Nicole Harris: Can you tell me about the work you’ll be performing as part of the OnStage Summer Performance Series? Lisa Costello & Nicole Zizzi: The work we are showcasing will be performed to the composer Roberto Cacciapaglia’s album titled Quarto Tempo. We are experimenting with how to bring visual diversity to a set of music that is more or less similar and coherent. We are also hoping to engage in a storytelling through movement by means of contemporary dance that is not literal in its purpose. We love to experiment with ambiguity in our movement vocabulary and choreography so that the audience can interpret our choreography in their own ways. We want each of the audience members to be able to connect to our work in their own ways so we don’t like to be too obvious in our intentions and meanings. However, we obviously pull our inspiration from very specific places, so it is always interesting to see how the audience interpretations align with our own inspirations. So we are very excited for the informal nature of the show and the ability to interact with the audience afterwords! The OnStage Summer Performance Series is a good place for us to experiment with our newest ideas and get feedback from a diverse audience.
L&N: Since January, we have both choreographed each of our own separate pieces and we think they have both been successful in their own ways! Our individual movement styles are very similar but it has been interesting to see how our choreography can be different. We both have similar choreographic processes in the way we use notebooks and notations, but the way they come out on the dancers bodies really show our individual personalities and that has been really cool to see! We compliment each other in our differences, which is why we ultimately decided to work together when we first founded Evolve. So it has always been something we knew, but it has been so fun to see how that has manifested itself physically! We’ve decided to highlight our differences by inviting additional guest choreographers to set pieces on us for this show. We are really testing the waters on our different movement and choreography styles have be brought together in a cohesive way. It’s almost like our differences are exactly what has inspired the whole concept of this show. N: Nicole, you had just recovered from hip reconstruction surgery in time to perform for NACHMO Boston. As dancers we are always hesitant to talk about injuries and setbacks, however, we all face them. What were the challenges you faced in getting yourself back on stage, especially after the prescribed “recovery time” was over? What did you learn from the time you were out of commission? What recommendations do you have for other dancers facing physical setbacks? Nicole: The prescribed recovery time technically wasn’t even over until mid-June, so I would say the biggest challenge was the time it took to recover. I had about a year and a half period of pain before the doctor’s could actually diagnose me with Hip Dysplasia. I won’t go into that story but if anyone is interested I have been keeping a recovery blog! https://www.nicolezizzi.com/never-give-up I think the biggest thing I learned from the whole 2 year process from pre-diagnosis to surgery and recovery was that you should never doubt yourself. If you feel like you’re in pain, listen to your body and, even more so, advocate for yourself! If the doctor’s aren’t listening, find doctors who will listen. I ended up with the most amazing support team from the doctors and nurses at Boston Children’s (who treat the Boston Ballet dancers!) to my physical therapy team at Girl Fit in Newton and finally my “mental skills coach” Kelsey Griffith out of the Micheli Center for Injury prevention at Boston Children’s. Each and every one of my care team members were fully invested in my recovery. I also had the most amazing friend by my side the entire time and that, of course, was Lisa. :) She came to visit me while I was in the hospital and danced for me when I couldn’t express my emotions through dance. I was fortunate enough to never have to leave the dance world because she helped me stay involved in every possible way I could. I unfortunately did have to give up a dance teaching job due to the injury, but Lisa and the rest of Evolve really made sure I was still involved in the dance community. I choreographed and improvised and even taught chair choreography while I was still on crutches. My biggest recommendation to any dancers facing any kind of physical set back is to surround yourself with people who support and care about you, who are able to listen to you when it feels like the world is caving in, and most importantly who are able to remind you that there ARE ways to keep dancing even if not the way you had before. N: What are three amazing things that have happened since NACHMO Boston? L&N: Since participating in NACHMO Boston, we have had some amazing advances through Evolve. After applying for the past three years, we were accepted to the Boston Contemporary Festival for the first time! A very big accomplishment for us as directors and as dancers. We have also hit double digits with our number of dancers. We now have 10 dancers and we feel very proud to know that two short years ago we were only a company of 2. Lastly, we are so happy to announce our first out of state collaboration with fellow company, The D’Amby Project, in New York. Keep your eyes peeled for the final product!
N: Monkeyhouse believes in the importance of both giving back and paying forward. Who are some of your mentors? How are you paying forward what was given to you?
Nicole: My biggest mentor was my dance professor in college Missy Pfohl-Smith. My university unfortunately did not have a dance major, so of course it made sense for me to study physics….(makes a lot of sense, right?) …. Anyways, Missy really encouraged me to bring in my interest of physics into my dance studies. She always encouraged me to be genuine and authentic in my artistic endeavors and that has been one of the most important life lessons I have ever learned. I ultimately decided to stray from the field of physics, but recently started my Masters in Architecture and I plan to one day own my own design firm in conjunction with Evolve. :) I am always striving to stay true to myself no matter how out of the ordinary that may be! Lisa: My biggest mentor is my former dance teachers, Karen White and Terry Paretti. They taught me every style of dance and instilled a pure love for the artform 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. I learned so much from them, I take the joy and love for dance that they taught me and pass it on to my youngest students at age 2 all the way up through my adult company members each day. I cannot thank them enough for shaping me through my early years into the dancer I am today.
