In Conversation With...

Blanka Paldi, Pauline, and Camille founded A la Second, a sustainable online second-hand dancewear store inspired by Swedish trends. The idea came during COVID, using Blanka's web design skills. Their model, paying sellers after sales, reduced financial risk. Task division based on strengths ensured smooth operations. The platform supports sustainable consumption and unique dancewear. Blanka stresses redefining "new" and encourages pursuing ideas despite fears.

Kristina Lind, a principal dancer with the Bayerisches Staatsballett, shares her journey from the San Francisco Ballet to the Dutch National Ballet, and finally to Munich. She discusses the challenges she faced, including her height and body type, and the struggle to find her "fit" in the ballet world. Lind emphasizes the importance of self-validation and internal growth, and how her shift in mindset led to her success. She also discusses the differences between dancing in the U.S. and Europe, highlighting the greater stability and respect for ballet in Europe. Lind hopes to continue growing as an artist, inspire others, and share her knowledge with the next generation.

Juliet Burn, a dancer and director, shares her experiences learning traditional Javanese dance, her thoughts on the need for change in the ballet industry, and her work with community outreach programs in Indonesia. She emphasizes the need for ballet to modernize and become more accessible, both in terms of training opportunities and audience demographics. She also discusses her outreach program "Ballet Goes To," which brings arts practitioners to communities for cultural exchange, and her plans to expand this program through her new organization, A_PART.

New Zealand-born choreographer and filmmaker, Corey Baker, moved from ballet training to owning his own dance company. After rejection from New Zealand School of Dance, he trained in Sydney, leading to opportunities in Europe. His choreography career flourished in the U.K., where he balanced dancing, teaching, and choreographing before focusing solely on choreography. Corey's work tackles activism and innovation, addressing climate change and pushing ballet and art boundaries.

Pascalle Paerel and Hannah de Klein founded The Fashion Composers to address the lack of dancer representation in commercial and fashion contexts and enhance the quality of movement-focused advertisements.

Loughlan Prior is an award-winning choreographer and creative director. We had the opportunity to explore his career as the Artistic Director of Lo | Co Arts and Choreographer in Residence at the Royal New Zealand Ballet.

Charlotte Edmonds, a talented choreographer, received her first commission at sixteen and has created many works. She has studied at top ballet schools and worked with famous companies. Her recent projects include exploring dance and dyslexia, making a short film about depression, and directing and choreographing a new dance film.

Shih-Huai Liang is a Taiwanese ballet dancer. Despite the challenges posed by limited accessibility to ballet in Taiwan, he tirelessly pursued a world-class classical ballet education to become a professional dancer in the U.S., New Zealand, and Korea. In 2019, fueled by his unwavering passion, he founded the Master Class Project Taiwan, leaving a lasting impact on the local dance community.

An exclusive interview with CODA Founder, Rebecca Haw, about the trajectory of CODA and their exciting future plans to innovate in the dance space.

DanceHive is a platform for dancers to connect and offer/request hospitality for dance-related activities such as auditions, training, and performances.

Aya Okumura's rise to the top involved being unexpectedly let go from a company, negotiating her way into a new company, and ultimately believing in her value as a dancer.

Sae Hyun Kwon, founder of Movement Momm, shares her international career, the inspiration behind Movement Momm, and her goal to impact audiences through physical movement.

Lynne talks to Pivot Pointe about all things 4Pointe.