Sam Mullen: You have a lot of choreography that is now being performed by other company members. What has it been like to teach the choreography to each dancer? How does it feel to see your work being performed by each person/personality? Nicole Harris: While we all come from different backgrounds I think one thing that is universal within Monkeyhouse is that we are all interested in seeing how a piece changes as it is performed by new bodies with new personalities and experiences to draw from. Our goal is never to have someone mimic the choreographer but to find their own voice within the work. It's why almost every piece is choreographed in collaboration with the dancers and you'll never quite see the same piece twice. Some pieces, when they acquire a new performer, stay within the same movement vocabulary and the changes come out in tone and texture. Other pieces add, subtract or replace phrases based on the needs of the new performers. Some pieces retain their concept or story but it ends up being told in a completely different manner. I was actually just talking about this last option with Caleb last night. One of the pieces I have restaged for this show is a duet that was originally performed by Caitlin Meehan and Nikki Sao Pedro-Welch. (For this show it will be performed by me and Sarah Feinberg.) The structure of the piece is largely one phrase that gets repeated and manipulated over and over with a final section of partnering between the two characters. In watching Sarah learn and develop her version of the piece I thought I would love to take the same structure but allow the dancer(s) to create their own phrase as the base of the movement instead of just adapting my original phrase - as Sarah and I did. When I first took this piece out of hibernation I had thought that it would be an interesting one to add to the series of duets Caleb and I have been performing, only the vocabulary of the original choreography is completely different than the vocabulary that comes out of where our two movement backgrounds meet. But the integrity of the piece won't change at all if the choreography of that main phrase is completely different. Karen talked quite a bit about restaging Firk II with you and Olivia so I'll skip that one. The last piece I restaged for this show is a solo I created in 2011 with Caitlin Meehan. I have actually taught this piece to two different dancers (Caleb from Monkeyhouse and Julien, my student at the Groton School) in the last few months. In both cases it was much more of the first method I mentioned above. The choreography, which was originally created through improvisations with Caitlin, has become now a set series of gestures. However, the piece is entirely about the personality and idiosyncrasies of the character in a very real and relatable situation. So, despite there being a written list of gestures that defines the structures, Caleb and Julien each had drastically different (but equally amazing) interpretations of the piece. SM: You have two duets with both Caleb and Sarah. What has it been like working on the duets with each person? Are the duets similar or completely different from one another with each specific person? Have the similarities /differences impacted rehearsals at all (tough changing from one character/emotion to the next or, if they are similar, is it the same character being continued over into the next story)? N: Yes, since the show is largely about relationships there are quite a few duets. You and Olivia have two as well! All four of my duets are pretty drastically different. It's always possible to draw comparisons. Both of my duets with Caleb are about relationships, although in one the relationship is just beginning and the other doesn't end well... We also have props that make our duets more like trios at times. Sarah and I have a similar partnering vocabulary in the two pieces, so they are definitely alike in that way. However, one is fairly linear in its storytelling and the other is rather abstract. Like any Monkeyhouse show (or any show with many choreographic voices) this show requires a lot of mental elasticity from the performers. Even just in these four pieces I jump from an overview of an entire relationship in which I am left alone at the end. Then I am the one who does the abandoning and we explore what it means to trust someone. The next piece plays with rebound and reaction and how two people intentionally or unintentionally impact one another. And finally I am one of two people who has to learn where baggage, insecurity and mental illness can fit into establishing a new relationship. That's a lot of emotional roller coaster - and I'm in at least 2 other pieces that aren't duets...! SM: You have quite a few props for your pieces in this show! What has it been like working with vastly different elements, i.e. a very special, large umbrella vs a much smaller light source in total darkness? N: It's interesting because the props all come from very different sources. The light, which is used in Elyssa Berg's Irradiance, was something that Elyssa had been playing with in Musings for months. Caleb and I were asked to dance in that particular piece and the movement entirely came from prompts by Elyssa. So while we did play with the light (and we are always entertained by the patterns it makes on the ceiling while we're performing) it was something that was directed from the outside. Similarly, the idea for the umbrella came from an outside source. Karen, who built the beautiful umbrellas as the start for a project that eventually became the Dictionary of Negative Space, brought them in to Musing almost a year ago and led a series of improvisations around the idea of the umbrella being a security blanket. When Caleb and I proposed the idea of building a duet Karen suggested that those improvisations might be a good place to start. We definitely never would have come up with Voetstoots without Karen's suggestions or her umbrella! So, the umbrella was given to us from the outside, but the movement it generated came entirely from the two of us and our interpretation of the idea. The hardest part of the umbrella is that from a storytelling perspective it isn't supposed to be easy to keep the umbrella under control, especially once we are dancing together. However, like most things, practice makes better - so the longer this piece get rehearsed and performed the easier it is to encourage the umbrella to do what we want. So we have to constantly remember what it was like in the early days and try and keep that feeling in every performance. SM: You are always so busy working on new adventures for Monkeyhouse. Can you tell people about all of the exciting things we have coming up?
