Molly remembers being asked to join the company

Photo by William Frederking 2008

I will never forget when you, Margi, approached me after a placement class that I was helping with for those coming into the dance program at Columbia. You asked if I would be interested in coming in to The Dance COLEctive rehearsals to work with you. I was so stoked that I didn't even think to ask any follow up questions. After I was done assisting I ran to meet my mother and a friend and told them that you asked me to dance with you. My mother was so excited and started asking all sorts of questions, including, "Does this mean you are a part of The Dance COLEctive?". A question I should've asked, but I didn't  care. I was going to work with a professional dance company!

I never get nervous when it comes to dance, but walking into that room with older, more mature dancers, freaked me out! I was a sophomore in college and knew very little when it came to modern dance. I also walked into that room thinking, that I was working as a student with Margi Cole on a project, not as part of the company. I worked my butt off in warm ups, and then came "driving the bus". At 5' 2" I was paired with Ebony, almost 6'! She might have been shorter, but to me she was TALL and I had to partner with her!

Obviously I survived, and learned so much about myself and how to partner. A few more rehearsals went by, shows were booked and parts were given, then I realized that I was part of the company. I was a company member of The Dance COLEctive, not just a student filling in a part! It was the most magical moment for me. These women were beautiful dancers and I got to share a stage with them, learn from them and laugh with them. I danced with The Dance COLEctive for 10 years and loved every moment. The dancers I worked with are friends for life. I couldn't imagine learning as much as I did with any other company. 

Submitted by former TDC dancer Molly Grimm-Leasure, November 29, 2015. 

Reflections about the early years by a Founding Member

Dancer:  Ebony Lashay Bitner

 

I fell in love with and became serious about dance at the comparatively late age of 14.  When I had a dream of becoming a professional dancer, I stepped out on faith knowing that the odds were well-stacked against me.

Margi was the first and in many ways the only teacher I ever had who saw beneath the surface of me.  She took the time to nurture and mentor me as a dancer. She saw my potential.  She supported my strengths rather than remain honed in on my weaknesses. She made me believe that my dream could become real because she believed in me...

The early years of the TDC were a lot of things.  Creating our own vocabulary..."corn-fusing" to others but making perfect sense to us! Hours filled with laughter and sometimes frustration sprinkled with drama and tears.  State fairs and sweaty July afternoon rehearsals at the Broadway Armory preparing for another performance. Group therapy, over cocktails and P-funks.  Celebrations of birthdays and break-ups, weddings and first-borns.

Stated simply, those early years were all about growth.  Through the shedding of our individual layers and with a healthy dose of guidance and patience we all evolved.  Through the expression of dance we became one entity. We crossed the threshold of being young women to being women and with that crossing over came the unavoidable shift of dreams and priorities.

Above all for me, those days were about forging friendships and forming incredibly meaningful bonds with women I may have never gotten a chance to know at all in the "real world"  We became sisters in a very true sense.  Our kinship was born out of the most unlikely of people and circumstances.  The early days of TDC were about everyone doing their part and  coming together with a spirit of support and love, expressing it all onstage in the most beautiful,  unique and honest way imaginable.

What fun we had!   I think of those days often and they always make me smile. They were and will always be some of the happiest days of my life.

Congrats Margs!  Here's to another 20 and beyond...

Submitted by TDC Founding Member Ebony Lashay Bitner, October 17, 2015

Then I began to remember...

I've never really felt as old as I am, even when I was younger. 18 years old felt more like 15 and at 21 I DEFINITELY didn't feel legal. So when I was asked to write about what it feels like to be "the most senior member" of TDC, My first thought was "Well it feels just like the first year..."

Photo by William Frederking

Then I began to remember.

