Janice Ross
Professor (Teaching) of Theater and Performance Studies, Emerita
Web page: http://web.stanford.edu/people/jross
Bio
Janice Ross, Professor in the Department of Theatre and Performance Studies and former faculty director of ITALIC, Stanford's residence based Freshman arts immersion program, has a BA with Honors from UC Berkeley and MA and Ph.D degrees from Stanford. Her research interests and books focus on the intersections of social issues and their expression through performance. They include, Like A Bomb Going Off: Leonid Yakobson and Ballet as Resistance in Soviet Russia (Yale Univ. Press 2015), Anna Halprin: Experience as Dance (University of California Press 2007),winner of a de la Torre Bueno Award 2008 Special Citation, San Francisco Ballet at 75 (Chronicle Books 2007), Moving Lessons: The Beginning of Dance in American Education, (University of Wisconsin Press 2001/ University of Florida Press, Second Edition/2020) and, co-edited with Susan Manning and Rebecca Schneider, The Futures of Dance Studies, (University of Michigan Press (2020). Her research interests concern performance and social justice with a particular focus on tensions between political and aesthetic expression. Her essays on dance have been published in several anthologies including The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Ballet (Oxford Univ. Press, 2020), The Aging Body in Dance: A Cross Cultural Perspective, (Routledge, 2017),The Oxford Handbook of Improvisation (2019) Soloists and The Modern Dance Canon (Univ. Press of Florida, 2012), Dignity in Motion: Dance, Human Rights and Social Justice, edited by Naomi Jackson (Scarecrow Press 2008), Perspectives on Israeli and Jewish Dance, ed. Judith Brin Ingber, (Wayne State University Press, 2008), Performance and Ritual, edited by Mark Franco (Routledge 2007), Everything Was Possible (Re) Inventing Dance in the 1960s, edited by Sally Banes (University of Wisconsin Press 2003), Caught by Surprise: Essays on Art and Improvisation, edited by Ann Cooper Albright and David Gere (Wesleyan University press 2003). Her awards include a Guggenheim Fellowship, two Stanford Humanities Center Fellowships, a Fulbright Fellowship to Israel, as well as research grants from the Iris Litt Fund of the Clayman Institute for Research on Women and Gender, the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture, the 2016 CORD Award for Outstanding Contributions to Dance Research , an NYU Fellowship for the Center for Ballet and the Arts (2018) and a Bogliasco Foundation Fellowship (Italy 2022). Her articles on dance have appeared in numerous publications including The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times. She is past President of the international Society of Dance History Scholars.
Academic Appointments
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Emeritus Faculty, Acad Council, Theater and Performance Studies
Administrative Appointments
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Stanford Humanities Center Fellowship, Stanford University (2011 - 2012)
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Guest Professor, Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, Hebrew University, Israel (2010 - 2010)
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Professor (Teaching), Stanford University, Drama Dept. (2008 - Present)
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Associate Professor (Teaching), Stanford University, Drama Department (2004 - 2008)
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Appointed Affiliated Scholar, Institute for Research on Women and Gender, Stanford University (2002 - 2003)
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Lecturer, Stanford University, Dance Division & School of Education (1989 - 2004)
Honors & Awards
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Israel Institute, Invited Fellow, Israel Institute, Jerusalem, Israel (Summer 2016)
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Fulbright Senior Fellowship, Israel, Fulbright Fellowship, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel (Sept. 2010- Jan. 2011)
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International Dance Studies Association 2015 Award for Outstanding Scholarly Research In Dance, International Dance Studies Association (June 2016)
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Isadora Duncan Dance Award, San Francisco (2014)
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Miriam Roland Award for Public Service, Stanford University (2010)
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2009 Dance Scholar-in-Residence, San Francisco Ballet, SF, CA (2008-2009)
