 Happy birthday to everyone who celebrates in July, especially
Aisha Cruse, Andrew Nemr, Arleigh Rothenberg, Catherine Buell, Dorothy Mahoney, Edgar Degas, Ginger Rogers, Jason LaVoie, Jessica Friswell, Joanna Macone, Jon Wye, Katelyn Alcott, Kim Holman, Lisa Conley, Marie Libbin, Mary McCarthy, Michael Flatley, Nicole Adams, Nicole Zizzi, Ninette Paloma, Pam Vlach, Rachel Solem, Randall Rosenberg, Renee Harris, Ruth Birnburg, Thelma Goldberg, Theresa Fellion, and Twyla Tharp Monkeyhouse Loves You!
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 Happy birthday to everyone who celebrates in June! Monkeyhouse Loves you!
Pat Krolak, Rita Krolak, Mary Sousa, Hjordis Blanford, Laila Fatimi, Arie Steiner Hockman, Fred Kelly, Lucie Baker, Xander Weinman, Jim Peerless, Henry LeTang, Bob Fosse, Terri Beaton, Harold Cromer, Sean Cummings, Rosie Steinberg, Nikki Felix, Shari Kaplan, Caleb Howe, Tom Christian, Elizabeth Krolak, Micheline Heal, Patrick Flynn, Melissa Dollman, Tyler Cantanella, Paula Abdul, and Martha Clarke Be sure to check out the links above to learn more about some of these amazing people! Want to be featured here? Let us know when your birthday is!  Happy Birthday to all of our friends who celebrate in May! Monkeyhouse Loves You!
Rich Miner, Joan Panek, Bari Rosenberg, Amanda Mastroianni, Chikako Iwahori, Susan Nase, Jim Pagella, Isabel Fine, Jon Schaffrath, Derick Grant, Hillary-Marie Michael, Jon Keith, Andrew Fine, Leah Sakala, Janine Harrington, Olivia Buntane, Elizabeth Terschuur, Kendra Heithoff Henseler, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, and Buster Brown.  We'd like to wish a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to:
Laya Barak, Taylor Henry, Nikki Sao Pedro-Welch, Carson Murphy, Leslie Armstrong, David Parker, Maud Arnold, Jaguar Bennett, Stephen Harris, Gaby Mervis, Susan Potters, Phinneas Baker, Audra Carabetta and Merce Cunningham Want to learn more about one of these amazing folks? Click their names! If you want to see your name here just update your contact information on our mailing list to include your birthday. We'll wish you a happy birthday on Facebook too!  Happy birthday to some of our favorite people! March is an awesome month!
Arthur Fink, Zach Galvin, Elliott von Wendt, Joseph Wiggan, Don Friswell, Josh Bergasse, Kelly Peters, Diane Walker, Emily Hare, Kat Ferrier, Amelia O'Dowd, Matthew Murphy, Vaslav Fomich Nijinsky, Gail Fine, Michael Lawrence, Janelle Gilchrist, Lara Allard, Ellen Philpott, Aaron Tolson, Anita Lauricella, Amy Harnett, Liesl Garner, Danny Foner, Kay Wilson, Jillian Panek, Julia Blatt, Lacey Sasso, Madeline Krolak, Rudolf Nureyev, and Sarah Weichman
 Happy Birthday to all our friends, supporters and inspirations who celebrate birthdays in December! Monkeyhouse Loves You!
Ralph Farris, Jenna Dewan, Brianna Unsworth, Sammy Davis Jr., David Makransky, Thomas Durand, Frank Sinatra, Corey Hutchins, Nicole Ohr, Sarah Grace, Todd Shanks, Rudolf Laban, Khalid Hill, Vanessa Martinez de Banos, Jennifer Beals, Barry Duncan, Jose Greco, Marty Allen, Jon Lavalley, Mara Blumenfeld, Robert Joffrey, and Rowan Salem. Want to learn more about one of these amazing folks? Click their names! Want to be on the birthday list? Click here and let us know when your birthday is!
 B-A-R Dance is a new company co-directed by our very own Elizabeth Powers along side Michelle Boilard, Cayley Dorr and Erin Saunders. We can't wait to see what they've been working on as part of Uplift! Get your tickets for Saturday's show today and you can catch Monkeyhouse hosting the post show conversation, too! Nicole Harris: What will you be doing for Uplift? BAR: B-A-R is founded on the idea that dance is fun and bodies are rad. We are passionate about using the power of movement to incite radical joy and transcend socialized and politicized boundaries.We believe in the power of using movement to instill a positive environment in which all bodies can thrive. Through this performance experience, we can continue to fulfill our commitment to creating work that is both accessible and challenging.  N: B-A-R Dance is new to the community and is directed by 4 choreographers. How do you know each other? How do you work together? Sharing direction under so many people can be challenging. What is the division of work between you? BAR: The four of us met while we were all studying Dance and Performance Studies at Roger Williams University. After working together and becoming so close in college, we knew that we shared similar artistic and personal values, as well as a common vision for what dance can and should be and do. B-A-R was born out of our desire to contribute something new and deeply personal to us to the Boston/ New England dance community. We all have different strengths, from community outreach to education to arts management to social media prowess, so we find that our individual work complements our work together quite naturally. Yes, working with four different voices at the table can be challenging, but we came together to form a company with a deep commitment to our friendship first. We dance together because we love each other and value one another as humans. We know that movement brings us together, and cannot drive us apart.  N: Who are your mentors past and present? BAR: We each have our own personal mentors but we are all extremely lucky to also share the same mentors from Roger Williams University. While we were studying, we were taught and mentored by Gary Shore, France Hunter, Cathy Nicoli, Michael Bolger, and Michael DeQuattro. Being a part of such a small program allowed us to be vulnerable and create close relationships with all of our professors and accompanists. We strongly feel that our time at RWU and these important connections with our mentors greatly influenced our decision to pursue our goals and form B-A-R.  N: Aside from the amazing people in this festival who are some of your favorite local choreographers?
