INTERVIEW: David Dorfman Dance is ready to party at Lincoln Center
Photo: David Dorfman Dance, featuring, from left, Michaela Ellingson and Kashia Kancey, will present a performance of truce songs at Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City festival. Photo courtesy of Sean Elliot / Connecticut College / Provided by Michelle Tabnick PR with permission.
From June 25-27, David Dorfman Dance takes over Lincoln Center for a series of performances and experiences that should have audience members dancing to some infectious beats. The residency, part of Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City festival, kicks off June 25 at 7:30 p.m. with a performance of truce songs, billed as a wild and personal meditation on peace with self, others and the world. This is followed on June 26 with a workshop called Kinetic Diplomacy at Play, and the three-day engagement ends June 27 with Seniors Get Down, a dance workshop for seniors, and the David Dorfman Dance Silent Disco.
Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Dorfman to learn more about these dance opportunities, which will take place at Lincoln Center’s Damrosch Park. Admission is free.
Dorfman’s dance company has been going strong for nearly four decades. Its stated mission is to “de-stigmatize the notion of accessibility and interaction in post-modern dance by embracing audiences with visceral, meaningful dance, music and text.” Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
How would you define a “truce song”?
Any song that searches for a bit of accord — for a touch of humanity — that can remind us of our individual and communal decency, can ask for a new route, can be an apology, can ask for forgiveness, can show tenderness or vulnerability.
What does “peace with self” mean to you?
Well, it all starts with us, on the inside. If we’re holding tons of anger and ever-present feelings of inadequacy and fear, it is difficult to be peaceful with others and in the world. We have to do our best — it’s a big task, and different for everyone, based on so many factors — to make that “peace with self,” managing our personal expectations, not trying to control others, and then we can be our most generous, productive selves, I feel.
Can one find peace in today’s nonstop world?
It’s not easy, but we can — moment by moment. Meditation, or just taking time for reflection, breathing, doing anything that isn’t hyper-driven work style behavior is a good way to start. Even if it’s for just a few minutes a day, it can be a reminder that, although the world is incredibly stressful, particularly at this moment in time, we can resist with our bodies by taking care of our whole person. Little by little, it can be a habit that feels gratifying and necessary.
What are the challenges of performing outside?
The big one is taking a dance that was created to be seen in a dark theater, where the magic of lights and contained space aids in focusing the audience on the work, and moving it to a large outdoor space. The other challenge for DDD is that we use live spoken text, and it is difficult to find the ideal way to have the words heard clearly and to also do the risky, frisky movement with partnering that we love to do.
That being said, performing outdoors is glorious. Some of my favorite memories over the last 40 years come from performing outside. You get to have nature as your backdrop, feel the air, and the shows are so much more accessible to folx!
Why are the workshops so important for the dance company during this Lincoln Center engagement?
I love to teach, as do our company members. Bringing people together and getting everyone dancing is our credo, our mission — so doing workshops of all kinds is such a great way of convening, making a community for that moment and sharing our collective somatic/kinetic/soulful knowledge with each other. Our workshops — Kinetic Diplomacy at Play, Seniors Get Down and the DDD Silent Disco — all bring out personal movement, stories and joy. We get to discover something new in the presence of new friends!
Should the dance world be more open to teaching dance to all types of dancers?
Yes! Everyone dances, every day. All are movers. All are creators/makers. We just need to gather and do it together — and often. When you’re dancing, you’re not hurting another human being. Dance makes peace!
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
David Dorfman Dance will perform at Lincoln Center’s Damrosch Park, June 25-27, as part of the Summer for the City festival. Click here for more information. Admission is free.
