Press

Press & recognition

Selected reviews, features, and published work.

Vintage black-and-white performance photograph of three dancers in mid-movement, one leaping with arms flung wide
In performance.
“…Willis gave a flawless and emotionally riveting performance…”
— Alexandra Tomalonis, The Washington Post, Washington, DC
“Dignity, intensity and courage were the qualities projected in Willis's stirring performance.”
— Alan M. Kriegsman, The Washington Post, Washington, DC
“…the potent presence and gestural intensity of dancer Willis.”
— Alan M. Kriegsman, The Washington Post, Washington, DC
“…Boris Willis, strong and magnetic…”
— Alan M. Kriegsman, The Washington Post, Washington, DC
“Willis is a powerfully skilled mover with such inordinate control of his body that he appears as if he can float in space.”
— H.B. Kronen, Union News, Becket, MA
“Boris Willis closed the program with his slinky, sensuous ‘Cocteau,’ a duet danced with Cynthia McLaughlin. The suave, handsome couple maintains a serene aura and detached control, even though moments of staccato, and they were mesmerizing throughout.”
— M. Auton Michelotti, DanceView, Washington, DC
“they were truly dancing in the dark”
— Carmel Morgan, CriticalDance (2019)
“Mansur and Willis stream through hops and weight shifts that build into leaps and lifts.”
— Claire Croft, The Washington Post
“The dance explores the limitations of race as a social construct.”
— Mary Tisa, DanceView Times
“the evening's most mature and assured works”
— Lisa Traiger, DanceView Times, on Cocteau Variations
“Boris Willis carries us into the cyber world for Mu. We enter the work as if traveling in a video game, and encounter dancing, not performed by humans, but by their avatars.”
— Christine Jowers, The Dance Enthusiast
“…dance segments that stand out in memory are Boris Willis's tour de force solo…”
— Alan M. Kriegsman, The Washington Post, Washington, DC
“Sustaining a single dance impulse throughout an entire piece is Boris Willis's achievement…”
— The Washington Post, Washington, DC, on Cocteau Variations

Selected reviews

A press history across three decades, chiefly in The Washington Post. Full articles remain © their publications; the pull-quotes above appear under fair use.