BAR: In the Boston dance community, there are so many amazing choreographers/dancers we look up to and we feel so lucky to be included. To name two, we owe so much to Kenzie Finn of Project31 and Lacey Sasso of Sasso and Company. Both of these strong women run dance companies that we admire and look up to. They have also given us opportunities to dance and perform in their shows, which we are extremely grateful for. We strive to be as calm and collected as they are when they are producing their own shows, while pushing their limits to create innovative and challenging works. If you have the chance to see their companies perform, do it. You will not be disappointed!
 Nicole Harris: What will you be doing for Uplift? Lisa & Nicole: We will be performing a piece called “Purlieus.” It’s funny because we choreographed the piece before Nozama even announced the theme of their show this year and it is actually about how we support one another as a group of women!  N: We have been thrilled to hear about your recent focus on mental health. Can you tell us about LUCIDITY and why the topic is so important to you? L&N: LUCIDITY is our upcoming production, premiering this fall! As artists, we’ve recently been focused a lot on who we are and what we want to say with our dancing and choreography. We believe mental health (not just illness!) is something that is not discussed enough in our day to day lives. We believe that taking care of your mental health should be just as important as taking care of your physical health… you workout to keep your body healthy, so why shouldn’t we discuss what’s going on with our mental states on a daily basis? There is so much stigma surrounding mental health and talking about emotions, and we want to end that! We all have emotions— happiness, sadness, anxiety, grief, excitement… the list could go on forever, but we want to bring those emotions to the surface and explore them without stigma. LUCIDITY is a compilation of the emotional experiences of us and our dancers and topics range from eating disorders to anxiety to injury induced depression, as well as community mentality, support systems, and authenticity. We are also partnering with a non-profit called “This is My Brave” (look them up if you don’t yet know them) and we will have a few of their speakers as a part of our show too! We are so excited to be part of UPLIFT because we think it is a great compliment to our show! Nozama works hard to empower women and in doing that they are also ending the stigma surrounding women’s emotions. And we think that is great!  N: Who are your mentors past and present? Nicole: A past mentor of mine was my college dance professor, Missy Pfohl Smith. She shaped my choreographic mind before I even really understood what choreography was. Missy was the one who helped me bring my academic background of physics into my artistic and creative work and I am forever thankful for her continued presence in my life. A current mentor of mine would be a current grad school professor, Mary Hale. I am pursuing a Masters in Architecture and Mary is a practicing architect with her own creative firm that works specifically with dancers in the performance realm! Mary has taught me so much so far and I am excited to keep learning from her in the next two years of my degree program. Lisa: My biggest mentors are my former dance teachers, Karen White and Terry Paretti. They taught me every style of dance and instilled a pure love for the art form that dance can be. They also supported and encouraged me to pursue my dream of having a career in dance once I graduated from high school! A current mentor of mine is a former coworker and good friend of mine, Melenie Diarbekarian. Although we aren’t far apart in age, I am constantly blown away by her hard work and dedication. She is a part of some of my favorite local dance companies and is a bright light in everything she does. Not to mention someone I can count on to be my barre buddy in ballet class! Through our time in knowing each other, she has shown me how to make things work and keep the flame of passion burning inside no matter how crazy life gets.  N: Aside from the amazing people in this festival who are some of your favorite local choreographers?
L&N: Modern Connections Turning Key Dance Company Luminarium by Nicole Harris Nicole Harris: What will you be doing for Uplift? Hannah Ranco: For Uplift I will be doing a contemporary solo, Soft Season (although I like to call it a duet as I am using a chair as a prop, the chair being just as important as me). The choreography was done at my school (Dean College) and I performed it for the first time this past Spring at Kelley Donovan & Dancers Third Life Choreographers Series. The music I will be using is #3 by Aphex Twin.  N: You are interested in creating work that layers many simple gestures to communicate a complex idea. Can you talk about specific examples of how that manifests itself in your work? HR: In this dance specifically, I use many humanistic gestures which prove to be vital in communicating with the chair. These gestures apart are what we would use in everyday life, but together creates a clear conversation with the chair. Being frustrated with the chair but also showing kindness towards the chair. I also enjoy taking simple gestures or movements (head nod, a wave, etc.) and manipulating them into something more abstract.  N: Who are your mentors past and present? HR: My mentor Ali Brodsky was my professor during both my freshman and sophomore year at Dean College. She taught many different classes that all transformed the way I think of dance. Freshman year was pilates, which allowed me to understand my own body. My restrictions and natural movement pathways. It also gave me a better awareness of the human body in general and the way it works. Sophomore year she taught my contemporary and composition class. My contemporary class taught me how to effectively move through space and allow myself to take up space. My comp class was probably the most transformative. She taught me the basic choreographic tools needed to create a piece. She also questioned my perviously held beliefs about what dance is, as well as introduced me to many pioneers in the field of dance that I hadn’t heard of before. Apart from me connecting with her personal aesthetic and movement, I really respected how honest she was with me and the other students. She wasn’t afraid to critique us but still did it in a way that was helpful rather than harmful. I grew the most from her classes. N: Aside from the amazing people in this festival who are some of your favorite local choreographers?