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Invited Research Fellow, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, Beckett, MA (2008)
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The de Ia Torre Bueno 2008 Special Citation, Society of Dance History Scholars (2008)
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Djerassi Resident Artists Program Fellow, Djerassi Resident Artists Program (2002)
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Peninsula Community Foundation Fellowship, Outstanding Artist, Peninsula Community Foundation (2002)
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Stanford Humanities Center Internal Fellowship, Humanities Center, Stanford University (2001-2002& 2011-2012)
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John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation (2001-2002)
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Isadora Duncan Award, University of California, Berkeley (1994)
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Fellow at Cottages at Hedgebrook Feminist Writers Colony, Hedge brook, Whidbey Island, Washington (1993)
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Fellow at Cottages at Hedgebrook Feminist Writers Colony, Hedge brook, Whidbey Island, Washington (1992)
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Oakland Tribune's Publishers Awards for Excellence in Arts Writing, Oakland Tribune's Publishers (1989)
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Oakland Tribune's Publishers Awards for Excellence in Arts Writing, Oakland Tribune's Publishers (1988)
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Oakland Tribune's Publishers Awards for Excellence in Arts Writing, Oakland Tribune's Publishers (1987)
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Oakland Tribune's Publishers Awards for Excellence in Arts Writing, Oakland Tribune's Publishers (1986)
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Oakland Tribune's Publishers Awards for Excellence in Arts Writing, Oakland Tribune's Publishers (1985)
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National Endowment for the Arts Dance Critics Fellowship, American Dance Festival, Conn. College (1977)
Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations
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Director of Graduate Studies, Dept. of Theatre and Performance Studies (2015 - 2017)
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Faculty Freshman and Sophomore Advisor, Stanford University (2013 - 2014)
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Faculty Director ITALIC- ILE Freshmen residential program, Stanford University (2012 - 2017)
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Breadth Governance Board member, Stanford University (2012 - 2016)
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Faculty Freshman and Sophomore Advisor, Stanford University (2012 - 2013)
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Editorial board member, Routledge Encyclopedia of Modernism (2011 - 2015)
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Member, Committee for Review of Undergraduate Majors, Stanford University (2009 - 2011)
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Director, Dance Division, Drama Dept., Stanford University (2008 - 2013)
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President, International Society of Dance History Scholars (2008 - 2011)
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Member, National Research Advisory Board, Temple University (2007 - 2010)
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Chair, Faculty Steering Committee,, Haas Center for Public Service, Stanford University (2007 - 2009)
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Member, Faculty Steering Committee, Stanford Center on Longevity Mobility Project, Psychology Dept (2007 - 2009)
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Faculty Freshman and Sophomore Advisor, Stanford University (2007 - 2008)
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President- Elect, International Society of Dance History Scholars (2007 - 2008)
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Dance Adjudicator, Los Angeles, CA (2007 - 2007)
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Member, Faculty Advisory Committee, Stanford Institute for Creativity in the Arts (2006 - 2010)
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Member, Faculty Advisory Board, Michelle Clayman Institute for Gender Research (2006 - 2009)
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Faculty Freshman and Sophomore Advisor, Stanford University (2006 - 2007)
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Undergraduate Advisor- Freshmen and Sophomores, Stanford University (2005 - Present)
