Her expressive abilities showed not only in her demeanor and gestures, but in every step she took-a hint that this young dancer is just beginning to tap into her wellspring of talent. In an ethereal pas de deux from Yuri Possokhov’s Diving into the Lilacs last spring, Kansas City Ballet’s Amanda DeVenuta moved with feather-like buoyancy. “I try to learn a lot about a ballet,” says Ito, “and translate that to the stage.” - Guillermo Perez Amanda DeVenuta All this was behind Ito’s recent promotion to soloist at Miami City Ballet. No effect, no matter how forceful, looks superfluous. ![]() Even in tricked-up choreography, his dancing runs on a smooth engine, fueled by high-grade classicism. There’s his portrayal of Puck, irrepressibly mischievous, in Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream his fervor among the sun-kissed companions of Justin Peck’s Heatscape his superhero-worthy feats in Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room. But then attention becomes admiration as those athletic moments accrue into memorable art. Shimon Ito grabs attention with his keen physicality-whisking across the stage, whipping out turns, jumping as if onto cushions of air. Photo by Gene Schiavone, courtesy Miami City Ballet. Soloist, Miami City Ballet Shimon Ito in Justin Peck’s Heatscape. As excited as Phelan might be to take center stage, she’s quickly become a pro at soaking up the spotlight. That summer, she starred in a premiere by emerging choreographer Claudia Schreier at the Vail International Dance Festival before returning to New York to debut a lead role in NYCB principal Lauren Lovette’s first main-stage choreography. Partnered by Amar Ramasar, Phelan brought her signature exuberance to the role. Last spring, the 21-year-old New York City Ballet corps member was handpicked by Christopher Wheeldon to perform one of four principal roles in his new American Rhapsody. Her articulate lines seem to stretch beyond the confines of her body with a delight that can’t be contained. But what makes her so fun to watch is how she infuses her natural elegance with an endearing sense of playfulness. As a matter of fact, she presents her feet the same way. ![]() Some, of course, are nicer than others, but as long as one does what they love, that’s enough.Unity Phelan’s long, willowy limbs drip with girlish glamour: She presents her hand to her partner as though she expects a diamond ring to be placed on it. It’s mesmerizing to learn all about it, the influences they have and how the dance came to be. Even now, after all these years, new styles are still being born and if you watch shows like “So You Think You Can Dance” which is at its 14th season right now, you’re bound to notice dancers talking about these styles during the audition rounds. There are a few things they have in common, of course, such as the tendency to improvise and the street element. The hip-hop style started back in the late 60s as a combination of breaking, locking, roboting, popping, and more, with each style being born in different parts of the United States, whether New York or California. ![]() Thankfully, YouTube is full of dance tutorials, including those basic hip-hop dance steps for beginners. Naturally, we searched for hip-hop dance learning videos for beginners, because as much as names on a sheet of paper will take us, it’s still better when you have some visual help and actual instructions on how to best perform certain moves. Some of us here have a bit of a background in dance, have taken some classes, or at the very least have watched a few hip-hop dance moves step by step videos to get by, so we were pretty curious to see what the world had to say about this topic. While all styles are great, and freestyle seems to win over most days, it’s hip-hop that really becomes the life of the party. Here at Insider Monkey, we kind of love to dance.
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