HR: Ashlee Rapoza is a friend from my school who graduated this year. She is an artist who I really look up to and admire because her art is so uniquely her. Her work screams Ashlee but she still manages to always find something new, a task I aspire to do in my own work. Apart from her dancing, she is also a very accepting and kind human, and I think that translates into her teaching, choreographing, and dancing. You can learn more about Ashlee and her work by following her instagram: @ashrapoza
Get your tickets to see Alex and all of the ChoreoFest artists at Ignite at Green Street on June 23rd!  Nicole Harris: You talk a lot about tying fiber arts into your work as a choreographer. Can you talk about places where those two worlds have intertwined in your work? What draws you to those two art forms? Alexander Davis: Fiber is a very empathetic medium. There are lots of shared, tactical experiences with fiber and textiles. When one sees fiber in a heightened artistic context, it is easier to have a physical, empathetic response to it. For this reason I have always believed that dance and fiber are connected. I have created fiber works that are simply wall hangings, or installation experiences, but I have also create knit costumes and performance environments. Everything is related.  Photo by Olivia Blaisdell N: You are the director of Urbanity Dance’s Summer Choreography Intensive Program. Can you tell me a little about the program? What makes that particular program unique? AD: Urbanity's Summer Choreography Intensive program is a highly curated, one-week intensive focusing on creating a platform for helping emerging artists continue to develop their voices as makers. The cohort of artists work and support each other throughout the week. They create work across community spaces in Boston's South End, and it culminates in an informal showing. I believe what makes this program unique is the individualized attention and mentorship that each student receives during their time. I (along with a group of guest artists) take the time to first identify each individuals goals as a dance maker before then helping them gain the skills and experience to achieve growth within towards those goals.  Photo by Celso Enrique N: You will be working in one of the site specific locations at this year’s ChoreoFest. Where will you be working and what made you choose that spot? AD: I enjoy adapting my work for specific spaces. In this case I was attracted to the nook between studios 1 and 2 as a challenge to explore entrance and exits. The nook is framed by two door ways. I am looking to use this time to research entrances, exits, beginnings, and endings in order to inform future, evening length works that are currently in process with my collaborator Joy Davis. N: What are you most nervous about for ChoreoFest? AD: I am most nervous about being exhausted. I usually go to bed around 11:00pm and wake up around 7:00am. I am anxious about staying up all night, and how that will affect the following few days and the work I have to get done in those days.  Photo by Sarah Bilotta Belclaire N: Who are your mentors, past and present? AD: It takes a village, and I am endlessly grateful to all of the folks who have supported me and continue to support me along my journey. I would say my collaborators are my primary mentors; Joy Davis, Jenna Pollack, Harrison Burke, Eric Mullis and beyond. Peter DiMuro. Monica Bill Barnes. William Seigh. Too many to count and name. Thank you to all.  Photo by Celso Enrique N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? AD: I will be performing at Gibney Dance in NYC with Peter DiMuro/Public Displays of Motion June 13-15th. This summer I am focusing on my own dance training by participating in One Body One Career at Springboard in Montreal. This is a two week Counter Technique intensive in July. In August I will be directing Urbanity's Choreography Intensive and preparing for the upcoming semester at Endicott College, where I am on faculty in the Visual and Performing Arts Department.  Photo by Celso Enrique N: What other local companies/ choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why? AD: Boston has a dynamic and growing dance community. Joy Davis is my dear friend and collaborator (together we are The Davis Sisters), who is developing beautiful and thoughtful work. I am a huge fan of Heather Stewart. Her recent premier of "against hard air" at the Boston Center for the Arts was unbelievable.  by Nicole Harris
 Get your tickets to see Colleen and the rest of the artists at Ignite on June 23rd! Nicole Harris: You began your relationship with movement as a competitive gymnast. How does that experience inform your choreography today? In what ways are the two worlds similar? Different? Colleen Walsh: In my very young years I actually danced before my career as a competitive gymnast, but as gymnastics became more serious, I stopped dancing and didn’t return to it until college when my time as a gymnast came to an end. Although looking back, as a gymnast I choreographed my own floor and beam routines, so even during that time there were signs that dance would play a part in my future... My time as a gymnast influenced the person I am in so many ways- and does continue to influence my choreography today. It taught me a lot about dedication during times of trial, overcoming obstacles, respect, and consistency- all of which we know to be required skills of a choreographer. My work also tends to be quite athletic, rooted in my love for pushing boundaries with gravity and being upside down. Certainly there are some differences between ‘the two worlds’ of gymnastics and dance, but I see them as more similar than they are different. Both are communities of deeply passionate and dedicated individuals who love to move. As I became more involved in the dance community, I used to be embarrassed to admit that I didn’t study dance for hours in the studio during my childhood and teen years. I felt like without that, my place in this community wasn’t validated. But, I did spend hours in the gym during those years. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to appreciate that there’s a lot of different ways to do something right- there’s a lot of different ways to get to where you want to go- and no way of getting there makes your journey any less valid.  Photo by Doug West N: Who are the dancers you’ll be working with as part of ChoreoFest? CW: I’m actually still finalizing this based on availability and unfortunately a few dancers I work with dealing with injuries. I’m very interested in continuing to develop both solo work and group work- so no matter how things end up, I’m thrilled for this experience...I’m trusting it will work out exactly how it needs to best serving this experience. If I move forward working with dancers, I’ll be sharing who they are and how amazing they are on my social- so keep an eye out! N: What are you most nervous about for ChoreoFest? CW: My choreographic process tends to spend a lot of time in the ‘gathering inspiration’ or research phase, and I’m truly trying to not think much about what I’ll create until I walk in the door on June 21st, to really embrace the purpose of this festival, so that has me a bit outside of my element right now.  