Employment recruiters say that one of the most difficult placements to make is getting someone to relocate to Minnesota.

The hardest, they say, is getting someone to relocate away from Minnesota. Once you've lived here you realize all of the wonderful things the upper Midwest has to offer. our many lakes, our boundary Water Canoe areas, our forests, our parks, and our distinguished education system are all attractive, but one of the most alluring things is the deep cultural training and performances that are available. Those are a few of the things Lise Houlton sees in Minnesota. Lise's work is one of the things that draw the rest of us.

Lise is the artistic director of the Minnesota dance theatre and school (MDT). She follows in the footsteps of her mother Loyce Houlton. Loyce's dance classes were the roots that led to the creation of the Minnesota dance theatre 42 years ago. Minnesota dance theatre is undoubtedly most famous for its production of Loyce Houlton's Nutcracker Fantasy.

Lise, pronounced Lisa, is the daughter of William Houlton, an anesthesiologist and outdoor enthusiast, and Loyce Houlton, the famous teacher, choreographer, creator, and all-around arts enthusiast. All things considered, it is no wonder that Lise is a great force in her own right. She has taken the school and theatre that her mother created to new heights. And she has helped her mother's dream resurface; the dream that this community could be rich with dance, theatre, and art.

Sitting down to interview Lise, I was immediately struck by her appearance. She seemed quiet and reserved. Looking more closely I noticed an internal passion; her eyes seemed to be, well...dancing. Her warm, soothing voice and tender, beautiful smile project a great deal of calmness. And yet, there is such an energy within her. While dreaming of all that could be in the theatre, she is almost like a child in a candy store. It doesn't take much to get her going, and I can almost see the light radiating from her as she begins to create, choreograph, and dream. She cares deeply about the theatre, dance, and the future of the arts. Her enthusiasm was contagious as she shared her thoughts on the many topics that follow.

"My grandfather worked on the railroad in Duluth, where my mother was born. After he earned enough money he followed his life's passion, farming," said Lise. "The day-to-day labors of the farm were his love. It was the beginning of a family place, a place everyone loved." The 250-acre farm lise's grandparents bought was in Hoffman, Minnesota, near Alexandria. The farm's pasture surrounded a little lake. An old school house was being torn down and her grandparents wisely used the lumber from the school house to build a little cabin right on the edge of the lake. In a way, that cabin was a school, a place of personal growth and renewal for the family. The farm has been passed along to Lise's brother and it is still a working farm, keeping this Houlton legacy alive. Lise's father still goes to the lake every weekend to enjoy the outdoors, the serene setting, and to get away. "We loved going there as kids. We collected kindling to start the fire and my grandmother would cook on a wood stove. We had to go to the pump for drinking water and we washed the dishes in the lake. Now it has been modernized, but we fell in love with it long before the conveniences came along," remembers Lise. "I have a picture that i keep in my office at MDT. It is of the dock extending into the lake and the sun is beginning to set behind a billowing white cloud. When i see that picture, it calms me," said Lise.

Glancing at the photograph, a wistful, peaceful look settles onto her face. Lise is a living contradiction, at once both calm and passionate, both still and...dancing.

Lise grew up in Minneapolis, but spent many breaks, vacations, weekends and other times in New York to study. Her first job took her away from Minnesota, to Stuttgart, Germany to work with Glen Tetley for two years. Tetley was a modern dance choreographer and the artistic director of the Stuttgart Ballet during the two years that Lise was there.

"The world was both lonely and fulfilling. I was only 19 and not quite ready for my first professional job and the language barrier. Nor was i ready to be such a great distance from home, but Germany was a great location. It was close to France, Switzerland, Austria, and it was a wonderful place of departure for adventures and holidays," said Lise. However, her mother Loyce Houlton was experiencing trials with her diabetic neuropathy so she wasn't able to get to Europe to see Lise. Instead they would meet halfway while the Stuttgart Ballet went on tour. When Tetley left Germany, Lise decided to leave as well and came back to Minneapolis.

Shortly thereafter, Tetley was choreographing a ballet at the American Ballet Theatre in New York City. Having worked together those two years in Germany, Lise and Tetley had developed such an affinity, and she understood his movement so well, that tetley offered Lise the lead role for the premiere, living out every little girl's fantasy. More than a fantasy, this is more like a fairy tale for a dancer. ABT has a long roster from which they can choose dancers, but the role went to a newcomer, Lise. She was then offered a contract with ABT that brought her to New York.

