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Steven Collens, CEO of MATTER, an incubator & innovation hub, discusses his journey and the impactful work MATTER does in healthcare innovation. Steven shares his transition from Abbott Labs and Capitol Hill to leading MATTER, emphasizing the importance of collaboration in accelerating healthcare advancements. He provides insights on how MATTER supports both startups and large companies and also reflects on personal moments that confirm his career path and the strengths that help him lead in the industry. Guest links: https://matter.health   Charity supported: Innovation Development Institute Interested in being a guest on the show or have feedback to share? Email us at theleadingdifference@velentium.com.  PRODUCTION CREDITS Host: Lindsey Dinneen Editing: Marketing Wise Producer: Velentium   EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Episode 047 - Steven Collens [00:00:00] Lindsey Dinneen: Hi, I'm Lindsey and I'm talking with MedTech industry leaders on how they change lives for a better world. [00:00:09] Diane Bouis: The inventions and technologies are fascinating and so are the people who work with them. [00:00:15] Frank Jaskulke: There was a period of time where I realized, fundamentally, my job was to go hang out with really smart people that are saving lives and then do work that would help them save more lives. [00:00:28] Diane Bouis: I got into the business to save lives and it is incredibly motivating to work with people who are in that same business, saving or improving lives. [00:00:38] Duane Mancini: What better industry than where I get to wake up every day and just save people's lives. [00:00:42] Lindsey Dinneen: These are extraordinary people doing extraordinary work, and this is The Leading Difference. Hello, and welcome back to another episode of The Leading Difference podcast. I'm your host, Lindsey, and today I'm delighted to introduce you to my guest, Steven Collens. Steven is the CEO of MATTER, the premier healthcare incubator and innovation hub. MATTER opened in February 2015 and nurtures entrepreneurs and innovators building next generation health IT, medical device, diagnostic, and biopharma technologies. MATTER has worked with more than a thousand healthcare technology ventures and the company partners with dozens of industry leading companies, health systems, and universities. Steven holds an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and a BA from Washington University in St. Louis. He chairs the board of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and serves on the boards of 1871 and the Chicago High School for the Arts. He is a member of Chicago Next, the Chicago Mayor's Council of Technology and Innovation, a Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow, and a member of the Economic Club of Chicago and the Commercial Club of Chicago. Well, thank you so much for joining us, Steven. I'm so excited to be here talking with you today. [00:01:57] Steven Collens: It's a pleasure to be here. Thanks for having me. [00:01:59] Lindsey Dinneen: Of course! Well, I would love if you would start off by sharing a little bit about yourself, your background, and maybe what led you to MedTech. [00:02:09] Steven Collens: So myself, I guess it's all intertwined together, so after business school, I went to work at Abbott and I was at Abbott labs for about 10 years. That was my introduction into healthcare and medical technologies of any sort. And after that, I went to work at an investment firm. On behalf of them, started an incubator that was not focused on healthcare, and then had the opportunity to do what ultimately became MATTER, which was starting something that could really help accelerate the pace of change of healthcare and figuring out how to combine elements and do that. And our basic thesis at MATTER is that collaboration is the way to accelerate the pace of change of health care. And so MATTER is structured as a not for profit entity. We functionally incubate startup companies. They are different types of technology. It's primarily software and devices. They're all over the world. It's a membership model and we've got a suite of resources to help them at different stages of growth. And then on the other side of it, we work with big companies, so big life sciences companies, health systems, insurance companies, and we help them innovate more effectively. We help them collaborate with entrepreneurs. We help them harness innovation in ways that they're otherwise not necessarily wired to do. And by putting all of that together you know, almost 10 years in, we like to think and certainly hope that we're helping make a change in healthcare. [00:03:40] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, I know you are and I know that by your mission and the way that you go about your organization, and it's very exciting to see how the companies that have come through the program have continued to thrive. And I was wondering if any of those, particularly companies that you've worked with, really stand out to you in terms of making a huge difference in the way that you could come alongside them and work with them to make that difference. [00:04:09] Steven Collens: Yes, for sure. There are companies where people come in and they come from the healthcare industry and they know a lot, and the ways that we help them are different than companies where the entrepreneurs come in and they're not necessarily from the industry. And we love working with all of them. We will work with entrepreneurs, but we don't have anywhere near the level of screening that a venture capital firm would do, where it's a more of a democratized approach. We look for companies that are trying to solve something that's meaningful in healthcare. So if they are successful, they will help advance healthcare in a direction that's meaningful. We look for entrepreneurs and teams that give us some reason to believe they can be successful. Could be prior success, it could be that we're just so impressed by how smart they are. It could be their passion. It could be some combination of a variety of things. It could be somebody else has invested in them already. And like, "Well, we know they did a lot of diligence." And then the only other criteria is like people we want to work with and be around and that are going to increase the general level of joy and happiness in our environment. And so, there's one guy who met his co founder at MATTER. He's more of the business guy. The co founder was more of the inventor, scientist guy and, you know, it's an example of a company that's solving one of these problems that if you're not in healthcare, you just sort of scratch your head as to, which in healthcare, there's like an endless number of these problems where if you look at it with a more rational lens or from an outside perspective, you're like, "Huh, that's how healthcare works? I don't, that's so strange." It's a device for when a surgeon is putting screws into a bone, the way that they need like a, some sort of a depth gauge to determine what size screw to use. And it's like a reusable thing that they all use. It's totally analog. It's not a sophisticated piece of technology. They learn how to use it when they're doing their training and they just keep using it. And obviously they wash it and sterilize it, but you know, it's not ideal for a lot of reasons. And so this company developed a digital and disposable version that is more accurate, more sanitary, obviously, you know, we don't always want to advocate for things that are disposable versus reusable, but in this case, having this combination of accuracy and not dealing with any issues around sterilization and cleanliness, is a big improvement. And, it's a medical device, took a couple of years to develop. Again, he met his co founder at MATTER. He met a lot of other people who provided different guidance and advice and support and financing through MATTER. And so now the products in market and doing great, and they're working on other other products. So that's one of the companies that, that pops to mind. I mean, I, we could use up the entire time talking about different companies, but I'll pause there. [00:07:27] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah, I'm sure that we could. So, at the beginning, you talked about collaboration and how that can be the key to success for these companies that you're working with. And I'm wondering, I feel very strongly that collaboration is the key in so many ways to amplify success, and even to get to a point of success, because we don't know everything ourselves, but how do you get past-- and or help up maybe some of the companies that you work with-- get past sometimes a more competitive mindset where it's hard because you're very protective of your IP, you're very protective of your process and your business. So how do you help companies understand the value of collaboration and what we can do together to rise together? [00:08:11] Steven Collens: I think it's such an interesting question, and I'll take you all the way back to when we first were creating MATTER. And so I had just recently built this other incubator, not focused on healthcare, more like web mobile tech stuff at the time. And I was working with the same architecture firm and real estate people. And one of the things that we were trying to figure out, because we knew it needed to be different, for that because healthcare is different. It's a different set of people. It's different archetypes. In some cases, it's even different motivations. It's just, it's a different milieu. And one of the things that we spent a lot of time trying to figure out was, IP is so much more important when you're dealing with medtech as compared to your average software company, which is more about speed of execution. And I mean, it's about a lot of things, but it's, in the early days of most software companies, IP isn't top of mind. Whereas in the early days of most medtech companies, IP is top of mind. And how is that going to work? Are people going to be collaborative? And so we spent a lot of time, we talked to lots of people, tried to figure out how to deal, it turns out it like doesn't even matter. For 95 percent of the entrepreneurs out there, obviously they care about their IP, but there's collaboration in two veins. One is, other entrepreneurs are not doing the exact same thing. They're almost never directly competitive. Knock on wood, we've supported a thousand companies who've been around for 10 years, and we have not had one entrepreneur steal another entrepreneur's technology and try to run with it. God forbid that we land in that stage. The more complicated question is in dealing with the large players in the industry. And so on that dimension, some of the entrepreneurs are reasonably a little bit careful. Our basic thesis is that if you are building a new technology that you're trying to put into the healthcare system, you need to know more than you probably think that you need to know about how that system works, how things get paid for workflow solutions, decision making processes. It's just, there's so many areas of healthcare. Even if you've been in healthcare, unless you're just exactly in the space that you know inside out and backwards and forwards, there are so many areas and aspects of healthcare that are not intuitive, that frankly, if you were coming up with a design system, you'd never design something that way, because this doesn't make a lot of sense. But that's how it works. And you need to understand all of that if you're an entrepreneur in order to be successful. And so, one of the ways that we help with that, we've got lots of mentors and executives and residents and folks, but we also have lots of relationships across the industry with payers and with providers and with medtech companies and pharma companies and software companies, big ones. And they are immense sources of knowledge and resources and understanding. We have actually had one case where a large company met with one of our startups that was not really a medtech company. It was not a regulated device and they didn't have any IP. Just had an idea, they had a prototype of it, and the company basically went and did it on their own and it was really quite disappointing. And so we did not bring them back for anything. And, that was disappointing. So far, it's a one in 1000 events and that still more than we want to have, and hopefully we won't have that again. And we spend a lot of time with these large companies, and for the most part, they understand what the dynamic is, and they come and work with us for multiple reasons. One of those reasons is that generally large companies cannot innovate as fast as technology is evolving. And so if they want to capitalize on new and emerging developments, new and emerging technologies, one of the best ways to do that is find entrepreneurs to work with, maybe eventually by the company, it depends on the dynamics could be, you make an investment, could be you just collaborate, could be you buy it. I mean, there's all sorts of different structures, but that is a tried and true way of accelerating innovation within a large company to advance goals. The challenge is that large companies don't necessarily know how to find the right entrepreneurs. Once they find them, they don't necessarily know which ones to work with. It's not as straightforward as picking Deloitte or Accenture or something with a massive track record. And so it's more complicated than that. And then once they do decide to work with one, working with an early stage startup is a very different experience than working with a very large company. And a lot of large companies just aren't very good at that. And so that's, we help them. And again, 99. 9 percent of the time so far, it's been successful. [00:13:39] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. Well, thank you for sharing about that and your philosophy behind it. And also, I appreciate you being willing to share that one story because it's, you know, even though of course we wish that would not happen and never did happen, but the idea that you can still be successful in collaboration and there's still so much opportunity for mutual growth and learning. And yeah, you might have the bad actor every once in a while, but for the most part, to your point, 99. 