Photo by Doug West N: Who are your mentors, past and present? CW: I feel really lucky to have had such tremendous mentors in so many different areas of my life. I’d love to give a shoutout to Duane Lee Holland, Jeanine McCain, Pam Pietro and T Lang who have each had a profound impact on me as a dancer and choreographer, teaching me along my journey a little bit more about the artist and human I want to be. I’m overwhelmed with gratitude when I think about the many beautiful people who have cheered me on, supported me, picked me back up, and loved me along the way. N: What do you most value in a mentor? CW: A big open heart and honesty. N: What other local companies/ choreographers do you recommend people check out? CW: This Boston dance community is the dang best. I’m lucky to come into contact with a lot of truly beautiful artists and companies and to have the opportunity to talk with them and watch them share their souls. Get out to festivals, classes, workshops, and performances this summer and support local artists! A few people whose work, teaching, dedication, guts, service to the community, and artistry have been inspiring to me recently: J Michael Winward Jean Appolon Kristin Wagner’s That’s What She Said Michael Figueroa Aysha Upchurch Ali Kenner Brodsky Peter DiMuro/Public Displays of Motion ...and truly so many more... ...and the people I get to stand alongside during this ChoreoFest...come on! Amazing!!  N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? CW: You can find me teaching at The Dance Complex’s Summer Sizzle Dance Festival, on a regular basis at Shanti Yoga in Hopkinton, and getting my butt into the studio a lot. A few years ago I lost a lot, and to be honest choreographing and performing has felt a lot like ripping off a bandaid since then...but it’s time to get ripping.  By Nicole Harris  Welcome to be Here - PC: Derek Fowles Introducing our next ChoreoFest choreographer, Kelsey Saulnier! She will be working in one of the site specific locations at Green Street during the festival.  Don't miss Kelsey and all of the ChoreoFest artists at Ignite on June 23rd! Get your tickets today! Nicole Harris: Your work incorporates both choreographed movement and improvisational scores. How do you weave those two things together within the same work? What sorts of improvisation scores are most interesting to you? How have you developed an idea from simple improvisation to a repeatable score? Kelsey Saulnier: I like to think of improvisation and set material as not so different, and this helps to weave these two ideas together and transition in and out of them within the same work. Improvisation is simply about in the moment choice making, and because of this there is always some degree of improvisation in all that we do. Even in set material, we are not necessarily choosing to come up with new movement, but we are constantly choosing how we embody what is already there; we are choosing how to make it come alive… how to make it more profound than just a shape; or how not to. I am most interested in improvisational scores that stem from a more visceral place… scores that provoke movement from the inside out. It is one thing to put on a piece of sound and simply improvise to it, but this sort of feels like a wash for me. I do not know where the movement is coming from or why, and although this is a valid way of working it does not sit right with my dancing body. Which is sometimes okay, but not ideal. Scores that deal with an imagined density or resistance, a cooking of the organs, a spreading of skin or imagined imprinting of the air. Scores like this really allow me to work without the notion that my movement has too look a certain way, and dance from a place of true investigation. I like to video myself improvising sometimes, then relearn only the best bits and string them together into a more repeatable phrase. Improvisational scores are also wonderful choreographic tools. For example, I can propose a score that deals with attempting to move exclusively from your most inner bone marrow, and instead of improvising with it, create set movements that embody this task and string them together into phrasework.  of Her - PC: Peter Raper N: What are you most nervous about for ChoreoFest? KS: I feel most nervous about being invested in a particular artistic process for twelve hours straight. I enjoy creating work in pieces because it allows me to step outside of it for a bit and get some perspective on what the heck I just made. This is especially helpful with solo work. I can revisit it later with fresh eyes. Being IN a work for this extended amount of time feels frightening but also like a totally exciting challenge. I am interested in how far I will fall into it.  Small Memory - PC: Stacey Hazen N: Who are your mentors, past and present? KS: Two movers/mentors that have been super important in my development as an artist are Chris Aiken and Leslie Frye-Maietta. They’re two very special humans in the Five Colleges that taught me during my time in undergrad and really helped me find my voice as an improviser. Chris teaches at Smith College and is a master at improvisation both in contact and composition. I have worked closely with him over the years in both class and rehearsal settings and he has supported me endlessly. Leslie really opened my eyes to what else dance and movement could be artistically when I first arrived at college. She is an amazingly thoughtful choreographer and really great at pulling heart and soul out of everyone she works with. I’ve danced for her in many of her works over the past four years and her rehearsal process has always been super transformative for me.  Welcome to be Here - PC: Derek Fowles N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? KS: This summer is filled with lots of dance, work, and travel, which is so wonderful. I am showing a newish-solo around NYC throughout June. I’ll also be spending some time in Vienna during July/August dancing/studying at ImPulsTanz. I have had my eye on this festival for years and feel so grateful and excited that it was able to work out this summer. Other than that, I work as a nanny and a dog walker (the hustle is real). So, you might find me out walking some pooches.  Welcome to be Here - PC: Derek Fowles N: What other local companies/ choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why?