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Nicole Harris: Can you tell me about the work you’ll be performing as part of the OnStage Summer Performance Series? Jenny Oliver: This performance includes sections from our upcoming evening length concert, ‘Hot Water Over Raised Fists’ that will be further developed during our DanceMaker’s Residency at the Boston Center for the Arts and premiered in June 2019. HWORF was originally inspired by my desire to create meaningful dialogue around the broad issue of water rights and protest. The Dakota Access Pipeline protests and the water injustices in Flint, MI have stayed with me for the past 2 years. These issues became the nexus of the two themes of my show. The first theme water, exploring its importance, the destruction it can provoke & the sustainability it provides. The second theme is protest, investigating why it is needed, how it is used & the longevity it provides. We are in the beginning phases of exploring the development of these ideas and this concert includes excerpts resonant of a flip book of different manifestations of the two themes through a visceral experience using modern dance combined with a mix of jazz and eclectic music. While allowing us to share our perspective about water and protest this concert also allows us to fulfill our mission of Philanthropy through Dance. A large percentage of the ticket sales will go towards the Rasin Foundation’s De-Worming Initiative that it provides to the community of Leogane, Haiti. As a Board member of the Foundation I am eager to create an intersection between art and health in a tangible way. We are currently serving 1,000 children and 168 peri partum women providing medication to help prevent intestinal parasites that potentially lead to death.
To be a humanitarian is a duty that all privileged people should be aiming for. As defined by Merriam-Webster: a Humanitarian (n) is a person promoting human welfare and social reform. (adj) relating to or characteristic of people who work to improve the lives and living conditions of other people. These are the motivators for the work I want to produce. As Zora Neale Hurston is quoted as saying “If you are silent about your pain, they will kill you and say you enjoyed it.” My aim is still not remain silent about the things that affect my life and instead share my perspective with the world. The more variety of voices providing perspective, the richer the conversation and understanding can be. N: Your company’s mission, in part, is to create research based choreography. Can you explain what that means and how it may differ from other choreographic processes? JO: Creating research based choreography has been a wonderful experience and one that is new to my practice. In other works that I’ve made the focus has been heavily on movement, athleticism and the spectacle of the music. I’ve since shifted my approach to one that I’ve been exposed to through working with other choreographers that I admire and one that fully resonates with what I want to be saying as an Artist. Being able to immerse myself in the stories, facts, outcomes and potentials of the subject that I am focusing on has helped me to approach my dancers in a way that helps them create the relationships onstage that are full and robust. Once I have collected my research, I try to find ways to share that information with my dancers and discuss the most authentic representation on stage. Throughout my process with the dancers, we’re in constant dialogue about movement and how our relationships to each other are reflecting the overall message of the piece. Using this method is still new to my practice but experimenting with this approach has brought fulfilling challenges elevating my choreographic lens and enhancing the depth of my dancers.
Nailah Randall-Bellinger is a major mentor. She was my college professor who showed me a world of dance that I didn’t know existed. Almost 20 years later and she is the person that I call on as a friend and artistic advisor when creating work and discussing issues that effect that creation process. Bob Thomas was another college professor of mine who spoke truth to power about the realities of dance and career. He often helps me with strategizing to make money and inspires me with his ability to think way outside of the artistic box. He has often been a sounding board and friend to me over the years. Last but not least, Marlene Edouard, she has become my second mom and the person who introduced and guided me through the Haitian culture and tradition, not only of dance but life as well. She trained me in Folkloric Dance and opened many doors for me in Boston while encouraging me to dream bigger and execute larger. Through the work of my company and the classes that I teach both in the community and through the schools and universities that I work for, I am providing a space for people to discover dance and themselves. By creating critically thinking individuals who, hopefully, will continue to pay forward everything that I share with them my intention is to raise the artistic bar in this city. N: Who are some of your favorite choreographers and why?
JO: Ulysses Dove!! His works are some of the first that I saw that really moved me to want to dance fully and share stories through movement. Particularly, VESPERS, still has me awe struck and butterfly filled. After watching his interviews I felt more connected to his work. He states “I am interested in passion. In every embrace, every second of life (should be) lived so fully that there can be no regrets, no retreat, no looking back.” -Published in Connoisseur magazine Other choreographers that I admire are Katherine Dunham for her anthropological approach to black dance, Pearl Primus for her choreographic works that reflected her research of black dance and culture in Africa and the Caribbean. Fatima Robinson for her edge and creativity in commercial dance and more recently Reggie Wilson for his approach and process to creating black dance using research based methods. I often find myself being motivated by the works that these people have created and the dedication that they gave to the art form.
Nicole Harris: Can you tell me about the work you’ll be performing as part of the OnStage Summer Performance Series? Noa Barankin: The theme of the show is "Rhythm Re-imagined" (which is also the title). In my work, the audience will be able to see new uses of props and technology, for the purpose of making rhythms and integrating them with dance and movement. In particular, the cast is made of all tap dancers. However, we are also drumming (on and with various objects), and doing body percussion. There is some integration of modern dance, as well as tap dance classics. I also like to call what I do - "visual rhythm", because it is rhythm that you can see. Most of our pieces are stand-alone, meaning that you can take them out of the context of the full show and they can be performed on their own. A lot of thought was put into making these pieces come to life, and the details are noticeable - from the choice of the prop to the way we use it and integrate it with the sounds of tap dance or percussion.
N: Who are some of your favorite choreographers and why? NB: Ummmmm all of them? I love all artists and learn from what I see. I absorb. Possibly Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire for their lack of fear in tap, and the endless incorporation of props and special effects in their dances. I'm ALL about props (as you shall see in the show!!) N: Monkeyhouse believes in the importance of both giving back and paying forward. Who are some of your mentors? How are you paying forward what was given to you?
Another mentor is Doron Raphaeli, who gave me my first professional paying job as a dancer. It was in Tararam, a drummimg company, where before that I have never laid my hands on a pair of drumsticks. As artists, we need that person in our lives, who gives us that trust. I'm paying it forward to my cast by doing the same - creating opportunity and teaching them something new.
The third one is Sean Fielder, through which I encountered most of my cast, and who gave me the opportunity to join the Boston Tap Company - my introductory dance path as a newbie in Boston. There is also Pam Caira, director of Step by Step dance studio, which is where we rehearse, and I cannot omit her name from this list by any means because she's a source of inspiration and a real supporter of DrumatiX. It's through her help and support that I am now able to bring drumming classes to the studio, for young dancers to get a taste of DrumatiX and explore a whole new world of rhythm making.
