A choreographer's story

I recently choreographed my very first dance. I'll admit to feeling overwhelmed  at times during the process, but I persevered.

 I always knew I loved dance and choreography but as I choreographed this dance, something happened. As I told my colleagues a few weeks after the show, I don't think I've ever had so many emotional moments  in a year as I've had during this process. Why? I think it's because it was a real subject for many including myself. 

As the choreographer, I was faced with some tough choices. Did I want to dance in it too? How vulnerable was I comfortable going? What did I want for music and which of Propeller's five musicians would be the best to give me what my dance needed?

The question of whether or not to dance my choreography was probably the easiest one to answer. I decided to be in my piece for two reasons. First I COULD! God created my brain to be able to flip. This means I can be in a dance, while at the same time I'm watching the dance though my built-in God-designed video camera!!! It's kinda weird but kinda cool too!!! I have to add that the mirrors in the studio, as well as my colleague who I pulled in as an understudy/outside eye helped too!!!

The other questions were not so easy; although the musician was probably the next easiest question to answer.  Propeller Dance has worked with live musicians for years, and we've been blessed with five highly gifted men; all of whom play different instruments. I had a huge choice.
When I first started in Propeller Dance, I was in a rec class. In the rec class I met a musician who played an African Thumb Piano called a Kalimba. I love that sound. I knew I had to have that instrument in the piece somehow. Having eliminated the musicians that didn't play that instrument, the choice was easier. I didn't just choose based on the instrument however. I didn't know exactly what I was looking for in the way of music when I started, but I knew I'd know it when I heard it. I needed someone who would take my dream and run with it. I needed someone I trusted (which was four of them, I have never met the fifth officially and have never worked with him.) However, with all these thing going through my mind at once I knew my musician was none other than someone I'd met way back when I was in the rec class 6 years ago.

Possibly the hardest question to answer was the question of vulnerability. I wasn't sure at first how deep I was comfortable going, and I had to do some serious thinking. I finally decided to be honest with my audiences, my dancers and myself. The working title I came up with for the piece was Behind The Mask and the name stuck. Showing the inward battle we go though everyday to stay true to to who we are, the dance took on the flavor of a cry for freedom to be who we were created to be.

As we moved further along the process, I started to realize how important it would be for me to get out of the chair. I believe masks are not always physical like in the  photo above. As I stated in the talk-back section of the show, I feel everyone gets masked whether they know it or not. Masks, I feel, come in the form of stereotypes. I wanted to start breaking the stereotypes our society has placed on people with physical and mental disabilities. I have been stereotyped. It's not a nice feeling.

Another very hard part of the process was writing something up for the program. I decided that for me personally, I wanted to dedicate the piece to those people in my life who have been used of God, whether they know it or  not, to help me take off some of my own masks. I also wanted to give people something to think about. Over the years I have noticed that I can't seem to choreograph a simple fun piece. My pieces may be fun to work on and fun to dance; but they tend not to stop there. I wanted Behind The Mask to be no different. I wanted my audience to think. I made sure that what I wrote would start those thoughts.