How scared I was. How nervous I had been about my technique EVERY rehearsal. How many jobs I worked just to be able to eek out a living so that I could spend another month in Chicago able to dance with TDC. How I could stroll into rehearsal after a full day and dance my butt of without thinking about it, then wake up the next morning feeling like a million bucks. How my feet didn't hurt, and my knees didn't crack with every plie or lunge I performed. How long I spent on the CTA, EVERYDAY. How the girls that I was dancing with were some of the funniest, smartest, most loving people I had met and how they made my transition to living in the city and joining the company smoother. What I remember and forget all at the same time is how quickly I have twirled my way through 7 seasons, all because time flies when you're with people you enjoy being around. Being the most senior member now I hope that my presence does for our newer members what the oldie goldie girls I danced with back in 2008, did for me. They created an inviting and accepting environment, full of creative energy and support, laughter and advice and they are still a HUGE part of my life today. When I look back on my time dancing with TDC and in the Chicago dance community I know I will remember the performances and projects I have been a part of but more than that, I will know the people I shared those experiences with helped shape who I am today both as a dancer and an "adult". No matter if I feel like one or not. 

Submitted by TDC Dancer Olivia May on Wednesday, March 25, 2015.  

Laughing, Crying and Eating Cupcakes

Remaining in the positive when you are in a red zone is flat out hard. Getting people in the seats is rough right now. Someone brilliant once told me that we are our own cheerleaders. If we do not believe in ourselves, if we do not push to be our best, even better, at any given point in time, then who will? That has been a through line in our story as of late and it should not hold this segment of our tight knit community down.  

We spend the majority of our time grueling to make ends meet, to pay our rent, and attempt to pretend that we have social lives. Truth, the majority of our social lives are spent on a particular hardwood floor surrounded by mirrors and red brick walls. We come to laugh, cry and most importantly, eat cupcakes. We energize the space with creative movement, singing and dancing, yes. We come to this space to be free, to connect, to breathe. The hours we set aside for “me” time are spent with each other and that, for me in itself, is comforting.

This group is and always will be my second family. We spend hours that turn into years building upon these relationships. We meet to create bonds that strengthen loose ends. This is why our movement invention and connections are rich on the dance floor. We own man-handling bodies and shifting through space. We are fierce, strong women who can pick each other up physically and emotionally. We strive for vulnerability and let each other see it. Being exposed and honest is what makes a true artist; throwing yourself out in front of others, waiting to be judged. We roll rawness right out of our bodies in hopes of moving our viewers.

We are not always actors, we do not always have to portray certain feelings – we get do that enough at our day jobs. Having the ability to share our stories, events we lived and experienced – when we have the courage to tell those stories is what makes what we do real. Being there for each other, physically and emotionally, gets me kicking. It makes me feel alive, proud and happy to be doing what TDC does best. Every dancer should be prepared for anything and I always want just that. I just realized in my own truth, that I always had. 

Holding Ground will be presented at Links Hall on October 31, November 1 and 2 at 7:00pm.  For tickets go to: www.linkshall.org

Submitted by TDC dancer Katie Petrunich on Thursday, October 23, 2014. 

Asking for your support

Dear Dance COLEctive Enthusiasts,

I am writing to you today quite simply to ask for your help.

Almost 17 years ago I founded The Dance COLEctive as a way for my friends and I to produce our work. Today it is much more than that.

In addition to being a vessel for creating thoughtful new work, TDC is deeply committed to mentoring young artists to be well rounded professionals capable of succeeding independently. The ability to make & produce work, think entrepreneurially and articulate themselves as artists are all key skills imparted to our promising dancers and collaborators.

Currently the company is comprised of 8 thoughtful and sophisticated young women (you can read some of the writing about their experiences here) who are helping me to realize and fulfill my desire to mentor and make new work.  Their dedication and remarkable growth as artists - some of them for as long as ten years - inspire and energize me to keep finding ways to create performance and mentorship opportunities and to keep going when things get tough. 

For The Dance COLEctive the current economic climate is formidable. Disappearing resources on the the state and city level, as well as more limited support from local foundations has had a very real impact on TDC's ability to support itself and its artists.    This is why we need you more than ever.  Many of you have been collaborators, students and mentors.  Many of you are family, friends, peers, acquaintances, family and friends of current or past dancers, board members and audience members.  You know first hand my passion for dance and the power a positive experience can have on you!

Photo By William Frederking

Please consider a donation in support of TDC.  Please help me continue this important effort and please know this:  when you choose to make a donation to The Dance COLEctive it will be invested in the continued growth of TDC’s vision and my unwavering desire to creating new work and teach and mentor promising dancers.    





