Aislinn Hunter Anusha Fernando
Words in Motion MARCH 18 &19 2016 / 7:30pm TELUS STUDIO THEATRE I CHAN CENTRE
Carmen Aguirre Olivia C. Davies Nancy Lee Paras Terezakis Three writers and three choreographers come together to create new works that explore the combination of the cerebral and the physical
Welcome to Beyond Words–a series presented by the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts that explores the power of words in performance both as an agent of change and as a means of igniting conversation. Since the beginning of this series in 2012, we’ve featured artists including songwriter John K. Samson, spoken word poets Shane Koyczan and Ivan Coyote, Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq and environmentalist/author Severn Cullis-Suzuki. Over the years we have experienced words used in many different ways by artists working in different genres. This season I wanted to think of an art form that was a less obvious fit, and the idea of physical movement interpreting words evolved in “Words in Motion.” For this project, with the help of The Dance Centre, we commissioned three choreographers and paired each of them with a specific writer. We have asked these artistic pairs to each create a brand new piece, which you will experience tonight. We gave the choreographer/writer pairs total freedom to amalgamate words and movement in whatever way they wanted. The intention was not that the choreographer would just take the words and create a dance piece to incorporate them, but rather that the artists would work together throughout the entire process and collaborate on a finished work. Between each work, you will hear from the artist pairs about the process of this collaboration. We hope you enjoy the end result of these unique partnerships! - Wendy Atkinson Chan Centre Programming Manager and curator of the Beyond Words series
Want to find out more? Visit chancentre.com/blog to read Q&As with all three writer/choreographer pairs, as well as a Q&A with Beyond Words curator Wendy Atkinson. On our website you can also sign up for our monthly e-news and be the first to hear when the 16/17 season of Beyond Words is announced this spring!
Words in Motion Presented by the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts Produced in partnership with The Dance Centre
The World Before Us
Aislinn Hunter & Anusha Fernando Short Intermission
Open Fire
Carmen Aguirre & Olivia C. Davies Short Intermission
Styrofoam Artifacts
Nancy Lee & Paras Terezakis
Artistic advisor: Martha Carter Lighting and projection design: Chengyan Boon Video interludes: Clancy Dennehy
Special thanks to Matt Hussack and Proshow Audio Visual Broadcast.
Please remember to turn off your phones, and note that photography and recording are not permitted. Thank you!
3
The World Before Us Aislinn Hunter & Anusha Fernando Based on text from The World Before Us by Aislinn Hunter Choreography: Anusha Fernando Epigraph read by: Aislinn Hunter Text narrated by: Veda Hille Breath: Louie Ettling Performed by: Louie Ettling, Anusha Fernando & Kelly Maclean Additional voices: Louie Ettling, Anusha Fernando & Kelly Maclean Original music composed and performed by: Steve Holy Aislinn Hunter’s The World Before Us is a book about memory and time – about how a person’s life can change in an instant and about how the dead can still remain palpably with us long after they’re gone. This is a book that hopes to suggest that the past is not comprised of a series of distant and finished events but is, instead, something we live alongside constantly, even though it sometimes seems to have slipped beyond our grasp. Set in London and Yorkshire in both the modern and Victorian eras, the novel’s main plot involves two individuals who go missing in the same stretch of woods a hundred years apart. Central to both mysteries is an archivist named Jane who is researching the connections between the museum she works in, a Victorian asylum and an estate that spans both centuries. Choreographer Anusha Fernando has created an interpretation of The World Before Us that foregrounds the novel’s themes of presence and absence and appearances and disappearances. Using the book’s prologue and the voices of the book’s ‘ghosts’ against a spare set, she explores the territory that exists between the present and the past and between bodies and beings. This is a performance that circles essential questions about the nature of existence: What does it mean to be remembered? How does the act of remembering unite the remembered and the one who remembers? What are some of the ways one can be haunted? Is it possible we are less alone in the world than we may think? This is a truly original work – one that integrates a number of movement traditions (Bharata Natyam, Tai Chi and Yoga) into a mesmerizing consideration of the power of connection and the flow of our constantly changing experience in a world that is both physically before us, and ‘before’ us in time.
