Episode 113: Hear the Dance: Herman Schmerman

City Ballet The Podcast

This week, Hear the Dance host Silas Farley is joined by three dancers who know William Forsythe's 1992 ballet Herman Schmerman well: Original cast members Jeffrey Edwards and Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan, and current interpreter Tiler Peck. Edwards and Whelan recall the unique physical and artistic challenges Forsythe's choreography posed, particularly as he called for improvisation and constant change in the studio—sometimes up until the dancers hit the stage. For Peck, Forsythe is as essential a creator as a mentor, particularly as her own career as a choreographer takes off. (59:13)

Written by Silas Farley Edited by Emilie Silvestri

Music: Behind the China Dogs (1988) by Leslie Stuck The Four Sections (1987) by Steve Reich Just Ducky (1992) by Thom Willems 200 Press (2014) by James Blake

Reading List: William Forsythe and the Practice of Choreography: It Starts From Any Pointe Edited by Steven Spier William Forsythe Edited by Senta Driver The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Ballet Edited by Kathrina Farrugia-Kriel and Jill Nunes Jensen