The Influence of Dance

Hovering in midair, the elements aligned. Stretched lines, pointed toes. The body fragmented and reconstructed into something that echoes vines and trees. A bean stalk of wax forms shaped into slender women's feet twisting to the ceiling, as willow branches intertwine. Jade green casts measured, numbered and named in a factory on the far side of the Pacific.

New York Times Review

So they say you are not really an artist until you get squashed by the Times. I guess we now have that one covered. We had a great pair of performances, friends came, the NY Times sent a photographer, the house sold out...all seemed to be going absurdly well until the critic arrived. Well, maybe you can guess the rest. The Times critic came to our performance in grand fashion, stepping over the head of our dear Ryan as he performed his live sound score on his Mac. She was late in her arrival and the House didn't wait, so she circumnavigated the theater and did her own aerial maneuvers past the light booth and over the laps of many. What resulted was a scathing review of all performances, the editor of the program and even the theater itself. In the big scheme of things I didn't get it so bad.

Let me pull the quote,

"a sea-anemone-type creature covered in spiky white balloons hunched its way along the side. At the end there was a short film of something entirely indeterminate that seemed to involve water."

Ah yes, "entirely indeterminate" that is my favorite bit. For a visual artist working in nature, that is an outstanding complement. It is very hard to have something be "entirely indeterminate" and yet still get across that it is water. I was kinda happy. So it wasn't a loss for me. I got a great laugh from it and was honored that the powers that be sent us both a photographer and a critic. Plus it is almost guaranteed that the next New York Times review will be better...

Contact

Symbiotic, rehearsal photo taken at the Park Avenue Armory, May 2009

Through many an ebb and flow, I ended up taking the stage here in New York. Thanks to the help of Moving Theater Company who sheltered us into their beautiful Park Avenue Armory rehearsal studio. Such a lovely space they created there high above Park Ave in the Cannon Room. We worked away in the late evening quiet of this grand structure, all while sculptor Ernesto Neto and crew took on the tennis courts below. Choreographers Yen-Fang Yu and Anthony Whitehurst decided to put me on the fast track toward learning contact improvisational movement. We spent seven months of discussions, plotting and rehearsals, and in the process I was given the opportunity to learn how to move. Now, appearing as an Anemone sounds like a rather simple dance move until you contemplate the fact that Anemones do not have spinal cords, and I do. So how to work around that? Bend, torque and bend some more, until you appear spineless and fluid. I swam every week along with their program. The end result this week was Yen-Fang smiling at me and calling me spineless. I was never so happy to hear that phrase.

Convergence

Additional stills from the video Convergence.

Video by Anna Peach, Performance by Yen-Fang Yu and Anthony Whitehurst

2008-2009

Convergence

Stills from my video Convergence, 2009

I am newly drawn to the solidity of the body as it converges with the translucency of water. The spring dance project video takes on a shape of its own, and I try to follow it's lead. Some myth or legend shows its face, and became a narrative thread that is hard to overlook. Subliminal poems emerge. So I allow myself to pursuit the illusive. Falling asleep on piles of epic stories; turning pages as Circe turns Odysseus' men into pigs.