks ago.  Such a variety of temperatures and conditions!

So what is with my weather report today?