Emily Coates, Dancer, Choreographer, Writer: Tell Us Where it Comes From!

In this episode of "Dance Talk” ® with Joanne Carey , host Joanne Carey interviews Emily CoatesIn this episode of  "Dance Talk” ® with Joanne Carey engages in a deep conversation with dancer, choreographer, and writer Emily Coates. They explore Emily's journey from her early dance training in ballet to her transition into modern dance, her experiences working with renowned figures like Baryshnikov, and her current project 'Tell Me Where It Comes From.' Tell Me Where It Comes From, was sparked by the discovery of an archival box housed at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Connecticut, chronicling George Balanchine’s brief touchdown there in 1933. The discussion highlights the importance of following one's artistic instincts, the role of dance history, and the collaborative nature of creating new work. Emily shares insights on the creative process, the significance of archival research, and the impact of dance on personal and artistic growth.Emily Coates is a dancer, choreographer, and writer and has performed internationally with New York City Ballet (1992-98), Mikhail Baryshnikov’s White Oak Dance Project (1998-2002), Twyla Tharp Dance (2001-2003), and Yvonne Rainer and Group (2005-present), and worked with an array of choreographers, including Jerome Robbins, Angelin Preljocaj, Trisha Brown, Deborah Hay, Mark Morris, John Jasperse, and Sarah Michelson. Career highlights include performing three duets with Baryshnikov, in works by Morris, Karole Armitage, and Erick Hawkins.Her choreographic work has been commissioned and presented by Danspace Project, Performa, Baryshnikov Arts Center, Works & Process at the Guggenheim, Ballet Memphis, Wadsworth Atheneum, Carnegie Hall, University of Chicago, Yale Repertory Theatre, Yale Art Gallery, and Columbia Ballet Collaborative, among other venues. She is currently completing a film project titled “Dancing in the Invisible Universe” in collaboration with filmmaker John Lucas and Yale’s Wright Laboratory.Her essays have appeared in PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art, The Huffington Post, Theater, PEAK Journal, programs and an exhibition catalogue for the Paris Opera Ballet, and in the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Ballet. Her awards and distinctions include the School of American Ballet’s Mae L. Wein Award for Outstanding Promise; the Martha Duffy Memorial Fellowship at the Baryshnikov Arts Center; Yale’s Poorvu Family Award for Interdisciplinary Teaching; a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation in the category of Public Understanding of Science, Technology, and Economics; a 2016 Fellowship at the Center for Ballet and the Arts at NYU; and a 2019 Jerome Robbins Dance Division Dance Research Fellowship at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. She graduated magna cum laude with a BA in English and holds an MA and MPhil in American Studies from Yale. Her first book, Physics and Dance, co-written with her longtime collaborator, particle physicist Sarah Demers, was released in January 2019 by Yale University Press.She is Professor in the Practice in Theater, Dance and Performance Studies at Yale University, with a secondary appointment in Directing at the Yale School of Drama. She has directed the dance studies concentration at Yale since its inception in 2006.Informationhttps://campuspress.yale.edu/emilycoates/Make plans to check out this piece on tour!February 26, 2026 at The Avery Theater , Hartford ConnecticutApril 23 & 24th 2026 at Schwarzman Center , Yale University“Dance Talk” ® with Joanne Carey "Where the Dance World Connects, the Conversations Inspire, and Where We Are Keeping Them Real."https://dancetalkwithjoannecarey.com/Please leave us a Review.You support the podcast:https://gofund.me/e561b42acFollow Joanne Carey on Instagram@westfieldschoolofdance