Dancer

  • Interview with Betty Garrett Part 2

    Interview with Betty Garrett Part 2

    The second half of my interview begins with Betty talking about the impact that her husband’s decision to talk to the House on Un-American Activities Committee had on their lives. She describes the rejection they experienced and how it caused them to create a cabaret act which they toured in Europe and Las Vegas – where ironically the blacklist didn’t exist. She also talks about their courtship and marriage (she doesn’t believe in love at first sight, but that’s what happened); and describes her first hand experience with the dictatorial nature of the movie studio system. Listen to the life of a courageous, creative and candid woman and hear her singing with Gene Kelly, Jimmy Durante and her husband Larry Parks.

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  • Interview with Betty Garrett Part 1

    4-5-11 – ­Memorial for Betty Garrett – Part 1

    Betty Garrett – was truly a singleton. A protege of Danny Kay, she starred on Broadway, capered on film with Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly, Mickey Rooney and Red Skelton, made us laugh in Laverne and Shirley and It’s All in the Family, and was always a kind, loving, generous, accessible, friend. On April 6th 2011 at the forum in LA, people will be celebrating the life and work of this extraordinary woman. For the first two weeks in April I will be replaying an interview that I did with Betty several years ago.. Hear her remarkable story and some of her music, watch clips of her – go to my website to see clips of Betty in some of her movie roles…

    4-5-11 – ­Memorial for. Betty Garrett – Part 1

    From the moment the Bishop told Betty’s mother that she’d “better put that girl on the stage.” professionally Betty seems to have lived a charmed life. Her first dance performance was with the Martha Graham Company; her first acting role was with Orson Welles’ Mercury Theater co. She did everything from dancing in the chorus and a sort or strip tease at the 1939 World’s Fair, to performing and staring in Cabaret, Broadway, Film, TV, and recording. Listen to her funny, magical story and hear some of the music she made over the years with Milton Berle, Gene Kelly and of course her beloved husband Larry Parks.

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  • Interview with Victoria Hulland

    October 26, 2010

    Interview with Principal Ballet Dancer with the Sarasota Ballet Co, Victoria Hulland.

    In this show I also include NY theater reviews of “Million $ Quartet”, “Memphis” and ” Freud’s Last Session”

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  • Interview with Yalima Franco

    October 19, 2010

    Interview – Yaima Franco was only interested in her school studies and not the ballet class her parents took her to at age 8. At age 13, however, she realized that “she could do this” and so began an interest that grew into a passion. At 18 she auditioned for the Cuba Nation Ballet Co, where only 2 would be chosen. Yaima was told that she was great but had to lose 15 pounds in a month. She did this by eating only fruit and tea. Listen to Yalima’s story of the couples escape and her happy ending as mother of her 3 year old daughter and teacher of the students in the Sarasota Ballet Company

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  • Interview with Octavio Martin

    October 12, 2010

    Octavio Martin is a principal dancer in the Sarasota Ballet Company, but before he could find his way to Sarasota, Octavio first had to escape (with his wife – whose story you will hear next week) from the clutches of the Cuban Ballet Co. Listen to the hair-raising story of their escape, his mission to assure boys that they can be both masculine and Ballet dancers, his love of his new home, and as always his passion for the Dance to which he has dedicated his life.

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  • Interview with Margaret Barbieri

    October 5, 2010

    • Discussion – In this show I revisit the Family Pie exercise and explain how it can help to identify your Cover Story.
    • Interview – Margaret Barbieri’s journey to her destiny – a life of ballet – began ironically at the Dr’s office. Thought to be a sickly child of 5, her mother took her to a Dr. who prescribed exercise, and suggested ballet. Margaret’s mother had never heard of ballet, but dutifully found a class for Margaret, and in that class Margaret found her life’s passion. Listen to the series of happenstances which – without much activity on Margaret’s part – led her inexorably to the life she “was meant to live.”

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  • Interview with Jay Poindexter

    September 7, 2010 Jay Poindexter

    Jay Poindexter is a performer but he didn’t know it. A “good kid” he did what was expected of him. He participated in extra curricular activities, like band and gymnastics, but had no idea what he wanted to do with his life. Although he was cast as the prince in a grade school production of Cinderella, Jay remembers that “he didn’t mind it.” Later in high school “on a whim” he auditioned for The Gollywogs, a company of players who entertained at the local Mall, but this too didn’t capture him. When his band director encouraged him to audition for the senior musical; Guys and Dolls and he was cast as Nicely Nicely, “something sparked.” He knew what he was meant to do, but the path wasn’t simple. First he had to honor his step-father’s request to enter military service – it didn’t work. And finally Jay was able to endure the disapproval of his parents and step parents and be who he is. Listen to this inspiring story and especially the hilarious recounting of his audition for Cats – his very first real acting job.

