WEB SITE'S "BACKSTAGE CHATS" OFFERS ACCESS TO DANCE CELEBRITIES.

SAN FRANCISCO--"Our mission is to inspire more people to get out and see dance, not to [inspire them to] spend more time at their computers," says Lori Smith, president of Voice of Dance, a Web site devoted to serving the dance community. Although Smith recognized the irony of a Web site company encouraging less Internet time, she insists: "We want people to use Voice of Dance as a tool to go see dance, take dance classes--get somewhere else."

Voice of Dance, which is found at www.voiceofdance.com, was created in 1996 as an alternative to Bay Area dance reviews. "The feeling was, if you didn't get a good review in the San Francisco Chronicle, you were out of luck," says Smith.

Last fall, the Bay Area-based Voice of Dance joined forces with Dance Magazine to produce Backstage Chats, a series of live chats with dance celebrities, which is scheduled to take place every Monday at 5:00 P.M. Pacific or 8:00 P.M. Eastern Standard times. The sessions provide an opportunity for the public to participate in real-time interactive sessions with dance luminaries, as well as to connect with fellow dancers, teachers, and dance aficionados.

Jacques d'Amboise, scheduled to be a chat guest on April 12, says he can't even turn his computer on. Yet, he thinks the new Web technology "is a miracle. To be able to talk instantaneously to people around the world is magic." At press time, other scheduled guests included San Francisco Ballet principal Lucia Lacarra and Dance Magazine editor-in-chief Richard Philp; Houston Ballet principal Lauren Anderson; Martha Graham Dance Company's Janet Eilber; and Dr. Linda Hamilton, writer of Dance Magazine's "Advice for Dancers" column.

In addition to reviews and Backstage Chats, Voice of Dance offers pages such as the World of Reviews, where Web surfers can follow media coverage of dance; The Buzz, where they can interact with other dance enthusiasts; and "Ask Charles," a forum for dancers to ask questions of Charles "Chip" McNeal, a dancer, choreographer, and director of San Francisco Ballet's outreach and education programs.