Rachel B. Levin - Freelance Writer, Los Angeles » Uncategorized

Travel, on your toes

Rachel B. Levin — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 01:26:04 +0000

Los Angeles is a melting pot of dance forms — at clubs, classes, and performance halls, you can pretty much tour the world through movement by driving less than five miles in any one direction. Salsa, samba, flamenco, African, Indian bharatanatyam, tango…you name it, we have it. Local dance companies have long brought the world to Los Angeles, but now…they’re bringing Los Angeles to the world. Specifically, three local dance companies — Viver Brasil, Contra-Tiempo, and Baker & Tarpaga Dance Project — have organized trips for dancers and dance enthusiasts to learn dance in their choreographic countries of origin. Check out my article in the LA Times on “dancing to the beat of a different country.”

Celebrate Dance 2010: An en-light-ened line up!

Rachel B. Levin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 21:55:04 +0000

This Saturday night (well, technically Sunday morning), we turn the clocks forward to welcome the arrival of daylight savings time (Woo hoo! Finally!). But welcoming an extra hour of light every night is not the primary reason I’m looking forward to Saturday. More so, I’m excited to see the lights come up on the Alex Theatre stage in Glendale, when Celebrate Dance 2010 gets underway. The annual showcase of concert dance from L.A.’s best choreographers celebrates its fifth year with pieces in multiple genres, from ballet on pointe to jazz, contemporary, and aerial. Check out my little preview story about it that appeared today in the Los Angeles Times.

Hello World!

Rachel B. Levin — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 02:12:58 +0000

Welcome to rachelbethlevin.com! I’ve now officially got my own little plot of online real estate. I’m used to seeing my byline in print, but it does feel a little strange to see my full name plastered there across the top of the screen in its own url.

As you might imagine, there are lots of Rachel Levins out there. When I went shopping for a domain name, I found that rachellevin.com was already taken by a middle-aged Philadelphia realtor with a penchant for hot listings. Also, there’s another freelance journalist named Rachel Levin whose career seems to shadow mine (or mine hers). She too writes about culture and lifestyle for California-based publications and, I must admit, is more prolific than I. Though I’ve never met her, I keep crossing her path in strange ways. Once, a publicist in San Francisco mixed up our contact information in his Rolodex. Another time, a friend called to congratulate me on a byline in the New York Times – which was hers. This past year, our 1099 forms for Los Angeles magazine got mixed up! Thankfully, I got things straightened out before I had to pay taxes on her earnings.

When it came time to choose an address for my website, I opted to differentiate myself from this particular Rachel Levin and other Rachel Levins of the world at large. That’s why the website is christened with my full name — Rachel Beth Levin. So, I have now officially joined the ranks of three-name writers – Robert Penn Warren, Sue Monk Kidd, William Carlos Williams, Maxine Hong Kingston, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Isaac Bashevis Singer, Jonathan Safran Foer, and (dare I say) Barack Hussein Obama – at least in spirit. Thanks to Mom and Dad for giving me a reasonably short and sweet middle name!

And thanks to all who visit the site. I hope you enjoy what you read here.