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Member, Board of Directors, Congress on Research on Dance (2005 - 2008)
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Vice Chair, Faculty Steering Committee, Haas Center for Public Service, Stanford University (2005 - 2007)
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Faculty Freshman and Sophomore Advisor, Stanford Univeristy (2005 - 2006)
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Member, Faculty Steering Committee, Institute for Diversity in the Arts (2004 - 2008)
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Editorial board member, Journal of Arts and Learning (2001 - 2004)
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Editorial board member, Journal of Dance Education (2000 - 2007)
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Principal Researcher, George Balanchine Foundation, N.Y. (2000 - 2002)
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Member, Bd, International Society of Dance History Scholars (1999 - 2005)
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Member, Board of Directors, Society of Dance History Scholars (1999 - 2005)
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Grants Panelist, Walter & Elise Haas Creative Work Fund (1998 - 1998)
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Member of the Arts Task Force, Menlo Park School District (1992 - 1993)
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Grants Panelist in Dance, Bush Foundation Artist Fellowships, St. Paul, Minnesota (1992 - 1992)
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Feminist Studies Resource Faculty, Stanford University (1990 - 2012)
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Director, Graduate Program in Dance Education, Stanford University (1990 - 2000)
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President, & Board Member, International Dance Critics Association (1988 - 1992)
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Chair, National Endowment for the Arts, Dance Panel, Policy & Services to Field (1987 - 1996)
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Member, Awards Committee, Rockefeller Foundation for the Arts & Humanities, New York (1987 - 1987)
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Member, Awards Nominating Committee, San Francisco Bay Area Dance Coalition, Annual Isadora Duncan Awards, S. F., CA (1986 - 1999)
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Member, Awards Committee, National Choreography Project, New York, NY (1986 - 1986)
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Member, Advisory Board, Talking Dance Project Ellen Webb Dance Foundation, Berkeley, CA (1985 - 1988)
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Staff Dance & Arts Critic, Oakland Tribune Oakland, CA (1980 - 1990)
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Co-director, West Coast Institute for Dance Criticism San Francisco, CA (1980 - 1980)
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Contributing Editor and Staff Critic, Dancemagazine New York, N.Y. (1977 - 1997)
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Staff Dance Critic and Columnist, S.F. Bay Guardian San Francisco, CA (1977 - 1980)
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Founding Member of the CAC Dance Panel, California Arts Council, Sacramento, CA (1977 - 1979)
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Performance Art Critic and Editor, Artweek Oakland, CA (1976 - 1980)
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Staff Dance Critic and Columnist, Berkeley Gazette Berkeley, CA (1975 - 1977)
Program Affiliations
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Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Professional Education
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Ph.D., Stanford University, Education (1998)
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Master of Arts, Stanford University, Dance Education (1975)
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Bachelor of Arts, University of California, Berkeley, Art History (1973)
2023-24 Courses
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Independent Studies (2)
- Directed Reading
URBANST 197 (Win) - Senior Honors Thesis
URBANST 199 (Win, Spr)
- Directed Reading
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Prior Year Courses
2021-22 Courses
- Intersectionality and the Politics of Ballet
TAPS 24N (Win) - Introduction to Dance Studies
DANCE 11, TAPS 11 (Win)
- Intersectionality and the Politics of Ballet
All Publications
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Ballet and the Renegotiation of Identity among Jewish Orthodox Women in Israel