Musing Prompt #46.329 (premiere) Improvisation Prompt by Karen Krolak Performed by Caleb Howe, Elyssa Berg, Nicole Harris, Olivia Scharff and Sam Mullen Music by Twink the Toy Piano Band Special Thanks to Aisha Cruse Ukiyo (premiere) Choreographed by Nicole Harris Performed by Sarah Friswell Cotton, Olivia Scharff, Nicole Harris Costumes by Nicole Harris Special Thanks to Kelsey Griffith, Impulse Dance Center Ukiyo (Japanese) - the “floating world”; a place of fleeting beauty and living in the moment, detached from the bothers of life. [220] (premiere) Choreographed by Karen Krolak in collaboration with Sam Mullen Performed by Sam Mullen Music by Twink the Toy Piano Band Sam would like to thank Karen for the encouragement, freedom of expression and constant support. www.DictionaryofNegativeSpace.com
4 things (2018) Choreographed by Elizabeth Powers in collaboration with the dancers Performed by Michelle Boilard, Michela Doherty, Sarah Feinberg, and Elizabeth Powers Music by Mystified Costumes by Elizabeth Powers
Voetstoots (premiere) Choreographed and Performed by Caleb Howe and Nicole Harris Music by Francois Couture Sound Design by Nicole Harris Umbrella Design by Karen Krolak Special Thanks to Karen Krolak and Peter-John de Kock Voetstoots (Afrikaans) - refers to something, usually sold, with all its faults and without guarantees - “As is” * Created as part of Monkeyhouse’s Choreography Mentorship Program
by Karen Krolak Nicole enjoyed interviewing the other choreographers we are working with, but Karen stepped in when it came time to interview the choreographers of Voetstoots, Caleb Howe and Nicole herself. Here are their thoughts on collaboration, the choreographic process and working together. Nicole and Caleb will also be dancing in work by Elizabeth Powers, Karen Krolak and Elyssa Berg. reACT reBUILD reCOLLECT Friday, July 27th @ 8pm 665 Salem St, Malden, MA Tickets available here for only $10 if you use the VIP Code MH10. VIP tickets are not available at the door so get yours today! karen Krolak: Lots of people loath collaborating. What drew the two of you to want to build something together? Caleb Howe & Nicole Harris: We improvise well together. We’ve had a lot of opportunity to experiment with movement together over the last year and while we are both happy with what comes out of those exercises, this was an opportunity to see what could happen with a more prolonged process. Caleb has never choreographed before, and so collaborating gave him the opportunity to build a piece without having to take on everything at once. kK: Can you describe how this piece grew out of specific Musing exercises? C: When you first made the umbrellas during the first generation of what later became the Dictionary of Negative Space, they had a very different intent than the prompts you gave when you brought them into rehearsal back in March. You handed an umbrella to me and asked Nicole to coax me out from underneath it. We were the only two in attendance which gave us the opportunity to do a lot in a short amount of time. Working with the same partner over and over again allowed us to build an understanding of how the umbrella moves even as the specifics of the prompt changed. N: When we left the studio that day both Caleb and I were interested in continuing to play with the ideas you had introduced. Knowing you and what you know of the roles depression and anxiety can play in both mine and Caleb's lives, I am not surprised that you selected those particular prompts for us. When we got in the studio this spring we tried to stay true to the idea of finding the ways you can help support another person, even when that means temporarily setting your own problems to the side. The idea of the umbrella expanded and the journey of the characters developed, but the seed of the piece continues to be that same exercise of two people supportively coaxing each other. kK: Caleb, how did the umbrella shape your movement choices? C: Much of the movement that Monkeyhouse is drawn to tends to be very grounded, either on the floor or with hands on the floor. The umbrella does not like to be upside down and so it restricts choices and required me to find more upright movement. While I do have some background in ballroom dance, the choice to use it here came much more from the restrictions the umbrella posed than simply relying on what I knew. kK: Nicole, this is the first time the you have collaborated with Caleb on choreographing a piece, how was the process different than other choreographers in Monkeyhouse?
N: Since I have primarily collaborated with you for the last 18 years, we have developed a shorthand (both verbal and physical) in working together which doesn’t exists yet with Caleb, so the experience was very different in that regard. I think my biggest challenge was making sure I supported Caleb, who hasn’t choreographed a piece before, in a way that didn’t impose my own agenda on the work or the process. kK: Caleb, what were some of the challenges you dealt with as you choreographed a piece for the first time? C: I don’t have any training as a dancer, The challenge for me building this piece was not having a movement vocabulary to draw upon, and having to construct each of the movements from scratch. N: Caleb described it to me as being similar to when a child learns to read or write. They don’t yet have the experience to recognize entire words but instead process each letter one at a time. I thought that was a really great analogy for what I saw in working with Caleb. kK: Nicole - how did you find the music for this duet? N: Before we knew what the piece was going to be we were playing Pink Martini’s “Hang on Little Tomato” in rehearsal. The movement instantly began to transform itself. However we knew we would not get the rights to Pink Martini’s music, so we slowly introduced other pieces of music discovered on Ilicensemusic.com until we found the right combination of what we were looking for, not too fast, no lyrics, not too heavy a swing. Once the music was selected I did a little editing to the beginning to help support the story we are trying to tell.
