Author: Sara Fox

I wanted to highlight a student in the dance department for the last post highlighting Black History Month. Brooke Alexandria Taylor is a second year dance major that has organized #DanceforFlyod, created a screen dance entitled A Repetitious Narrative, and hosted an anti-racist staff and student assembly this past week. She has worked tirelessly to address issues behind racism in and out of the department. I asked her about her experience organizing and creating such important works.

Can you tell us about #DanceforFloyd ? How did it start? 

“This past summer I planned a protest entitled Drive In For Justice, which was a safe protest for the Black Lives Matter Movement that encouraged attendees to remain in their car. Through organizing this protest I discovered that I truly find joy in protest organization and giving people a platform to express their emotions. To create more awareness surrounding racial injustice. However, when the summer time ended and it was time to return to The University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus, I did not want to let my efforts for the Black Lives Matter movement to end. I had the idea to plan another protest focusing on artistic expression.”

What was the process like? How did you find dancers to participate and a space to share this?

“The dancers in the protest had a variety of academic backgrounds and belong to several schools within The University of Michigan. The artists were all African American, but there were also so many other supporters that showed their allyship with their presence and protest signage. We danced in the intersection of South State Street and North University and it was a huge open space that was beautifully covered in art by students at The University of Michigan.”

Urban Bush Women was founded in 1984 by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar. It is based in Brooklyn, New York, a non-profit dance company and the only professional African-American women’s dance company in existence. This company strives to bring forth untold stories of living as a black woman in America to light through dance. Through dance they address issues of social justice, affirming diversity, fostering community engagement and developing new audiences.

Urban Bush Women started has hair parties, a place where black women can come and do their hair together. Growing up I never had to learn how to do my hair differently than any of my friends, I honestly didn’t even know that caring for black hair was different than caring for my type of hair. These hair parties allowed women to share stories and come together as a community.

The company recognizes that everyone comes from different backgrounds and uses that as a force to drive the works they create. Trust is key to building the relationships necessary in order for each participant to get the most out of their experience at a hair party or dance class. The demand for leadership allow the group members to feel comfortable enough in a vulnerable group setting is vital- this helps foster creativity within the group. Having taken class with the dancers of the company I know how important it is for the leader to create a safe space.

Two years ago the company came to set a piece on the dance students for the departments annual Power Center show. The process of the audition and rehearsals were not only extremely physical, but emotionally liberating. The way Urban Bush Women carry out their classes is similar to the Batsheva Dance Company. All mirrors are covered, everyone is dancing facing in towards the center of the room, everyone in the room must be participating in the class. This allows the judgement of oneself to be left at the door. In class we would often find ourselves exhausting our bodies with physical moment, and with the instruction of the leader we would yell out something- whether that be a happy or sad thought. We are often left to let our movement subside and embrace the emotions that we are left with.

Here is the Urban Bush Women website: https://www.urbanbushwomen.org/

Here is Urban Bush Women “Hair and Other Stories”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idHpfjroH3g

It has officially been two weeks into black history month and as a white student I remember my predominantly white school honoring black history month with one announcement on February 1st- growing up I realize that this is a privilege and throughout this past year I have begun to research, support, and advocate for the social injustices that I have heard so much about growing up. I would like to carry the work and awareness I have built for myself into 2021. I plan to spotlight various black artists throughout this month, I am not trying to be a white savior. I would only like to use this platform as an opportunity to recognize artists that I feel have shaped dance for generations to come.

Katherine Dunham was a dancer and choreographer, she is known for her technique- The Dunham technique.  She has been called the “matriarch and queen mother of black dance.”A Chicago native (just like me), she was the first African American women to attend the University of Chicago and earn a bachelor, masters, and doctoral degrees all in anthropology. After graduation she founded the Negro Dance Group, they performed at countless Chicago Theatres and danced with the Chicago Opera Company. Two years after founding her company she was invited to partake in a fellowship in the Caribbean, studying all aspects of dance and the motivations behind the artform.

