Tendu TV's 10 things the dance field should be talking about in 2012... thoughts

Every year Tendu TV writes its subjective list of what the dance world should be talking about. It's always entertaining, interesting and thought-provoking. The 2012 doesn't break the rule: read it here. Here are my thoughts on a couple of the points raised by this year's list.


Cinema
Their comments about globalisation (point 1) are very new to me - dance broadcasts in cinema are happening more and more often, and I wasn't aware that 'exclusivity provisions in distribution agreements can, will and are limiting the potential footprint for other dance organizations attempting to reach new audiences around the world'. So does it mean that if a cinema shows the Bolshoi's Nutcracker, they may not be allowed to show the Royal Ballet's Giselle a couple of months later? If so, it's pretty scary.

It is very interesting that cinema broadcasts, that have helped dance reach much bigger audiences, could also spell trouble and intensify the need to develop audiences for contemporary choreography (point 3). After all, how many people are going to want to pay double the price of a normal film ticket to see Giselle five times? Balletomanes will (and there are a fair amount of them!), but the more casual dance watchers will say 'I've seen it already'. Hence the need to show new work, and develop an appreciation for it, which hopefully cinema broadcasts can help with? The success of Wim Wenders' film Pina (see point 2 about 3D) shows that risk can be rewarded in the right circumstances (a nice production budget and two big names help!).

Youtube
Tendu TV recommends dance company to make their youtube channels the lone source of their promo clips, to avoid multiples appearing. I see the benefits of not dividing the audience up, but, working for a presenter, I must admit we're always keen to ensure people are aware the show is happening at our venue (cue some extra branding!), and we believe keeping old content up is good for awareness. However, we may be wrong. I wonder if any companies will make the request this year - I know this is a conversation I will not enjoy having.

The list is full of many more discussion points, from So You Think You Can Dance to the US election. Make sure you read it.