4
Aislinn Hunter Aislinn Hunter is an award-winning poet and novelist and the author of six books. Her first novel Stay was a Globe and Mail “Top 100” book, a finalist for the Amazon.ca First Novel Award, and was recently made into a feature film starring Aidan Quinn and Taylor Schilling. Her second novel The World Before Us, on which this dance performance is based, won the 2015 Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and was a New York Times Book Editors’ Choice. She holds degrees in the History of Art, Creative Writing, and Writing and Cultural Politics and recently completed a PhD on material culture and resonance at the University of Edinburgh. Aislinn teaches creative writing part-time at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. She is currently at work on a book of poetry called The Ghosts of You and Me.
“The novel’s original ideas have definitely been enhanced by Anusha’s choreography and the incorporation of movement into the framework of the book’s themes and queries… As a writer one hopes most of all that one’s work will speak to others. To have a chance for the book to speak through the language of dance and movement is to me extraordinarily humbling and exciting.“ - Aislinn Hunter
Anusha Fernando Anusha Fernando is a performer and teacher of the Indian Classical dance form Bharata Natyam, and is also the Artistic Director of Vancouver’s Shakti Dance Society. Anusha’s creative work explores the rich texts of the Indian tradition, relating her study of dance to her academic research in Religious Studies (BA, McGill University) and Sanskrit (MA, UBC). Her projects highlight the depth of Bharata Natyam’s traditional repertoire, as well as its interdisciplinary potential. Anusha’s most recent productions have included Bharata Natyam duets, solo classical recitals, and interdisciplinary projects which fuse Bharata Natyam with north Indian classical music, storytelling and martial arts. Currently, Anusha is exploring Bharata Natyam’s universal application, including its value as a tool for meditation and storytelling.
“Aislinn’s language is poetic and contains strong images, so the choreography is imagistic and suggestive just like the text… [it] really fuelled my creativity. There was something about breaking away from familiar words and worldview that shaped the movement possibilities in a completely different way.” - Anusha Fernando
5
Open Fire Carmen Aguirre & Olivia C. Davies Based on text from “Open Fire” by Carmen Aguirre Choreography: Olivia C. Davies Text narrated by: Carmen Aguirre Performed by: Alejandra Miranda Caballero, Sindy Angel, Olivia C. Davies Original music by: Sky Shaver In the 1970s, thousands of Argentinian revolutionaries were disappeared by the dictatorship’s government forces that carried out acts of kidnapping and murder. Based on true events, “Open Fire” follows one woman’s return to the place of her mother’s murder in a Buenos Aires barrio and the subsequent journey through blood memory she must take to get there. How does the mind hold such memories in its countless folds, only to release them years later at the scene of the crime? “Open Fire” asks whether we can ever reconcile the past and move forward out of the solitary confinement of trauma.
6
(Left to right: Alejandra Miranda Caballero, Carmen Aguirre, Olivia C. Davies, Sindy Angel. Photo by Clancy Dennehy.)
Carmen Aguirre Carmen Aguirre is a Vancouver-based, multiple-award-winning theatre artist and author who has written and co-written 25 plays including The Trigger, The Refugee Hotel, and Blue Box. She is currently working on three new plays: Anywhere But Here, The Trial of Tina Modotti, and Broken Tailbone. Her first book, the critically acclaimed Something Fierce: Memoirs of a Revolutionary Daughter, won CBC Canada Reads in 2012 and is a #1 national bestseller. Her second book, Mexican Hooker #1 and My Other Roles Since the Revolution will be coming out this April, and is listed as one of the most anticipated books of the season by The Globe and Mail, The Ottawa Citizen, Quill & Quire, and 49th Shelf. Carmen has 80 film, TV, and stage acting credits, and is a Theatre of the Oppressed workshop facilitator. She is a graduate of Studio 58.
