EUA - Savion Glover no The New York Times

Reproduzo abaixo reportagem publicada por Claudia La Rocco na edição de 19 de junho de 2007 do "The New York Times" contendo a opinião de Savion Glover sobre festivais. Em inglês, mas merece ser lida com atenção, e inclui ainda depoimentos de dois grandes tap dancers que já estiveram no Brasil, Jason Samuels e Tony Waag:

Savion Glover’s Objections to Festivals Reflect a Schism in the Tap World

In three weeks many of the biggest names in tap will converge on New York City as Tony Waag’s American Tap Dance Foundation presents its annual Tap City festival at the Duke on 42nd Street. But the biggest name in tap today won’t be found at any of its jams or samplers.

That star, Savion Glover, will be wrapping up his own show, "Invitation to a Dancer", which opens tonight at the Joyce Theater. Mr. Glover has been increasingly, and conspicuously, absent from the tap scene, even as his name -- trademarked, no less -- has remained the only contemporary tap dancer’s to seep into the broader cultural consciousness.

Tap dancers frequently talk in familial terms. As in any big, fractious family, there are numerous schisms and cliques in this often insular art form, which continues to battle for turf under the wider umbrella of dance.

Mr. Glover, 33, grew up in a much more intimate tap world than exists today. When he was a child, dancers like Dianne Walker and Dr. Jimmy Slyde -- whom he named as two of the last in a vanishing generation of greats -- took him under their legendary wings, and the great hoofer Gregory Hines was one of his primary mentors.

In turn, Mr. Glover introduced the world to a vibrant, virtuosic generation of young dancers (some of whom will be at Tap City) with his 1996 Broadway show, "Bring In da Noise, Bring In da Funk." He was hailed as Mr. Hines’s successor.

But Mr. Hines, who died of cancer in 2003 at 57, was famous for his inclusive, galvanizing efforts on behalf of the tap world. Mr. Glover, in contrast, has withdrawn from it, largely because of his distaste for the festival circuit. Other tap dancers have expressed reservations about festivals, but none have been as vehement as Mr. Glover. And none have had his pulpit. He describes festivals as increasingly impersonal and business-oriented, adding that they do little to develop the artistry and intellect of aspiring tap dancers.

"I don’t think I fell in love with the community at all; I fell in love with certain men and women who are responsible for the dance," he said in a telephone interview. "I like to be around dancers who are totally committed to the art form, totally committed to the men and women around them. Once I see it has become about something else for the dancer" — things like money and ego — "you have to let that person go."

"I’ve been sort of isolated from the immediate community here in New York," he added. "I just have to pull back and let them do what they do. A new community is evolving here, which has nothing to do with the things I came up around."

Mr. Glover was sweepingly dismissive of the festivals, deriding the lack of talent he sees in the teachers and flatly stating, "They’re overcharging the kids to be a part of the dance, and they give nothing back to the community."

Jason Samuels Smith, a dynamic performer who is the director of the L.A. Tap Fest, which opens on Aug. 11, disagreed.

"People can tell which festival or convention or program is really, truly about educating and about bringing the community together, as opposed to making money," he said. "I think both sides of it exist. As a consumer and a dancer, you have to educate yourself."

Mr. Waag, a founder of the tap foundation and a dancer as well, emphasized Tap City’s nonprofit status and the large number of scholarships it gives -- 64 this year, among the pool of 86 students currently enrolled in festival activities — and said it was "almost ludicrous" to describe festivals as moneymaking schemes. While careful to steer clear of any direct criticism of Mr. Glover, he took issue with the idea that only a very few individuals are qualified to carry the tap torch.

"If someone wants to be very tight about authenticity, or ownership, it just sounds kind of competitive to me," he said. "I want to share what I have, and I’d rather share it with people that are a little bit more open-minded."

If there’s one thing Mr. Glover and his peers do agree on, it’s the need for more understanding about tap -- onstage and in dance studios. Last year he created Savion Glover Productions, and his drive to spread the gospel of tap is reflected in two of its early efforts: the Joyce concert and a National Tap Teaching Workshop Tour, which he plans to start in August, that will allow him to spend several days with groups of young dancers.

But first, the Joyce, where the only music heard will be what the dancers create with their taps as they accompany themselves and others. The show is no small artistic risk for Mr. Glover, whose last few productions at the Joyce have included projects with a gospel singer and an orchestra playing classical music.

In this show he will be joined by his close friend and fellow hoofer Marshall Davis Jr., in a collaboration with three modern dancers and a ballerina that Mr. Glover hopes will illuminate connections between the three disciplines.

Contrary to what people might expect, he has not gone for names as high-profile as his own in selecting his cast, which includes two young modern dancers, Jerica Niehoff and Lauren Last, both making their professional debuts, and Sheila Barker, a veteran teacher whom Mr. Glover calls his "big sister."

"I guess I am surprised, because obviously he could have had his pick," said Suzana Stankovic, a ballet dancer and choreographer who thanked Mr. Glover after seeing him perform at a benefit, only to have him ask her later to join his show. "I don’t think necessarily he’s into what we might expect — 'I need to get a big name' — but more: Does he feel inspired by the energy? Does the person feel real?"

Ms. Stankovic described her contribution as "pockets of improvisation" within choreographed movement to music that moves from "a very obvious waltz rhythm" to something funkier. While Mr. Glover emphasized the need to show that tap was no different from any other dance form, she cited a crucial distinction.

"There are a handful of artists that can really come to the stage and captivate you in the ballet and modern world, give you something magical and really divine," she said. "That’s spirit — and I think that tap dancers are more in touch with that."

Mr. Glover, too, acknowledged the essential spiritual side of tap. "It’s homage," he said. "It’s respect and prayer, every time I hit the floor."

Como o Divulgando publicou em post de 19.06.2007, "Invitation to a Dancer" acontece até o dia 14.07.2007 no Joyce Theater (175 Eighth Avenue, 19th Street, Chelsea, (212) 242-0800).