KS: Jenna Pollock is a thoughtful and fiery choreographer who is doing wonderfully progressive things in the Boston area. She emphasizes the importance of improvisation and works to create thought provoking dance. I recommend checking her out if you haven’t. Also, David Dorfman Dance Company. They are not exactly local to Boston, but they often hold rehearsals and intensives in Connecticut as well as NYC. Their work is humorous, quirky, abstract, athletic, and truly joyful. They are a company of kind and caring individuals who everyone should really check out. by Nicole Harris  by Curtis Reaves Introducing another 24hr ChoreoFest artist, Nick Daniels! He is coming to us from Pittsburgh. We are thrilled to have him in the studios with us at Green Street in a couple of weeks!  This year the ChoreoFest artists will show their work at Ignite, Luminarium's gala event on Sunday, June 23rd. Don't miss this opportunity to see new work and support a whole range of choreographers! Nicole Harris: You recently returned to choreographing after quite a few years. What has been different in this “second chance”? What are you most excited about doing with your work at this stage in your career? Nick Daniels: When I left the dance world in 1994, the internet was a new thing. I’m most excited to take advantage of technology advancements. Also, during my hiatus I lost both my parents at separate times. Through that loss I found strength and knew I had to come back to honor them.  Photo by Nick M Daniels N: You recently resurrected Pittsburgh Dance Week. Can you tell me a bit about what that is and why it was important to you to bring it back? ND: When I returned, things in Pittsburgh’s community were very different. I asked my dancers about Pittsburgh Dance week, but they weren’t aware it was even a thing. At that point I knew I had to reinstate the tradition of having a week of classes, discussions, showcases and performances to showcase how very diverse and talented my hometown is.  Photo by Nick M Daniels N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? ND: This summer I will be performing in Dancing Queerly here in Boston at the Dance Complex, then more work in festivals, teaching and developing new work for our next season.  Photo by Nick M Daniels N: What other local companies/ choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why? ND: Companies to look out for... In Pittsburgh, SlowDanger. In Boston, I love Peter DiMuro’s work. There’s an honesty that I am drawn to with both groups.   Happy birthday to everyone who celebrates in June! Monkeyhouse Loves you!
Pat Krolak, Rita Krolak, Mary Sousa, Hjordis Blanford, Laila Fatimi, Arie Steiner Hockman, Fred Kelly, Lucie Baker, Xander Weinman, Jim Peerless, Henry LeTang, Bob Fosse, Terri Beaton, Harold Cromer, Sean Cummings, Rosie Steinberg, Nikki Felix, Shari Kaplan, Caleb Howe, Tom Christian, Elizabeth Krolak, Micheline Heal, Patrick Flynn, Melissa Dollman, Tyler Cantanella, Paula Abdul, and Martha Clarke Be sure to check out the links above to learn more about some of these amazing people! Want to be featured here? Let us know when your birthday is! by Nicole Harris
24hr ChoreoFest is a unique choreography event fashioned after 24 hour play and film festivals. Choreographers are locked into Green Street Studios overnight on June 21st with the mission of creating something new. All of the work will be shown at Luminarium's Gala Event, Ignite, on Sunday, June 23rd. Keep an eye out here for more information about the festival and the artists involved! Get your tickets to be part of the magic!  The first interviewee is choreographer Emma Morris. She comes to us from Atlanta where she works as a dancer and freelance choreographer. Nicole Harris: Who are the dancers you’ll be working with for ChoreoFest? Emma Morris: I’ll be working with a couple dancers and long-time collaborators that I met during my time at USC. Meredith Price is a Boston native, who in addition to being a talented dancer is an outstanding visual artist as both a photographer and graphic designer. I will also be bringing Lauren Bobo, a dance artist and teacher who I’ve worked with on nearly every work I’ve created. N: What are you most nervous about for ChoreoFest? EM: What I’m most nervous for during ChoreoFest is shortening parts of my process to fit into such a short period of time. As a choreographer, words are used as a jumping off point. I discuss with my dancers the theme of the piece, and let where the conversation develop where it may between the people and the experiences in the room. I then collect words and phrases from those conversations and use them to inform gestures and base choreography. In only having a limited time, I will have to condense this process and I am nervous if my work will loose the layered intentionality my work possesses. Or it might allow for an even more intentional piece!  N: Who are your mentors, past and present? EM: I have never really found myself in the direct mentorship of any one artist. I’ve learned so much from so many people, be it colleagues, teachers, or directors. But, I’ve learned the most from and still continue to look to for inspiration and advice from Shaun Boyle D’arcy. I met Shaun while a sophomore at USC when she selected me as an understudy for the creation of a new work, she saw something in me I didn’t see in myself yet. Her creation process deeply influenced the way I create, and working with her again my senior year, her encouragement in my personal voice gave me the confidence to pursue choreography. N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? EM: This summer I’m working a lot in Atlanta. I’m premiering a new work on June 14th at MIXTAPE, a feminist dance festival produced by Zoetic Dance. After 24hr ChoreoFest, I’ll head back to Atlanta to continue to work with multiple companies in the area- I’ve got a few new projects in the works. I’m hoping to head to WA for another project in August but its not finalized yet.  N: What other local companies/ choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why? EM: So I’m not from Boston, so maybe not the best person to give advice on the dance scene but I can tell you all about the gems in Atlanta and Columbia SC. In Atlanta I love Zoetic, they’re an all female company that creates work centered on female empowerment, and Kit Modus, a company creating beautiful and intricate work with some of the most talented artists in the city. In Columbia I have to say Yuhas and Dancers is amazing, creating highly intelligent work that is socially relevant- most recently creating a work with SC’s poet laurate. 
