Photo: Kolman Rosenberg Dancers: Kelly Korfhage, Benjamin Shepard
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QUESTIONS WITH LIENEKE MATTE Company Dancer has been with Verb Ballets for eight seasons and started dancing in the Bronx When did you start dancing? When I was 6 years old at a local studio in the Bronx. What drove you to a dance career? Dancing has always been a part of my identity. I was very shy in my adolescence and dance is where I felt I could work hard and be seen. Luckily my parents allowed me to continue to train and have a dance career become a possibility. What do you enjoy doing outside the studio? I love quality time with friends, being outdoors, listening to podcasts, and enjoying other forms of art. What is your go to mantra? I don’t really have one, but I have always liked the quote: “Success is not final; failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts”. Who is someone you admire? Nancy Pelosi. She is a fighter! If you weren’t a dancer you’d be? Probably a psychologist or park ranger. Best advice you ever got? The grass is greenest where you water it. Who would you love to work with? Oh boy! If I could pick anyone….Paul Lightfoot and Sol León. I love the works they created for Nederlands Dans Theater. What do you want people to take away from a performance? I want people to see our passion and be left thinking.
Similar (2014) Photo: Bill Naiman Dancers: Lieneke Matte, Stephaen Hood
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verbiculture | February 2021
Your favorite role or piece to dance? I have so many! If I had to choose one then I would say the duet from Similar by Anthony Krutzkamp. It was one of my first big roles with Verb. I felt like I was floating when I performed it. I loved the balletic lines and the smooth yet unexpected transitions.
