choreography

29 May, 2009

Charlotte Moraga for Performing Diaspora: Contemporary Traditional Kathak Dance

2009-05-29T00:06:02-07:00By |Categories: Charlotte Moraga, CounterPULSE, Performing Diaspora|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

What is kathak? Kathak is a unique dance form which incorporates rhythmic virtuosity, compelling storytelling, poetry, recitation, song, swift and subtle movement, and a rich philosophy whose roots extend thousands of years. In 1992, I enrolled in a Kathak class at SFSU with world-renowned master, Pandit Chitresh Das. Little did I know the vast ocean that lay before me. Enthralled by the immense depth and potential for self-expression, I continued to study in the traditional manner (guru shisya parampara), one

18 Jan, 2011

Injury as Teacher

2016-03-18T22:19:18-07:00By |Categories: Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater, Video|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

I'm often able to tell other people when they are injured how much every injury can be a teacher. When it's not me having to hold back from moving with physical abandon, I see the benefit of learning about our limitations and our vulnerability through our injuries. When I have an injury, my vision is a lot murkier and I have to wade through a lot of resistance before I come to some kind of acceptance of what happened and

13 Feb, 2011

This One’s For Friendship

2016-03-18T22:18:42-07:00By |Categories: Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

One of the things that is shifting in me in response to the recent death of my friend Sharon Mussen is a re-prioritizing of friendship. I had a professor in grad school tell me once that I should never direct my friends in my projects--that the roles become too confusing. Even though I respect this professor very much, that advice somehow confirmed for me how much I operate from exactly the opposite view. I love creating experimental performance precisely because

13 Feb, 2011

2nd Work in Progress Showing

2016-03-18T22:18:25-07:00By |Categories: Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater, Video|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I was reminded yesterday of how helpful work in progress showings are. I often forget that this is an experimental form we're working in, and that experimental forms need actual experiments. While performances are experiments, they are high-pressure ones, and I learn as much, if not more from showings along the way. Here's some excerpts from ours yesterday:

14 Feb, 2011

Investigating Mysteries

2016-03-18T22:18:11-07:00By |Categories: Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I love mysteries. I love mystery novels and movies, and mysterious stories and myths. I love when spiritual teachers refer to the divine as the "Great Mystery." More and more these days I'm seeing my performance work as a series of mysteries I'm immersed in. Each new performance project at times seems like something I've conjured up with my collaborators, and at other times like something much bigger and mysterious that we are entering into. I much prefer the latter

3 Mar, 2011

Surprise Gifts

2016-03-18T22:17:32-07:00By |Categories: Archive, Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater, Video|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

There always seems to be surprise gifts that come from creating a performance work--things that enhance my life and/or art making that I didn't expect to receive from the project. With the Friend project, a major gift has been a reminder about the joy of making stuff. By stuff I mean visual art (sculpture, collage, installation, etc.) This gift has come at me from two sources. My friend Sharon was a visual artist at heart, always making sculptures of various

25 Mar, 2011

Falling Apart / Piecing Myself Together

2016-03-18T22:17:21-07:00By |Categories: Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

It's been longer than I would have liked since my last post. I'm in the final stages of "birthing" our Friend project, and these past few weeks have felt like the major hump to get over. As I catch up with myself and the work, I'll be posting some eclectic reflections from the adrenaline-fueled final phase of this particular creation process. Here is a post I started two weeks ago, when I felt right in the middle of the fire,

31 Mar, 2011

Impermanence Made Visible

2016-03-18T22:16:34-07:00By |Categories: Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater, Video|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

My current favorite definition of the word "dance" is: "Impermanence made visible." That seems to cover the immensity and the minutia of this slippery form. I'm particularly in touch with impermanence as Dandelion moves into our premiere of Friend tonight. It strikes me as odd how performance is what I pour my most extreme efforts and longings and strivings into--and then it's gone so quickly after it arises. This is particularly true in the experimental dance world wherein we often

8 Apr, 2011

As the Light Fades

2016-03-18T22:16:23-07:00By |Categories: Archive, Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater, Video|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

Transitioning back to ordinary life after a performance run is difficult for me. And this particular transition out of performances of Dandelion's Friend has been particularly difficult. Ram Dass wrote and spoke about how as he began to get in touch with larger and more beautiful spiritual experiences--as he got "higher" each time--the accompanying falls afterwards became increasingly painful. These performances were especially "high" for me. I made some big breakthroughs artistically: editing more fiercely, trusting my inner feedback over

16 Apr, 2011

Fermented Art

2016-03-18T22:16:10-07:00By |Categories: Artists in Residence, CounterPULSE, Dandelion Dancetheater|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I'm a big fan of fermented foods and drinks: sauerkraut, tempeh, kombucha, rejuvelac, kim chee, wine, beer and more. It's fascinating to me how completely new nutrients and beneficial bacteria develop when we let things settle for awhile. And then how new food and drink is created, not necessarily better than what was originally there, but different and fulfilling other needs. I'm realizing that I love fermented art too. When a project first appears to complete on closing night, I

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