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  • Interview with Jeffrey Kin

    July 27 Jeffrey Kin

    Jeffrey Kin is the artistic director of The Players Theater a community theater in Sarasota Florida. The youngest of six from a farm family in Central Ohio, Jeffrey broke the family mold by being the “creative kid.” Discovering very early his desire to entertain and the charisma that would later make him so compelling on stage, Jeffrey was lucky enough to have a mother who saw that he “belonged on the stage” and “took care of Dad’s disapproval.” So Jeffrey was able to develop not only his acting, singing and dancing skills, but his play writing, directing and finally the administrative abilities that make him the perfect choice to shepherd The Players Theater’ renaissance.

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  • Interview with Iain Webb

    July 20 Interview with Iain Webb

    Director of the Sarasota Ballet Company, Iain Webb has danced all over the world with some the ballet world’s greatest choreographers and many of its most prestigious companies. But Iain’s story is compelling because he is a real live Billy Elliot, whose working class British father, while never truly accepting that his son was a ballet dancer, nevertheless did everything he could to support his son’s difficult choice. Listen to the amazingly serendipitous way that Iain discovered ballet and how he, fought for, protected and nurtured his dream.

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  • Review of ‘Contact’ and Interview with Iain Webb

    November 10, 2009

    I’m dedicating this show to a review by Sharon Leslie of the Tony Award winning musical “Contact,” which celebrates its 10th anniversary with a collaboration between the Asolo Repertory Company and the Sarasota Ballet Company at the Asolo Theater in Sarasota Florida till November 22nd. And an Interview with Iain Webb, Director of the Sarasota Ballet Company Iain has danced all over the world, with many of the world’s most prestigious companies. Because his career has connected him with some the ballet world’s greatest choreographers he is able to bring their works to Sarasota, making this season as remarkable as it is exciting. Iain’s story is compelling. Hear how a real live Billy Elliot found, protected and nurtured his dream of becoming a ballet dancer.

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  • Interview with Tome Cousin

    November 03, 2009

    Discussion – What are the stories that you tell about yourself? What are the stories you don’t tell about yourself. You can learn a great deal about your Cover Story – that which you present to the world, and your Undercover – that which you hide not only from the world, but from yourself as well, simply by becoming aware of those things you feel good about telling others and those things you prefer to keep secret.

    Interview Tome Cousin, tells the remarkable story of a series of coincidences which lead him, with no intention on his part, to a successful career as a dancer, singer, actor and now, as the Artistic Directing Supervisor of Susan Strohman’s musical “Contact,” which he has most recently brought to Sarasota Florida (listen next week to a review of “Contact.”) Exposed to music as a boy of 6 in order to address a problem of dyslexia, Tome discovered that he was a “natural mover.” But it took many more “coincidences,” before the “light bulb went on” and he thought “I can do that!” Then using the skills he learned at an all boys Catholic military High school (not exactly classical training for a performer), Tome developed his “natural” talents and there isn’t enough room here to begin to list his credits. Suffice it to say that once he found it – Tome became the he – he was meant to be.

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  • Interview with Nate Jacobs, Part 2

    October 13, 2009

    Interview – The second half of my interview with Nate Jacobs, in which he tells the story or his mission to create a theater company with and for “people who look like me.” I also interview another founding member of the troupe delightful, 28 year old Leon Pitts, who began to work with Nate when he was 9 years old, and who had no plans for his life until Nate convinced him to audition for a part and it was “lights, camera, action from then on.”

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  • Interview with Nate Jacobs, Part 1

    October 06, 2009

    Interview –The first half of my Interview with Nate Jacobs, Founder and Creative Director of the Westcoast Black Theater Troupe. Nate’s story is of a man who took a long time to believe what everyone was telling him – that he was a talented singer, dancer, actor, and story teller. For many years he told himself that “they were just being nice.” In this half of his interview Nate tells the often hilarious tale of his discovery and acceptance of himself and what it forced him to do with his life I also play an interview with gregarious and talented 26 year old Tsadok Porter, a founding member of the Troupe who began working with Nate when she was 5 years old.

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  • Interview with Annie Morrison

    April 21, 2009

    Here I continue to talk about the families need for balance and encourage you to try the Small Change exercise to see if your family is balanced and in what way. Sharon reviews Murderers, and I interview Actor, Musical Comedy Star of the cult favorite Merrily We Roll Along, Druid, and self proclaimed Grail Maiden Annie Morrison.

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  • Interview with Jimmy Hoskins

    March 31, 2009

    I explain how to use the Family Pie Exercise, to discover the role you were assigned and how that can stop you from changing. I air Sharon Lesley’s review of William Shakespeare’s A Winter’s Tale and I interview choreographer and movement specialist Jimmy Hoskins, who created the dances for the show.

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