ARTS
2022; 11 (5)
View details for DOI 10.3390/arts11050107
View details for Web of Science ID 000872216700001
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Queering the Skeleton in Dance's Closet
DANCE RESEARCH JOURNAL
2022; 54 (2): 33-53
View details for DOI 10.1017/S0149767722000195
View details for Web of Science ID 000873854900005
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Dance and aging Anna Halprin dancing Eros at the end of life
AGING BODY IN DANCE: A CROSS-CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE
2017: 137–47
View details for Web of Science ID 000415684100013
- Like A Bomb Going Off: Leonid Yakobson and Ballet as Resistance in Soviet Russia Yale University Press. 2014
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Inside/Beside Dance Studies: A Conversation
DANCE RESEARCH JOURNAL
2013; 45 (3): 5–28
View details for DOI 10.1017/S0149767713000235
View details for Web of Science ID 000333560100002
- The Solo That Isn't a Solo: Ann Carlson's Dances With Animals On Stage Alone: Soloists and The Modern Dance Canon edited by Gitelman, C., Palfy, B. University of Florida Press. 2012
- Interview with Anna and Lawrence Halprin: Redo of the 1969 Yvonne Rainer 1969 Interview Anna Halprin Mouvements de Vie, 60 ans de recherches. de creations ct de transformation. par Ia danse. traduit de I'anglais par Argaud et Luccioni Contredanse Press, Brussles. 2010
- Jewish Culture and Identity in the Russian Ballet: The Case of Leonid Jacobson Perspectives on Israeli and Jewish Dance edited by Ingber, J. B. Wayne State University Press. 2010
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Atomizing Cause and Effect: Ann Halprin's 1960s Summer Dance Workshops
ART JOURNAL
2009; 68 (2): 62-75
View details for Web of Science ID 000267116000004
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Judson Dance Theatre: Performative Traces (Book Review)
TDR-THE DRAMA REVIEW-THE JOURNAL OF PERFORMANCE STUDIES
2009; 53 (2): 161-164
View details for Web of Science ID 000265756300019
- Anna Halprin: Experience As Dance University of California Press, Berkeley. 2009
- Choreographing Nature Where the Revolution Began: Lawrence and Anna Halprin & Lhe Reinvention of Public Space Spacemaker Press, Portland. 2009
- 321 Divisadero: Staircase to Dance Experimentation The San Prancisco Tape Music Center: 1960s Counter-culture and the Avant-Garde, edited by Berstein, D. University of California Press and (EMP A C) at Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute. 2008
- Doing Time: Dance in Prisons Dignity in Motion: Dance. Human Rights and Social Justice edited by Jackson, N. Scarecrow Press. 2008
- Parades and Changes: The Art of Revolution in the 1960s Program essay, Festival d,Automne I Centre Pompidou, Paris 2008
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Lighting the way: Contrasting arguments for the arts in education
JOURNAL OF PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION
2007; 41 (2): 271-276
View details for Web of Science ID 000249180200007
- San Francisco Ballet at Seventy-Five Commissioned book on the history of America's oldest ballet company Chronicle Books, San Francisco. 2007
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Illness as danced urban ritual
RITUAL AND EVENT: INTERDISCIPLINARY PERSPECTIVES
2007; 7: 138–58
View details for Web of Science ID 000279107900009
- Book Review of "Feelings are Facts: A Life Women & Performance: A Journal of Feminist Theory 2007; 17 (2): 264-267
- Anna Halprin: Experience As Dance University of California Press, Berkeley. 2007
- Anna Halprin: Dance Educator Dance Teacher Magazine 2007
- Lighting the Way: Dance in the Academy Journal of the Philosophy of Education 2007; 41 (2)
- Jewish Women in Israel Shalvi Publishing, Jerusalem, Israel. 2006
- Illness as Danced Urban Ritual Ritual and Event: Interdisciplinary Perspectives edited by Franko, M. Routledge Press, London. 2006
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A hidden soul of artistry: Thinking in forgotten areas of the arts
PHI DELTA KAPPAN
2005; 87 (1): 32-37
View details for Web of Science ID 000231574700008
- Halprin Takes Paris Dancemagazine, 2005: 20
- Teaching History Dance Teacher Now 2005: 86-87
- Merce Cunningham & the Moderning of Modern Dance Dance Research Journal 2005; 37 (1): 140-144
- Never Too Late for a Kick Line Dancemagazine 2005: 22
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Anna Halprin's urban rituals
TDR-THE DRAMA REVIEW-A JOURNAL OF PERFORMANCE STUDIES
2004; 48 (2): 49-67
View details for Web of Science ID 000221596400007
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John Neumeier - The who in Hamburg Ballet
DANCE MAGAZINE
2004; 78 (2): 46-?