Katherine Dunham revolutionized American dance in the 1930’s. She went to the roots of black dance and rituals. transforming them into artistic choreography. She was a pioneer by using folk and ethnic dance in choreography performed on mainstream stages. Dunham showed the world that African American heritage is beautiful and deserves to be given a platform. Katherine has been credited for bringing these Caribbean and African influences to a western-dominated dance world.

She returned to the United States with new information on new methods of movement and expression. She then created the Dunham Technique that transformed the world of dance. I am currently enrolled in Dunham technique. As a dancer I pride myself in the ability to transform into any setting I am placed in, however, on my first day of Dunham Technique I realized how out of my league I was. It took my body a few weeks to understand how the technique feels on my body, and I am still getting used to it. I have attached a short class clip of what the Dunham technique looks like, as well as, Dunham dancing in the infamous Ballet Creole.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlpJ6B0uIz8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSTuO5E9_1g

Arts In Color is a campus arts organization that celebrates diversity through dance! It was started by Johanna Kepler, a dance major and recent graduate of the Dance Department here at Michigan. This year with the inability to share dance and performances live the organization created “Range of Reactions” a 5 short film production all choreographed and filmed by Dance Department Students. They began rehearsals and auditions for this project early in the school year and finally, after all of their hard work the film was released on Friday! Katie Besser is a sophomore from Los Angeles and was a choreographer for this project. I have had the pleasure of working with Katie previously and was interested to see what inspired her to create a piece for this project, what she found to be challenges, and how she enjoyed working with film.

Introduce Yourself- name, pronouns, major/minors, and hometown

“Hi, my name is Katey Besser and my pronouns are she/her/hers.  I am a dual degree student with Dance in the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance and Movement Science in the School of Kinesiology.  My hometown is Los Angeles, California.”

Why did you want to be a choreographer for the Arts In Color Showcase? 

“I wanted to be a choreographer for the Arts In Color Showcase because I really like choreographing and was inspired by the AIC showcase last year so I knew that I wanted to choreograph a piece this year.  After attending the informational meeting I was inspired by the concept of the showcase “Range of Reaction” and had many ideas that I was excited to start developing.  So much has happened in the past year that I was excited for the opportunity to work closely with other dancers and create a meaningful piece. After not dancing with other people for months of quarantine, I was excited to go back to creating art and collaborating with others for the AIC Showcase and am very grateful for the opportunity to do that safely.”

For those who don’t know what Arts In Color is can you explain the organization and what it means to you?

“Yes, Arts In Color is an organization that uses dance and the arts to advocate for social justice through events that celebrate diversity, equity, and inclusion.  We use our voices and gift of dance to influence change on issues from topics including race, sexuality, gender, identity, and more.  Arts In Color encourages conversations to promote an inclusive and meaningful learning environment within the Department of Dance and for the UM community.  I have really enjoyed attending meetings and learning from my peers and their experiences.  It is a really safe space to learn, share, and make a change.  As a woman in today’s society there are many challenges I have faced so AIC has helped me be able to open up about my stories. Through the process of working on my piece for the showcase, my dancers really inspired me by hearing their stories which helped me incorporate their individuality into the piece.”

When creating this work was there an initial idea that sparked your creative process?

“Yeah! The prompt of the Showcase “Range of Reaction” was ‘how a person’s environment and genetics influence the person they are and the life that they live’.  This statement really resonated with me because I think everyone has had an experience where they felt silenced to speak up for their beliefs by their peers or what was in the media.  I wanted to research the response people receive within a structured group when they are trying to break away and disturb the system.  So in this piece I focused on the individual versus the groupthink.  The piece looks at how external influences have altered our innate intuition and knowledge, specifically with social justice issues such as racial inequality, income inequality, and discrimination. I pictured the image of a wolf pack when wanting to portray the individual versus groupthink.  Wolves rely on one another for food, safety, warmth, and acquaintance.  When one wolf breaks away from the pack the dynamic of the group is disturbed and the pack tries to bring them back to their group.  This relates to us as people because today there is pressure to put aside our personal beliefs to adopt the opinion of the people around us.  Ultimately, we need strength to form our own opinions and break from the group so our voices can be heard.”

