Boston Dance Alliance Gala

by Karen Krolak

If you are looking to add some excitement to your Thursday night, pop over to Boston Dance Alliance's Gala at the Sanctuary Theater in Harvard Square. Marcus Schulkind, who has influenced many of Boston's finest modern choreographers, companies, and dancers will be named the 2009 Dance Champion.

Thanks to Shoetube.tv, you can also bid on a chance to be featured on an upcoming edition of their reality makeover show, Pimp My Pump! Omid Maxey, Artistic Director of Safar Coiffure Salon, will whisk one lucky winner off a shoe shopping, boutique hopping adventure. Oh, and if you don't feel up to a total fashion overhaul, you could try to win a gift certificate to one of my favorite boutiques, Black and Blues, in Davis Square.

There are still tickets available at the door so feel free to stop by. Hope to see you there!

Sanctuary Theater
400 Harvard Street
Cambridge, MA
April 30, 7- 10
Tickets $40/members $60/non-members

Related writing

by Karen Krolak

As I mentioned last in my sabbatical report last fall, I am also a professional shoe blogger. You will be amused to know that I was recently promoted to be Shoetube.tv's Fitness Footwear Guru. 

While I was traveling in the Midwest last week, several people asked me how to find my shoetube posts. Since many of my posts feature dance shoes, projects that I am choreographing, or even my students at Impulse Dance Center, I decided to include a few links for you. 

Dance Shoes:

tap shoes

ballet slippers

roller skates

Choreography Projects:

Coriolanus

Jacob's Pillow Choreographers Lab (part of what inspired my Somerville Walking Project) 

First Night

Other Choreographers:

Gerald Arpino

David Parker

Sutdents:

Jena

Sabbatical Synopsis (part 1)

by Karen Krolak

Several people have asked me how I spent my sabbatical so I put together this list to give you a flavor of some of my favorite adventures. Thanks for all of you who encouraged this time away, I

* Lived in a palace in Orvieto, Italy while studying with Modern dance legend, Simone Forti (I awoke each morning to see the ceiling pictured on the left),

*Performed in Rome with a group of glorious improvisors from Italy, Croatia, Switzerland, Germany, England, Greece, Netherlands, and Turkey,

* Indulged in a Delicious Movement workshop with Eiko and Koma in the sumptuous ICA Boston theater overlooking the bay,

*Sussed out stories about slippers, boots, and sneakers as a professional blogger on Shoetube,

* Attended an Inter-collegiate Axe Throwing competition en route to Asheville, NC,

*Interviewed an emerging shoe designer in Iceland who envelops her soles in fish skins,

* Flung myself into the jaws of a giant model whale to create Christmas cards from Panama Beach, FL,

* Feasted with a collection of award-winning playwrights, directors, costume designers, and actors in Chicago, IL,

* Continued teaching my amazing students at Impulse Dance Center in Natick,

* Drooled over the dizzying displays of theater designs in the Collaborations exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England,

* Ran down to New York, NY for a day for a sneak preview of Beowulf - Two Thousand Years of Baggage before it opened in San Francisco in May,

*Hustled through the Russian Disco section of Nut/cracked with David Parker and the Bang Group (If you missed it last year, you can see it again Oct 22- 26 in Boston. You can also read about David's newest creation here),

*Planted carrots, tomatoes, peppers, corn, lillies, zinnia, dahlias, garlic, onions, strawberries, basil, dill, and some renegade squash in our garden,

* Discovered 3 fabulous dancers, Julia Marx, Nikki Sao Pedro, and Caitlin Meehan while working a Space Grant through Green Street Studios,

To be continued...