Swirling my Karma

Jamie flying with Shannon!  Photo by William Frederking

So, as one of the Social Media Divas this month I have been tasked with the writing of this blog post that reflects on my experiences thus far as an apprentice for TDC. The previous zillion attempts I’ve made at this first sentence, I have rapidly deleted out of horror at how cheesy, or cliché, or sentimental they were. But alas, after that many attempts I will just have to settle for being self-reflexively cheesy, cliché, and sentimental in hopes that I can convey my ruminations without grossing anyone out. Here we go: Oh yes, it starts with a flashback…

A year ago at this time, my brain was predominantly occupied with panic: panic about finishing that piece I was choreographing, panic about presenting my thesis in front of a crowd, and mostly, panic about what-the-heck-am-I-going-to-do-with-the-rest-of-my-life. Now, I can’t reassure you by saying that I don’t panic about what-the-heck-am-I-going-to-do-with-the-rest-of-my-life because I do, on a daily basis, but I can reassure you that I am absolutely loving the way that I’m spending the Tuesday and Thursday nights that are part of this rest-of-my-life. 

Warning: We’re entering mush territory. Firstly, the ladies of TDC are brilliant and I have a great admiration for the commitment they bring to the project that is TDC. I call TDC a project because it is so ongoing, so collaborative, so ever evolving. I’m honored that even as a newbie I feel welcome to share my thoughts and my movement. The collaborative atmosphere makes everything more fun, but it also brings an extra challenge. There is no, just showing up and learning the moves, the work actually requires me to, gasp, think and create! I’m so grateful to Margi and all the TDC women for providing an environment that challenges, but also validates my ideas even so early in my career. This sort of cooperative environment was one of the things I valued most about my dance studies in college and I’m so happy to have found a place where I can continue collaborating and learning: Learning about working with new bodies and new minds, about giving it my all even if it’s just a rehearsal, about making decisions and committing to them, about climbing walls, speaking onstage, and (to end as cheesy as possible with a quote) about “being sea kelp and swirling my karma.” Thanks TDC for an awesome first six months! 

Submitted by TDC Apprentice Jamie Corliss, Saturday, February 28, 2015. 

Lemons into Lemonade

Well as we wrap up this 17th season, we look back on our successes, and assess ourselves for next year. The field of modern dance is definitely changing across the board, and if youʼve noticed, TDC isnʼt the only company following suit. The most prominent change, or rather adaptation we have been exploring is the world of social media. The entire reason I am speaking to you now is a part of our Social Media Diva efforts to keep you interested, and access people we might not be able to through program surveys, public performances and press releases. Something that most companies in the Chicago dance community have been wrestling with these past few years. 

Besides Blogs, Facebook updates, and Instagram photos, there are a dozen free applications to which we are allowed to share our upcoming events, exciting news, personal stories, and even fundraise. There have been companies across the US video blogging their rehearsals to generate interest in their communities, others have “meet the dancers” video interviews to bring these communities closer to the dancers themselves. These companies are taking the typical separation of stage and audience and eliminating it with these innovations. And people like it. Small towns have even adopted their dancers with “specialty drinks” in the local bars! The best part about all of these highways for marketing transportation is that itʼs free, for the most part. 

Because of our economical situation, dance companies have found that they do not have the budget to perform the same way they used to. They are cutting their performance series, they are reworking old repertory, and even eliminating the need for a proscenium stage space. We are being innovative, creative, and resourceful...because we have to. We are dancing in places unlike the usual stage vs.audience situation because it makes people watch us in hopes of following the company and itʼs future endeavors. The most important outcome of this whole media effort are the eyes, not the bodies in the seats. The eyes are the things that get the people to start a conversation about the art, and then, presence in the performance space will follow. 

This is what The Dance COLEctive is working towards, and doing a pretty damn good job of it if you ask me. We want to start the conversation, and keep it rolling for as long as we can. We have taken the current times and used them to plan something exciting and creative; we have brought the audience into our rehearsals, performances, and experiences and eliminated the barrier between us. We want your opinions, your thoughts, and comments on the instagrams/facebook uploads! The one thing that I have appreciated the most about being a member of The Dance COLEctive is the opportunity to share my thoughts, comments, and experiences with the company because it always had an impact on our choices together. With that said, you are now being given this opportunity, and I suggest you take it. 

So as we break for the summer, keep in mind our plans to keep you a part of our efforts to become a well seen, technological, social media conquering throne of Divas! We appreciate you as a follower, and know that you will not fail to help us include all of those who might consider keeping track of TDC and itʼs upcoming events!  I am passing the Social Media Diva position over to Margi for the summer!  Stay tuned for reposts, musings about teaching and plans for next season!

Thank you! 

Submitted by TDC dancer Madelyn Doyle, Wednesday, May 29, 2013.