Rich Miner, Joan Panek, Bari Rosenberg,
Amanda Mastroianni, Chikako Iwahori, Susan Nase, Jim Pagella, Isabel Fine, Jon Schaffrath, Derick Grant, Hillary-Marie Michael, Jon Keith, Andrew Fine, Leah Sakala, Janine Harrington, Olivia Buntane, Elizabeth Terschuur, Kendra Heithoff Henseler, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, and Buster Brown.
Nicole Harris: Collaboration can be rewarding and difficult. What is one great moment and one challenge you’ve faced during this process? Erica Nelson: I loved seeing our dancers, who have never met or danced together before this project, move together as one. It was great to see their interactions, and who danced well or similar to each other. Composing the music was difficult because we composed it as the rehearsal process was happening. I usually prefer to work with music set beforehand so we can have a clear plan and pathway for the choreography inspired by the music, but for this project the dance happened first and the music followed which was a challenge for me.  Photo by Crystal Perez N: The End Ensemble’s goal is to “challenge audiences to face new concepts, dark themes and the outright bizarre.” Can you talk about what that means to you and why you wanted that to be your company’s focus? What’s a specific example of the outright bizarre that you’ve come across so far? EN: We mainly want to challenge our audiences to be more active in their experience of dance. We want to be unpredictable, and force them to think deeply about the art presented to them, both during and long after the performance. We never want them to settle! As far as the outright bizarre, we also like to mess with our audience sometimes! In some pieces we have presented humor aspects or just general creepy/distorted movement and concepts that are very unusual for the audience to experience.  Photo by John Long N: The End Ensemble is based in CT. How did you wind up in Malden for this project? EN: I am originally from the Boston area. I grew up here and returned here after college. I danced with a few companies in Boston and became familiar with the dance scene here before I moved to Hartford. Over the years I have stayed connected to the area, which has always been supportive of my company. We try to return to Boston to do a show at least once a year and visit our hometown!  Photo by Erica Nelson N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? EN: The END Ensemble will be presenting work throughout the spring as the resident dance company at Central Connecticut State University. This summer, we will be in New York City at Dixon Place to present a split-bill upcoming choreographers showcase titled ‘8 in Show’ on June 26th. We will also be presenting work and workshops throughout the summer in Hartford as part of ‘Art on the Streets’, a Hartford Arts Council campaign to invigorate the downtown public arts community.  N: What other local companies/ choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why? EN: Check out Contemporarily Out of Order! Another Boston-based female-run company that I danced with for a year, CooCO (artistic director Wendy Bryne) always puts together strong shows that connect her students, apprentices, and professional dancers to the Boston dance community and incorporate all styles of dance.  Photo by Ray Shaw   Empower One Another was a collaboration between Nozama Dance Collective and OnStage Dance Company. Here are a few thoughts from Jennifer Crowell-Kuhnberg of OnStage! Nicole Harris: Collaboration can be rewarding and difficult. What is one great moment and one challenge you’ve faced during this process? Jennifer Crowell-Kuhnberg: My collaboration with Erica Nelson was very rewarding and ran very smoothly. We worked so well together and I felt like we were able to mesh our ideas and styles quite well. I think we each contributed equally to the piece but also felt comfortable to suggest adjustments. Our dancers were also phenomenal in generating movement phrases and improv based on our prompts and allowing us to cherry pick our favorite pieces.  N: In addition to collaborating in the studio you have been collaborating with Nozama on this entire project. What is something you’ve learned through this experience? JCK: I have gotten to know Gracie Novikoff so well in the last few months and it’s been a joy to, not only work together on producing this show, but also to build a friendship. We have very similar sensibilities and goals when it comes to our respective companies and it’s been great to learn, share and reflect with her on both our mutual and varied experiences as dance company directors. That Director role can feel isolating sometimes so it was helpful for me to connect with her in that way.  N: Why was it important to you for OnStage to be part of this project? JCK: It’s my continuing goal to have OnStage be an open space for emerging dance makers and a safe space for experimentation. When Gracie came to me with this idea, I saw it as a perfect opportunity to provide those much needed resources and help support her goal of collaboration for this project. I think more companies and choreographers should be seeking out ways to collaborate or support each other. Since moving my company to Malden, I’ve also been on a mission to bring more dance artists into this city and hopefully get my local community more involved and more exposed to this type of performance art!  