View details for Web of Science ID 000188253700020
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Anna Halprin - From dance art to healing art
DANCE MAGAZINE
2004; 78 (1): 74-77
View details for Web of Science ID 000187457900022
- The Ressurection of A Genius Dancemagazine 2004: 19
- Improvisation as Child's Play Caught By Surprise: Essays on Art and Improvisation edited by Albright, A. C., Gere, D. Wesleyan University Press. 2004
- The Importance of Being Artist: Reflections on Elliot Eisner Intricate Palette edited by Matthews, J., Urmecher, B. Prentice Hall Publishers. 2004
- The Instructable Body Embodied Knowledge edited by Bresler, L. Kulwer Publishers. 2004
- Elizabeth Loscavio Dancemagazine 2004: 53
- Natural Dance Dance photographs by Hal Eastman, Commissioned Forward by Janice Ross Peregrine Images, Boise, Idaho,. 2003
- Revolution for the Art oflt: Anna Halprin and Avant-Garde Dance Everything Was Possible: (Re) Inventing Dance in the 1960s edited by Banes, S. University of Wisconsin Press. 2003
- Sandy Walker and the Painter's Dance The Paintings of Sandy Walker Ulrich Museum of Art, Wichita State Museum. 2003
- Juvie Jazz: Jazz Dance for Incarcerated Teens Community Matters edited by Ford, M., Schave, E. Addison Wesley Press. 2002
- Notable American Women Harvard University Press, Boston, MA. 2002
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Institutional forces and the shaping of dance in the American university
DANCE CHRONICLE
2002; 25 (1): 115-124
View details for Web of Science ID 000176718500006
- The Dance Critic, The Classroom and The Re-education of Perception Passion And Pedagogy edited by Sherman, D., Mirochnik, E. Peter Lang Publishing. 2002
- Juvie Jazz: Giving Teens New Footing Dancemagazine 2000 : 74-77, 99
- Arts Education In The Information Age: A New Place For Somatic Wisdom Arts Education Policy Review 2000
- Margaret H'Doubler: The non-dancing Matriarch of Dance in Education Dance Teacher 2000
- Jewish Culture and Identity in the Russian Ballet: The Case of Leonid Jacobson Jewish Folklore and Ethnology Review 2000
- Moving Lessons: Margaret H'Doubler and The Beginning of Dance In American Education University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, Wisconsin. 2000
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Dancing women: Female bodies on stage (Book Review)
DANCE RESEARCH JOURNAL
1999; 31 (2): 111-114
View details for Web of Science ID 000084377200013
- A Simple Man: The Diary ofVaslav Nijinsky Los Angeles Times Book Review 1999
- San Francisco Ballet: A Luxury of Talent Dancemagazine 1998
- Dancing Defined Los Angeles Times Book Review 1998
- Jewish Women In America, An Historical Encyclopedia Carlson Publishing Inc., New York. 1997
- Jewish Women In America, An Historical Encyclopedia Routledge: London. 1997
- Dance Ink Photographs Los Angeles Times Book Review 1997
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SAN-FRANCISCO-BALLET MEN - PUSHING PAST THE COMFORT-ZONE
DANCE MAGAZINE
1996; 70 (6): 56-60
View details for Web of Science ID A1996UL66600052
- International Dictionary of Ballet St. James Press, London. 1995; 2
- Della Davidson: A Fluent Writer for The Body Dance Theatre Journal 1995; 11 (4)
- American National Biography Oxford University Press; North Carolina. 1995
- Moving Towards Life: Five Decades QfTransformational Dance.- Collected Writings Of Anna Halprin Commissioned essay edited by Rachel, K. Wesleyan University Press, Middletown, Conn. 1995
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THE END OF THE BEGINNING, THE MARGARET-JENKINS-COMPANY AT 20
DANCE MAGAZINE
1994; 68 (6): 34-39
View details for Web of Science ID A1994NM69800005
