Mar 24, 2020
This week on 5.6.7.EIGHT, Aleksandra speaks with Ariel Rose, a dancer and choreographer at the Miami City Ballet. Rose, who hails from New York City, trained at multiple arts and dance schools before training at the Boston Ballet School on full scholarship. Rose has since danced professionally with a number of renown ballet companies, yet his true passion is for choreography. Ariel’s education was tailor-made to foster a love of choreography inside of him from a young age, and his works have been featured at a number of ballet companies and schools across two continents.
Ariel is a deep, passionate thinker and holds unique perspectives on a wide variety of topics within the dance realm. On the podcast, Aleksandra and Ariel span a number of topics, including his own journey in ballet, his view on dancing a diversity of styles, his creative process, the challenges of being a young and aspiring choreographer, and why there’s a gender disparity in dance, to name a few. Both dancers and non-dancers are sure to come away from the podcast more knowledgeable and more inspired to achieve their goals.
Moving Quotes:
“I live to create ballets that make people feel something or move them or uplift them… Creating dance gives me a sense of purpose."
“You can’t teach someone how to choreograph. You can guide them into being aware of the audience — where the audience’s attention is."
“Sometimes working hard is not the ultimate answer. You can run into a wall and not break through it. Sometimes you just have to step to the left and open the door… Think through the problem. You have to be a smart dancer."
“Music has always been important to me; it affects me in a very deep way. How that translates for me is choreography."
“You have to stay inspired. Because as long as you’re inspired, the work is not work."
“Dance can really do things for people that words can’t."
“When you’re imagining movement in your head, it’s easier to do so imagining it on actual people that you know, who you’ve seen on stage. It helps manifest the visual in the mind."
“I think that the dance world is pushing people to be very limited in style because it’s easier to categorize people. But I feel that, as an artist, that’s limiting. I’ve tried to face that challenge. I don’t have a singular style; I want to be diverse."
Bullet Points (w/ timestamps) - Highlighting key topics discussed:
3:18: Ariel discusses what he is doing currently with the Miami City Ballet and when he was first exposed to choreographing, which is his greatest passion.
5:02: Ariel further describes how his education nurtured his love for choreographing and prepared him to create movement for years to come.
6:32: Rose speaks to the satisfaction of seeing his work on stage and gives some insight into his creative process.
8:35: Ariel discusses why, though rare in modern dance, being a well-rounded dancer that knows many styles is beneficial for both dancers and audiences.
13:56: Rose explains how he casts his works and speaks to the importance of finding the right dancers to fit the roles that you’ve imagined in your head.
16:22: Rose describes the biggest challenge that he’s facing today as a young choreographer.
18:34: Ariel shares some great advice for those that may be interested in pursuing a dance career.
24:09: Ariel discusses why he believes that there is a gender disparity when it comes to on-stage dancing, dance administration, and choreography.
28:43: Rose provides commentary on the recent story where Prince George was shamed for attending dance classes, sharing how he believes that situation is ultimately for the best.
31:38: Ariel describes the satisfaction he feels when his choreography moves people and improves others’ lives.
Bullet List of Resources –
Ariel Rose