N: Oh yes! We are simultaneously building three large events at the moment. The first is this show, of course. Then on April 13th we will be performing with Karen for her I-ARE residency showcase at the Dance Complex. And on April 27th we will be out on the Malden Community Trail co-hosting the very first Malden Dance Mile with OnStage Dance Company as part of ArtWeek 2019! Everyone should keep an eye out on our social media and here on the website for more information about how you can be involved with all of these exciting choreographic adventures!
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Sam Mullen: You created a new piece, Ricochet, for the version of this show we did at OnStage Dance Company in July. This winter you restaged it with Nicole for our upcoming performance. What was that like? Sarah Feinberg: Honestly, setting Ricochet on Nicole was easy. She participated in the musings that lead to building the piece and already knew portions of the choreography. We made a few minor adjustments to sections to make them work better for our partnership but other than that not much had to be changed. Both Elizabeth (who originally danced the piece) and Nicole move so fluidly that their natural movement aesthetics worked well for this piece. I’d love to see Ricochet danced by the two of them together. Maybe next time! SM: In addition to dancing you can often be found upside down or up in the air at AcroStrong in Charlestown, MA. How are acro and and the partnering you do at Monkeyhouse different? How are they the same? Does being fluent in both impact the other? SF: All the training and experience I have received in contact improvisation and partnering was definitely beneficial to learning partner acrobatics. I was no stranger to being picked up, picking people up and being upside down. Even more important and useful is my understanding of connection and weight sharing. Acro is much more structured than contact improvisation and there are clear roles (base, flyer, mid, spotter) that are agreed upon before starting a skill. When we improvise at Monkeyhouse we don’t necessarily make those decisions in advance. You have to be ready to play any combination of those roles at any time. Having strong connections and clear weight shifts make that possible. I like to improvise in acro when I have a willing partner. It’s fun trying to come up with creative transitions and new shapes. Acro continues to challenge my perception of what I am capable of. A few years ago I never would have believed I could do the skills I am doing now. Acro has definitely made me stronger, a little more fearless and expanded my knowledge of partnering. For me, dance and acro compliment each other nicely. You can catch Sarah at
re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} on March 29-30th at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, MA Get your tickets today for $5 off the door price! Sam Mullen: How does it feel to set Firk II on new dancers? karen Krolak: Mostly, I am glad that the piece is getting a new life. If there is one thing that I have learned by setting in on you and Olivia and Sarah, it is that my body used to be much more fluid and flexible...seventeen years ago when first built it. There is something humbling about a piece being able to have a long life span in this ephemeral medium. So often pieces just get performed over the course of one or two weekends and then vanish forever. SM: Can you remind me, how did Firk II get developed? kK: When Monkeyhouse was on tour in the summer of 2001, we became obsessed with the Oxford English Dictionary in the van. We discovered a mutual love of archaic words and when we began applying to festivals in the fall for our 2002 tour, we decided to create a choose your own adventure concert, titled Anablep and Other Oddities, where audience members ordered from a menu of titles based on these outdated gems. Looking back, I wonder how much our interest in obsolescence was related to how fundamentally our world shifted after 9/11. And now, I am drawing parallels to finding solace in a dictionary at a time when the unimaginable happened and thousands of Americans died in 2001 and then how I began the Dictionary of Negative Space in response to the devastating lose of my family members in 2012. I suppose we will probably touch on that in a minute. So back to Firk. this four letter word has a long and amusing history. Originally it meant to bring or carry then it evolved into urging oneself forward, eventually it became to urge or drive (like an animal) then it meant to cheat or make a living by cheating and was used to describe pick pockets and lawyers. You can see so much about how the collective mind of a culture works through this monosyllabic blast from the past. Audiences all over the country loved the interactive format of Anablep and Other Oddities and often came back to see the shows on multiple nights. If memory serves me right, we never managed to do the exact same show twice, which was great for the way that my brain works. SM: Wow, I wish that I could have seen that show. I love your Dictionary of Negative Space and I know that there are a few pieces related to it in re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT}. Have you considered presenting a choose you own adventure concert of pieces inspired by entries in the Dictionary of Negative Space? kK: Actually, I have thought about creating something like that in the future. People often ask me how they are supposed to explore the online version of the dictionary as if there is one correct way through it. Much like grief itself, though, each individual has to find a way to muddle through it. SM: Oh, I am so excited about this idea. kK: Developing enough pieces to organize into a choose your own adventure format is going to take a couple of years, however. One of the conversations that has popped up during conversations with DeAnna Pellacchia of KAIROS dance through our I-ARE residencies has focused around how to build ambitious dance theater projects. Residency programs, like the ones at the Dance Complex, are vital to choreographers who want to develop big ideas into productions. The I-ARE residency, for example, has given me two opportunities for feedback from outside artists, an incredible amount of rehearsal space, a chance to test out workshops related to my project, and publicity support. You know that I am a vocal advocate for mentoring and I am so thankful to have time with Peter DiMuro, Rachel Roccoberton, and Daniel McCusker as I create...especially because this project is so personal for me. You can catch Karen at
re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} on March 29-30th at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, MA Get your tickets today for $5 off the door price!
