JOFFREY
I had a very nice occasion to visit the Joffrey Ballet School over the weekend — still located in the hallowed landmark Greenwich Village building at 6th Avenue and 10th Street where it was founded in 1953 by Robert Joffrey and Gerald Arpino. It was a great pleasure to be in the studios where some of the most relevant ballets of the mid to late 20th century were conceived and created and where some of the most legendary figures in dance collaborated. The history of the Joffrey Ballet is so fascinating and distinctly parallels that of New York City and this country both politically and culturally. It is also a story of perseverance, survival and rebirth. Joffrey: Mavericks of American Dance, a 2012 documentary and the opening night film at last year’s Dance on Camera Film Festival at Lincoln Center quite wonderfully tells this story. It is definitely worth a look.