When casting your work what were you looking for in dancers?

“When casting my work I was looking for dancers that were eager and excited to dance as well as open to having conversations and exploring different concepts.  I ended up having an amazing cast of two freshmen and one junior in my piece as well as myself who is a sophomore.  It was really neat being able to work closely with a cast of all different years in school because going into it we didn’t know each other that well but everyone brought in such new perspectives and we quickly all bonded.  With Covid and not having many classes in the building together as a department, it was nice for us to connect over this.  The piece came together so nicely because of the dancers and they made the experience so enjoyable, I am so grateful for them!”

What was the process like? How was it choreographing, rehearsing, and performing during a time of COVID? 

“The process definitely had its ups and downs but I am very happy with how it turned out.  I started with my concept and from there found music, found a location, and imagined an overview of how I wanted the piece to look.  I then started choreographing on my own and mapping out the structure.  Choreographing in the time of Covid was more challenging because I have a limited space at home to move which definitely took longer than if I were in the dance studio but it was also fun to dance and choreograph in new places like my driveway.  I then held rehearsals with the cast.  We started each rehearsal discussing a new question that helped us develop the idea for the piece and so that everyone had contribution.  Most rehearsals were outside on the concrete basketball courts so that we were outside and wearing masks around each other. There were a couple times when the weather made it so that we had to rehearse on zoom and it is nice that we have the technology for this but also makes putting together the piece more difficult. Rehearsals do feel different when they aren’t in the dance studio but everyone adapted well.  If I were to choreograph this piece in non covid times I would have used more partner work but I had to be creative with how to portray some of the sections since we cannot touch as well as how to use the space so there was enough room between us. We also had an issue where Washtenaw county ordered a stay at home because of covid for two weeks and we were supposed to film that weekend.  The filming got put on hold until the order was lifted but by that time it was really cold outside which was tough for filming because our muscles were not warm to dance but we pushed through.  I am so grateful for the resilience and strength of my cast they were so easy going and made it all possible.  Covid has changed a lot of things in the world and the best we can do is to adapt to this new way of life and continue pursuing our passions.  I am so happy with how the piece turned out and am very grateful that I had this opportunity to dance and choreograph.”

Having the pleasure of watching the entire short film, I loved watching katies choreography immersed in nature. The music choice was beautifully encompassed in the filming and dancing. The sun piercing through the trees as the dancers moved in neutral colors. They were extremely grounded and it was relaxing to watch, The filming, editing, and dancing were all done extremely professionally since this whole production began and ended with students. If you have not had the opportunity to watch the short film the link to watch this amazing project is below.

https://vimeo.com/user131672535

There is no doubt that the arts community has been greatly affected by this pandemic. Not just the many struggling dance companies or Broadway unfortunately being placed on hold until the summer of 2021, but the young aspiring artists as well. The young artists in training are forced to take classes online in spaces that don’t have barres, marley floors, peers, or frankly space.

This past semester an online improvisation class was offered through the dance department. It was taught by Charli Brissey who is very well known for their creative dance concept videos. Online performing is a strength of theirs. Taking an online class with a professor who is comfortable with sharing dance through a screen adds a sense of ease to the students taking their class as well. For the final project Charli instructed the students to take the information that they had been writing and discussing about in class all semester and create an online submission- whatever they felt best represented what they had learned. The sky is the limit. Olivia Johnson created an online dance concept video that was extremely breathtaking. Olivia Johnson is a third year dance major originally from the suburbs of Los Angeles. I asked Olivia to explain her creative process and journey throughout this final project and I am pleased to share her video!

When beginning this final project what initial idea sparked your process?