9 percent of people really have that spirit of collaboration, which is great. So now you come into MedTech from a different background than some other folks. And so I was wondering if you might share a little bit about your early career and how that actually helps you now, because those skills I'm sure translate a little bit, but I would just be curious to know a little bit more about how that has played into your career. [00:14:35] Steven Collens: Yeah, well, my early career, so I in college, I studied political science and French literature, like the farthest thing from, I walk by the engineering building and be like, "I don't, I have no idea what's going on in there. I'm going to go back to my French literature class where I feel comfortable." And then I went to work on Capitol Hill. So I, I was an aide to a Senator for almost six years. Spent most of that time working on education policy and transportation policy, loved it, but sort of looked around at a certain point and there weren't a lot of people where I, I looked and I said, " In 20 years, I want to be like that." And it wasn't obvious to me what my longer term trajectory is. I didn't have the faintest idea what I wanted my longer term trajectory to be. So, you know, I sort of, tried and true strategy went to grad school. So that's when I went to business school and I ended up at Abbott because, when I came out of business school Abbott at the time had a kidney business, a renal business, and they made a drug for dialysis patients. At the time it was a 300 million or so product and Medicare, and this was a long time ago, the structure of how dialysis treatments get paid, get are paid for as different now than it was then. But at the time, this drug had was in the process of replacing a generic version, which Abbott also sold and it had been engineered and tweaked in a way that ultimately some researchers at Harvard that we had nothing to do with showed that it had a survival benefit compared to the old one. But before we, before they showed up on our doorstep with this New England Journal of Medicine study that they were, it hadn't been published yet, but they said, "Hey, just FYI. We're, we've done this massive analysis and the New England Journal of Medicine is going to be publishing it and your drug prolongs life and there's a survival benefit based on all these." And we're like, "We thought that, but thank you for proving it." Before that, Medicare looked at these two drugs and they said, "These are basically the same thing. One of them is way more expensive than the generic one. And we want doctors to stop prescribing that because we don't see the evidence." And, you know, obviously we believed in our own data and we showed it, but they did whatever analysis they did and they came to a different conclusion. And so they were trying out these different tools that they've never used before, because Medicare doesn't have the right, the ability today, and certainly not back then even less, but not today, to dictate what doctors can use and what they can't use. And they were trying out these new tools to effectively get around that and force doctors to use the generic. And so the business unit within Abbott was looking for a couple of people who had a mix of business and an understanding of politics and policy and how Washington works, and so I joined that team and focused for the first year and a half or two years on trying to solve this problem that Medicare was trying to essentially put this business out of business. And then after we've solved that, I had a more traditional marketing job and then I kind of moved around within the company. Some of those jobs I had within the company are directly tied back to the experience I had in Washington. So I wouldn't have gotten that job, first of all, had I not had that Washington experience. After my sort of stint as a normal product marketer I went and wrote speeches for the CEO, which I was only qualified to do because I'd written a thousand speeches when I was in Washington. And so that moved me then into sort of a role around messaging and communications for the company, which I was in for a while in different roles. Fast forward, when I left Abbott, I went and I joined this investment firm. I was effectively the chief of staff to the to the guy who was running or one of the two guys who was running the firm. I certainly wouldn't have, without that foundation from what I learned in DC, which was partly about messaging and communications and policy and things like that, but also it was a really strong foundation in two other things. One of just understanding how the world works and how people and groups interact with each other to advance their goals and how that happens. And also how to mobilize other people and organizations to help accomplish one's goals. And so that was part of what fed into me getting that job at the investment firm. Building MATTER, and even the incubator before, I approached as very much a listening exercise to the community. Now I would say it was very much following a design thinking or a lean startup or those sorts of things where it's, we'd come up with some ideas and then go bounce it off the market and see what entrepreneurs or other stakeholders wanted. And they don't call it that in politics, but I certainly learned how to do that on Capitol Hill, because in order to get anything done, you need a lot of different stakeholders to both be bought into what you're doing. In some cases, you need them to think it's their idea. And so, so certainly that was very helpful and continues to be really helpful in building and then operating and running MATTER. [00:20:33] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. Yeah. Well, thank you for sharing a little bit more about your background and how it has actually aided you getting a few different of the roles that you've had. I think there's always, if you look back, maybe some purpose to the meandering that sometimes happens where you go, "Oh, okay, here I am in MedTech!" And maybe didn't expect it, but I love how it worked out. So are there any moments that stand out to you as confirming along your career, maybe especially with MATTER, but even beforehand, as confirming that "I am in the right place at the right time in the right industry?" [00:21:13] Steven Collens: Yes. I mean, there's so many. When I left the firm to, and then was starting MATTER, I assumed I would do this for two or three years. I kind of get it up and running and everything. And then I go do something different. I'm still here, just about 10 years later, which sounds to me like a really long time. And I, so I think about, and I have for probably the last five or six years, regularly think about, "Is this really what I want to be doing?" I've been doing this for a long time and, is this really the direction I want to go? And so there's a lot of things that, that keep me engaged and enthusiastic about what I'm doing. So one of those is, it's probably hyperbolic to say every day, but every week, the kinds of people I get to work with and the kinds of things that they are thinking about and trying to solve, I find very energizing. I love working with entrepreneurs. They, for the most part, are people where their passions are aligned very closely with what it is that they're doing and building. If you want to build a successful startup, you have to be all in. You have to just be passionate about it and committed to it and dedicated to it. And you're giving a part of your life to building this thing and this company. I find that archetype just really energizing to be around, and to be able to help folks like that, I find endlessly enjoyable and and satisfying. And on the other side of what we do, the people within these large companies that we work with are, almost by definition, trying to push the company in ways that it's not already going. They're trying to push boundaries. They're trying to change things because they are driven by this mission. It's much easier if you're in a big company to just go with the flow. And a lot of people do that. And you need a lot of people to do that in a large company. The things that large companies do really well, they don't do really well because every single person in the company is trying to constantly push the boundaries and innovate and change things. The company couldn't work like that. But there's a subset of people who are trying to do that and they're trying to push harder. And they're trying to go in different directions and experiment and try things, and we get to help them. And I also find that endlessly engaging and interesting and rewarding. A couple of years ago I did a-- I love personality tests and all these different kinds of things. And so I did one, it wasn't really a personality test, but it was a fairly detailed exercise of, "Are you in the right role in the right industry and are you doing the thing you should be doing?" And I went through this whole thing and what came back was a resounding "yes" that when you just, when you look at it in a whole bunch of different dimensions, this really fits. Is it the only thing that I could be doing that? Of course not. Would I be just as happy and in other roles? For sure. But I get a lot of satisfaction and joy from the work that we're able to do, from the team that I'm able to do it with, and the people that we're able to help. [00:24:43] Lindsey Dinneen: Yeah. Yeah. That's incredible. Thank you for sharing about that. So pivoting the conversation just for fun, imagine that you were to be offered a million dollars to teach a masterclass on anything you want. It can be in your industry, but it doesn't have to be. What would you choose to teach? [00:25:03] Steven Collens: Wow. A million dollars to teach a class on anything I want. There's some interesting triangulation of of what I'm actually capable of doing, but I guess if I had a million dollars to do it, I could become a lot better at something. It's an interesting way of asking about passions and things like that. It would probably be something around hiking and outdoors and camping and functioning in nature, which is how I spend a lot of my free time. But I'd also would love to teach a masterclass on healthcare innovation and healthcare technology. I think more people would probably benefit from that than a class on hiking. But I like to think that I've learned a lot over the last 10 years about what makes healthcare innovations go farther, go faster and be successful, even if they're coming from different lenses. They're coming from large companies, if they're coming from entrepreneurs, if they're coming... and our healthcare system just needs an endless amount of innovation and technological advancement and, you name it, it needs everything. And so if I could impart some of what I hope I've learned over the last 10 years doing this, plus 10 years at Abbott labs and other things, but I would love to do that. And it would probably be more useful than a class on the outdoors. [00:26:36] Lindsey Dinneen: Okay, well I think both sound like good classes, so we can do both. It can be a yes and! [00:26:42] Steven Collens: Excellent. [00:26:43] Lindsey Dinneen: Alright, and how do you wish to be remembered after you leave this world? [00:26:48] Steven Collens: You know, I'm not a religious person, but one of the 613 rules in the Old Testament is basically like a catch all for other things, but if you take aside from all of the prescriptive, very specific ones, there's one that is just, "be holy." And the point of it is that, in this case, God, writes all of these rules about how people are supposed to act in order to create a functioning society. But the people will always get around that if given the opportunity. It doesn't matter how many rules you have. It doesn't matter how prescriptive they are. People have the innate ability, and a lot of people will, figure out work arounds and ways to get around it. And so this one is supposed to be the catch all for that. Again, I'm not a religious scholar. I'm not even religious, but this is my understanding, and I love this as a concept. And so by being holy, you're supposed to think about what is the intention of all of the different rules or the rules that are tangential or this, what am I trying to accomplish? And is my behavior and action going to contribute to the kind of world that I think that I want to live in. And so, I would love to be remembered for somebody who is acting that way. And that's hopefully people see that or look back, the kinds of decisions I've made, the kinds of things I've done, the kinds of actions I've taken, and see it as a form of being holy in that sense. [00:28:44] Lindsey Dinneen: I love that. That's a very thoughtful answer. Thank you for expounding on that too. I really appreciate that. And final question, what is one thing that makes you smile every time you see or think about it? [00:28:58] Steven Collens: I mean, every time is a challenge. Most of the time, our six year old kid. Probably dog, most of the time, maybe even... the dog's a lot less complicated than the six year old. And so the level of feelings are not as quite as depth, but also it's a more of a pure, she's just a sweet, lovable dog. So maybe it's the dog. [00:29:25] Lindsey Dinneen: I love it. Dogs are wonderful. [00:29:28] Steven Collens: I don't mean to say that I love the dog more than the kid. It's just very specifically your question about. [00:29:35] Lindsey Dinneen: it is specific. [00:29:37] Steven Collens: Yeah. [00:29:38] Lindsey Dinneen: I love that. I love that. Great answer. Well, I just really appreciate your time today. Thank you so much for joining me. Thank you for sharing about your background, your career, MATTER and how you are encouraging people to do things that matter. I really appreciate the way that you have this collaborative spirit and are helping to propel these companies to success. So thank you for all of the work you're doing. Thank you for joining me. And we just wish you the most continued success as you work to change lives for a better world. [00:30:10] Steven Collens: Well, and thank you so much for having me. It's been a pleasure. [00:30:13] Lindsey Dinneen: Excellent. And thank you also to our listeners for tuning in. And if you're feeling as inspired as I am at the moment, I would love it if you would share this episode with a colleague or two, and we will catch you next time. [00:30:28] Ben Trombold: The Leading Difference is brought to you by Velentium. Velentium is a full-service CDMO with 100% in-house capability to design, develop, and manufacture medical devices from class two wearables to class three active implantable medical devices. Velentium specializes in active implantables, leads, programmers, and accessories across a wide range of indications, such as neuromodulation, deep brain stimulation, cardiac management, and diabetes management. Velentium's core competencies include electrical, firmware, and mechanical design, mobile apps, embedded cybersecurity, human factors and usability, automated test systems, systems engineering, and contract manufacturing. Velentium works with clients worldwide, from startups seeking funding to established Fortune 100 companies. Visit velentium.com to explore your next step in medical device development.