To make a donation of any size you can go here or you can send a check to our snail mail address.
  
Thank you so much for your continued interest in the company and have a safe and wonderful holiday!

Sincerely,


Margi Cole
Artistic Director


PS:  We are looking forward to our annual self produced concert happening at Stage 773 in January, the opportunity to perform on the stage of Jay Pritzker Pavilion in the Millennium Park April 12-14, our Summer Workshops, Company Classes and annual opportunities to mentor our dancers.  Please help us make all this possible in 2013!  Thank you!


The Dance COLEctive is a not-for-profit 501 (c) (3) organization. Donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.

I began dancing, like many others, at the ripe old age of three

I began dancing, like many others, at the ripe old age of three. I began at a studio in Dixon, Illinois. I spent almost the next decade studying the basics and dipped into the world of competitive dance. Although I had a short run in competitions, I learned and saw things that would forever shape my dancing; awareness. Soon after I moved with my mom and sisters to Chicago where I began in a more classical curriculum in the city. It was a program that emphasized strict discipline and poise. So there I picked up a new essential in dance studies. I later studied dance in my Chicago High School program. There I witnessed and learned the depth of modern dance. I learned to watch and analyze dance in a literate manner. I attended Columbia College and majored in dance. There, I was enlightened. I found a purpose in dance. I discovered the art of dance. I did more than take class, I participated in dance discourse and  embodied a new texture through improvisation and release based techniques. I took one of my last required classes in my very last semester at Columbia. Margi taught the Repertory Performance Workshop. In the very first class, Margi reviewed with us three basic movement principles; walking, running and standing still. Those being things we learn in life many times before we even talk, this lesson was still profound to me. Because in dance, we forget how to just stand, just walk, and just run. When standing still, there is purpose and presence. Walking and running is human and powerful as just that. As a performer, this deeply resonated with me. She continued to the shape and refine our performances with both major and subtle notes. Not feeling completely quenched in just one semester, I registered for The Dance COLEctive's Summer Workshop so I could squeeze more out of Margi. Although I would miss most of my family's annual reunion, I went to the audition the Saturday after the workshop. Thankfully I did, because I graciously accepted the company's offer to apprentice in the 2009-2010 season. The following season I accepted a company member position. I have been ecstatically dancing with The Dance COLEctive ever since then.

Submitted by TDC Dancer Shannon McGuire-Edwards on Thursday, December 6, 2012.

Performing to Perform

Since declaring that I would be studying dance in college when I was just barely into my Senior year of high school, I have met the question " So what will you do with a degree in dance?" more times than I care to count. I understand where the question comes from, sort of. Everyone's first thought goes toward teaching," So will you be a teacher…?" or to owning a dance studio, then they think of performing. However, I have ALWAYS wanted to be a performer, and frankly I try to find ways I can perform everyday of my life. I was born a Ham (aka a limelight lover) and will probably be living the old adage " the world is your stage" until the day that I die. I live for a good crowd, mostly a good laugh from a willing audience and don't usually find myself in social situations where I don't make my presence known. So for me, there was never a second thought as to what I would do with a BFA in Dance.

I was going to perform. I was set on it.

All the doors and windows of opportunity were open to me, and I was going to walk across that stage at graduation, promptly get my diploma, and walk my happy behind right onto the stage of dance and perform. I didn't have a timetable for how long I would be a performer but sure as the day was long, I was NOT going back to school anytime soon, and I was not waiting around saving my money while working a non-dance job until I found the performance job I wanted.

After graduation, I was on a  sort of dance tour of my own, taking my blind optimism and endless energy for rejection up and down the east coast and some of the midwest trying to find a place to perform. I soon realized that while I REALLY wanted to perform, there were a lot of dance companies that REALLY didn't want to hurt my feelings but at the same time REALLY didn't want me to perform with them. By an act of fate, I landed in Chicago before my optimism and energy for rejection ran out with two suitcases and a smile, and set up shop with The Dance COLEctive. What I then realized was that I had only just begun my quest to perform on stage.

I was in a new city with zero friends, no place to live and no job. Suddenly the idea of performing took a back seat to my survival and the goal of living somewhere other than a street corner in a cardboard box. My personal worst fear in life is to be homeless.