- The Right Moves: Challenges of A Dance Assessment Arts Education Policy Review 1994; 96 (1)
- Moving Lessons: Dance In Higher Education Liberal Education 1994: 40-43
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SAN-FRANCISCO-BALLET, THE CALIFORNIA DREAM AT 60
DANCE MAGAZINE
1993; 67 (2): 56-61
View details for Web of Science ID A1993KG83400014
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ODC/SAN-FRANCISCO + ARTISTIC DIRECTOR WAY,BRENDA PRESENTS DANCES THAT REFLECT THE COMPANY UNIQUE POINT-OF-VIEW
DANCE MAGAZINE
1992; 66 (4): 46-50
View details for Web of Science ID A1992HJ99000008
- Innocence Abroad: the 1965 Stockholm Premiere of Anna Halprin's Parades of Changes Conference Proceedings 1992
- Where Is Modern Dance Going? Reflections from Anna Halprin TDR (The Drama Review) 1992
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THE ART OF CHOREOGRAPHY + EXCERPT FROM AN UNPUBLISHED LETTER BY JACOBSON,LEONID JANUARY 26, 1975
DANCE MAGAZINE
1991; 65 (12): 49-49
View details for Web of Science ID A1991GP99500012
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JACOBSON,LEONID FREE AT LAST + SAN-FRANCISCO-BALLET PRODUCTION OF 'RODIN'
DANCE MAGAZINE
1991; 65 (12): 46-48
View details for Web of Science ID A1991GP99500011
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SAN-FRANCISCO-BALLET, HELGI DOMAIN + TOMASSON,HELGI, COMPANY MEMBERS AND REPERTOIRE
DANCE MAGAZINE
1991; 65 (9): 38-?
View details for Web of Science ID A1991GB46100017
- Leonid Jacobson Free At Last Dancemagazine 1991: 46-49
- On Moving From Criticism to Academia Dance Critics Association Newsletter 1991
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SILENT DANCING, THE ASCENT OF CARPENTER,MELISSA
DANCE MAGAZINE
1990; 64 (12): 38-42
View details for Web of Science ID A1990EK25300009
- The Ascent of Melissa Carpenter; SF Ballet's Unique Deaf Ballerina Dancemagazine 1990: 28-31
- San Francisco Ballet Joins The Big Leagues Diversion Magazine 1990: 45-52
- Crossing the Line Feature on Suzanne Lacy's Performance Work in Finland High Performance 1990
- On The Edge: Challenges to American Dance Essays, interviews and conversations on Dance in America edited by Steinberg, S., Ross, J. Dance Critics Association, San Francisco. 1990
- In Step With The Past, A History of Dance at Stanford Stanford Magazine 1990: 34-37
- Elizabeth Loscavio, San Francisco Ballet's New Star Confetti Magazine, New York 1990
- San Francisco's Joe Goode: Working Hard to Be the Bad Boy of Modem Dance Dancemagazine 1989
- Inga Weiss; A Life in Dance Dance Teacher Now 1989: 30-34
- Why A Swan? San Francisco Performing Arts Library and Museum Journal edited by Ross, J., Steinberg, S. 1989
- Bonnie Bird, A Legendary Dance Educator Dance Teacher Now 1988: 40-43
- San Francisco Ballet's New Era Under Helgi Tomasson Dancemagazine 1987
- Val Caniparoli- SFB's Promising Choreographer Dancemagazine 1987
- What the Critics Say About Tanz Theatre The Drama Review 1986; 30 (2): 80-85
- Six Versions of Simultaneity: The Choreography of Margaret Jenkins On the Next Wave, the magazine of the Brooklyn Academy's Next Wave Festival 1985; 3 (1-2): 26-30
- Living on the Edge with Margaret Jenkins Dancemagazine 1984: 136-139
- Radical Shifts to the Middle Ground: SF's Oberlin Dance Collective Dancemagazine 1984: 64-68
- San Francisco: Two Views ofthe San Francisco Ballet; A Brave New Tempest Dancemagazine 1980: 56-61
- Bay Ways: A Climate for Free Spirits Dancemagazine 1980: 78-85
- Bill Irwin: Getting Physical with Comedy Dancemagazine 1980: 78-85
- Dancing in the West Profiles of West Coast Dance Companies Wadsworth Publishing Co., Belmont, CA. 1979
- Born Again Ballet; San Francisco Ballet's Re-emergence as a New Dance Power Horizon Magazine 1978