What was your inspiration for this new ballet?
I had already worked on one of the sections for this as a standalone, but when asked to create this piece I felt it would create a perfect finish. The challenge then became shaping the arc for the whole piece and expanding the material. I did a deep dive of this composer to find appropriate works of his to bring it to the exciting finish. This helped define the peaks and valleys within the piece and determining what the dancers could sustain while bringing the audience in and keeping the energy and attention constant. I envisioned it to be on the fast-paced side. I feel like dancers spend so much time holding poses, staying still, and being correct. I wanted to create a piece of choreography that allowed them to actually move, and to utilize their training to get them to move across the floor. Of course, I still want them to hit those amazing positions they work so hard on in class, but to really execute them in a different way and at a certain speed. I wanted to make their technique applicable, and to force them to utilize all the space. This piece demands intricate foot work and pointe work, pirouettes, jumps and use of off-balance movements. In contrast, there are moments when they have to be in complete unison. The piece relies on two elements: using the dancer as an individual and using the dancer as a team.
What led you to the music you selected?
I have used a handful of works by this composer, Alfonso Peduto, in the past. I started with the third movement, but I had to go down a rabbit hole with some of his other albums to figure out what the first and second movements would look like. The music has perpetual, continual momentum, that keeps the dancers going but also means the audience is going to stay attuned and leaning in towards the piece. Although the moods can shift, we want the audience to stay interested. I sought to create a clear arc that has an introduction of energy, a pullback of that energy and then the lights or the roof blowing off of that last movement to create an even more impactful finish. It is a difficult thing to do but an important lesson that I’ve gotten a chance to see from my experience as a dancer and one I hope will be valuable for the students.
How do you want your piece to impact your audience?
I strive to show the audience that dance can be fast and can have different moods even within the same composer. Since here we are using three works by Alfonso Peduto, I think it is important to showcase that. The word “energy” can be used in numerous ways. While the tempo might be slow at times, the engagement and intention of the dancers must endure the whole arc of the ten-minute piece. It is on the faster side, and there is a pulse to it, which I think really speaks to the New York kinetic energy. The piece is called Chasing Time, and I think we’ve all been in situations in New York City where we can connect to a sort of anxiety or the feeling of making it somewhere just in time. Whether it’s catching a train, catching a bus, trying to make a light, or trying to make a show, we can all relate to making it there on time and into your seat before the lights come up. This piece allows the audience to have that feeling and it is the dancers showing them they’re capable of making that connection and taking them where they are supposed to be. My goal in this piece is to shed light on the connection we all have to this feeling. Regardless of your walk of life, we have all been in that situation. Here, dance is the way we are all getting there on time.
What do you hope the students take away from their experience working with you and dancing your choreography?
I want the dancers to know that this piece is for them. That it is something they can own and have their own individual voice in, but that it is also something incredibly strong when they are all experiencing it together. The energy of the piece is not on one person but is instead on 16 dancers conveying this propulsive and continuous energy that I’m looking for. I hope this piece will show them what I have learned from my experience, which is that it is difficult to hold an audience for ten minutes. My goal is to equip them with the tools to perform it, and the experience to work on certain elements within their dancing, partnering, as well as the artistic expression they must convey to hold the audience for the entirety of the piece. The second movement is particularly challenging simply because there are fewer steps than in the other movements. Teaching dancers how to hold the attention of the audience even when they are not executing “a step” is challenging. That is really the beginning of any performance, and I hope the second movement of this piece gives them an opportunity to explore this. The first and third movements pick up and they get to showcase their dancing. The dancers are extremely talented, and I wanted to show that they can move quickly, but that they could also sustain and have an emotional takeaway despite the speed of the piece. It has been such a joy to work with them week after week, and I am grateful for their absolute talent and dedication to the piece. Most importantly, it is not a piece for me, it’s a piece for the students and the audience and that’s what matters at the end of the day.
