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2007 Journal Entry #2 :
WHAT IS THIS DANCE ABOUT?        

My perception of my relationship with the cosmos as an artist is ever evolving. As of late I've been meditating upon the infamous question "what is this dance about." A question I'm often asked. A question I'm always stumped by. One possiblilty is to say the dance isn't something one can describe in words so.... it isn't about anything.

But this isn't true. It is about something. What exactly is that something? A prior response to this question was it is effect rather than meaning. It is also about purpose rather than left brain chitter chatter. It is about the abstract, soulful, spiritual, primal danceonaut. It is about catharsis, growth, change, and going someplace new so that the audience can go somewhere new. It is about unframing art. It is pulling up the skirt of metaphor and bringing the expression into the theatre.

These thoughts are still valid. But now I add to the stream of conscious rationale.

The following is the next bit of esoteric response to "what is this dance about".

WHAT IS THIS DANCE ABOUT?

One may look at a red mark on a canvas and either say - gosh this sucks - or "wow" what an innovative expression of negative space and the resonance of that red touches me in a way I've never been touched. With that said, my latest answer to the question "what's this piece about" follows.

Expanding consciousness abiding within the complexity of the human experience in relation to all expressions of existence, known & unknown. It is definitely about venturing into uncharted territory breathing breath into a cosmic void and illuminating and activating potential. A ravenous void meant to be navigated sensitively leading us on toward harmonious existences. Turning on the lightbulb to courageously bring forth abstract meaning and metaphor. A wave pulled over the edge of present understanding that strikes the chord within the audience planting seeds in the collective and subconscious that facilitates discovery in other areas of human understanding (e.g. - the sciences). A purpose rather than meaning. A process rather than a product. A passion for integrity rather than ego stroking. A hunger that never dies.

This still doesn't aptly answer the question "what is this piece about". I suppose it is like trying to wrap one's mind around big questions - like what is g-d, where did we come from, what is out there is the land of wisdom that we've yet to understand. What is it that we'll know a hundred years from now that we don't know today. What parts of our awareness will be awakened in the next century or ten thousand. As artists create work that "isn't about anything" that expands consciousness will it contribute to the evolutionary process in such a way that we'll be able to communicate what the dance is about in spaces that can't be understood by the chitter chatter of left brain activity.

What is this dance about?

About

There are images and appetites that seem to seize my soul during the time period of creating a new work. The work Le Jardin Bleu isn't about these images – but they somehow do bleed through and inform the work.

Nature

I always like to return to nature as a base for creating new work, either a camping trip to Santa Cruz Island or a trip someplace beautiful. For this dance the nature immersion was in form of a trip to Kauai . This was particularly meaningful in that I have Hawaiian roots, and I hadn't been to the Islands since I was four.

Music

For this work I was hungry for music and spent an inordinate amount of time on the internet searching for new music. I exposed myself to a lot of different types of music which led to an incredible rich soundscape for the dance. Musicians in the group responded to the dance as it was being made, and were a part of a recording process for the work which added to this texture. After gathering snippets of sound, and my partner recording the company live, we sat down side by side to create the score. Giving each other little kisses along the way celebrating the fun of it all. Cute and cozy. REALLY different for me.

Garden

I was obsessed with my garden this spring. My last work took so much out of me I was feeling creatively depleted. I spent a lot of time planting annuals in flowers and pots and caring for the perennials. At one point in the course of three days I shot images of 62 different kinds of flowers. Consequently, this is a very diverse piece. It is the first piece I've created where I feel like crying at the end of the work. It was a joy to create, is a joy for the dancers to dance, and is a joy to watch.

Angst

There always seems to be a layer of angst in the work. I like my work to reflect the human condition and there is no way around the angst and pain we as humans experience & right now, the planet. I've wrung out all of the angst from my life and have been impacted by the bigger picture. In my last work, Lion's fire, the angst component was a means to process the horror of abu ghraib. During the course of making this dance I read the book Meena. The story of the woman who began Rawa. I was shell shocked to discover what women have and continue to endure in Afghanistan. The movement that came from processing this became the repeated theme for the work.

Duet

This work had a lot to do with two people who connect deeply with each other, Kaita & Gwenna. It also has a lot to do with managing two hyper creative artists that want to be challenged and to be pushed physically. The process was somewhat different. Generally speaking the majority of the movement creation comes from myself. For this piece I pieced together a structure from phrases and ideas I'd put together and then would have the dancers improvise in the places in between. We kept working in this way until what wanted to emerge emerged. They love dancing this dance and I think that clearly comes across in the work. I don't think this dance can be danced with anyone but these two.

My work tends to be that way. Tailor made and custom fit for the soul. It doesn't transpose that well onto other bodies.