Nicole Harris: You are building a series of vignettes using four different dancers. Can you talk about who is in each section and what drew you to those people/pairings? Elyssa Berg: This decision came from watching how people interacted during Musings. I was able to work quite a few times with these ideas and throughout the sessions of Musings I was able to watch the pairings of people, seeing how they interacted with the light and each other. I chose the pairings in this way so that the connections appeared genuine and true to the relationship of the pairings. Nicole and Caleb are a part of the first section in which the feeling of the piece is curious and explorative. The second section includes Elizabeth and Sarah and the feeling is more playful which is very true to the relationship between the two of them and how they move together. The last section is a solo with Elizabeth in which I wanted the feeling to be isolated and contained. Thanks to Musings each decision was made based on how the individuals and their actions inspired me as they brought themselves to the work. N: You have led a series of Musings (a time for choreographers to play with ideas in a low stakes setting) over the last year in preparation for creating this piece. How have you used Musing time to help get you where you are now? What was something from Musing that was unexpectedly helpful? EB: Musings have helped me in feeling prepared to create. When you come into rehearsal with a big idea, of something you haven't done before, it can be very intimidating. The most frustrating part of building a new piece can be the trial and error process that you feel you don't have time for. It can feel like a lot of pressure to build something quickly with the resources that you have, feeling like everything you make has to be good. Musings gave me the chance to have all of the trial and error moments that you need before you start setting a work. Since there is no pressure in Musings you can try just about anything. You can go in with a small idea and just see what happens. A lot of unexpected things have happened during Musings that made their way into the piece. With all of this time to weed out the ideas that I didn't need I was able to focus on what I liked and what read the best. It was amazing to see how easy the building process of the pieces was after preparing through Musings.
by Nicole Harris Next up, Choreography Mentee, Elizabeth Powers! You saw the piece she created as part of the Choreography Mentorship Program at NACHMO Boston in January. You'll have the chance to see it again on stage tomorrow. We're excited to see what Elizabeth brings to the company in the future! Elizabeth is also dancing in work by Sarah Feinberg and Elyssa Berg. Here she is talking about the two pieces she has in tomorrow's concert. re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} Friday, July 27th @ 8pm 665 Salem St, Malden, MA Tickets available here for only $10 if you use the VIP Code MH10. VIP tickets are not available at the door so get yours today! Nicole Harris: You have two pieces in this concert that you created as part of two different choreography programs this winter. What were some of the highlights of your experiences with each program? Elizabeth Powers: Many of the best parts of each program are the same! Both gave me as an emerging choreographer free space along with lots of freedom and little pressure to make something new. A highlight from OnStage Dance Company’s residency program was that I had the opportunity to bring together dancers who I new from different dance communities as well as meet other dancers from the OnStage community. A highlight from the Choreography Mentorship Program with Monkeyhouse was all of the opportunities for feedback and reflection on the work I was making. Additionally with this program I was given mentorship in all kinds of areas of the field including working with a lighting designer, finding/licensing music, costuming mentorship, and more. N: The piece you created for OnStage Dance Co's Residency Program was fairly significantly less improv based than the one you created for Monkeyhouse's Choreography Mentorship Program. Can you talk about the differences between those two processes? EP: The main difference between the two processes was what I came in with. For OnStage, I began the first rehearsal by teaching a phrase. The first rehearsal with Monkeyhouse began with several improvisation prompts as well as dancers creating their own phrases from these prompts. With the OnStage piece, the improvisation tasks were mostly developed into set material. For this piece, I imagined very specific images while working to bring them to life. Comparatively, the Monkeyhouse piece was created by honing specific improvisation scores and combining them into a cohesive dance. N: Will you be making any changes to the two pieces from their first performances? EP: Definitely! Every time I see my work I think of something new to add, alter, or take out. The main structure of each piece will stay the same but I definitely made several small edits to both. Additionally, since there are elements of improvisation between each piece, there is no question that the pieces will not be exactly the same as they were in their original form, which is what I love about dance :) N: What is a favorite rehearsal moment for each piece? EP: A favorite rehearsal moment for the OnStage piece was the moment when all of the pieces finally went together. There was a time in the process when we had so many bits of material that we had been playing with, but they didn’t seem to work together. Trying one combination that finally worked was a great moment. A favorite rehearsal movement for the Monkeyhouse piece would have to be the first time we played with creating the duet between Sam and Olivia. It was just so much fun to watch them explore their silly and playful movement that was fun and thought provoking to watch.
Nicole Harris: You are building two solos for this performance. karen Krolak: Yes, through the Musings this year, I began to explore some choreographic ideas related to The Dictionary of Negative Space: an interdisciplinary lament. N: Can you talk a little about what the dictionary is and how the pieces relate to it? kK: The dictionary began as my thesis project for my MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts at Sierra Nevada College. It examines the negative space within the English language, the vast chasms of unnamed ideas related to mourning, trauma, and repair and it was inspired by the car accident that killed my mother, father, and older brother in 2012. By the time we began to plan Re act…, I had a two ideas for pieces based off of this research.
kK: So, in the Dictionary of Negative Space, entries are labeled by the number in the bracket. For instance, [1] is the place where a deceased person was last seen alive by the speaker. Exactly two weeks before the accident, my father, Kwaq7aj’, and I went to see Monkeyhouse’s creation in Luminarium’s very first 24hr ChoreoFest. I decided to create a choreographic score to guide someone from the Dance Complex to the place where we said goodbye that day. When I began mapping out these activities, a little more than 5 years had already passed. Odd, I just remembered that I started working on the score after I left a showing that Luminarium presented at Green Street Studios this fall. Anyway, it was challenging to recreate exactly what happened. How long did we wait for the walk signal? Where exactly was our table when we sat down to eat? Since I did not know that this would be my last outing with my father, I did not memorize as many details as I wanted later. More importantly, I realized that I had tricked myself into thinking that this was my father’s [1] because in reality both of my parent’s [1] no longer exists. That place was destroyed a few years after the accident. I had latched onto the goodbye from the day of ChoreoFest because my brain clearly did not want to deal with another missing thing. As I wrote out everything that was tangled up in my head, I realized that I was not writing instructions for my father’s [1]. I was writing out my father’s aaaaaaaaa[13] (n.[usually plural] activities that seem ordinary but take on new significance when they are the last moments spent with someone). I edited my thoughts down to just the verbs to emphasize those actions.