After nine years in NYC, her roots in Minneapolis brought her back here to begin her own family. As she did this, she also carried on many family traditions. While she didn't know it at the time, her daughters would also have a passion for dance, eventually following Lise's path at ABT. Lise went to become the artistic director at MDT, just as her mother did years ago.

Loyce Houlton's Nutcracker Fantasy is a time-honored tradition in which Loyce's beautiful choreography and Tchaikovsky's music (conducted by Philip Brunelle) come together to create a heart-warming holiday tradition. Much loved throughout the years, the production holds the distinction of being the longest running arts event in Minnesota history. "Over the years my family has seen every production of the Nutcracker in the Twin Cities and we simply think that Loyce Houlton's is the best. We won't see any of the others any more," said Laurie Anderson, a Plymouth mother of four. Other productions of MDT can be learned about by calling their office or visiting their website at mndance.org. Another production is Rumblings, a contemporary ballet with a vocal edge that explores the emotional blues with sensuous, powerful dancing and sensational singing. It combines Lise Houlton's stirring choreography with the musical artistry of arranger/pianist Tom Linker. This ensemble will work with music from Kurt Weill, Cyndi Lauper and Leonard Cohen and was first produced in 1999. Tickets are available through Minnesota Dance Theatre at 612-338-0627.

Loyce Houlton's Nutcracker carries so much with it. Back when it began there were only a few Christmas events in the area that people could attend. There are audience members from those first few years that are still attending this Nutcracker and attend it every year. Over the years the Twin Cities audience has made Loyce's Nutcracker their own. It is a magical production and there is a magical ownership by the audience. The production has intricate choreography using both youth and professionals. Last year's production had 60 local dancers ages 6 to 50, along with the Minnesota dance theatre Company's eight full-time professionals. That is part of the legacy of the Nutcracker, the new magic that the youth bring to it each and every year. Lise comments, "New generations every year make this a special production. It is rich on every level of beautiful music and beautiful dancing."

"Originally it was my mother's intention to do a different Christmas production each year. She was never at a loss for ideas or ways to interpret those ideas. One year she did Madeline's Christmas; the next was an amish tale shoo Fly Pie. The then Minneapolis symphony saw the Nutcracker and brought the production to Northrop auditorium for the beginning of a long collaboration with live music. That was the year the company left their first theatre home at the Moppet Playhouse and went to Northrop, beginning a wonderful tradition with live music," says Lise.

The original production was narrated, and as the years went on Loyce began to add different things to the Nutcracker. She created new additions, made changes, embellished and always kept the best. For her it was like playing dolls. "For thirty years the Nutcracker grew under Loyce's guidance. And since that time we have continued to honor her tradition of letting the Nutcracker evolve because that is what she would have wanted," Lise comments thoughtfully. She knows how intertwined her mother and the Nutcracker were and yet she has the wisdom to honor her mother's creation by continuing to let it grow and change. Lise realizes that "traditions have to adapt."

Lise literally grew up in the midst of the Nutcracker Fantasy, which allowed her to see so many aspects of the production. The Nutcracker Fantasy provides a measuring stick by which young dancers can see their growth and progress because it is performed on an annual basis. While it is difficult for anyone learning an art to measure themselves on a day-to-day basis, a performance will point out the progress that is made over the course of time. It is so affirming for the young dancers to realize that things they couldn't do a year ago, they have now mastered. Seeing themselves change from year to year gives them a great confidence and feeling of accomplishment in an art form that is otherwise difficult to measure.

For the company members, the Nutcracker Fantasy allows them to see their art through the fresh, wondrous and magical eyes of the young dancers. The professional dancers bring a high level of sophistication and technical ability to the Nutcracker, but the enthusiasm of the young dancers adds a certain energy to this particular production making it very special. Every year the experience of the Nutcracker gets richer and richer.

