{"id":32586,"date":"2019-05-17T03:53:28","date_gmt":"2019-05-17T10:53:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=32586"},"modified":"2019-05-16T12:17:51","modified_gmt":"2019-05-16T19:17:51","slug":"dancers-explore-new-territory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2019\/05\/17\/dancers-explore-new-territory\/","title":{"rendered":"Dancers explore new territory"},"content":{"rendered":"

Magic & Remembering <\/em><\/strong>opens at Scotiabank Dance Centre on June 1, which is B.C. Access Awareness Day. (photo from All Bodies Dance Project)<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The themes in this show range from home and belonging to our collective connection to self, city and architecture,\u201d All Bodies Dance Project co-founder and facilitator Naomi Brand said about Magic & Remembering<\/em>, a program of dances and films, featuring dancers with and without disabilities, that runs June 1-3 at Scotiabank Dance Centre.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of ABDP\u2019s choreography highlights the relationship between different bodies moving in different ways,\u201d said Brand, who is a member of the Jewish community. \u201cWe try and make work where our differences as dancers are celebrated and exploited for their choreographic potential. We\u2019re always looking for new territory that challenges notions of the \u2018typical\u2019 dancer and the typical ways of making dance.\u201d<\/p>\n

A similar motivation sparked the idea for this show.<\/p>\n

\u201cMagic & Remembering<\/em> was born out of the desires from artists in our company to lead their own choreographic processes, as well as an idea to explore new territory in dance filmmaking,\u201d said Brand.<\/p>\n

The program comprises three dances and three films. Most of the works are new for this production and created by longtime members of All Bodies Dance Project.<\/p>\n

\u201cABDP works in a very organic way as a collective of artists who work through collaboration and improvisation to devise new choreography,\u201d explained Brand. \u201cEach of the pieces came about in a different way through a different creative process. My role has been to act as an \u2018outside eye\u2019 to support the choreographers, offer feedback and suggestions; sort of an editor to help clarify the pieces.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two of the three filmmakers are local, she said. Martin Borden \u2013 who is also a visual artist, woodcarver and educator, and has been documenting ABDP\u2019s work for many years \u2013 collaborated with dancers\/choreographers Rianne Svelnis and Harmanie Taylor on Sanctuary<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Gemma Crowe worked with Carolina Bergonzoni on Ho.Me<\/em>. \u201cGemma is a dancer who has been working in video for a number of years,\u201d said Brand. \u201cAs a dancer, she brings a keen understanding of how the camera moves almost as a partner in the dance.\u201d<\/p>\n

The third film is called Inclinations<\/em> and it was created, said Brand, \u201cby our friends and colleagues Danielle Peers (Edmonton) and Alice Sheppard (based in New York) and features a cast of four manual wheelchair users, including Harmanie Taylor from All Bodies Dance Project.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quoting from Sheppard\u2019s website, Brand described the piece as one that \u201ccontrasts the playful connections when disability esthetics, disability community and a gorgeous ramp meet the institutional histories and discordant inclinations that can lurk just below the surface.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are excited to include this beautiful film in our production,\u201d said Brand, \u201cas a way to connect and support disabled dance artists in our network from outside of Vancouver.\u201d<\/p>\n

The press material for the production notes that the films are \u201cof dance works reimagined for the camera.\u201d As to what that means, Brand explained that Sanctuary<\/em> and Ho.Me<\/em> were originally created as dances performed live: the former for the 2018 Vines Art Festival and the latter for last year\u2019s Dancing on the Edge Festival.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve taken those dances,\u201d she said, \u201cand \u2018reimagined\u2019 them through the lens of the camera by using the same movement material, but reconfiguring it into a new piece. The camera allows for an intimacy and detailed insight into the dances that opens up whole new possibilities. For example, Carolina Bergonzoni\u2019s Ho.Me<\/em>, which consists of three personal solos, was shot in the dancers\u2019 own apartments. We get to see these unique bodies and their movements in their private spaces, surrounded by objects of meaning to them.<\/p>\n

\u201cSanctuary<\/em> is shot in a busy urban location. The duet is accompanied by a soundscore created from the sounds of a typical Vancouver afternoon. Video allows us to take viewers into new worlds and to see the dancers and the dances in new ways.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for the dances in Magic & Remembering<\/em>, Brand said they \u201cuse the dancers\u2019 differences in unexpected and evocative ways. For example, Harmanie Taylor and Peggy Leung\u2019s duet, Inflect<\/em>, was born out of the simple choreographic question, what would happen if both seated and standing dancer used wheels? Peggy dances on a wooden wheelie board that facilitates all kinds of interesting and surprising ways of relating to Harmanie, who is a manual wheelchair user.<\/p>\n

\u201cRomham Gallacher\u2019s trio, Re\/integrate<\/em>, delves into some deep and personal territory by exploring the process of bringing trauma-shattered pieces of oneself back together. The piece makes use of some intricate contact duet material between Adam Warren and Peggy Leung. Adam is a wheelchair user but dances the pieces without his chair.<\/p>\n

\u201cCheyenne Seary\u2019s Clove Hitch<\/em> is a quintet based on themes of identity, individuality and belonging in a group,\u201d she said. \u201cThe piece is set to music by Juno-nominated indigenous artist Cris Derksen.\u201d<\/p>\n

All Bodies Dance Project has many collaborators and partnerships that make its work possible, said Brand. \u201cFor this production,\u201d she said, \u201cwe have partnered with the Roundhouse Community Art Centre and the Gathering Place, where we do most of our rehearsals, and are grateful to have received grant funding from the City of Vancouver.\u201d<\/p>\n

Magic & Remembering<\/em> opens on B.C. Access Awareness Day, which is \u201ca comprehensive campaign to raise awareness about disability, accessibility and inclusion,\u201d said Brand.<\/p>\n

In line with ABDP\u2019s efforts to remove barriers, \u201call of the performances are scent-reduced with sliding scale ticket pricing \u2013 no one is turned away for lack of funds,\u201d she said. \u201cOur two performances on Monday, June 3, include ASL interpretation.\u201d<\/p>\n

For tickets ($10-$25) and more information, visit allbodiesdance.ca<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Magic & Remembering opens at Scotiabank Dance Centre on June 1, which is B.C. Access Awareness Day. (photo from All Bodies Dance Project) The themes in this show range from home and belonging to our collective connection to self, city and architecture,\u201d All Bodies Dance Project co-founder and facilitator Naomi Brand said about Magic & […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":32587,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[785],"tags":[6041,3119,7022,6873,3907],"class_list":["post-32586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-performing-arts","tag-all-bodies-dance","tag-dance","tag-disability","tag-film","tag-naomi-brand"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32586","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32586"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32586\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32587"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}