Scott Killian has composed scores for Zvi Gotheiner (over 30 works), Shapiro & Smith Dance, Cherylyn Lavagnino, David Dorfman, Susan Marshall, Ralph Lemon, Bebe Miller, Alwin Nikolais and Murray Louis. His works have been performed with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Limon Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, PACT Dance (South Africa), et al. Venues include The Joyce Theater, Lincoln Center, New York City Center, New York Live Arts, Jacob's Pillow, The Annenberg Center and many regional venues. As a dance musician, he is a regular accompanist at NYC's Gibney 890 Studios and NYU Tisch School of the Arts. As a composer and sound designer for theater, Scott has created works for over 120 professional productions in NYC and at many regional theaters. NYC theatrical venues include Manhattan Theatre Club, The Public Theater, New York Theater Workshop, MCC, Red Bull Theatre, Primary Stages and Rattlestick Theatre. Regional theatres include George Street Playhouse (over 25 productions); Berkshire Theatre Group (Resident Composer--over 50 productions), Alley Theatre (Houston), Shakespeare Theatre (DC), Seattle Repertory Theatre, A.C.T. (San Francisco). Cleveland Playhouse, Shakespeare and Company, Cincinnati Playhouse, Huntington Theatre, Williamstown Theatre Festival.

Welcome to Health-e Law, Sheppard Mullin's podcast exploring the fascinating health tech topics and trends of the day. In this episode, Steven Collens, CEO of MATTER, a global healthcare innovation hub based in Chicago, joins us to explore advancements in preventative care and the innovations driving this transformation.   What We Discussed in this Episode: What markers for success does MATTER look for? What type of entrepreneurs does MATTER seek? How is innovation moving policy/creating policy?  What creative solutions for novel products have had early success in securing reimbursement?  How do tech innovators ensure their technology has a patient-first mentality?   About Steven Collens Steven Collens is CEO of MATTER, a premier healthcare incubator and innovation hub. MATTER opened in February 2015 and nurtures entrepreneurs and innovators to build next-generation health IT, medical devices, as well as diagnostic and biopharma technologies. MATTER has worked with more than 1,000 healthcare technology ventures, and the company partners with dozens of industry-leading companies, health systems and universities. Prior to assuming his current role, Steven was senior vice president at Pritzker Group, the investment firm led by Tony and J.B. Pritzker. In that capacity, he led the team that created 1871, Chicago's center for digital startups, which became the top-ranked business incubator in the world in 2018. He previously worked at Abbott in a variety of domestic and international functions, including product management, policy, and public affairs. In 2005, Steven helped found HugeDomains.com to give patients control over their health data and allow healthcare providers to coordinate care of their patients. Prior to Abbott, Steven served as legislative assistant to U.S. Senator Carol Moseley-Braun. Steven holds an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and a BA from Washington University in St. Louis. He chairs the board of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and serves on the boards of 1871 and the Chicago High School for the Arts. He is a member of ChicagoNEXT, the Chicago mayor's council on technology and innovation, a Leadership Greater Chicago fellow, and a member of the Economic Club of Chicago and the Commercial Club of Chicago.   About Sara Shanti A partner in the Corporate Practice Group in the Sheppard Mullin's Chicago office and co-lead of its Digital Health Team, Sara Shanti's practice sits at the forefront of healthcare technology by providing practical counsel on novel innovation and complex data privacy matters. Using her medical research background and HHS experience, Sara advises providers, payors, start-ups, technology companies, and their investors and stakeholders on digital healthcare and regulatory compliance matters, including artificial intelligence (AI), augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR), gamification, implantable and wearable devices, and telehealth. At the cutting edge of advising on "data as an asset" programming, Sara's practice supports investment in innovation and access to care initiatives, including mergers and acquisitions involving crucial, high-stakes and sensitive data, medical and wellness devices, and web-based applications and care.   About Phil Kim A partner in the Corporate and Securities Practice Group in Sheppard Mullin's Dallas office and co-lead of its Digital Health Team, Phil Kim has a number of clients in digital health. He has assisted multinational technology companies entering the digital health space with various service and collaboration agreements for their wearable technology, along with global digital health companies bolstering their platform in the behavioral health space. He also assists public medical device, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical companies, as well as the investment banks that serve as underwriters in public securities offerings for those companies. Phil also assists various healthcare companies on transactional and regulatory matters. He counsels healthcare systems, hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, physician groups, home health providers, and other healthcare companies on the buy- and sell-side of mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and operational matters, which include regulatory, licensure, contractual, and administrative issues. Phil regularly advises clients on matters related to healthcare compliance, including liability exposure, the Stark law, anti-kickback statutes, and HIPAA/HITECH privacy issues. He also provides counsel on state and federal laws, business structuring formation, employment issues, and involving government agencies, including state and federal agencies.    Contact Info Sara Shanti's Phil Kim Steven Collens Resources MATTER   Thank you for listening! Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive new episodes delivered straight to your podcast player every month. If you enjoyed this episode, please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, or Spotify. It helps other listeners find this show. This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not to be construed as legal advice specific to your circumstances. If you need help with any legal matter, be sure to consult with an attorney regarding your specific needs.

On January 26 of 2024, San Francisco Ballet premiered a commissioned work by Canadian American choreographer Aszure Barton. It was titled “Mere Mortals” and explored the science and ramifications of AI through the ancient myth of Pandora. With a brand-new score by world-renowned British electronica composer Sam Shepherd, aka Floating Points, and video and sound design by Barcelona-based Hamill Industries, “Mere Mortals” was a big gamble for new artistic director Tamara Rojo as she closed out her first season with the Ballet. It paid off. Not only was “Mere Mortals” a hit with critics, with the San Francisco Chronicle calling it “a passionate success,” but it also proved to be a box-office bonanza, so much so that San Francisco Ballet brought the production back to the stage just three months later for several encore performances. Perhaps more importantly, many in the audience were first-time ballet-goers, many of whom saw the piece more than once.In this arts climate when so many dance companies are struggling to get even their regular audiences back in the door, what was it about “Mere Mortals” that made it such a hit? In this interview, Aszure opens a window into her choreographic practice and how it may have contributed to an event equally invigorating to her dancers and her audience.Aszure is the artistic director of Aszure Barton & Artists, which she founded very early in her career as a creative outlet for the collaborative and anti-hierarchical instincts she'd had to repress in her dance education. Two decades later, Aszure Barton & Artists, which includes a core staff of creative collaborators, has created work all over the world with a wide array of artists and institutions, including Mikhai Baryshnikov, Nederlans Dans Theater and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Aszure is currently the choreographer in residence at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and is also developing a new piece in partnership with trumpeter and composer Ambrose Akinmusire. 

* WARNING* Suicide is briefly mentioned in this episode. Guiding New Dance Teachers Hosted by: Anna Harsh Guest Debora Engerman shares her story of how and why she became a Ballet teacher. She offers tips and advice of how new teachers can be more confident and ways to cope with nervousness. Deborah Engerman trained under Wally Saunders in Pikesville, Maryland, from 1977 to 1979, and with the Baltimore Ballet School (formerly the Maryland Ballet School) under the direction of Wendy Robinson from 1979 to 1985, in the RAD (Royal Academy of Dance) tradition. Her classical studies also included training with Petrus Bosman, David Keener, and Christine Hennessy at National Academy of the Arts and Virginia School of the Arts. While pursuing her Bachelor of Arts in International Policy and Management Studies at Dickinson College from 1986 to 1990, she continued her study of classical ballet with the teachers of Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet. Her dance training includes Vaganova technique, French methodology, Martha Graham technique, and the Dance Education Program at Towson University. She has staged ballets including The Nutcracker and Swan Lake: Act II. For more than three decades, dancers under Engerman's tutelage have gone on to earn professional contracts and danced with companies including American Ballet Theatre, Ballet Inc., Boston Ballet, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nashville Ballet, Texture Ballet, Universal Ballet, the Vienna Opera Ballet, the Washington Ballet, and on Broadway. She has also coached dancers for numerous international competitions, such as the Prix de Lausanne, the Varna International Ballet Competition, and Youth America Grand Prix. Her student Adrienne Canterna took the Junior Gold Medal at the 1998 Jackson USA International Ballet Competition. For most of 2010, Engerman toured Europe as ballet mistress for Rock the Ballet, of Sweetbird Productions. Order Anna's Book: https://a.co/d/8QJa4I6 ORDER Let's Talk about Fifth: https://www.amazon.com/Lets-Talk-About-Fifth-Teaching/dp/B0CBT4YCSN/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_pl_foot_top?ie=UTF8 Deborah's website: https://www.deborahengerman.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/anna-harsh/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/anna-harsh/support

Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell, Artistic Director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, joins us for our first episode of 2024! We were pumped to talk about the topic that brought Ioanna and I together ten years ago- DANCE! While a student at Julliard, 19 year-old Linda-Denise was invited to join Hubbard Street Chicago Dance by the company's founder, Lou Comte. After three seasons, she went on to become a principal dancer at Alvin Ailey! Linda-Denise returns home to Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, making her the company's first female and person of color to hold the role. Since the beginning of her tenure in 2021, she has made huge strides for the company, prioritizing diversity and inclusion, and working to broaden HSDC's reach and impact in Chicago Communities. She's also taken the company's repertoire to new heights, working with Chicago legends like Randy Duncan and Rennie Harris. She's here to chat more about the upcoming “Winter Series: Of Hope” at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, which “serves as a bold beacon of promise with its mix of beloved revivals and inventive world premieres”! Plus, we tell Linda-Denise about our history teaching Zumba and play a round of rapid fire! Website and Tickets: https://www.hubbardstreetdance.com Follow Hubbard Street Dance Chicago: @hubbardstreet Follow Linda-Denise Fisher Harrell: @lindadenisefisherharrell

Gabrielle Lamb is a choreographer and 2020 Guggenheim Fellow, is based in NYC, where she directs Pigeonwing Dance, described by The New Yorker as “eccentric…playful…curious”. Her work has also been presented by the American Ballet Theatre Incubator, the New York Choreographic Institute, the MIT Museum, BalletX, the Juilliard School, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Ballet Collective, Whim W'HIM, Jacob's Pillow, and Dance on Camera at Lincoln Center. She has won fellowships and competitions at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Milwaukee Ballet, and the Banff Centre, as well as the S&R Foundation's Washington Award and a Princess Grace Award. A native of Savannah, GA, she trained at the Boston Ballet School and was a longtime soloist at Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, later performing with Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company and Pontus Lidberg Dance in NYC. She has been lauded by DANCE Magazine as “a dancer of stunning clarity who illuminates the smallest details—qualities she brings to the dances she makes, too." www.pigeonwingdance.com 

Today on 'Conversations On Dance' we are joined by Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell, Artistic Director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. We talk to Linda-Denise about her late start and quick catch up in dance, her years touring with Alvin Ailey and her plans to continue to bring Hubbard Street to all Chicago audiences through innovative programming. To purchase tickets to Hubbard Street's 2023-24 performances, visit hubbardstreetdance.com.THIS EPISODE'S SPONSOR:New York Theatre Ballet celebrates its 45-year legacy with a Fall program of World and Company Premieres by Artistic Director Steven Melendez, Douglas Dunn, David Gordon, and Amanda Treiber, Friday, October 6 and Saturday, October 7 at Florence Gould Hall in New York City. New York Theatre Ballet performs small classic masterpieces and new contemporary works for adults and innovative hour-long ballets for young children, all at affordable prices. This season's “Once Upon a Ballet” series features The Firebird and Merce Cunningham's Scramble for four family-friendly shows, Saturday, October 7 and Sunday, October 8. For tickets and information, please visit NYTB.org/tickets.LINKS:Website: conversationsondancepod.comInstagram: @conversationsondanceMerch: https://bit.ly/cod-merchYouTube: https://bit.ly/youtube-CODJoin our email list: https://bit.ly/mail-CODEmail us: info@conversationsondancepod.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fewer performances, less staff – those are just a few ways arts organizations have had to cut back to keep their doors open. But that can't go on forever; could there be a better way? Reset learns how arts organizations are funded and how it needs to evolve to keep up with the changing entertainment economy with Claire Rice, executive director, Arts Alliance Illinois Julie Jenkins, artistic director of The Midnight Circus and Dave McDermott, executive director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago

Sandra Fox is Head of Costumes for Houston Ballet. She started her career at the Lyric Opera of Chicago as a Wardrobe Assistant while finishing her degree in theater from Northern Illinois University. She worked off-season at the Goodman Theater in Chicago as a First Hand. After several seasons, Sandra moved to Hubbard Street Dance Chicago as Wardrobe Supervisor, establishing a costume shop and touring with the company. In 2002, Sandra “ran away with the circus” and joined Cirque du Soleil on tour as Head of Wardrobe with Alegria. She then moved to Las Vegas where she had the opportunity to open the show KA as Assistant Head of Wardrobe. After opening the show, she moved to LOVE as Head of Wardrobe where she stayed from creation until the summer of 2018. Sandra is happy to be in such a creative city and enjoys taking in arts performances as well as visiting museums in the area with her husband and son.   @theatreartlife Thank you to our sponsor @clear-com The TheatreArtLife Podcast is a branch of our larger TheatreArtLife Community. Come visit us at www.theatreartlife.com

Sandra Fox is Head of Costumes for Houston Ballet. She started her career at the Lyric Opera of Chicago as a Wardrobe Assistant while finishing her degree in theater from Northern Illinois University. She worked off-season at the Goodman Theater in Chicago as a First Hand. After several seasons, Sandra moved to Hubbard Street Dance Chicago as Wardrobe Supervisor, establishing a costume shop and touring with the company. In 2002, Sandra “ran away with the circus” and joined Cirque du Soleil on tour as Head of Wardrobe with Alegria. She then moved to Las Vegas where she had the opportunity to open the show KA as Assistant Head of Wardrobe. After opening the show, she moved to LOVE as Head of Wardrobe where she stayed from creation until the summer of 2018. Sandra is happy to be in such a creative city and enjoys taking in arts performances as well as visiting museums in the area with her husband and son.    “ATTENTION SPOTIFY LISTENERS: IF you want to WATCH this with VIDEO, you can also subscribe to our video version: https://open.spotify.com/show/5e9KnBRZdjUTXTvCe6Nrqm?si=6639537c61044396”   @theatreartlife Thank you to our sponsor @clear-com The TheatreArtLife Podcast is a branch of our larger TheatreArtLife Community. Come visit us at www.theatreartlife.com

Join host Joanne Carey as she is joined by Autumn Eckman, Choreographer and Assistant Professor of Dance at Kennesaw State University. In this episode of “Dance Talk” ® with Joanne Carey, you'll learn from Autumn how this seasoned choreographer teaches the importance of learning to see beyond the obvious both on stage and during the choreographic process. Autumn's approach to her teaching and classes, is gleaned from her many mentors along with her time spent with mentor and Master Teacher, Gus Giordano, honoring the responsibility of shaping future generations of artists, refining the details of movement and the idea of story telling. Ms. Eckman is truly a master of movement refinement and whose work is a modern example of dance as a Living Document. Autumn Eckman is an Assistant Professor of Dance at Kennesaw State University. She received her formative training from the Houston Ballet Academy. Autumn had the privilege to dance with Giordano Dance Chicago where she also served as Assistant Artistic Director, Resident Choreographer and Director Giordano II, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Luna Negra Dance Theatre, Lucky Plush Productions, Ron De Jesus Dance, State Street Ballet and The Cambrians. Her choreographic commissions include original eleven original Giordano Dance Dance Chicago as well as for companies State Street Ballet (Artist-In-Residence), DanceWorks Chicago, Visceral Dance Chicago, The Cambrians, Chattanooga Ballet, Kit Modus, Big Muddy Dance Co., Wylliams-Henry Dance Company (supported by New Dance Partners), Missouri Contemporary Ballet, Gainesville Ballet, Washington & Lee University, Stephens College, Western Michigan University, Grand Valley State University, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.  Her choreography has been presented at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Bates Dance Festival, Performática (Mexico), Solo Duo Dance Festival (NYC), Detroit Dance City Festival, Charlotte Dance Festival, Blackbox International Theatre & Dance Festival (Bulgaria), Dance Gallery Festival (TX), Men In Dance Festival (WA), as a Finalist of the McCallum Choreography Competition (CA) and with JUNTOS Collective (Guatemala) where she served as Outreach Choreographer in the summer of 2019. Autumn often collaborates with composers on original works. She holds an MFA in Choreography from the University of Iowa and is certified in the Giordano Jazz Dance Technique through the Nan Giordano Certification Program and in Level One of Revolutionary Principles of Movement.  She is dedicated to sharing her experience of over 20 years of performing, choreographing and teaching/mentorship and has served as master faculty for organizations including The Ballet Alliance Festival, Open Doors Dance Festival, Vitacca Vocational School for Dance, the Bates Dance Festival. A former Instructor of Dance at Northern Illinois University and Assistant Professor of Dance at the University of Arizona, Autumn recently returned to Atlanta and served as inaugural faculty at the School of the Arts at Central Gwinnett High School for the 2021-2022 academic year. You can also catch Autumn's IGLive interview with Joanne Carey on Instagram @westfieldschoolofdance “Dance Talk” ® with Joanne Carey "Where the Dance World Connects, the Conversations Inspire, and Where We Are Keeping Them Real." Remember to: hit that Follow Button, Follow us on Instagram , Like Us and SHARE! SHARE! SHARE!

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago / Interview with Angie Jones

Camille Rudge is responsible for the strategic direction of professional education courses at Notre Dame. Prior to joining Notre Dame, Camille worked with and started numerous derivatives businesses at CIBC Bank US, ABN AMRO, Bank of America (LaSalle Bank NA) and Citibank (European American Bank), as well as founding Fifth Third Bank's (Old Kent Bank) foreign exchange franchise. She also an active board member of the Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and St. Francis High School (Wheaton, IL). Join us on the fascinating conversation with Camille as she shares the critical importance of her husband, Kevin, and their three children on her career and life.