Sam Mullen: You used to dance with Monkeyhouse a bit more regularly before you went to grad school. We are so excited to have you back working with us again! What are some ways you keep dance in your life? Sarah Friswell Cotton: I use dance as exercise all the time. It helps keep me active and helps keep me happy when life gets crazy. I try to take dance classes when I can but it's hard to get into the city where the classes I want to take are happening. Dance and performance impacts my teaching all the time. I use my performing to try to engage my students all the time. We even create dance moves to help remember different science ideas. I use my expression and performance techniques as much as I can. It also makes my job more fun. SM: You grew up dancing with Nicole and Karen at Impulse Dance Center. The piece you are performing for this concert came out of an adult tap class you took at Impulse just last year. Can you talk about transitioning from being a student to the world of Monkeyhouse? SFC: It's funny because I have known Nicole for a very long time in a number of capacities so the transition has not been something I've put much thought into. She has been my babysitter, a family friend, a teacher, a mentor, a company director, and now a friend so it has felt like a very seamless transition to be performing together now. SM: In addition to dancing you also sing. At times you can even be found with an a cappella group based out of Brookline! What do you think draws you to those two art forms? SFC: I think my passion for performing is what keeps me looking for opportunities like Monkeyhouse and like a cappella. I really enjoy performing and being in front of an audience. It is really thrilling and really fun to have an audience enjoy watching you or listening to you. I guess, for this performance, they will be watching AND listening since I'm performing in a tap piece. You can catch Sarah at
re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} on March 29-30th at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, MA Get your tickets today for $5 off the door price!
Sam Mullen: Since you received your MFA last year, you have been exploring the question of where dance can happen. Could you possibly speak about your quest up the East Coast and how it has influenced projects you are working on now? Kim Holman: Sure! Truly I think dance can (and should) happen anywhere. My project Roadtrip Dances consisted of a 1500 mile drive up the entire East Coast, where I stopped in each state for some sort of site-inspired public performance. I think back often to a moment in Durham, NC. I didn't anticipate discovering that nearly no one in the South spends time outside during the day in the hot summer except for tourists and the homeless. I had a great impromptu performance for an audience consisting of exactly one elderly homeless man who cheered and laughed and voiced his delight, afterwards asking a few cautious questions. That moment sticks with me and keeps me conscious of the fact that my work is for everyone—patrons, skeptics, casual bystanders alike. SM: In the last year you started boxing, how has it influenced your performing? KH: Boxing has cemented my own personal philosophy of not performing (and therefore performing... confusing, I know). When I enter the dance space to participate in work in front of an audience, I do so to complete a series of tasks I've been assigned. I know this sounds unbelievably boring and far from the performances we seek out onstage, bear with me. I don't love performing work that requires me to pretend to be something I am not. I love work that requires rigorous inquiry, absolute authenticity in the present moment, and asks something of me as a performer that I can discover again and again, whether I'm digging to unearth an emotional reaction, or seeing what my body can do in a specific situation. Boxing does this. I enter a ring to fight and I'm there to use the skills I have to engage with another human. It asks me to work towards the same goal each time and uses the same structure, but it's completely new each time. It's exactly the same "piece", but each performance might look completely unique. I can be most present and most myself when I can navigate through choreography in this way. Even if there's set movement, I want to find my way through the work as genuinely as possible each time. SM: You are the co-director of Luminarium Dance Company. We are thrilled you could take time out of your very busy schedule to work with us this year! While our companies are good friends and have a lot in common we also tackle things from a variety of perspectives. Is there a specific thing you can point to that is different about the two experiences for you? KH: I think the main difference is that I'm coming in as a guest performer, as opposed to my work with Luminarium as an Artistic Director! It's been interesting to be on the other side of things as a performer, though Monkeyhouse is delightfully democratic and the idea of leadership is far from