Video Post: Full Cast, Still Crossing

As promised, this is a video of the entire SEIU Cast performing Still Crossing. It's amazing to see such a diverse group of people all working together, and to see the same simple, beautiful movements on so many different bodies. I am truly honored to be a part of the Dance Exchange - I think they have something really special - by taking contemporary dance beyond the expected , by challenging preconceived notions of who can dance, by giving rdinary people the opportunity to see the value in their own movement and to see themselves as dancers, whether or not they have formal dance training...to be a part of a group that is so dedicated to bringing people together in sharing something as wonderful as movement, dancing, creating, performing...to see people push beyond their own comfort zone, challenge themselves and those around them to take that extra step, to get up onstage, to involve themselves in a project like this...it's inspiring, and overwhelming, and it makes me excited about being an artist. I haven't felt this way for a long time.

SEIU: First Full Cast Rehearsal

Today we had our first full cast rehearsal for SEIU. It was amazing to see all those people gathered together in one room - dancers of many different ages, ethnicites, body types and backgrounds. We have been very lucky to have the opportunity to work with such a diverse group of people in putting this project together - and it was amazing to see Still Crossing performed en masse. The simple gestural choreography is surprisingly powerful when you see everyone in the group moving in unison - even the smallest gestures are poignant and beautiful.

We put as much of the production together as we could in a short period of time, trying to figure out our transitions, pathways on and offstage, and the timing of the various groups' routines. Tonight we will get a better idea of how the entire show will run, as we will be rehearsing in the performance space - the conference room at the Washington Hilton.

Random bit of trivia: it's the hotel where Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981.

Anyways, I have video footage of today's rehearsal, and I will try to upload it by tonight or tomorrow. Probably tomorrow, as I'll be getting home very late tonight.

Video Post: SEIU Project Rehearsals

Want a closer look into what goes on before the production hits the stage? Here are a couple of videos of the SEIU project - footage of the core company members and adjunct artists during today's rehearsal. Bear in mind, this is still a work in progress - we've got a whole day of rehearsals tomorrow to get things polished and ready for performance.

The presentation is made up of four sections, each pertaining to a time period or event in which people stood up for what they believed in and effected social change. This first video is the "Suffragette" section of the work. "Suffragette" is the term given to members of the Women's Suffrage Movement, who rallied and protested for the right to vote in the early 20th Century. The movement originated in the United Kingdom and quickly spread to the Unites States and Canada. It starts with a solo by Martha Wittman, and progresses to a group section including the other female members of the cast: Elizabeth, Cassie, Meghan, Samantha and Shula.

The second video is a chair section, and will be performed directly after the Suffragette section. Included in this shot are (from left to right): Samantha, Matt, Elizabeth, Thomas, Cassie, Megan and Shula. I'm not sure what meaning this section has in relation to the overall theme, or how it was developed - I suppose that's a good question to ask the company members during our lunch break tomorrow.

This last video has a few wobbly bits in it (and a stray finger over the lens at one point), because I was also running the audio and almost forgot to repeat it when the song finished. Oops! This section includes the whole company, and is the last section before the community participants join in for an excerpt of a Dance Exchange repertory piece titled "Still Crossing." The original work was created by Liz Lerman in 1991, and performed at the base of the Statue of Liberty, one of six international companies selected to perfrom at the statue's centennial anniversary celebration.

(If you're wondering, the puppy in the picture is Madelaine, the resident Dance Exchange Mascot and part-time company member. She had a small role in The Farthest Earth From Thee.)