The Fall/Winter 2025 Print Issue!

BY EMMALY WIEDERHOLT

I am a parent to a toddler and an infant. This experience of parenting has changed how I think about my stake in the world. More than ever, I desperately want the world to be a better place. But the truth is I have very little control. I do however have perhaps a little influence over my small corner of the dance world. When I put on a show or go to a class or see a performance, I can prioritize accessible and inclusionary practices over those that exclude. I can support artists whose work reflects and challenges the world we live in, instead of an ideal of the world. I can seek out artists whose unique voices sometimes get lost or muted in the relentless onslaught of competition for attention. I can reshape the dance world for the better. And I believe these actions, though perhaps small in scope, can help make the larger world better too.

The folks featured in the fall/winter print issue of Stance on Dance are doing just that: reshaping the dance world for the better. Eric Garcia entreats institutions to embrace and support the queer, trans, Black, brown, disabled, Indigenous, and community-rooted future of dance. Esmé Boyce weaves her young son into her artistic practice, demonstrating that choreography can be malleable, compassionate, and supportive. Devin Hill details their experiences of repeated inaccessibility and prejudice in dance, demonstrating how we must confront and deconstruct ableism. Yvonne Montoya highlights the work of Lucy Salazar, who is singlehandedly trying to save Los bailes de salón de Nuevo México from disappearing. Jill Randall catalogues how dance artists in the Bay Area are defying the age of Trump by continuing to make relevant and dynamic work. Dr. C. Kemal Nance describes the value of Umfundalai, a contemporary African dance technique derived from traditions throughout the African diaspora. Nikhita Winkler reminds us of the need to unarmor and breathe deeply to find pleasure, presence, and power. Marlena Gittleman shares her empowering experience at a workshop with Colectivo LASTESIS, the feminist Chilean performance art collective. Perel guides us through their performance of Natural Acts, which explores the personal loss of their mother alongside the historical mass killing of disabled people during World War II. Finally, visual artist Al Sabrie lends their queer and liberation centric compositions to amplify and compliment the many perspectives of this issue.

I hope you enjoy and perhaps feel inspired to help reshape your corner of the world for the better, too!

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GET YOUR COPY OF THE FALL/WINTER 2025 PRINT ISSUE NOW!

Cover art by Al Sabrie

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