N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? JCK: We have so many exciting upcoming projects: Malden Dance Mile OnStage is collaborating with Monkeyhouse to produce the first-ever outdoor dance and movement festival to Malden. Find us on the Malden Community Trail on Saturday, April 27 from 12-3pm for performances, choreography games, dance class demos and more, featuring tons of local performers! Later that evening, OnStage will be performing at the West Medford Open Studios event at 4pm at 400 High Street in Medford! I will be showing work at the AS220 Modern Movement Festival in Providence, Rhode Island on April 25 and 27. OnStage Dance Company’s Season Seventeen Performance will be held at the BU Dance Theater on June 15! And I am currently auditioning dancers for a reboot of a special project called “What Is Love?” which will debut in July at OnStage!  N: What other local companies/ choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why? JCK: Obviously I want to encourage everyone to check out the other performers in this series and support the other projects they have going on!   All images by Olivia Moon Photography by Nicole Harris Here's another interview with the wonderful Lacey Sasso! On Saturday go see her and her company at Empower One Another on Saturday at 4pm to catch a Skort (post show conversation) with ME! Then join us at the Dance Complex to see An Animated Addition of the Dictionary of Negative Space at 8pm! Nicole Harris: Collaboration can be rewarding and difficult. What is one great moment and one challenge you’ve faced during this process? Lacey Sasso: As a unit, we decided to fully collaborate, meaning that every dancer has contributed movement, ideas, choices, etc. This decision greatly shaped our creative process by opening the door for everyone to have a voice. At times, we almost had too many ideas; this is where we had to step back as a group and really discuss what should come next, what made sense, and what might be an idea for later. The most difficult part of the process was scheduling. As artists, we all have multiple jobs and creative projects, so simply getting our bodies in the space at the same time was a large hurdle.  N: In addition to running a company you have a Masters in Counseling Psychology and Expressive Arts Therapy. How does your work in those fields impact your work as a choreographer? LS: As time moves on, the work I do both as a therapist and an artist blend more deeply together. Some of my choreographic work tackles specific psychological ideas such as the theory of attachment, which is explored in our work, Deeply Rooted. Some of the repertoire is inspired by the themes, movements, and diagnoses that I work with on a daily basis. For example, the company is currently working on a piece entitled Entwined Days which will debut on May 10 and 11 at the Dance Complex. This piece is a visceral and emotional response from my work with clients who have experienced trauma, or who deal daily with intense anxiety and life altering depression. The movement is a method of processing my therapeutic work while also trying to honor the stories in which I am entrusted to keep safe as a therapist.  N: You used to dance with Undertoe Dance Project in New York City. My understanding from when I’ve seen their work is that they are a combination of jazz/contemporary and tap dancers. Are you also a tap dancer? If so, does tap dance ever appear in Sasso & Co? How does working rhythmically impact your current choreography? LS: Yes, I am a tap dancer! I performed as both a tap and jazz dancer in my first season with Undertoe Dance Project, then focused specifically on jazz for the remainder of my tenure with the company. There currently is no Sasso & Company repertoire where tap is featured, however I am always open to collaborating across genres. Rhythm plays a large role in my movement and teaching style. I often find myself teaching movement with sounds or specific attention to parts of the music, rather than focusing on counts. I love syncopation and greatly enjoy finding ways in which movement can both support and oppose music.  N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? LS: Sasso & Company has a fun and exciting performance schedule this Spring! Our spring season culminates with our full evening length performances of Days Gone By at the Dance Complex on Friday, May 10th and Saturday, May 11!! We will be debuting new work as well as performing some of our favorite pieces of repertoire. You can also catch us at goodTHANGpassing on Friday, April 19 at 2:30 pm in Somerville, and we are performing at the Providence Movement Festival on Thursday, April 25 and Saturday, April 27th at AS220 in Providence, RI.  N: What other local companies/ choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why? LS: Lynn Frederiksen and Paul Kafka-Gibbons also known as Lynn and Paul Dance - they create work that has a classical modern base, but often has a humorous element involved. I love humor in dance and find it incredibly hard to create. Colleen Roddy - creates innovative partnering mixed with athletic framework. She's always pushing the bounds of movement and never afraid to try something new. Erin McNulty -- she has a gift for combining technical elements with gesture and creating a dynamic is both bold and smooth all at once; it's beautiful. 
