Get to know a bit more about Teaching Artist, Alex McBride

How long have you been dancing?
This question is always the hardest to answer because I sort of have two different answers. I attended my first formal dance class when I was around 11 years old. However, I always watched my sister and her dance teammates “spin and leap”, and I would imitate them since I was like 7. I was doing double turns behind their backs and reciting their pom routines from memory.

Where did you train?
I spent the majority of my training years at The Dance Place under the direction of Brandi Holmes. This studio was my second home and I credit much of my career to the ladies of that studio. Additionally, I trained at Lafayette Ballet Theater under the direction of Mitzi and Shannon Heath. After graduating, I attended the University of Arizona and majored in dance where I discovered a deeper dedication and admiration for the arts.

Why movement/dance?
When I first began, dance wasn’t much more than some fun after school activity, but as time went on, something bigger clicked in my head. I started to value the discipline, challenges, and marriage of the mind and body. Dance is everything (beauty, pain, bliss, hardship), and I find it so interesting from its purest to most exotic forms. I’m still discovering new possibilities within my craft, and I don’t think that will ever end; this is what keeps me dancing. The art of dance is universally human and thats what I love about it.

As one of our guest teachers, does Basin Arts contribute to your creative practice and how?
Like I said, there is something new to discover each and every day with this particular field and Basin Arts has given me the creative space and freedom to nourish and cultivate new possibilities, as a dancer, teacher, and artist. Teaching fulfills me in a way quite differently from being on stage. Basin Arts is providing a pivotal and necessary spark to Acadiana and I am honored and grateful to be a part of its movement, and to share my experiences with my hometown arts community.

 

Alex McBride is originally from Lafayette, Louisiana where he began his early dance training under the direction of Brandi Holmes at The Dance Place and Mitzi & Shannon Heath at Lafayette Ballet Theater. He went on to receive his BFA from The University of Arizona in Tucson. While in school, he performed works by Jose Limón, George Balanchine, Ohad Naharin, and Larry Keigwin. Additionally, Alex has trained at the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance and River North Dance Company in Chicago. Since moving to New York City, Alex has performed with Randy James’ 10 Hairy Legs and is a current company member with the Limón Dance Company.

You can find Alex teaching through July at Basin Arts. Check out the full schedule here.