N: The one for Olivia Scharff was also influenced by a walk you went on in Malden Center. Can you explain what you saw on the walk and what path the idea took once you were in the studio with Olivia? kK: Right, I had received an email from Mobius and discovered that they were planning some dadamobile events in Boston at the Farmer’s Market on Copley Square. One of them was just a few hours after the email arrived and I had some free time. Two moments on that trip sparked an idea of how to approach this solo. First, while I was sitting near Copley over by the Finish Line for the Boston Marathon, a man approached me to use my phone. Having just recently adjusted to a new phone, I was hesitant to hand it over to a stranger. He was clearly in distress and wanted help to contact a medical clinic. I offered to call the clinic for him. As we navigated the phone tree, things got very frantic and confusing for him. He was in a treatment program for opioid addiction and had missed the time that he was supposed to contact his nurse that day. While he and I were sharing the phone in this awkward uncomfortable duet, people were just rushing by us and stepping over us. It was very similar to the feeling of Elizabeth’s phrase from that Musing. Then on the way home from the T in Malden Center, I was behind three strings of children on walking ropes. I was still worrying about the man from Copley. Juxtaposing the security and calm of these kids making their way to the Ed Emberley Park against the man’s isolation and despair, I began to wonder about a person who realizes that they are all alone on their walking rope. Once again, I understood that I was exploring yet another entry from the dictionary but I will let people guess about which one until they come to the show.
reACT reBUILD reCOLLECT Friday, July 27th @ 8pm 665 Salem St, Malden, MA Tickets available here for only $10 if you use the VIP Code MH10. VIP tickets are not available at the door so get yours today!
N: You have led a series of Musings (a time for choreographers to play with ideas in a low stakes setting) over the last several months in preparation for creating this piece. How have you used Musing time to help get you where you are now? SF: Musings have been a great opportunity to try out ideas and get feedback. I had some improvisational prompts that I started with but then got stuck when it came to setting choreography. I was challenged by karen during a musing to come up with a phrase to teach and then use the improvisational prompts I had been playing with in conjunction with the phrase. This was a major turning point in the choreographic process for me. The phrase I came up with that day ended up laying the foundation for the entire piece. N: What is a favorite rehearsal moment from the creation of this piece? SF: One of my favorite moments was when the last bit of choreography came together and all of a sudden I had an ending to my piece. I had initially came in to rehearsal that day with a very different plan for a possible ending and as we were working through the choreography the ending came naturally and that was that.
they make it their own. A few bits of choreography got adjusted here and there but the biggest change is just new dancers bringing new life to the characters. One of the things I love most about this piece is that no two dancers are going to perform it the same way. Every time this piece gets performed its a little bit different and that is part of what keeps it exciting.
by Nicole Harris
For the past year I have been honored to have three former students return to the studio to take class as adults. It began with Olivia Scharff, who sweated out the summer with me last year at Impulse Dance Center during my adult tap class. When September rolled around she was joined by Kelsey Griffith and Monkeyhouse alum Sarah Friswell Cotton. Towards the end of our first ten week session these ladies approached me to ask if they could dance on the "big stage" in Impulse's end of year concert. LuAnn (Impulse's director) was more than happy to include three Impulse alumni in her show so we got down to work and the second ten week session was dedicated to creating a piece of choreography. The piece they performed this June was to Waving Through a Window from the Broadway show Dear Evan Hansen. The choreography was intricate and the incredible music gave the piece body and character. However, the music also allowed for the dancers to hide within its orchestrations. Don't get me wrong, these ladies aren't lazy! But the fullness of the music overpowered some of the rhythms and counterpoints they were working so hard on, so we decided to also create a version of the piece with no music at all to be part of reAct reBuild reCollect in July. The original plan was for all four of us to perform this new tacit piece but unfortunately, Kelsey tore her ACL this spring and will not be able to join us at the performance. However, you can still learn about the amazing things she, Sarah and Olivia are doing by clicking on their images below. It's exciting to see how people keep dance in their lives and these three are doing some pretty incredible work. I can't describe to you how much fun it was to work with these ladies again. Teaching adults is a very different thing than teaching children or even teenagers. I loved seeing the different ways each of them had learned how to learn in the ten years since they last took class with me. I am impressed by their ability to see their strengths and also their weaknesses and not be afraid to ask for or offer help. I am honored to dance with them on July 27th and continue working with them in the future!
Nicole Harris: Can you tell me about the work you’ll be performing as part of the OnStage Summer Performance Series? Kelley Donovan: We are developing a modern dance work using chance elements, numerology and imagery from the Tarot, Additionally, I am performing a recent solo and showing an old solo from 1994. Rozann Kraus will perform "Waltz news" featuring 6 dancers depicting images of the "false news" featured on social media. N: Who are the dancers you’ll be working with? KD: 10 dancers, some new and some whom I have worked with since 2007, The dancers include: Rose Gibney, Carolyn Jepsen, Crystal Heroux Jacqueline Wilkinson Jane Wong, Katie Logan, Kira Mathiesen, Lauren Sava Marva Yates , Samantha Wilson, Sarah Takahagi,, Tiffany Lau and Rozann's work features: Jacqueline Wilkinson, Jim Banta, Karen Klein, Kelley Donovan, Rozann Kraus, Dan Quinn and Samantha Wilson N: You have a performance series of your own called the Third Life Performance Series. Can you tell us about it? How did it come about? KD: Yes, the third life series has been going for 6 years now since 2012 and we have presented over 150 choreographers and groups! It is an informal series, designed to echo works in progress like the Judson Church Monday night showings in NYC. When I started the series there were few informal showing in Boston and I felt a need for a stepping stone to full concerts and full productions and a need to build community that comes from seeing one anothers work.
N: What are some amazing things you have been up to since we spoke in January?
KD: I have mostly been performing solo work, at Thang at Somerville Armory, Mayfair, Third life and performed w/ teXtmoVes and with Kraus and..... in Dance for World Community, We Create at Hibernian Hall, I also reset a new work on Boston dancers called "Transitional State" at Dance Complex, and created a commissioned work for Boston Moving Arts for the same show! It has been quite a busy year so far!