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://thecitylife.org/2022/10/12/works-process-at-the-guggenheim-announces-hope-boykin-with-mahogany-l-browne-and-hubbard-street-dance-chicago/ --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/citylifeorg/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/citylifeorg/support

Today's conversation was such a sweet time with my new friend, Hannah Requa. Hannah graduated from Texas Christian University's School for Classical & Contemporary Dance and trained at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. She has performed with multiple professional dance companies including wild goose chase dance, Bruce Wood Dance, Corpus Christi Ballet, and Mei/Co. Dance. Hannah has experience teaching in a variety of settings, including as an adjunct faculty member at Baylor University.Hannah's journey in dance started at the age of 14. She shares about what it looks like to trust God's timing and to trust the doors He closes and opens along the path of life. Hannah has continued to dance professionally while being a mother of two, and I love hearing about her experiences seeing God's goodness in the midst of what can certainly be a challenging balancing act! Hannah currently lives in Waco, Texas, with her husband Spencer and their two children. I am so inspired by Hannah, and I believe you will be as well!Check out our website http://creativeimpactpodcast.com for the full show notes that include Hannah's biography and additional links mentioned in this episode. You can be sure not to miss a Creative Impact conversation by subscribing through your favorite podcast app.  We are so grateful to have you as a part of the Creative Impact community and would love it if you would share the show with your friends!Support the show

Capítulo 037: On this episode of Ocu-Pasión we are joined by Director of Ballet Hispánico's School of Dance and co-founder of the Latinx Dance Educators Alliance, Michelle Manzanales. Listen in as we discuss the connecting culture to formal dance, Tejano influences, her commitment to creating an environment where all students are inspired to explore movement.Michelle Manzanales is a choreographer, dedicated dance educator of 30 years, and co-founder of the Latinx Dance Educators Alliance. The Director of Ballet Hispánico's School of Dance since December of 2016, Michelle previously led the organization's professional company as Rehearsal Director & Artistic Associate for seven seasons. Ms. Manzanales is committed to creating an environment where all students are inspired to explore movement, feel supported in their individual dance journeys, and draw meaningful connections between dance and their lives.  Manzanales has co-presented at the New York State Dance Educators Association, ARTs + Change, and the National Dance Education Organization conferences, “Questioning TODO: A Latinx Inquiry of Culturally Responsive Pedagogy”, a direct response to the historical and continued exclusion of Latinx contributions and experiences in the dance field. A current faculty member of the Ballet Hispánico School of Dance, she has also served on the faculties of the University of Houston, Rice University, Lou Conte Dance Studio (former Home of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago), and the Houston Metropolitan Dance Center. She has been a guest artist for the Professional Work Sessions at STEPS on Broadway, the Joyce Master Class Series at Gibney, the Taylor School, New Orleans Ballet Association, the Puerto Rico Classical Dance Competition, Generation Dance Festival Houston, Artisan Ballet Company, Regional Dance America, Festival de Danza Cordoba-Youth America Grand Prix, Houston's Kinder High School for the Performing & Visual Arts, along with numerous other dance studios, schools, and college dance programs nationwide and internationally. Follow Michelle:https://www.ballethispanico.orghttps://www.instagram.com/mmanzanaleshttps://www.instagram.com/ballethispanicoOcu-Pasión Podcast is a heartfelt interview series showcasing the experiences of artists and visionaries within the Latin American/ Latinx community hosted by Delsy Sandoval. Join us as we celebrate culture & creativity through thoughtful dialogue where guests from all walks of life are able to authentically express who they are and connect in ways listeners have not heard before.Delsy Sandoval is the Host and Executive Producer of Ocu-Pasión. If you want to support the podcast, please rate and review the show here. You can also get in touch with Delsy at www.ocupasionpodcast.comFollow Ocu-Pasión on Instagram: @ocupasionpodcast www.instagram.com/ocupasionpodcastJoin the Ocu-Pasión Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/5160180850660613/Visit www.ocupasionpodcast.com for more episodes.https://linktr.ee/Ocupasionpodcast

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”www.marioalbertozambrano.comIG @juilliardschool IG @malberto777IG @thelitserieswww.thelitseries.comwww.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-albertowww.creativeprocess.infowww.oneplanetpodcast.org

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”· IG @juilliardschool · IG @malberto777· IG @thelitseries · www.thelitseries.com· www.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-alberto· marioalbertozambrano.com· www.creativeprocess.info· www.oneplanetpodcast.orgPhoto by Julien Benhamou

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”www.marioalbertozambrano.comIG @juilliardschool IG @malberto777IG @thelitserieswww.thelitseries.comwww.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-albertowww.creativeprocess.infowww.oneplanetpodcast.org

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”www.marioalbertozambrano.comIG @juilliardschool IG @malberto777IG @thelitserieswww.thelitseries.comwww.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-albertowww.creativeprocess.infowww.oneplanetpodcast.org

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”· IG @juilliardschool · IG @malberto777· IG @thelitseries · www.thelitseries.com· www.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-alberto· marioalbertozambrano.com· www.creativeprocess.info· www.oneplanetpodcast.orgPhoto by Julien Benhamou

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”· IG @juilliardschool · IG @malberto777· IG @thelitseries · www.thelitseries.com· www.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-alberto· marioalbertozambrano.com· www.creativeprocess.info· www.oneplanetpodcast.orgPhoto by Julien Benhamou

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”www.marioalbertozambrano.comIG @juilliardschool IG @malberto777IG @thelitserieswww.thelitseries.comwww.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-albertowww.creativeprocess.infowww.oneplanetpodcast.org

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”www.marioalbertozambrano.comIG @juilliardschool IG @malberto777IG @thelitserieswww.thelitseries.comwww.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-albertowww.creativeprocess.infowww.oneplanetpodcast.org

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”· IG @juilliardschool · IG @malberto777· IG @thelitseries · www.thelitseries.com· www.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-alberto· marioalbertozambrano.com· www.creativeprocess.info· www.oneplanetpodcast.orgPhoto by Julien Benhamou

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”· IG @juilliardschool · IG @malberto777· IG @thelitseries · www.thelitseries.com· www.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-alberto· marioalbertozambrano.com· www.creativeprocess.info· www.oneplanetpodcast.orgPhoto by Julien Benhamou

Mario Alberto Zambrano is the Associate Director of Juilliard Dance. He was born in Houston, danced for Batsheva Dance Company, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Nederlands Dans Theater II, and Ballet Frankfurt between 1994 and 2005. He then returned to school and earned an MFA in English at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he received a John C. Schupes fellowship for excellence in fiction. His first novel, Lotería (Harper Collins), was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick in 2013 and a finalist for the 2014 John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Zambrano, who was awarded the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction for his short story “Some of You,” has been a YoungArts Presidential Scholar in the Arts and a Princess Grace Award winner. He has been awarded literary fellowships to MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scotland's Hawthornden Castle. Before joining Juilliard, he was a lecturer in theater, dance, and media at Harvard. He serves as program director for Orsolina28's summer program and curates The LIT Series, a library of interdisciplinary thinking consisting of series of lectures, interviews, classes and discussions.“In both writing a first draft and in the improvisation of a dancing body, what is so key and relevant and exposed is voice. That internal voice of the artist of what they're writing on the page or what they're writing in space. If you go to fiction workshop, you talk about plot, structure, and you talk about character development, but there are very few classes within a dance curriculum where you break down an improvisation and you talk about voice, point of view, metaphor, or musical composition within a phrase. The lifespan of a phrase. And so this realisation is helping me understand that a one minute post of improvisation or even a ten-minute span of improvisation if it's recorded is very similar to a first draft of creative writing, where then the artist is in a position to evaluate those 10 minutes and identify what is the setting? What is the voice that has come out of my experience of writing this first draft of an improvisation? And how can I give it structure? How can I give it form?”· IG @juilliardschool · IG @malberto777· IG @thelitseries · www.thelitseries.com· www.juilliard.edu/dance/faculty/zambrano-mario-alberto· marioalbertozambrano.com· www.creativeprocess.info· www.oneplanetpodcast.orgPhoto by Julien Benhamou

ENDED WHEN was produced by the Hubbard Street Dance Chicago: https://www.hubbardstreetdance.com/the-hub/ended-when/ Ended When is a short film by acclaimed choreographer Robyn Mineko Williams featuring an excerpt of her popular work Cloudline, performed by Hubbard Street Dancer Alysia Johnson with music by Alencia Norris. "End of the World” Written by Sylvia Dee and Arthur Kent. Conversation with co-directors Robyn Mineko Williams & Mike Gibisser Subscribe to the podcast: https://twitter.com/wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

Joanie Smith and Danial Shapiro founded Shapiro & Smith Dance in 1987 and developed a collaborative method through which they created their work, taking turns developing material and directing the choreographic process. Danial Shapiro died in the Fall of 2006 and now Joanie Smith serves as sole Choreographer and is honing that process in new ways with the members of Shapiro & Smith Dance.Shapiro & Smith's choreography has been commissioned by companies as diverse as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Phoenix Dance Company of Leeds, UK; and the PACT Dance Company of Pretoria, South Africa. The Company has toured all over the U.S. and abroad including four times at The Joyce Theater in New York City. Over 600 dancers in professional and university dance companies have performed, “To Have And To Hold,” aka, “Bench,” and S&S's production of ANYTOWN, with music by Bruce Springsteen, has had more than 40 performances across the U.S.Joanie Smith and Shapiro & Smith Dance have received continued support from the National Endowment for the Arts, The McKnight Foundation, and The Target Foundation. S&S received a Sage Award in 2012 for “Outstanding Performance.”Smith was recognized as an “Artist Of The Year,” in 2011 by City Pages, Minneapolis, and was named a Fulbright Senior Scholar in Dance to Helsinki, Finland. Smith holds the Barbara Barker Endowed Chair in Dance at the University of Minnesota, an MA in Dance from UCLA, and toured the world in the companies of Murray Louis and Alwin Nikolais before founding Shapiro & Smith Dance.

On episode 14, Rogue talks with Taryn Kaschock Russell, Director of the Harkness Dance Center at the 92nd Street Y in New York City. We discuss her dance career with The Joffrey Ballet and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, transition into directing, and current projects.Support the show (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/rogueballerina)

On episode 12 of the Rogue Ballerina podcast, Rogue talks with dancer-turned-photographer (and one of her favorite people) Cheryl Mann. We hear about her career with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, transition to photography, and the importance of never giving up on your dreams. 

In this episode of LIGHT TALK, The Lumen Brothers (and Sistah!) interview renowned international lighting designer Ryan O'Gara. Join Ryan, Ellen, Steve, and David as they pontificate about:  Early experience lighting dance for the Hubbard Street Dance Chicago; Sculpting the body with light; The necessity of being sensitive to music; Working on Ryan's first Broadway show as Lighting Designer, "Thoughts of a Colored Man"; The perfect synergetic collaboration; Challenges of remounting Howell Binkley's Broadway productions in a restrictive pandemic world; Remounting six productions in seven weeks; The precision of focusing Hamilton; The Howell Binkley Fellowship; Always a headset for an intern; Dealing with mounting Hamilton in Australia during Covid; How artists we work with influence our art; Balancing your work with raising a family; Using Augment3D; Working on the film "Come From Away"; Collaborating with the DP on the film; and Sage advice for young lighting designers. Nothing is Taboo, Nothing is Sacred, and Very Little Makes Sense.