“My piece is based on true events surrounding the kidnapping and disappearance of my close friend’s mother… There are images in the story, such as the magnetic north, a black hole, the concept of disrobing, that Olivia has focused on in a compelling, exciting, dramatic way. She has brought the words to life.”- Carmen Aguirre
Olivia C. Davies Olivia C. Davies is an independent dance artist and choreographer whose work investigates the body’s dynamic ability to transmit narrative. She honours her mixed Welsh, Métis-Anishnawbe heritage in her contemporary Aboriginal dance-theatre practice. Olivia is Artistic Director of the somewhere there collective, and in 2006, she co-founded MataDanze Collective where she co-created numerous works. Her choreography has been presented by Harbourfront Centre’s 60x60 Dance, Fashion Art Toronto, Nuit Blanche Festival, BC Buds Festival, Dancing on the Edge, Weesageechak Festival and Talking Stick Festival. Davies has interpreted work by Body Narratives Collective, Starrwind Productions, Circadia Indigena, and Maura Garcia Dance and she is an apprentice with the Dancers of Damelahamid. To date she has adapted writings by E.E. Cummings, Khalil Gibran, Julie JC Peters, and now Carmen Aguirre.
“The collaborators and I explored authentic movement response to pieces of the text read aloud. Then, we had conversations about the way different words reverberated throughout the body... It has been an immense honour to hold Carmen’s trust in our collaboration. She gave me space to come up with ideas for choreography and establish my own connections to the work.” - Olivia C. Davies
7
Styrofoam Artifacts Nancy Lee & Paras Terezakis Based on text from Dead Girls by Nancy Lee Choreography/Direction: Paras Terezakis Sound design: Alex Mah Video artist: Josh Hite Set concept/design: Paras Terezakis Costumes: Nathalie Purschwitz Performed by: Arash Khakpour, Michelle Lui, Thoenn Glover Production coordinator: Mark Eugster Styrofoam Artifacts is generously supported by the University of British Columbia Creative Writing Program, as well as Kinesis Dance somatheatro and its Board of Directors.
Inspired by the vivid emotional relationships found in Dead Girls and the groundbreaking work of acclaimed choreographer, Paras Terezakis, this collaboration teams non-verbal expressions of dance with the specificity of the written word. Through environment, mood and emotional responses come notions of absence and desperation set in an unforgiving urban landscape. In the mundane details of everyday life, characters expose their vulnerabilities in a silent search for what is missing, that which is lost and keeps us constantly moving yet somehow stalled. This energetic collaboration opens a door between forms and reflects their common need to express.
8
(Left to right: Thoenn Glover, Michelle Lui, Arash Khakpour. Photo by Paras Terezakis.)
Nancy Lee Nancy’s first book, the collection of short stories Dead Girls, was named a best book of 2002 by the Toronto Star, Vancouver Sun and the Globe and Mail and Book of the Year by Now Magazine. Dead Girls earned the VanCity Book Prize and was shortlisted for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, the Pearson Readers’ Choice Award and the Danuta Gleed Literary Award. An Assistant Professor at the University of British Columbia Creative Writing Program, Nancy has served on numerous prize juries and panels and was selected as the first Visiting Canadian Fellow at the University of East Anglia Writing Program in the UK. She most recently served as Writer-in-Residence for the city of Richmond and the city of Vincennes, France. The Globe and Mail described Nancy’s second book, The Age, as “a daring, ambitious and original novel whose atmosphere lingers long after the story ends.”
