The Dance Oral History Channel

The following clips were selected from the more than 4,000 audio recordings that make up the Dance Division’s Oral History Archive and Project.  The diverse recordings of this archive document the voices and ideas of more than half a century of performers, choreographers, scholars and producers, working in all areas of dance.

The value of an oral history interview often lies not only in what it conveys about a particular person, but also what it tells us about the artistic and broader contexts in which they created.  While selecting these excerpts, we were struck by the fact that even among diverse interviewees, common threads could be found.  We noticed, for example, how often Antony Tudor’s name came up.  In the current selections, you will hear stories about Mr. Tudor told by Keith Lee, Janet Panetta, and Kevin McKenzie.  As we hope you will experience, oral history’s greatest gift may be that it renders images of the past in full, vibrant, un-photoshopped color, even when the memories are captured in audio only!

More About The Dance Oral History Channel

The Speaking of Dancing Project