You can catch their show at OnStage Dance Company, 665 Salem St, Malden, MA Saturday, July 7th @ 4pm Use VIP Code NDC10 to get a special ticket price here! Follow Nozama on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter to learn more about them!! Nicole Harris: Can you tell me about the work you’ll be performing as part of the OnStage Summer Performance Series? Gracie Novikoff: Nozama Dance Collective is thrilled to be a part of the OnStage Summer Performance Series! We will be presenting a 45 minute set on Saturday, July 7th at 4pm. We will be performing predominantly new works, which is very exciting! We have been crafting a series of pieces surrounding the concept of “Enough”, in that as women we have seen enough, we have heard enough, we have had enough; now is the time to embrace that we are enough. Under this concept’s umbrella, we are presenting empowering works of frustration surrounding the threats to women’s rights, as well as uplifting dances of women coming together to celebrate one another. The tumultuous political climate of 2016-2018 has inspired us in numerous ways, particularly in how bold women have stood up and claimed their voices against oppressive forces. We are committed to bringing female empowerment to the Boston dance community, and this performance will fully embody that. This set list will then make up a large percentage of the choreography for our own full-length production, appropriately entitled “Enough”, which will be on August 3rd and 4th at Green Street Studios in Cambridge, MA.
In creating our pieces, we pull inspiration from our own experiences as well as the other women in our lives and our relationships with them. Specifically, Natalie Schiera and I (Nozama’s Co-Directors) are inspired by our mentor from Boston University, Micki Taylor-Pinney. She taught us the bulk of what we know about the art of choreography, and how to captivate an audience with your message. She is our greatest instructor and guide! N: Last time we spoke it was during NACHMO Boston and you were presenting work of a new choreographer for your company. Have any additional company members choreographed work during 2018? How has it been for you and for the dancers to expand the number of choreographers you’re working with? What have some of the challenges been? What has been really successful? G: One of the internal missions of Nozama Dance Collective in 2018 was to offer opportunities to our dancers that would promote their own individual goals as artists. With this, we now have numerous choreographers within the company. Natalie Schiera and I as Co-Directors still choreograph many of the pieces, but we have had stunning pieces choreographed by Kelly Gauthier, who has been with the company since its inception. Additionally, this season Dana Alsamsam is choreographing a phenomenal trio, while Juliana Wiley is crafting a fantastic duet. We are also excited to produce solos choreographed and performed by Teresa Tobin and Katy Esper, individually. We look forward to fostering the creativity and passion of our dancers as choreographers and as artists, and we are consistently seeking opportunities for them to achieve their goals. N: I know it hasn’t been nearly as long between the last interview and now as it was between the first two, but what what are a couple of amazing things that have happened to the company since January?
G: So many things! We are especially proud to now be officially partnered with the Big Sisters Association! We teach monthly workshops to girls ages 9-13 years old with their “Big Sisters” from the program. These workshops focus on topics such as girl power and positive body image, and incorporate movement and choreography to express these concepts. The partnership has been tremendously beneficial for both parties, and we are excited to donate a proceed of our ticket sales from our August 2018 production, “Enough”, to this organization.
For more information about Jennifer and OnStage Dance Company check out their website, Facebook and Instagram. For more information about the OnStage Summer Performance Series and to get tickets, click here! Nicole Harris: What made you want to start a performance series? What are you goals for it? Jennifer Crowell-Kuhnberg: My goals for the performance series are multi-faceted! To start, producing an evening-length showcase is a very expensive and overwhelming endeavor for small dance companies. I wanted to provide an opportunity for these groups to show their work in a way that didn't cost them anything but could also yield a profit for them, from their ticket sales. Most small companies are lucky to break even after a show, much less walk away with a profit. On the other hand, being new to the Malden community, I wanted to help facilitate the beginning of what I hope will be a more robust arts' scene in this part of the city by bringing in some fantastic, local companies. Our new studio space is huge and has such incredible potential as a burgeoning arts space! It's a perfect location for experimental showcases and events and this idea seemed like a great way to expand on some of the successful programming we are already doing (like our Residency Program and Annual Arts Marathon). I hope we'll see members of the Malden community, and surrounding towns, come in to see some of the performances and experience dance in a new way (or for the first time!).
N: You also have a choreographer residency program. Can you talk about that and how it came about? J: The Residency Program came about when OnStage first acquired our own studio space, about five years ago. Having our own space allowed us limitless possibilities in terms of the programs and opportunities we could offer as a non-profit arts organization. With our performance company, the choreographer auditions and rehearsal process are very regimented as we have a limited time frame to work within. The Residency program was an opportunity to give choreographers more time to play, explore and experiment by giving them no rules (other than to show up and create something!). It changes the dynamic of the choreographic process when you're free to create whatever you like, or can have an idea evolve in a way that you might not have expected. N: You have only been in your space for about a year. How has it been? What are the unexpected challenges of running a space? What has been wildly successful about it? J: Moving to this new space has been such an adventure! We had our own studio in Somerville for several years, but I was very excited for the opportunity to expand into a larger space - and when I walked into this studio for the first time, I knew I had to have it! It's always challenging when you move to a new area, as we had to start from scratch with all of our marketing efforts and getting people to know who we were and where we were located. Even a year in, that's still something we're working to improve on! But it's been such a thrill seeing so many new people come in to take classes, or audition for our company, or sign up for our programs. I hope we'll continue seeing more new faces each day! N: You clearly have done a lot to champion choreography and choreographers. What is that particular cause so important to you personally? J: Thank you! I think the reason this is so important to me personally is because I took the long way to get here and I wish I'd had a short cut! Meaning, I was very intimidated to break into the dance scene and find my place in it. I was told it was too "cut throat," too competitive, not a reasonable way to make a living, and so on. Finding success as a choreographer can seem impossible when there are not enough opportunities for emerging dance makers to show work, build their brand, or discover what their brand even is! It takes a lot of time to cultivate your artistic voice and get eyes in front of your work. By offering some of these programs through OnStage, I hope I can make it just a little easier for artists to find their way.
