In the Dancer’s Studio

Who should get interviewed, and why? Make the case for your favorite legacy dancer.

Personally, I’d like to see several people interview each dancer, lending their own perspective and background to chasing the thread of conversation.

Who should conduct interviews? Suggest the most personable, articulate, enthusiastic, educated and well-spoken (particularly for audio interviews) people you know that might participate in this project

Before we go out and start bugging nice dancers, we need to create a structured interview. Some part should cover the career and experience of the interviewee. Some part should cover technique and skills. Some part should cover interests and intent. Some part should be light and fun.

Tell me what you want to know - both particular questions and general subjects that you want to see covered in interviews with legacy dancers.

One of the inspirations for this project, is (as you might imagine), Inside the Actor’s Studio, which works beautifully on TV (there is a bigger audience of acting enthusiasts). That segment, inspired by yet another interviewer, Bernard Pivot (Apostrophes and Bouillon de Culture) included a series of specific questions, which the interviewee was probably well aware of long before the interview. I’d like to include the same sort of specific questions in these interviews.

James Lipton’s 10 questions from Inside the Actor’s Studio:

• What is your favorite word?
• What is your least favorite word?
• What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
• What turns you off?
• What is your favorite curse word?
• What sound or noise do you love?
• What sound or noise do you hate?
• What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
• What profession would you not like to do?
• If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?

Some other Pivot questions that didn’t make Lipton’s list:

• What is your favorite drug?
• Who would you like to see on a new banknote?
• If you were reincarnated as some other plant or animal, what would it be?

A couple suggestions of my own:

• What do you love?
• What do you fear?
• What do you think?
• What do you believe?
• Whom would you like to interview?
• What is your dance color? (This is a personal plug)

Of course, there’s also the “21 questions” format, but I don’t know if we want to go to 21.

Bernard Pivot’s program focused mostly on literature and authors. James Lipton’s focuses on acting and actors. Here, we have an opportunity to focus on dancing and dancers.

This is about collecting wisdom.

We’ll be presenting both text and recorded interviews of legacy dancers. To qualify as a legacy dancer, they must have been performing and/or teaching for at least 20 years.