Loyce was an incredibly energetic, creative and theatrical force. "Each year, Christmas was theatre all over again in our home," reflects Lise. "She loved every holiday and made each one a theatrical event." The traditions were thick and full at the Houlton home. Lise continues, "I sometimes wonder if all of mom's constant outflow of energy simply sapped her of her energy to fight her illness (Loyce passed away in 1995 after fighting diabetic neuropathy for years). But she just couldn't help herself. She just couldn't let a holiday pass without it being a production. She had her downtime, but I don't know how she did it, putting so much energy into every moment of her life."

Many people believe that the Nutcracker is a traveling broadway show that only comes into town to do the Nutcracker production. But Loyce Houlton's Nutcracker is only one facet of this richly-talented, local organization. MDT also offers the community a more contemporary form of dance. The company explores new movement, playing with collaborations, and has different forces of energy coming together. "I would love to share the many things that MDT has to offer with our Nutcracker audience," says Lise. She grapples with how to do this. There is a whole other side to MDT, a very important part that works hard to bring this art form to our community year round.

There is a beautiful relationship between the company and the school of MDT.

Lise guides the school and the company with a quote used by George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein, "but first a school." "You can't have a company without a school, nor could you have a school without a company," she adds. "There needs to be an ideal that the students can work toward, and the company represents that ideal as well as serving in a mentorship capacity to the young dancers. It is our responsibility and privilege to nurture and inspire dancers of the future." The Nutcracker brings the school and the company together in a beautiful way. they are able to converge and offer one another something they couldn't otherwise have. The company offers a goal, something for the young dancer to aspire to, while the youth bring an enthusiasm and zestfulness which breathes life into the production. It is a compilation of training, energy, dreams, and discipline that comes together to create the magic of Loyce Houlton's Nutcracker Fantasy.

Lise believes that the arts are essential and while most people agree with her that sentiment alone isn't enough to make it work. "The demands of dance are so physically difficult to conquer these days that injuries, expectations, and training make dancing professionally a very hard road. In addition, it is very difficult to make a living off of this art form. Most professional dancers realize that they need to have higher education and that after age 30 or so they will have to find another way to pay the rent. Dance, of all the arts, it seems has not come up to the level of the music world. It hasn't established itself as profoundly as music," reflects Lise. "Like musicians, dancers invest in many ways; physically, spiritually, emotionally, and financially in both training, and accoutrements." Pointe shoes alone cost around $70 per pair. A dancer can go through as many as two to three pairs a week bringing the investment in shoes alone to close to $12,000 per year! One simple way for the community to support this art form is to attend a variety of the area's many productions.

Lise believes that every child should have the opportunity to explore music, dance, theatre, and all of the arts. She feels it is important to focus on more than just the performance aspects of the arts. Much joy is in the doing, in expressing yourself, yet she would love to see dancers in our area get some of the recognition that those in New York receive from their community. "We need to give this community what it wants," said Lise. "It is important to maintain a balance between having your own vision, and having a direct association with the community you are in, whether you're on the west coast, the east coast, the Midwest or anywhere."

Lise would love to see dancers observed on the same level as professional athletes. According to the american Journal of sports Medicine, research has shown that classical ballet exceeds even professional football in terms of the mental and physical demands of athletic performance. Lise would like people to consider dancers in comparison to athletes in other sports. "Who is truly powerful, who has the stamina, the lower heart rate, the muscle tone, and the coordination. Who would be the better athlete overall? They don't need to compete, but can they both be regarded as marvelous athletes?"

As a younger person it was hard for Lise to settle down or to just stop moving. She is finally at an age where she enjoys sitting still and letting herself be absorbed into the adventure of a good book. Among her favorites are biographical books and historical books. She is finally catching up and taking time to relax.

I noticed that Lise again glances to the photograph from her grandparent's lake. She seems to be relaxed and at peace. She comments that some day she may like to travel again. For now, it is obvious that Lise's life revolves around her family. That will never change; it too is a Houlton legacy.

As my time with Lise came to an end, I needed to take a deep breath. We were in her corner office overlooking Hennepin Avenue; a scented candle glowed on the table between us. I felt the deep history of the old building we were in, and I felt the life of the dancers surround me. The room was filled with positive energy. I was so struck by the beautiful spirit of Lise that I didn't want to leave so abruptly. I think we both knew that the spirit of Loyce was also present so we lingered a few moments soaking it up. What a joy to have had this interview!

By Nancy Henke