one-sided. I love the trust amongst the group and the willingness to take risks and try everything. SM: Speaking of Luminarium, what is the company up to these days? KH: Lots! We are preparing for several festivals and collaborations all over New England. You can catch us working alongside Verdant Vibes in Providence, RI in May, and with visual artist Adria Arch in Portsmouth, NH in June, and as part of many great events that are part of the vibrant festival season in the Boston area. We are in the early stages of building new work, likely for late 2019, where you might see me try to merge my physical work in boxing with contemporary dance (among many other things). One of the most exciting updates is that we are relaunching 24-Hr ChoreoFest this year—an event I hold dear to my heart, and that Monkeyhouse has supported over the years. Keep an eye on our site, luminariumdance.org and our social media for updates! You can catch Kim at
re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} on March 29-30th at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, MA Get your tickets today for $5 off the door price! Nicole Harris: What is the work you'll be performing at re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT}? Jennifer Crowell-Kuhnberg: I'll be presenting excerpts from "Selichot." The piece explores themes of wrong doing, repentance and forgiveness. Selichot ("s'lichot" in Hebrew meaning "forgiveness") precedes the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. It marks a period of time in which we are encouraged to reflect on wrong doings of the past and consider how we can better ourselves, ask for forgiveness from those that we've hurt, and move forward into the new year with a fresh perspective and a motivation to be better. N: This isn't the first time you've shown this piece. Where/when did it premiere? JCK: This piece was originally commissioned by Cantor Peter Halpern for Temple Shalom in Newton, MA, where it premiered in September 2017. It was created as a site-specific work for the congregation as a way to reflect on the themes of the holy day of "Selichot." N: What made you want to restage it now? JCK: I was struck by a recent conversation with Karen Krolak, in which we discussed an expectation in the dance world that seems to demand that choreographers constantly create new work. However, for emerging or smaller local companies, it means that a lot of old work is only performed once or twice for a small crowd and then never sees the light of day again. I felt excited by the opportunity to take a piece that I loved very much and allow it to be seen in multiple settings by as many different audiences as possible. This has also allowed me to take another look at certain parts of the piece and adjust, add, subtract, or just see how it evolves simply by being set on a new dancer. This piece was an unexpected joy to work on. The movement feels so natural and fun to do and I genuinely enjoyed creating it and setting it on my dancers. I’m excited for the opportunity to bring it back to life and present it to new audiences. N: Who are the dancers you are working with? JCK: Aside from myself, the other dancers performing with me are Marisa Cohen, Alaina Sawyer and Amanda Untracht. (Natalie Schiera is also in the new cast but will not be performing on the 29th.) N: This is the first time you've worked with some of these dancers. How has that process been? JCK: Yes! Marisa is the only other dancer from the original cast of this piece, and I’ve brought in Alaina to join. I’ve worked with both for several years through other OnStage projects. I’ve never worked with Amanda before, but she is currently in residency at OnStage and I thought she’d be a great fit for this. I met Natalie through recent collaborations with Nozama Dance Collective, but also never danced with her before. It has been an absolute joy working with these dancers. They’ve learned the work at lightening speed and are beautiful movers. I’m so glad that we’ll be able to perform the work several times together! N: Where can people see the full piece? JCK: The full piece will be presented at the AS220 Providence Movement Festival on Thursday, April 25 and Saturday, April 27! N: What other amazing things are you doing that people should know about?
JCK: Oh! Just a couple of things: - April 13: Empower One Another - A performance series focused on the themes of the female experience and female empowerment, co-produced by myself and Nozama Dance Collective. Featuring 6 dance companies, including work that we have choreographed collaboratively, at OnStage Dance Company. - April 27: Malden Dance Mile for Artweek Boston - An outdoor street festival celebrating dance and movement. Co-produced by myself and the lovely Nicole Harris and Karen Krolak of Monkeyhouse. Located on the Malden Walking Path between Ferry St and Maplewood. - June 15: OnStage Dance Company’s Season 17 Performance featuring original work created by emerging choreographers and performed by our company of 50+ dancers, at BU Dance Theater.