N: Monkeyhouse believes in the importance of both giving back and paying forward. Who are some of your mentors? How are you paying forward what was given to you?
J: My earliest mentor was Elaine Hershfeld from the Mark Twain School. She was the director of the dance program and was always so supportive of my little creations. She awarded me the Choreographer of the Year Award way back in 1998 and I swear, to this day, it's one of my most meaningful achievements. I also had some fantastic teachers at Horizons in Dance in Brooklyn who instilled that sense of joy in dance but also a very strong work ethic. I've been working as a full-time dance instructor at many studios over the years, and I definitely try to emulate their teaching style. They were a huge influence on me as a kid and if I can have even a fraction of the same impact, I know I'm doing ok. N: Monkeyhouse has a Choreography Mentorship program and we are always interested in hearing what other artists have gone through. What advice would you offer to emerging choreographers? J: Most advice that emerging choreographers will hear is related to working hard, being tenacious in their efforts to get work out there, applying to everything, etc. And that is all good, and important, advice. I would also add that the best thing you can do for yourself is not try to be someone or something that you're not. Be proud of your unique dance voice and don't worry about trying to change your work to fit what everyone else is doing. Your work will naturally evolve and be influenced by other things you see and experience, but the worst thing you can do with your art is compare it to others' and force it to be like theirs. The most successful and well respected choreographers have that reputation because they paved their own way.
Nicole Harris: What made you want to make the move from being a dancer to a choreographer?
Tyler Catanella: I feel like I've always been more of a choreographer than a dancer. I had some not-so-great experiences when I first started dancing where I felt like a pawn being used in a game I didn't believe in. So now I only do work where collaboration is premier. I encourage everybody in my company to be as smart of a director as they are a performer. NH: What are you most nervous about regarding ChoreoFest? TC: SLEEP! The last time we performed in 2013, I got really sick from staying up all night and composing the music to our piece, and only getting to sleep from 7:45-8:30am. I hope that we three companies can all gel together well so that the night goes smoothly (and with enough time to sleepsies)! NH: Have you participated in ChoreoFest before? If so, what is your favorite memory of that experience? What advice do you have for new ChoreoFest choreographers? Are there things you hope to do differently this time? TC: Hell yeah we have! My favorite memory was the 8:30am morning tech, where we realized: "Hey, we actually made a really great piece! And we're proud of it!" That was honestly the moment that gave us the confidence to form Paradise Lost into professional company. As far as advice, I've got two big pointers: 1) Pace yourself! Don't exert a ton of energy in the first hour dancing all out. You've gotta conserve your mental and physical energy so that you have a cohesive piece at the end of the night. And 2) Say YES! Don't spend a lot of time talking about big ideas and improvising without setting. Make strong choices and roll with them. There is no room to go back and edit. NH: Since this is a very controlled creative space (in terms of time and topic) where do you see yourself starting when you get in the space? TC: We will start with a strong ensemble-building exercise that allows us to drop in and play with whatever theme we receive. From there, who knows! NH: In creating a new work, what in the relationship between you and your dancers? Do they participate in the creative process? If so, how? TC: Like I stated, I give lots of directorial freedom to those I perform with. I allow them to make choices with their characters, and even create space within the piece where they can set their own choreography. And often times, I'll let people work on something based on an idea or image I have, then bring it back for us to shape and mold together. I've got a ton of trust in these folks :) NH: Knowing that Karen Krolak will be on hand as "choreographic guru", what things do you hope she can help with in the overnight process? TC: One word: Sanity. I hope that she can reassure our process and keep us level-headed and focused on the end goal. Seems a pretty cool cat. NH: Who are some of your favorite choreographers? TC: Right now, I'm really digging a ton of hip-hop choreographers. So I'm really digging Tricia Miranda, WilldaBeast Adams, and Kyle Hanagami to name a few. They're doing great stuff with their dance videos. NH: Who are your mentors? How are you paying forward the things your mentor gave you? TC: I've got a ton of mentors in life, many of which are right here in Boston. People like Josie Bray have been incredible mentors in helping me find myself in the work that I do. My Associate Artistic Director Shannon Sweeny is my biggest inspiration in dance world because of how much she believes in what we do, and her bold and much-needed honesty always keeps me in check in the best way. She's the other half of the brain at this point, and the finest collaborator I've ever had/probably will ever have. And most importantly, I reflect so much on my grandparents when I make art. They themselves were hairdressers and worked till they were in their late 80's, but their love, dedication and hard work always keeps me grounded. It reminds me that life comes first, and that we make our art for the people we love and ideas in which we believe. NH: Where can people learn more about you and your work? TC: www.paradisemoves.com Thanks Monkeyhouse! Paradise Lost loves you!
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by Nicole Harris Somewhere around 2004 I took students of mine from Impulse Dance Center to a Manhattan Dance Project workshop where I met tap teacher Derick K. Grant. I was instantly enamored with his laid back yet individualized teaching style and when I found out he taught regularly in New York City I promised to begin showing up at places he was. A few months later I walked into his class at Steps on Broadway in New York City while I was in town visiting my sister and knew just who I was. "You're that girl from Boston. You said you were going to being stalking me and here you are!" Since then I have been lucky enough to study fairly extensively with Derick and I consider him to be one of the biggest influences on my tap dancing today. Last year he and I sat down to talk about his career, his choreography and his view on life. NH: What was the first thing you ever choreographed?