Nicole Harris: Collaboration can be rewarding and difficult. What is one great moment and one challenge you’ve faced during this process? Jackie Bowden: One great moment we had in our collaboration process was finding our vision for the piece itself. We had a great time coming up with topics and discussing issues we have in society today. One challenge we faced with this collaboration was communication. It’s difficult to translate feelings and ideas associated with a piece since we do not share a brain, a lot of thoughts and feelings get misconstrued in the process. N: Kaleidoscope was started by yourself and Jessica Prince just a couple of years ago. What made the two of you want to create work together? What are the commonalities between your individual choreographic styles? JB: We both danced together throughout our years at Salem State University. A few times before we even graduated we joked about creating a company together and how great it would be. Once school was over, we wanted to find an outlet for our choreography. What once felt like a far future dream turned into a current reality and we decided to finally put in the work and get Kaleidoscope going! We both enjoy the process so much of choreographing pieces. Our work has both similar elements that bring us together and unique elements that set us apart.  N: As co-directors, how do you create work? Do you choreograph things together? Do you each tackle different projects? If so, how much impact does the other choreographer have on your work? JB: As co-directors we have a sort of give and take approach to our work. We do keep our pieces separate for the most part and it’s also great for when we have a block in our creative process to bounce ideas off of each other.  N: What other local companies and choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why? JB: We recommend people check out Angelina Benitez and her work. She helped Kaleidoscope Dance Company get started as a dancer and has since ventured off to create her own work and perform in various performances!   One of my favorite things about my job is that amazing people like Gracie (Nozama) and Jen (OnStage) reach out to me when they have exciting projects like Empower One Another and ask me to interview the artists and host their post show conversations! Get your tickets to see six female run dance companies/choreographers on April 13th. You can catch the matinee, check out the Spork (post show conversation) with yours truly and then head over to the Dance Complex just in time to see karen Krolak's I-ARE Residency Showcase in the evening! It's a perfect day of dance! But first, check out this fabulous interview with Gracie Novikoff about Nozama's role in this show and her experiences in collaboration! (More show at ticket info at the bottom of this post!) Nicole Harris: Collaboration can be rewarding and difficult. What is one great moment and one challenge you’ve faced during this process? Gracie Novikoff: When Jen (of OnStage Dance Company) and I were coming up with the concept for “Empower One Another”, we were primarily driven by the idea of bringing Boston dance companies and independent choreographers together. We wanted to not only promote collaboration, but support for one another and to build a network in which directors can share the highs and lows of managing a company in Boston. With that, the overwhelming reward of “Empower One Another” has been to see six companies share their visions, talents, and experiences to work together and create beautiful new art. I am also thrilled to see the companies creating works under the themes of female empowerment, as this is what drives my company Nozama Dance Collective’s entire mission. At the same time, working with others can be tricky when you all have strong, powerful ideas that are worthy of being shared. With our partner company, Kaleidoscope Dance Company, they are also directed by not one but two incredible women. Along with my co-director Natalie, that makes four collaborative partners with bold ideas. Finding space and time for all four of us to be heard in this process has been tricky, especially when even the co-directors disagree with one another! But overall, that challenge has made me even more proud of this process.  N: In addition to collaborating in the studio you have been collaborating with OnStage on this entire project. What is something you’ve learned through this experience? GN: Working with Jen from OnStage Dance has been a gift. She is not only an experienced instructor and choreographer, but studio owner. She also single-handedly runs a 60 person company, which is a phenomenal feat. Jen juggles all of her tasks and jobs so seamlessly, and I have learned an incredible amount from her. She has taught me about prioritization, time management, and how to push beyond one’s limits. Our partnership materialized into “Empower One Another”, which is such a dream and accomplishment to me. I cannot wait to see what else our partnership creates!  N: Where did the idea for this concert come from? GN: Unfortunately in the Boston dance community, there is not nearly as much support between companies as we would like to see. Companies do not often attend one another’s shows, or take one another’s classes. Companies are insular, and do not often collaborate or help one another with things such as fundraising or networking. Jen and I wanted to tackle that, and bring companies together to collaborate and share one another’s gifts and creative visions. At the same time, we wanted to help form a network between Boston dance company directors and choreographers. Managing a company is hard work, and doing it without any support is nearly impossible! Having the six company directors meet for a Round Table Discussion about how we all tackle the challenges of managing companies was a massive priority for Jen and I. The “Empower One Another” performance is the exciting culmination of this collaboration, but we know that the partnerships will last beyond the show as directors continue to lean on one another for support.  N: Where else can we find you this Spring/Summer? GN: Nozama Dance Collective has a lot of exciting things coming up! We are launching our Spring Company Class Series, in which we will teach master classes at Green Street Studios on 3/18, 4/19, 5/6, and 5/20. Additionally, we have our annual concert “Uplift” at Green Street Studios on August 9th and 10th. We are also looking forward to performing in a few festivals and concerts around Boston, so keep an eye out for us!  N: What other local companies or choreographers do you recommend people check out? Why?
GN: SO many! It is so hard to pick just a handful. The Boston dance community is filled with incredible talent, visions, and creativity. Personally, I am drawn to choreographers who tell poignant, empowering stories about the female experience through their work. Putting the other artists of “Empower One Another” aside, I am forever drawn to Colleen Roddy’s choreography. I am also inspired by the work of Luminarium Dance, particularly because that is another company managed by two incredible women who collaborate together so well. But honestly, if you have a free night, just check out the Dance Complex or Green Street Studios and check out whatever is happening! There is no bad dance experience out there. Support other artists! They will support you back!  We'd like to wish a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to:
Laya Barak, Taylor Henry, Nikki Sao Pedro-Welch, Carson Murphy Young, Leslie Armstrong, David Parker, Maud Arnold, Jaguar Bennett, Stephen Harris, Gaby Mervis, Susan Potters, Phinneas Baker, Audra Carabetta and Merce Cunningham |
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