What I came to understand is the doors and windows of opportunity are only open as long as you force your body weight through them, stick fingers and toes into the cracks and wedge the space apart to make room for yourself and thus make opportunities for yourself. I looked into every job I thought I might be able to do:  coach swimming, teach English,  serve food, paint fences. If it was a job and I could imagine myself doing it then I applied, I called, I stopped by the office to drop off my resume. If I was hired, I took it. It didn't matter how far away it was or how few hours a week it offered, I was going to do it. Then, on Tuesday and Thursday nights, I was going to go to rehearsal with TDC and work on my performance opportunity.

Well, as it turns out, wanting to perform became more of a need to perform, because with a BFA in Dance, I have finally found my way through enough jobs to land my ideal job: teaching dance. In a small dance studio with a captive audience of seven year olds, I use my flare for performance to make them laugh and teach them to pivot and kick-ball-change and to love dance and performing just as much as I do. I think I may have tricked myself into teaching because the front of a classroom (no matter what type of class) is a sort of stage. So naturally, I feel at home. But I need to be good at my job so I can afford to keep myself afloat, and thus be able to perform with The Dance COLEctive. So here I am, 5 years out of college with my old rosy view of being a Dance Performer, and I. am. performing. on stage with the Dance COLEctive in as many chances as I can force myself into…. But I also get to perform everyday in my job as Miss Olivia, the quirky dance teacher who loves any stage and a willing audience.

Submitted by TDC Dancer Olivia May on Tuesday, November 13, 2012.

“It was great! But what did it mean? “

When it comes to a modern dance performance, whether it’s my own, a friend’s, a national or international company, 75% of the time, the above statement and question can be overheard in the lobby, usually said by one of my family members, but not always. Admittedly, sometimes those words escape my mouth. 

With my dance background and history in mind, a modern dance company in downtown Chicago is a bit of a far cry from where I started. Having grown up dancing in one of central Indiana’s primary studios, ballet, jazz, tap, and other such things were my specialties to the extent that I rarely actually thought about what I was doing, I could just do it. “Modern” dance was something in which people danced barefoot and flexed their feet a lot, which is another way of saying I knew absolutely NOTHING about modern dance. In high school, I knew my future lay in the dance field, not really knowing what or where that meant, but with dreams of LA or New York in my head, my parents were steadfast in their resolve: Kaitlin can do whatever she wants…..as long as she goes to college. Which led me to the Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago and four years of classes, rehearsals, performances, lectures, master classes and then some, attempting to grasp that ever elusive answer to the all pervasive question, “What does it mean?” After four years and a degree in Dance, more often than not, I was still that person in the lobby after the performance thinking to myself, “It was great. But what did it mean?”

Immediately after graduating, I was blessed to have the opportunity to audition for The Dance COLEctive, which I’d seen perform only once, but had participated in a number of student works wherein Margi Cole was the Faculty Advisor. I found her feedback and guidance in those times as challenging but engaging, requiring me to think critically, which was definitely something new for me. I was interested because I was scared and I knew I would be directly responsible for the work I would create, rather than learning someone else’s ideas. If there’s something to be said for only learning the choreography that comes from someone else’s body, even the most intricate and satisfying of movements, it grows to be boring. It becomes boring because it’s not my idea that inspires it, it’s not my choice that dictates it, and it’s not my mind that analyzes and molds it.

That’s the beautiful thing about modern dance and The Dance COLEctive. I get to make choices that are reflective of me. I’m IN the work. Not just performing it. Rather than counting off 5,6,7,8 and doing a series of steps in perfect unison with 10 other dancers, audiences are able to watch 10 people on stage, existing, in space. Making choices, interacting with each other, LIVING. That’s pretty cool, if you ask me. And it’s what keeps me coming back, year after year, watching and being a part of modern dance. My experiences in The Dance COLEctive continue to influence my values in dance, both as a dancer and an audience member, to the point that as time continues, I find myself, after performances, asking “What did it mean to me?”

Which is kind of the whole point of modern dance to begin with, I’m starting to realize. 

Submitted by TDC Dancer Kaitlin Bishop on Sunday, October 21, 2012.