DG: Lord have mercy, the first thing? Well, let’s say the first official thing was a solo. It was called “Drums.” I was a rookie in the Jazz Tap Ensemble and I was challenged to choreograph a piece. I got to work with Jerry Kalaf, who was the musical director. It was the first time where I worked with live music, and had to like come up with arrangement, and make a dance. That was pretty cool. I was probably about 19. NH: What are your biggest challenges as a choreographer? DG: For me being entertaining. I found that most of the tap choreography was very green. My main problem was getting people to dance while they tap, ‘cause most choreography that is used in shows is used with the purpose of telling a story. And most choreography that is used in tap dance are musical compositions. So finding a balance where you can use the body as a narrative, as an actor, but then use the sounds coming from those same movements, as a musical composition, is hardcore. NH: Who are some of your favorite choreographers? DG: I’m going to have to say Jerome Robbins or Bob Fosse. I started to study ballets because I realized that ballets were bodies of work that represented choreographers, and those pieces would live long after the choreographers died. And that in terms of being a choreographer, that’s kind of like the point, that’s like the painter making the painting. You want to have a piece that can live beyond you. You know? So then I started checking out the ballets, seeing what they had in common, and then what made them different from each other in terms of style and storytelling. And I had some success, I mean it was a rocky road because I don’t know a ton about ballet, so I probably missed a lot of the subtleties; they all kind of looked the same to me after awhile. I mean I know what’s a pretty turn, what’s a pretty leap, but that’s about the extent of it. With Fosse and Jerome, you can see it in the body, like that’s a tap dancer there. It was easy for me to respond and to understand that.
This July, David Parker will be influencing choreographers all over Boston. He's mentoring the Echoes, Emerging Artists Concert at Green Street Studios this weekend, and then he will scoot over to Concord to guide Summer Stages Choreographers' Project. He seemed like the perfect man to kick off our series on mentoring. Monkeyhouse's Nicole Harris shot off one tantalizing question. Just reading his well- crafted response reminds me why I emulate him so. -Karen Krolak
Nicole Harris: Unfortunately, it seems that lately so many programs like the Green Street Studios Emerging Artists Program are having to fold due to lack of funding, lack of resources or simply a lack of understanding as to why they are so important. As someone who has supported programs like this in the past I was wondering if you could take a minute and send me your thoughts on mentoring and why it is important to keep these programs alive. David Parker: I serve as mentor to dancers and choreographers on many levels. Being a mentor, as I understand it, goes beyond teaching and extends to providing opportunities and strategies for success including more personal things like how one speaks, dresses and carries oneself and assessing what kinds of psychological barriers may be providing interference. It’s a much more intimate role. I learned how to be a better person, a better man, from my mentors rather than just how to make my dances better. I try to offer the same to those I mentor in my own company. I want their presentation of self to reflect the best values we all share which is why we are a company and not a pick-up group. Choreographic mentorship like at Green Street Studios or at Juilliard where I serve as mentor to selected Senior choreographers is a bit more discreet. I try to uncover where their actual aesthetic values lie and to make them aware of what it is they’re really doing and what potential it has. I also try to evaluate how successfully they are doing what they do and provide them with a means to get closer to what they’re doing. As a teacher of dance composition I do different things. I try to give them choreographic strategies and structures that they would never normally use on their own. I don’t need to know their actual aesthetic values, I only need to give them more. I try to expand their range of choices available to them by giving them assignments which challenge and stretch their own preferences even to the point of contradicting them. This is, in some ways, at odds with mentorship but there is some overlap. In a mentor-mentee relationship the mentee is offering something of this own and the mentor is using it and extending it. My mentoring of my own dancers is good for my art and my company. In teaching, I’m at once more controlling and more at the student's service.
N: What are you most excited about for this year’s National Choreography Month?
Q: I'm most excited about dancing alongside some of Boston's very best Choreographers and dancers but also I'm reeeeally excited to present a piece of work I believe will move and transform all in attendance very very deeply and profoundly. N: Can you talk about the dancers you’ll be working with? What are you looking forward to and what are the challenges of working with this particular group? Q: This is a solo performance. The reason for a solo performance is to highlight the context of the music and lyrics by maintaining a solitary focus on a isolated emotional stimulus. It's more of a challenge as such but, in this case, very appropriate. I'm looking forward to presenting this very emotionally relevant new Piece and rising to the challenges that comes with a solo performance. N: Who are some of your favorite choreographers? Q: Wow! There are so many! At the top? In the Contemporary Hip Hop genre? Ricardo Foster Jr. ..without a doubt the finest Instructor and Choreographer of his genre having worked with a number of famed R&B artists, Usher, Lady Gaga etc!!! Next is Papa Sy, PaSy Modern West African Dance Company, of which I'm a proud member. Lastly, Loraine Chapman who witnessed my teaching abilities in the area of healing movement, Contemporary hip-hop and hired me as a Contemporary Hip Hop Instructor for a special project. Her work is simply gorgeous!
N: Can you talk about the dancers you’ll be working with? What are you looking forward to and what are the challenges of working with this particular group? C: I'm actually creating a solo for myself. This is fairly outside of my comfort zone, as usually I like to work with a big cast and I don't like to perform in my own work. This summer I created and performed a solo for the first time, and it's a form that I'm excited to continue working in. In this process I have found that as a dancer it is a lot harder to listen to my own direction than it is to listen to the direction of others.
N: Kinetic Synergy covers a lot of different dance styles. That’s very exciting! What do you feel is the core of who you are as a company? L: KSDC loves featuring all our dancers talents, which is why we showcase all styles of dance. We strive to reach our inner dancers dreams of the art we love and let dancers learn and teach each other. As a group, contemporary dance is a style we feel all of our dancers excel in. Contemporary dances allows dancers to interpret movement and music in their own way, making each piece whole. N: What are you most excited about for this year’s National Choreography Month? L: Being able to collaborate as a group to create a piece for this show. We worked as a group exploring the movement and patterns to create the sequences throughout the dance.
N: Who are some of your favorite choreographers? L: Survey Says: Mia Michaels, Sonya Tayeh, JoJo Gomez, Matt Steffanina, Kyle Hanagami, Gregory Hines, Travis Wall
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