Advice from a Glacier pt 3

 

Trying new Trends

One of the things I teach is to try things out and not be afraid of making mistakes. 

Research suggests that young people are afraid of trying new things or making mistakes because so much gets posted online - sometimes without that person's consent. People are afraid of leaving a permanent record of their mistakes, of being canceled for saying something "wrong," or appearing to be less than... 

I try to demonstrate a willingness to try new things and be okay with making mistakes. So, I've been replicating some trends in the social media world. The JCWK Dance Lab artists humored me in making this "what's always in your bag" video. 

Because its fun and a bit silly. And we're always carrying a lot in our bags. 

What do you always have with you? 

Advice from a glacier pt 2

 

World Mental Health Day

Today's World Mental Health Day. 10/10!

The "W" in JCWK Dance Lab stands for "Wellness".

Mental and Physical Wellness. 

We embody mental wellness in rehearsal through: 

• Check in's at the beginning of rehearsal and Check out's at the end of rehearsal
• An agreement to not "keep the peace". If something is bothering someone or feels "sticky" we need to talk about it before it becomes a bigger issue. The Check in's provide us space to introduce any "stickiness" that we're feeling - whether its in the studio or in another part of our lives. We're whole-people and dance demands that we engage multiple aspects of ourselves. If we try to "shut off" one part of ourselves, we're not able to access our whole-selves. Now, also as whole people, we sometimes need to compartmentalize something(s) in order to function. But we need to acknowledge that, too. Sometimes, just admitting that something is off is helpful.  
• Honoring physical wellness. We had a performance tour, recently. Three weeks prior to the performance, one of our dancers was in a car accident and was injured so that she couldn't perform some of our material. So, we changed the material to make it work for her. Another dancer had a sprain. I'm still working with my broken foot. There's a way to get the work done while also honoring the needs of our physical bodies. It takes a bit of patience and creativity, but sometimes that's a benefit. I think the latest iteration of "Mourning Morning" is stronger, choreographically. More importantly, we found a way to keep the energy of the group focused on building and problem solving. 

One of our friends, Sharon Matthew, is a retired counselor. She shares her wisdom with us. Here's one of her quotes: 

The Review is in

In the past few years, written reflection of dance has drastically dwindled. Just like newspapers and old-school media have been cutting back, arts writers have also needed to find new ways to share ideas and build audiences. 

When I talk about the Village Voice, now, my students don't know to what I'm referring. But when my work was reviewed in it in 2005, it was one of the greatest joys. 

Thank you, thINKingDANCE, for continuing the tradition of dance writing! Thank you for taking the time to come to our Fringe show. 

Fringe is also a time that is very crowded with art and performance in Philly. It can be both overwhelming and exhausting. Thank you, for making sure our show was on your calendar! 

Click here to read the article about TORRENT: Dancing in the Churn. 

I created these images from anika's writing and Mike Herwitz's photos.