UW-Madison Dance Department
Kloepper Concert 2022
C’est La Vie was created in the fall of 2021 as an ode to jazz dance within the realm of contemporary. My goal was to use the aesthetics of jazz to inform the contemporary frame that I was trying to fill. There's polycentrism of movement present as the base of my body was very grounded and centered as my upper body and torso isolates to create contrast. This also invited different focal points for the audience and an added challenge as the performer. Embracing the conflict occurs at the climax of this performance as my direction changes become faster and more abrupt. Instead of succumbing to the mood of the classical violin duet, I choreographed many thrashing movements to do the opposite. The piece calms down as I perform differing hinge movements that allow a more mellow vibe to take over the piece. I related this to the aesthetic of the cool. After the chaos of the music and contrasting choreography, it opens a door for me as a performer to settle down and give the audience space to understand what they just watched. The audience has the opportunity to have more than a literal meaning of the piece and give them the space to think deeper than a basic subject line. This piece strives to evoke emotions that jazz dance as a social form seek to bring out.
Deconstructed. was imagined to engage in the conflict of concert dance. The iconic LaDuca 3 in. Laura Boots were the inspiration of this piece in Fall of 2022. They take the barefoot concert dance proscenium standards of the H’Doubler Performance Space and challenge them. With hair slicked back and a fringe costume, there is a sense of ephebism, or youthful play. The inspiration for the movement came from research about the origins of the Charleston social dance. Upon uncovering information on the appropriation of the original “Juba” dance, the consistency of the movement remains to be a twisted dance step that is explored in the opening and closing of this piece. Often done causally or in a ‘lazy’ manner, there is a lot of attack and backing off within the choreography of the piece, giving it a very dynamic energy. This is the high-effect juxtaposition of the Africanist aesthetic. Going full force all the time can be overwhelming to an audience, and not giving enough energy can have the polarizing opposite effect. This piece works to find the satisfying middle ground that keeps an audience member actively participating in the movement.