Learn more about the newest addition to Ballet Idaho's Artistic Staff, Nicole Haskins. Nicole joined the team in the fall of 2020 to head up the newly created trainee program. She led the group of 10 pre-professional dancers through a wonderfully productive year that allowed them to work with dance luminaries such as Glenn Edgerton (former director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and of Netherlands Dance Theater) among others. Interviewed by Artistic Associate Anne Mueller, Nicole shares her thoughts on the highlights of the year, her philosophy on dance instruction, and also talks about her choreographic career which, having begun at the ripe age of eleven, has been recognized and supported by the New York Choreographic Institute. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ballet-idaho/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/ballet-idaho/support

Today Sarah and Courtney spoke with Zachary Whittenburg about many areas of ballet culture: hiring practices, company structure, inclusivity, and how all of that ties into the mental health of dancers. Zac spent ten years as a professional dancer followed by a freelance career including performance, teaching, and choreographic work with many prominent companies including Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, BJM Danse Montréal, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and North Carolina Dance Theatre, now Charlotte Ballet. Zac is a regular contributor to Dance Magazine, a panelist and guest speaker, and tweets @trailerpilot about contemporary culture, politics, and the performing arts. Founding board secretary for the Chicago Dance History Project, he serves on the artistic advisory council for High Concept Labs, and consults on a variety of programs for artist support and equitable funding in the cultural sector. As associate director of marketing and communication at Hubbard Street, he represented the company on the Chicago Dancemakers Forum consortium. As communications and engagement director at Arts Alliance Illinois, he helped promote the value of the arts and give voice to a creative state. You can follow Zac at @trailerpilot On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trailerpilot/ On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/trailerpilot On Twitter: https://twitter.com/trailerpilot Please remember that Sarah and Courtney are mental health professionals, and anything you hear them say are experiences from their lives and should not be considered medical advice. If you are in crisis, please call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) to reach a 24-hour crisis center, text MHA to 741741, call 911, or go to the nearest emergency room. To find a local MHA affiliate who can provide services, check out https://www.mhanational.org/ Theme music is, "A Journey" by Kevin Hartnell It has been edited and reproduced under the Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0). Follow us on Instagram! Dance; Better Podcast @dancebetterpodcast Courtney @courtulrich Sarah @techballet Send in your questions or episode suggestions to dancebetterpodcast@gmail.com If you relate and found this episode helpful, please click follow/subscribe and leave us a review. (We might even read it on the next episode!) This helps to make our show more searchable, and will make it more accessible to more people...plus, we'd love to hear from you!

This week we are joined by Jessica Tong, Associate Artistic Director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. Jessica received her formal training at The Ballet School in Salt Lake City and University of Utah. Tong danced with BalletMet in Columbus, Ohio, Eliot Feld's Ballet Tech in New York, and Hubbard Street 2 before dancing with Hubbard Street Dance […] The post (229) Jessica Tong, Associate Artistic Director, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago appeared first on tendusunderapalmtree.com.

This week we are joined by Jessica Tong, Associate Artistic Director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. Jessica received her formal training at The Ballet School in Salt Lake City and University of Utah. Tong danced with BalletMet in Columbus, Ohio, Eliot Feld’s Ballet Tech in New York, and Hubbard Street 2 before dancing with Hubbard Street Dance […] The post (229) Jessica Tong, Associate Artistic Director, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago appeared first on tendusunderapalmtree.com.

Physical therapy (PT) has been a game-changer for me over the years. Whether it's injured knee, shoulder, or back, PT gives you tools and keeps you moving, doing things so other issues of mood and health don't crop up as you heal. Maddie Girardi and I have a relationship different than everyone else I have interviewed in all my podcasts so far. In addition to her managing a large, high-profile Chicago physical therapy clinic, being a pretty extraordinary person in her field, an advance reader of Brain Dance, she is also my physical therapist. You will love this episode. It's a short, funny, and fascinating conversation that will lift your day. You'll learn about physical therapy today, who can benefit from it, brain injury, why people don't get treatment for it. You'll also get a sense of what it's like to live in downtown Chicago during the pandemic and location of protests and riots, being newlywed, and having a husband who works in the restaurant industry during shutdowns. Here are some of the takeaways available for you in this episode: How to recognize you have brain trauma, even if no one else sees it. How important these brain awareness conversations are for helping ourselves and the people we love. Just a little background on my injury we make reference to in conversation. It's what I refer to as a “pandemic injury.” I had shoulder pain that got pretty severe after the pandemic moved into full swing. Little by little, like many people, my posture had gotten worse from days of telehealth. At night, I seem to have slept like a tightly wrapped little cocoon under stress. My body was telling the story. By the way, if you are lucky enough to have health insurance, chances are likely it will be cover physical therapy for posture pain and other injuries. Do check. If you don't have insurance, it may still a worthy investment for even a few sessions. It doesn't just take away your pain, it gives you your life back. Biography: Maddie Girardi is a PT in the downtown Chicago area and has been practicing for almost 8 years. She attended Indiana University for her undergraduate degree in Exercise Science and attended Northwestern University in Chicago, IL where she received her Doctorate of Physical Therapy degree and licensure. She works and manages a high-profile clinic in River North and specializes in treating patients with chronic pain and performing arts-related injuries. She is one of the Hubbard Street Dance Chicago physical therapists and helps them recover and maintain their bodies to be able to perform at high levels throughout their season both in Chicago and touring across the world. She maintains certification in manual therapy and dry needling that continues to help her patients throughout their care.

DATE: May 5, 2021 SHOW: Prelude to Positivity Producer: Tommy Geraci HOST: Tommy Geraci GUEST: Julien Valme Mini Bio: Tommy Geraci: As an entertainment, social media and pop culture expert whose clients include celebrities, television shows, film producers and mainstream media,Tommy Geraci has provided social media coverage for the BAFTAS, Britannias, Emmys, Oscars, Golden Globes, Erase MS, and more. He has worked on the red carpet for movie premiers, including Transformers, White Rabbit, and the One Direction Movie as well as the BAFTAS, Erase MS, and the Golden Globes. Tommy also provided social media coverage for the convention circuit, including EyeCon and DragonCon. In addition, he writes for Addicted Magazine. Tommy's blog, Teeco71.com, highlights his interviews with celebrities, indie filmmakers and musicians, and the events he attends. He is Associate Producer on the Emmy nominated season 3 of Eastsiders and Season 4, Executive Producer for 2nd Hour's What I See ( David Hernandez and Effie Passero), Producer on the film Sins Unveiled and Aris Ziagos' Music video for Love, as well as the documentary Growing Up in Hollywood. In 2012 he received a nomination for a Shorty Award for both Blogging and PR. Julien Valme: From Miami, FL, Julien began his training at local dance studios and magnet schools in the metro Miami area before continuing his education at the University of South Florida. Julien graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ballet Performance and had the opportunity to perform works by Jennifer Archibald, Maurice Causey, Alonzo King, and Doug Varone. Julien has attended summer programs with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago as well as Springboard Dance Montreal, where he had the opportunity to work with renowned companies Rubberbandance Group and MADboots Dance Co. Julien moved to Chicago to fulfill a childhood dream of dancing with River North Dance Chicago. Julien joined DanceWorks Chicago in October 2015. He has lived and danced in NYC as well and now teaches in Miami while also instructing 305 fitness classes there and online for COA - Community Online Academy. LINKS: Tommy Julien SOCIAL MEDIA: Tommy: Twitter Instagram Facebook Linktree YouTube Clubhouse Julien: Instagram COA Clubhouse TikTok

This week on 5.6.7.EIGHT, Aleksandra speaks with Alysia Johnson — a dancer at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, a co-founder of Black Dance Change Makers, an entrepreneur, a thought-leader, and so much more. A Dallas native, Alysia has been dancing at a competitive level since the age of twelve and ultimately enrolled at The Juilliard School, where she earned a BFA in Dance. While getting her degree, Alysia developed an affinity for community engagement and secured two grants to help create dance education for students and parents in the Dallas area. As mentioned, she is co-founder of Black Dance Change Makers, which seeks to empower Black artists. Alysia’s early exposure to providing dance education to others has given her a genuine love and appreciation for teaching and teachers. At the early age of 19, she was tasked with recruiting quality educators to work at the dance schools that she founded in Dallas and, from then on, has maintained a healthy respect for the art of teaching the art. On the podcast, Johnson speaks to the respect she holds for those who bear the great responsibility of handing down arts from generation to generation.   Moving Quotes: "I had lots of amazing mentors and teachers growing up. And through that, I started to understand the power and responsibility of teachers. And I thought, 'This is what I want. I want to help people and share my knowledge.'" "It's important to me to have dance teachers who aren't just in it to make a living but who also enjoy it and understand the responsibility they have. Because dance is powerful." "When starting a business, matter who is on your side, get down to the purpose of what you're doing. If it's necessary and you can do it out of a spirit of generosity and joy, then I think you should do it, no matter what." "There's no room for doubt on your job application — it's the time to believe in yourself." "Yes, you are auditioning for this company or that school. But you're also auditioning them — seeing if they're the right fit for you. That takes some of the power dynamic out of auditions."   Bullet Points (w/ timestamps) - Highlighting key topics discussed: 2:48: Alysia explains how she landed in Chicago and why she’s enjoyed the city thus far. 5:22: Alysia discusses her work as a teacher and philanthropist, bringing dance to communities that may not be exposed to the art. 10:27: Alysia describes being an entrepreneur in the arts world and shares some advice for anyone looking to start their own business. 14:26: Johnson discusses the nonprofit organization that she has co-founded and its mission to empower Black artists. 18:20: Johnson describes her unique relationship with famed ballet dancer Misty Copeland, which blossomed when she moved to New York to attend The Juilliard School. 23:48: Alysia shares some tips for any dancers preparing for auditions and gives a story of where her under-preparation nearly led to a major life redirection. 29:59: Johnson gives some advice on acclimating to a new dance company and a new city. 35:31: Alysia speaks to her future and shares what’s next on the horizon for her, in 2021 and beyond.   Bullet List of Resources –  Alysia Johnson Personal Website Instagram Black Dance Change Makers Company Website Instagram

Keep us on the air please. Even $1 helps. https://paypal.me/pools/c/8uXWKqnLTI Carlton Wilborn (born 1964) is an American dancer, actor, author and motivational speaker.[1] He first gained global attention as a principal dancer for Madonna's Blond Ambition World Tour and The Girlie Show World Tour, and appeared in Madonna's Blond Ambition Tour documentary Madonna: Truth or Dare.   Early life Carlton Wilborn grew up in Chicago in a family beset by alcoholism and sexual abuse which he described in his autobiography Front & Center - How I learned to live there. He began his performing career at Whitney Young Magnet High School, where he was in dance classes with the previous First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama.[2] After high school, he eventually became a principal dancer in Hubbard Street Dance Chicago.[3]   Strike a Pose Carlton is one of seven dancers from the Madonna 1990 Blond Ambition World Tour reunion 2016 documentary, Strike a Pose. The dancers reflect on their lives and meet up for a reunion.

