Tobi Tobias

[grace]

having just enjoyed reading a few quotes of Tobi Tobias in another thread, i wondered if some of you could fill me in about this writer, whose name i recognise, but who i have no knowledge of....

[Alexandra]

Grace, grace, where have you been? There were huge threads on Tobias a few months ago when New York Magazine, where Tobias was dance critic for about 20 yeas, eliminated its dance coverage and, hence, Tobias. (After a massive protest by the dance community, the magazine has added back some dance coverage, but not reinstated Tobias.)

Do a search on this site for Tobias and you'll find those threads. Briefly, because I know her (she's a friend in Bournonville), Tobias is a New York-based dance critic, educated at Barnard (English major, I believe), who's written about dance since the 1960s. Her daughter, Anne, a dancer, also writes about dance. She was a long-time mainstay at Dance Magazine, writing features, later becoming news editor, and then became critic at New York mag. She's also written quite a few children's books. I think Tobias is an excellent writer and critic, and a rigorous one. Some were put off by her rigor; she didn't compromise or adjust her standards down, as the dance scene began to crumble. Her columns in NYMag covered all of NY dance (at a time when the New Yorker began to pull back coverage and focus mainly on the major companies). Ballet, modern, fringe, ethnic, all of it.

Tobias now writes occasionally for The Village Voice and free lances.

[grace]

thanks. i'll do that.

[Leigh Witchel]

Grace - here's an archive of articles from New York magazine. The ones before July '02 are Tobias'.

http://www.newyorkmetro.com/nymag/critics/.../dance/archive/

[grace]

thank you very much, leigh.