Nicole Harris: You have been working with Sam Mullen quite regularly for almost two years. You will be performing two duets, Connexa (choreographed by Nikki Sao Pedro-Welch and Sarah Feinberg) and Firk II (choreographed by Karen Krolak and myself) in this concert. Can you talk about what it has been like to work with Sam? Olivia Scharff: Working with Sam has been wonderful! From the moment we met at Musing, we both knew we were kindred spirits and would get along well. This friendship is clear when dancing with Sam because our personalities mesh and performing becomes easy. I would like to point out that Connexa is especially easy for us. It is as if Sarah and Nikki set the characters on us specifically and we have a great time bringing them to life! N: When we did re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} in the OnStage Summer Series in July Karen created a new solo, [82], for you. Since then the piece has also been taught to one of our guest artists, Kim Holman. Can you talk about what it was like to see a work you helped generate performed by someone else for the first time? OS: I really enjoyed watching Kim perform [82] at Groton School in the beginning of February. This piece created by Karen has many different interpretations, which is what I love about it. I enjoyed how the piece had the same background and story but the journey throughout was different. It’s like if you give two children instructions to construct a house, the result you get will be a house, but the journey to create this structure will be very different! You can catch Olivia at
re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} on March 29-30th at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, MA Get your tickets today for $5 off the door price! Sam Mullen: You will be performing a new (to you) piece in this show. It was choreographed by Nicole Harris and originally performed by Caitlin Meehan. As you worked on making the piece your own you developed a rather extensive backstory of your character, Fred. How did that come about and how did it change how you viewed the piece? Caleb Howe: As an exercise to help me with Noumenon, Nicole asked me to fill in a lot of the backstory that goes unsaid in the piece. With whom is the character texting? Why? Where is he? In a couple cases the specifics of the backstory became part of the piece. His aunt's habit of calling at inopportune times was incorporated into the choreography. But the exercise wasn't just about informing specific moments in the piece, but also finding all the ways that the character *isn't* Caleb. Because the piece is rooted in a personal moment that we've all experienced it was easy to become self conscious about the movement. Inventing a substantial backstory for the character helped separate his motivations, movements and decisions from my own. SM: You and Nicole developed a duet, Voetstoots, (your choreographic debut!) for the first version of re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} in July. It has changed some since that first performance. How have audience responses from different concerts helped develop the piece? CH: I'm not sure how much we've incorporated from the audience as we've developed the piece. I think both Nicole and I went into the July performance knowing that we wanted to do a lot of work on the piece afterward. More than anything we wanted time to get past rehearsing the movement and work on the other aspects of the piece - the characters, the dynamic between them and the acting. That said, because the piece is so narrative, it has been fun to hear audience members interpretation of the story. SM: How does your background in theatrical design influence either the development of the umbrella piece or how you perform in general? CH: I used to do stage carpentry for a theater group in the bay area. The best analogy I can draw to working with Monkeyhouse is that when I was building sets, someone else was giving me a design and it was my job to fill in the gaps and make it work within the constraints of the space, the materials and the budget. Much of what I've done with Monkeyhouse follows a similar pattern - whether it's Musings where the leader has an idea and I'm trying to interpret it, or the umbrella piece where the physical prop was the starting point and everything evolved from there. You can catch Caleb at
re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} on March 29-30th at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, MA Get your tickets today for $5 off the door price! Nicole Harris: You will be doing two duets with Olivia Scharff during the show. Can you tell me a bit about what it has been like to have one partner that you work with with more regularity? Sam Mullen: Working with Olivia has been a completely different experience than I’ve had with any other partner. We had a natural connection from the instant we met and partnering together was completely organic. We gravitate towards each other when working on improv prompts in monthly Musings and have similar movement styles. It was obvious early on that we needed to explore partnering pieces together. Our personalities compliment each other well which comes through in our movements. We trust each other entirely which allows us to try out tricks that we would otherwise feel anxious about. We’ve been able to grow together by supporting and encouraging each other over the last year and a half. I cannot wait to bring our quirky friendship to the stage this month! N: Connexa is a duet you and Olivia have performed before but you're adding a new one to this show called Firk II. The piece was originally choreographed in 2006 by me and Karen and this is the first time anyone else has danced it. Not surprisingly for the two of us, there is no small amount of partnering in the piece. What has it been like to learn the piece and all the new lifts? SM: Most of my recent work in Musings and rehearsals has been very grounded and slower paced. Learning Firk II for the first time was shocking! There are flips, tricks, and lifts sprinkled throughout the choreography. At first, I was afraid my body wouldn’t allow me to do some of these tricks anymore. Would my body still be flexible enough in the ways needed to be able to perform this piece? Within the first two hours of learning the piece, I was obsessed. Karen and Nicole choreographed this high energy, strong piece in a way that is very easy to learn. There are tricks to the tricks that make them much easier to perform than they appear. It is so invigorating to perform! It might even be my new favorite piece. You can catch Sam at
re{ACT} re{BUILD} re{COLLECT} on March 29-30th at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, MA Get your tickets today for $5 off the door price! 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 |
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