July 2020

Posted on August 26, 2020

Editorial and contents July 2020

Like many others, I was shocked and outraged by the killing in Minneapolis on May 25 of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, by a white police officer who knelt on his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds. It rightly sparked protests and demonstrations around the world, and highlighted once more the ugly truth about racial discrimination against black and non-white people.

Everybody needs to work harder to achieve equality for all, and this is something that is also true of the dance community – especially classical ballet – which has simply not done enough to diversify the profession and its audiences. In this month’s issue, we publish a personal response to the situation from Ballet Black’s Cira Robinson.

I sincerely hope, over the years, Dancing Times has celebrated and given due recognition to non-white dance professionals, but I’m also conscious the magazine must do more in future, and so we would like to hear from you, our readers, of ways in which we can achieve this – you can contact us by emailing editorial@dancing-times.co.uk.

JONATHAN GRAY

Dancing Times, July 2020 Volume 110 Issue 1319

Cover stories

14. From ballerina to baroness… and beyond
Matthew Paluch talks to former Royal Ballet principal Deborah Bull, now Baroness Bull of the House of Lords

18. Black Dancers Matter
A personal response by Cira Robinson

21. Practically perfect
Nicola Rayner hears from choreographer Drew McOnie

44. Lockdown leadership
Alison Gallagher Hughes talks to Marcus Hilton, the new president of the British Dance Council

Features

24. Dance under lockdown
Jonathan Gray concludes his look into how dance professionals are coping with the restrictions of COVID-19

29. Swimming against the stream
Fátima Nollén discovers how Germany’s Ballett Magdeburg is slowly getting back to work after lockdown

33. Adapting and changing
English National Ballet’s Tiffany Hedman talks to Vikki Jane Vile about the health problems she has overcome to continue her career as a dancer

Dance Today

46. Tips on technique
By James Whitehead

47. Technique clinic
By Phil Meacham

48. Simon’s Guide to Swing
Simon Selmon celebrates the career of Chester Whitmore

49. Stepping Out
Marianka Swain profiles Ezekiel Vargas and Carl Terenz Belarmino

50. Somewhere in time
By Jack Reavely

Regulars

8. News
UK dance after lockdown?

10. Letters

12. Talking point
By Ben Duke

36. FRANCE/dance
By Laura Cappelle

37. Notes from New York
Jack Anderson sees new online creations by Mark Morris and Stephen Petronio

38. Danza in Italia
Graham Spicer meets Carla Fracci

40. Letter from St Petersburg
Igor Stupnikov on life in Russian lockdown

53. Dancer of the Month
Margaret Willis meets freelance dancer Jethro Paine

57. Obituaries
Peter Docherty

59. Products

60. Media
David Mead samples Alternative Let’s Dance International Frontiers

62. Health
Debbie Malina finds out how relaxation can be of benefit for dancers

65. Classifieds

66. Last Dance
We look back to July 1980