SPOTLIGHT ON DAVID MARQUEZ

yamunaparis
31 août 2016
3 min de lecture

David Marquez is one of my favorite choreographers and my mentor. I will never forget the first time I saw him teach at Broadway Dance Center in New York City during the summer of '99, I thought to myself : "This is how I want to dance!".

And to be honest, this is still how I want to dance, and I still take any opportunity I have to dance with him.

So before he teaches his last class for the summer at Broadway Dance Center tomorrow, I thought I'd introduce him to you.

How is your class different from another dance class?

First of all, I require students to wear a dress code: all black, form fitting dance clothes, with no logos, patterns, stripes, or anything that may distract from the human form. The reason for this is that I want them to remove their outer selves temporarily in order to truly become "naked" if you will so that they may learn a new language. The choreography I teach is extremely detailed and specific. Removing personal taste allows for them to have a clean palette to begin absorbing new ideas.

Another way class is different is that I create routines that are always changing. One week you may do a Charleston influenced dance, and the next week it may be a dance about Vampires. Theater is an art where every story and every world is unique. I reflect that in the diversity of the routines I create for class.

What skill are you most interested in teaching your students?

The skill of higher learning. I am a firm believer in the notion that we as artists are not using our total capacity to create, perform, and interpret. I am very much about life concepts that contribute to lifting the dancer to a higher place of learning. I encourage them to try new ideas in how one might pick up a combination faster, or portray a character with more truth and depth. For example, understanding chakras and how they contribute to art. We are more powerful than we can imagine. We have the capacity to do so much more than we know. I am trying to infuse this knowledge of our greater more powerful self into the dancer so that they may grow at an accelerated speed.

What's the biggest lesson your career taught you about this industry?

The biggest lesson the industry has taught me is that no man is an island. Meaning: Having talent and ambition and perseverance may get you to your goal but will it keep you there? Business skills and inside information could have benefited me in my early years. I did not go to college but perhaps if I did, I might have picked up some useful information as to how to manage a career in show business.

Has dance ever provided opportunities for you to travel?

Absolutely. It is the only reason I have had the opportunity to travel. I have been all over the world and it is directly related to dance. I began teaching about 20 years ago and the exposure from that class has taken me to virtually every continent in the world and allowed me to meet so many friends from so many different countries. Yes, Dance has given me a life of travel.

The class I fell in love with 17 years ago... (this footage is pre dress code!)