What is Stance on Dance?

Stance on Dance expands conversation beyond studios and theaters to illuminate the breadth and impact of dance as a practice. We prioritize the voices of those who identify as women, people of color, queer, disabled, and generally working outside stereotypical dance representations and access points.

Updated weekly, Stance on Dance’s wide array of international content — essays, interviews, podcasts, poetry, cartoons and more — paints a portrait of dance through the lens of the artists. There are no reviews or previews, and we won’t tell you what pointe shoes to wear to prom. Instead, Stance on Dance is dance as we experience it: poignant, sometimes funny, and endlessly complex.

The Discussing Disability in Dance Project is a collaboration between Emmaly Wiederholt (founder/editor of Stance on Dance) and Silva Laukkanen (dance educator and podcaster) with illustrations by Liz Brent. The project aims to investigate and dismantle the language and stereotypes often used to describe dancers with disabilities. Read more here.

The Dancing Over 50 Book was a collaboration between Emmaly Wiederholt (founder/editor of Stance on Dance) and photographer Gregory Bartning. Through interviewing and photographing more than 50 dancers over age 50 along the West Coast, they demonstrate the grace and beauty in a body of any age. Read more here.

DanceCast is a series of podcasts by Silva Laukkanen, who interviews dance artists utilizing dance in non-traditional ways. Listen more here.

“Where Are You With Dance Right Now?” tracks a group of four young dancers’ growth each year and charts their path and evolution through dance. Read more here.

In honor of National Poetry Month every April, Stance on Dance features poetry written by dancers and/or inspired by dance. Read more here.

Where Dance Is offers an alternative perspective to the paradigm that high level dance only exists in big cities. From the desert to the countryside, dance is not relegated to high rents and competitive resources. Read more here.

The “Making It” series asks different dance artists at various stages of their careers whether they feel they’ve “made it.” It begs the introspection of what success and recognition mean in the pursuit of dance. Read more here.

The Bunion is the dance version of the satire publication The Onion (get it?), which seeks to poke fun of and mock the more absurd elements of dance culture. Chuckle more here.

Didn’t find what you’re looking for? Other topics have included the definition of professional dance, women in leadership positions, social activism in dance, an examination of contemporary dance, discourse on ballet’s relevance, the changing face of dance journalism, the experience of being a solo artist, what it means to quit dance, self care, male dancer stereotypes and more. In addition, several hundred dance artists have contributed to Stance on Dance. Check out more interviews, essays and funny stuff by following the links or searching the site. Or follow Stance on Dance on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to stay up to date with all the stances on dance!