“I was thrilled to be part of this project because dance is the furthest thing from what I do, which is sit alone in a room with my thoughts. Writing, while a sensory experience, is a purely cerebral one. To give these stories another life through movement seemed like a gift… Paras’s process is so intuitive and inspiring… I feel as if I’ve been allowed passage into an entirely different and beautiful world.” - Nancy Lee
Paras Terezakis Choreographer Paras Terezakis’ work is strongly influenced by two identities: his contemporary Canadian experience and his Greek heritage. He formed Kinesis Dance somatheatro in 1986 and has since created over 40 original contemporary dance works including 14 full-length pieces. His creation BOX4 (2010) was given the Isadora Award for excellence in choreography. The company has toured, conducted workshops and choreographed commissions in Venezuela, Brazil, Turkey, Greece, Croatia, Belgium, Montenegro, USA and Canada. His work focuses on the volume and intensity of the body and its movement through space. The richness and theatricality of his creations comes from combining contradictory elements–a passionate Mediterranean lyricism from Greek culture with the practical austerity of Canadian culture. His new creation In Penumbra will premiere at the Scotiabank Dance Centre in March 2017.
“When I read Dead Girls I was taken to another world: familiar, urban and intense. I hope when the audience sees my work they will be taken to yet another world - as colourful and vivid as Nancy’s - but quite different... We looked at common elements within the stories such as loss, longing, conflict and desire and used these action words to further develop the movement vocabulary. ” - Paras Terezakis 9
The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts Since 1997, the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts in UBC’s Arts & Culture District has earned an international reputation for its striking design, stellar acoustics, and exceptional programming. From classical, jazz, theatre, dance and opera to world music, the Chan Centre is a vital part of UBC campus life where artistic and academic disciplines merge to inspire new perspectives on life and culture. The Chan Centre gratefully acknowledges the generous support of The Chan Endowment Fund at the University of British Columbia, the UBC Faculty of Arts, The Government of Canada, the Georgia Straight, Fairmont Hotels and Resorts and Ethical Bean Coffee.
chancentre.com
The Dance Centre From cutting edge contemporary works to the rich traditions of dance from diverse cultures, The Dance Centre is dedicated to the development of the art of dance in British Columbia. It was established in 1986 and has evolved today into a multifaceted organization offering a range of activities unparalleled in Canadian dance, including public performances and events, resources and programs that support the professional development of dance creators, and the operation of Scotiabank Dance Centre, which hosts rehearsals, performances and events all year round. The Dance Centre gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the Canada Council for the Arts, the Province of British Columbia, the British Columbia Arts Council, the City of Vancouver, and the Georgia Straight.
thedancecentre.ca
10
Upcoming Events at the Chan Centre Full details at chancentre.com April 1 at 12pm: UBC Symphonic Wind Ensemble Presented by the UBC School of Music. FREE
April 1 at 8pm: Glory and Honour: University Singers, UBC Choral Union, Marcus Mosely and the Marcus Mosely Chorale Presented by the UBC School of Music
April 2 at 8pm: UBC Bands Presented by the UBC School of Music April 3 at 3pm: Handel’s Music for the Royal Fireworks Presented by Early Music Vancouver
April 8 at 8pm: Anoushka Shankar Presented by the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
NEW WORKS PRESENTS: DANCE ALLSORTS
Raices y Alas Flamenco
táctil
SUNDAY, APRIL 17
SUNDAY, APRIL 24
ROUNDHOUSE PERFORMANCE CENTRE 181 ROUNDHOUSE MEWS, VANCOUVER
EVERGREEN CULTURAL CENTRE 1205 PINETREE WAY, COQUITLAM
Performance 2:00pm, followed by a Q&A with the artists Free workshop 3:15pm, open to all ages and abilities Pay what you can at the door. Suggested $15 adults, $5 children under 12. Advance tickets for guaranteed seating available at: newworks.ca Limited workshop capacity, register online to secure your spot. The April edition of Dance Allsorts is presented by New Works with the support of the Roundhouse Community Arts & Recreation Centre and the Evergreen Cultural Centre
Photo: David Cooper, Image design Dayna Szyndrowski
“The finest jazz singer to emerge in the last decade... outstanding.” - The New York Times Cécile McLorin Salvant MAY 1
A SOUND EXPERIENCE Tickets and info at: chancentre.com
Arlo Guthrie APR 21 Anoushka Shankar APR 8