Keep us on the air please. Even $1 helps. https://paypal.me/pools/c/8uXWKqnLTI Carlton Wilborn (born 1964) is an American dancer, actor, author and motivational speaker.[1] He first gained global attention as a principal dancer for Madonna’s Blond Ambition World Tour and The Girlie Show World Tour, and appeared in Madonna's Blond Ambition Tour documentary Madonna: Truth or Dare.   Early life Carlton Wilborn grew up in Chicago in a family beset by alcoholism and sexual abuse which he described in his autobiography Front & Center - How I learned to live there. He began his performing career at Whitney Young Magnet High School, where he was in dance classes with the previous First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama.[2] After high school, he eventually became a principal dancer in Hubbard Street Dance Chicago.[3]   Strike a Pose Carlton is one of seven dancers from the Madonna 1990 Blond Ambition World Tour reunion 2016 documentary, Strike a Pose. The dancers reflect on their lives and meet up for a reunion.

Like all arts organizations, The House Theatre of Chicago and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago have been hit hard by the pandemic. But both arts organizations have taken this time to seek out and find new artistic directors to guide them. Reset talks with the new leaders about the big task of navigating The House and Hubbard Street out of the choppy waters of the pandemic.

Sean Connors and Peter Martin from Third Coast Percussion join Soundweavers to discuss the stages of entering, campaigning for, and winning a Grammy; their approach to successfully and consistently recording albums; coordinating the complex logistics necessary for fitting a percussion ensemble into the NPR Tiny Desk studio; building educational programs with community partners to perpetuate long-term musical engagement; strategies for improving diversity in programming; and how they use mobile apps to create new angles for interacting with albums. Third Coast Percussion is a Grammy Award-winning Chicago-based percussion quartet. For fifteen years, the ensemble has created exciting and unexpected performances that constantly redefine the classical music experience. The ensemble has been praised for “commandingly elegant” (New York Times) performances, the “rare power” (Washington Post) of their recordings, and “an inspirational sense of fun and curiosity” (Minnesota Star-Tribune). Third Coast Percussion maintains a busy tour schedule, with past performances in 35 of the 50 states and Washington, DC, plus international tour dates in Canada, Colombia, Hong Kong, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. A direct connection with the audience is at the core of all of Third Coast Percussion's work, whether the musicians are speaking from the stage about a new piece of music, inviting the audience to play along in a concert or educational performance, or inviting their fans around the world to create new music using one of their free mobile apps. The four members of Third Coast are also accomplished teachers, and make active participation by all students the cornerstone of all their educational offerings. The quartet's curiosity and eclectic taste have led to a series of unlikely collaborations that have produced exciting new art. The ensemble has worked with engineers at the University of Notre Dame, architects at the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, dancers at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and musicians from traditions ranging from the mbira music of Zimbabwe's Shona people, to indie rockers and footwork producers, to some of the world's leading concert musicians. Third Coast Percussion served as ensemble-in-residence at the University of Notre Dame's DeBartolo Performing Arts Center from 2013—2018, and currently serves as ensemble-in-residence at Denison University. The transcript for this episode can be found here. Resources discussed in this episode: The GRAMMYs Third Coast Percussion's Tiny Desk Concert for NPR For more information about Third Coast Percussion, please visit them at website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and SoundCloud.

Cheryl Mann grew up in Tennessee and Florida as the biracial daughter of a Vietnamese mother and white father right after the end of the Vietnamese war. She found a passion for dance and became a long time member of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. www.cherylmannphoto.comInstagram: cherylmannphotoFacebook: Cheryl Mann ProductionsFlickr.com/cherylmannProduced and hosted by Angie Suhtwitter: @asian_failwww.asianfail.com Music by purpleplanetmusic.com Do you wanna start your own podcast? Record via Squadcast.fmHost with Podbean.com  Tell them Asian Fail with Angie Suh referred you. Elbow taps all around!

From studying music to receiving a full scholarship to train at Alvin Ailey, Steve Rooks gives insight into what it looks like to be a good steward of what you've been entrusted with.  ---Steve Rooks began his dance training in Washington, D.C. after graduating with honors from Dartmouth College. He continued his training in New York City as a full scholarship student at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center. Mr. Rooks danced and toured with the Ailey Repertory Ensemble and the Martha Graham Dance Company—at the latter, he performed for over a decade and achieved the rank of Principal Dancer.Mr. Rooks is currently Chair of Dance and Resident Choreographer at Vassar College. He has also taught as a guest teacher with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the Martha Graham Dance Company, the American Academy of Ballet, Ballet Nacional de Mexico, Pehnyo Productions in Barbados, the North Carolina School of the Arts, and the International Summer School in Sydney, Australia. He has choreographed a number of pieces, including “Cool River,” which premiered at Lincoln center in 1996, and which later became part of the Graham Company repertoire. He was a 2004 winner of the National Choreographic Competition at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and created two solos for the 2004 Youth American Grand Prix Ballet Competition. He has been awarded Vassar Research grants to travel to Latvia, Zambia, and most recently Finland, where he choreographed “Plate Tectonics” on 24 international dancers. As part of the Masterworks Festival, Mr. Rooks was commissioned to create ballets for a number of contemporary composers including Clarice Assad, Piet Swerts, and David Skidmore—all accompanied by a live orchestra.Mr. Rooks has served as an adjudicator for the American College Dance Festival. His solo “Vista” was performed by Aran Bell of American Ballet Theater at the 2014 International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi. Four contemporary solos were created for submission to the 2016 Youth American Grand Prix and the 2017 Cecchetti International Ballet Competition in Florence, Italy.In 2017, Mr. Rooks was Artist-in-Residence at Sumeet Nagdev Dance Arts in Mumbai, India. A solo work “Dashanan” was created during that residency and had its World Premiere at the St. Andrews Auditorium in Mumbai.Mr. Rooks would like to thank Jesus Christ for all that has happened to him. ---See Steve in action here  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sviwCe9RDwWe would love for you to subscribe to our podcast and share it with others. To find out more visit: https://globaldancenetwork.com/Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/globaldancenetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/globaldancenetwork/ 

Zachary danced for Pacific Northwest Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and BJM Danse Montréal. When his mindset about dance evolved, separating movement from performance, he felt empowered to embark on a career transition. Through years of cultivating connections and absorbing expert feedback, Zachary built a career as a dance journalist and specialist in communications for non-profits. He is now a regular contributor to Dance Magazine and is Director of Communications for the Chicago Architecture Center. Follow Zachary @trailerpilot, and read his articles at https://www.dancemagazine.com/u/zacharywhittenburg and https://trailerpilot.com/ .  --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/count9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/count9/support

Robert sits down with Krista Ledden, former company dancer with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Twyla Tharp Dance. Krista is an Orlando Ballet Board member and fitness thru dance instructor at Orlando Ballet School. The two talk about Krista’s career, her philanthropy at Orlando Ballet, her popular BeMoved class and dancing at any age!

"I want to continue to facilitate the success of others" -Alexandra Wells. While finishing up her time as Director of Artist Training with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, taking on a new role at Gibney Dance, and continuing to be acting Artistic Director of Springboard Dans Montreal, Alexandra has been guiding artists and curating platforms for years. She has a passion for mentoring and teaching, was a full time faculty member at The Juilliard School for 18 years and created IMAGE TECH for dancers. Alexandra has been helping artists soar for decades. Listen to this incredible woman share her insight on how to succeed in this crazy profession we all love!

In this episode, Matt sits down with Choreographer Robyn Mineko Williams.  We talk about her career as a dancer and choreographer, her incredible taste in both music and artists, as well as her collaborative approach to creativity.If you’d like to find out more about Robyn and her work, please visit:RobynMinekoWilliams.com Or you can find her on Instagram:@rmineko, @rmw_artists, @undercoverepisodes You can also find her on Facebook at:Robyn Mineko Williams & on the facebook page for Undercover Episodes Next up for her is a co-production of Undercover Episode 018: Home Video with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago,  and the continuation of Echo Mine and Echo Mine v2 with Califone.

This week on 5.6.7.EIGHT, Aleksandra speaks with Terence Marling, Artistic Director at COMMON conservatory. A Chicago native, Terence trained at the Ruth Page School under the direction of Larry Long. Upon leaving, Marling danced and choreographed at a wide variety of both domestic and international dance companies, including serving as Rehearsal Director at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Director at Hubbard Street 2. In September of this past year, Terence became Founder and Artistic Director of COMMON conservatory, which hopes to serve as a launching pad for the future dancers of tomorrow. Terence is a seasoned dancer and choreographer, who brings a wise perspective to the dance industry. His goal is to see young dancers succeed professionally in an industry that grows more exclusive by the day, and he has established his conservatory to achieve that end. On the podcast, Terence discusses the origins of his company and why he feels that a conservatory like COMMON is vital in today’s dance landscape. Along the way, he also shares some invaluable wisdom around the importance of networking, having a willingness to learn and evolve, and so much more.   Moving Quotes: “I’m 44 years old, and I’m still a student of dance. I’ve been dancing since I was 6, and I’ve been dancing the whole time. And there’s so much to learn." “We have to have dancers nowadays who are willing to advocate for themselves — who are willing to build their own networks. And the more people you have reach to, the more opportunities you’re going to have. It’s just that simple." “It’s a difficult thing for some young choreographers to take ahold of — that your success is measured by how well you communicate in front of a room and the energy that you create. If you come in unsure, you’re only going to make an unsure piece." “[When people leave my performances,] I want them to feel that they’ve been able to detach from the every day." “Every single contact that you make in a dance situation is important to keep. In order to maintain those relationships, it’s a good idea to just reach out and check in." “The people that end up being really successful are those people that communicate well." “Thinking while watching dance is great, but unfortunately, I think a lot of the dance that is created today asks almost too much thinking of the audience." “What I’m finding is that, while training for dancers has become better and better over the years, unfortunately, the jobs have become fewer and fewer."   Bullet Points (w/ timestamps) - Highlighting key topics discussed: 2:54: Terence discusses the origins of COMMON conservatory and his vision for the conservatory. 4:52: Marling explains the importance of choosing a space near central Chicago. 7:05: Marling explains why he believes a conservatory like COMMON is crucial for dance professionals in the modern dance landscape. 11:58: Terence shares some incredible words around the importance of networking within the dance industry. 13:54: Marling discusses some of his past and present choreographed works. 16:39: Terence describes his typical process (or lack thereof) when mapping out a piece of choreography and retells the story around his first ever choreographed work. 19:25: Terence describes how he wants his audience to feel after leaving one of his performances and discusses the danger of overcomplicating choreographed pieces. 21:58: Marling shares some sound advice for aspiring choreographers around gaining experience and being bold. 26:35: Terence gives some tips for dancers who are looking to break into today’s dance scene. 31:31: Terence rounds out the discussion by sharing his hopes and dreams for COMMON conservatory and why he believes it will be a success.   Bullet List of Resources –  Terence Marling LinkedIn   COMMON conservatory Company Website Instagram Facebook

