Cleave Trio - June Showing
In keeping with the theme of “Showing up Imperfectly,” I invite you to join me this Sunday, June 15th, at the showing of the contemporary aerial dance piece I am choreographing called Cleave.
With the transition of my daughter, Aida, to her fourth new school in four years, I needed a place to pour my anxiety, fear, and longing into so that it would not pour it onto her. This movement exploration started as a duet with my dear friend and dancer, Jen Eringis. Jen lent me her body to move and articulate as I explored the dual concepts of cleaving – “to bring together or to separate.” Cleave Duet was performed three times during the LunarPunk Festival last October. I knew even before the public debut that this piece had more to it than simply a duet.
I recruited two more dancers, Arica Bronze and Ava Carroll, to begin rehearsals on the trio in November. But this time, I approached the choreography very differently. I was not interested in just my own ideas and movement about these dual concepts. I engaged the dancers in a more whole (mind & body) way.
I started with a Ground & Fill Exploration to bring all of us into our inner landscape and to become aware of sensation arising from within. We played with not moving until there was an impulse to move from their tissue instead of direction only from our minds. And then we began applying these techniques to a movement score I had pulled from the duet choreography. They brought the movement into their whole being, and the choreography expanded beyond my wildest dreams. What developed was magic!
We did our first showing of Cleave Trio in February as part of an evening of in-progress pieces that had originated from LunarPunk 2024. After each piece was witnessed, the audience participated in the Critical Response Process (a structured feedback process designed to support the choreographer and creative process). From there, I folded in ideas from the feedback into the development of the piece.
On Sunday at 3 pm, three dancers will show an in-process excerpt of Cleave Trio. This showing is an informal opportunity to witness the dancers & choreography, peek into the creative process, and support the continued growth of Cleave as a whole. As I feel and work my way through the creative process of this piece with collaboration from the dancers, my goal is an evening-length piece that explores human relationships, duality, and transformation. Inspiration for this piece comes from the poem “Cleave,” by David Whyte.
The showing this Sunday is free and open to the public. It will be at Murmurations Aerial Studio, 208 Flynn Avenue, Burlington, VT. Seating is limited. You can reserve your tickets here.