"Performing feels like a superpower sometimes" -Alysia Johnson. Take 30 minutes out of your day to be inspired by the wonderful Alysia Johnson. As a company member with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, graduate of The Juilliard School, and a leader of the Dallas dance community, she has grown into a superhero herself. Learn about her life on stage, in the studio, and beyond as she walks you through ways we can all make a difference in young artists' lives.

  Michelle Penn started dancing when I was 3 years old at Dance Dimensions in Fort Lauderdale, FL.  She took ballet, tap and jazz and became more serious as she entered middle school.  At 14, she joined the Fort Lauderdale Children's Ballet Theater, under the direction of Angela Mauti and danced soloist and principal roles, including the Lilac Fairy in Sleeping Beauty and the evil stepsisters in Cinderella.   After graduating from her Catholic high school, she attended Northwestern University in Evanston, IL as a Psychology and Dance Major.  There she began exploring modern and contemporary styles, under the guidance and mentorship of the incredible faculty there.  In her junior year, she took an internship with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, a contemporary dance company based out of the West Loop.  There she gained invaluable knowledge of arts administration and company management that has served her well in the creation of La Zooz. ​ After graduating Northwestern, she went to Israel to study at Neve Yerushalayim as an Abraham Scholar. Three months after arriving, she created the Neve Dance Company with Devon Stern, another dance major studying at the school.   Over the course of the two years of the company, they performed for over 2,000 women.  She also began lecturing at different schools across Jerusalem. In June 2012 she got married in Chicago, IL and returned to Jerusalem where I continued to build and grow the Neve Dance Company.  She also co-created a show with Mrs. Lisa Marcus titled "Behind the Masks" in May 2013.   She returned to the States and moved to Silver Spring in the summer of 2013. La Zooz opened its first classes in January 2015.  She has been blessed with the opportunity to share her talents and gifts with her community and continues to work towards building a program that enables each girl to discover her best self.     https://www.lazoozdance.com

With special guest Carey Wass aka Carey-OK! We review Dance Victoria's presentation of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (1:54), the Belfry's 4,000 Miles (7:26) and Canadian College of Performing Arts' West Side Story (19:05), plus chat with Carey about his solo show Timeless Timely Tunes, which you can catch at Intrepid Theatre's Uno Festival. Plus Carey wrote us a song. Apologies for the audio glitches during the 4,000 Miles review...our equipment was on the fritz.

Hubbard Street's Fall Series is an ambitious collaboration with dynamic relevance. This interview with Hubbard Street dancers Jacqueline Burnett and Michael Gross is an honest reflection on organizational identity, risk and creative impulse. Take a listen and join the discussion!

We talked with Glenn Edgerton, Artistic Director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, about the upcoming performance for Dancers' Workshop's Gala Benefit. Also joined by DW director Babs Case.

Hope Muir is artistic director of Charlotte Ballet. Her first season as artistic director in 2017-18 included the introduction of eight new choreographers to the company, the creation of five new ballets, and two ballets making American premieres. Before joining Charlotte Ballet, Hope was assistant artistic director at the Scottish Ballet. She has taught classical and contemporary dance at The National Ballet of Canada, English National Ballet, Rambert Dance Company and Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures Company. She had a 20-year career as a dancer.  She was a founding member of London Festival Ballet School, then joined the company (now English National Ballet) before dancing for the Rambert Dance Company in London and later Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. In the summer of 2018, Hope will serve as a guest artist for The School at Jacob's Pillow. This episode is perfect for anyone interested in the work of an artistic director of a ballet company and a career in ballet and modern dance. IN THIS EPISODE Hope reflects on her first year as artistic director of the Charlotte Ballet and what surprised her. She explains what an artistic director does and what part of her work she loves the most. She describes what someone would have seen if they watched the ballet The Most Incredible Thing and the significance of presenting it. She talks about the pros and cons of touring as a company. Hope answers why Charlotte Ballet does not identify any of its dancers as principal dancers. She considers the responsibility of artistic directors to connect what is on stage with social realities in the world. She answers whether she would stage gay and lesbian themes on stage.  She explains how she assesses a dancer and what traits in a dancer she is drawn to and excites her. Hope shares whether she sees any changes in the composition of the dance company at Charlotte Ballet She discusses whether there is space on stage for older dancers and what project and role would bring her back on stage. She talks about deciding what not to do, what choreographers she would like to bring to Charlotte, and the 'bespoke repertoire' she wants to create. She remembers growing up in Toronto and what drew her to dance. Hope notes the turning point in her dance career and what she learned about herself as a young dancer. She answers whether the Charlotte Ballet is a stepping-stone job for her and whether she would take the call to become the artistic director of a national ballet company. She shares what informs her intellectually and what she values most. plus Mark's Personal Word Essay: Exploring A New Tangent To learn more, visit On Life and Meaning

Nate DuFort is a writer, producer, and director who splits his time between Detroit and Chicago. Mr. Dufort is a consultant for The Second City, having previously served as Producer, Producing Director, and Producing Artistic Director there, overseeing projects in cooperation between the iconic comedy theater and the Lyric Opera of Chicago or Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, managing the partnership at sea between Second City and Norwegian Cruise Line and taking part in the annual Gilda’s Club of Chicago fundraiser Night of a Thousand Noogies. Nate served on the Board of Directors for Planet Ant Theatre in Hamtramck, Michigan and as the Director of the Planet Ant Film & Video Festival. He currently produces the podcast My Neighbors Are Dead available at myneighborsaredead.com.  

Alyssa Rapp is the founder and CEO of Bottlenotes, Inc., an online resource in the world of wine dedicated to educating and entertaining wine enthusiasts through newsletters, interactive events, social media platforms, and iPhone apps. Bottlenotes is geared towards new to intermediate wine enthusiasts interested in learning about wine, but is useful for more experienced wine consumers as well. The site was developed as an e-commerce site that pairs users' taste preferences with wine selections and allows users to share tasting notes and exchange reviews with other members. It has been featured in a variety of publications including Wine Enthusiast, Entrepreneur, and Success. Rapp is also the author of Bottlenotes Guide to Wine: Around the World in 80 Sips.   BACKSTORY Rapp came up with the idea for Bottlenotes while getting her MBA at Stanford. She says, “I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but thought I’d probably follow in my father’s footsteps in the real estate or health and fitness space. But, I ran a wine club at Stanford Business School for a few hundred people with a classmate of mine. We did two to three events a week. I was struck by how intimidated our relatively well-traveled, well-educated peers were by wine. While I didn’t have all the answers by any stretch of the imagination, I felt empowered to find them and to get experts to come and teach us what they knew.” OF NOTE While Bottlenotes was successful from the start, Rapp realized she had to make some changes to keep her company growing. She explains, “This role we were playing - as a wine marketing firm helping wineries and importers market their wines directly to consumers - in many ways was limiting our success. I realized we had the model backward. Where we had looked at the shipping of wine as really the profit center, and the media business as a cost center, what would happen if we reversed the model? What if we thought of ourselves as the Wine Spectator or Wine Enthusiast of the 21st century? What that means for the website, is that it has had to evolve from an e-commerce platform to a media platform. Our vision for Bottlenotes.com is to turn it into a vibrant community platform.” Rapp connects users through newsletters, events, online games and quizzes, videos, and other social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Rapp’s newsletter, The Daily Sip, is received each day by over 300,000 wine lovers via email and over 180,000 through Facebook. PERSONAL Alyssa earned a B.A. in Political Science and the History of Art from Yale University in 2000 and an M.B.A. from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business in 2005. She serves on the Board of Trustees for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, the country’s preeminent contemporary dance company, and on the Executive Board of Spark Program, a non-profit that provides apprenticeships for middle school students. Alyssa and her husband, Hal Morris, welcomed their first child Audrey to the world in September 2012.

Gabrielle Lamb is a native of Savannah, Georgia and was trained at the Boston Ballet School. She joined Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal in 2000 and was promoted to soloist in 2003. In 2009 moved to New York City and began working with choreographer Pontus Lidberg, as well as Morphoses, then under the direction of Christopher Wheeldon. Her repertoire as a performer also includes principal roles in works by George Balanchine, Jiri Kylian, Mats Ek, Ohad Naharin, Nacho Duato, Luca Veggetti and Shen Wei. She won the 2009 National Choreographic Competition of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and in 2013 won first prizes in both Milwaukee Ballet's International Choreographic Competition and Western Michigan University's National Choreographic Competition. During the 2013-2014 season her work will be performed by BalletX, Milwaukee Ballet, Ballet Memphis, and Ballet Austin. Ms. Lamb is also a self-taught video artist and animator, and her dance films have been presented by Dance on Camera at Lincoln Center, the American Dance Festival, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, and Dance Theatre of Harlem, among others.

Glenn Edgerton, artistic director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, reacts to works of art as he comments on the company's residency at the Art Institute during the 500 Ways of Looking at Modern season. He is hosted by Mary Sue Glosser, creative director of lectures and performances at the Art Institute. Following the commentary, Mr. Edgerton leads the audience on a gallery walk in the new Modern Wing. This podcast is brought to you by the Ancient Art Podcast. Explore more at ancientartpodcast.org.