INTERVIEW: New site-specific dance festival comes to Queens, NY

If passersby see some unique dances this weekend on Long Island City’s waterfront, don’t be alarmed. KINEMATIK Dance Theater has come to town with their first-ever site-specific dance festival on the waterfront of the Queens, New York, neighborhood.

KINEMATIK, under the leadership of founder Svea Schneider, has put together a two-day bill that features 24 dance companies, all offering unique interpretations for audiences across four stages. The project, dubbed INSITU Site-Specific Dance Festival and running July 8-9, has the support of New York City Parks & Recreation, New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, and Socrates Sculpture Park.

Taking in a performance is free, and attendees can expect to see the work of BS Movement, Carte Blanche Performance/Shandoah Goldman, Christopher Unpezverde Núñez, Dancitecture/Kimberly Tate and Akim Funk Buddha, Grounded View, Hivewild and Jody Oberfelder Projects, among others.

The stages are located at Hunter’s Point South Park, Gantry Plaza State Park, Socrates Sculpture Park and Queensbridge Park. Click here for more information.

Recently, Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Schneider about the weekend event. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.

When you founded KINEMATIK Dance Theater in 2010, what were your original goals?

From when I founded KINEMATIK in 2010 to where it is now in 2017, many things have changed. Although my personal and professional values are the same, my ideas and motivations have shifted, and the company keeps evolving with my own artistic and personal process, which is in constant movement.Back in 2010, I was very much focused on urban dance in a concert stage setting, and quite frankly my goal was to create proscenium dances for the entertainment of theater-goers. I always had a very developed sense for social justice and community, but it was not until later that it became a driving force in what and why I create. Accessibility and inclusion have become very important to me, and I believe it is through dance in public spaces that I have found a way to strive towards that.

What can audiences expect at the performances July 8-9?

They can expect dance where it is least expected! On sand fields, piers, ferry landings, on park benches, staircases and playgrounds. They can expect to immerse themselves in dance in unusual spaces and be moving around and exploring the entire LIC waterfront through dance. We curated the performances in a way in which an inspired audience member could experience seven hours of uninterrupted dance, by following all sequences in each park. In regards to what kind of performances and dance styles, audiences can expect anything from contemporary dance to parkour to urban dance and contact improvisation. It is an exciting mix, and I am extremely thrilled about our incredibly talented artist line-up.

How do you think the dance pieces are enhanced by these unusual surroundings?

But rather than think about how the dances are enhanced by these surroundings, I would like to shift perception and inspire people to think about how dance and moving bodies enhance our public spaces. By breaking the routine through activating these spaces through dance, through art, through creativity, I hope to infuse soul and playfulness into these spaces and encourage people to look at life and the spaces they inhabit every day from a different, and hopefully more creative and playful perspective.

When did the idea for the INSITU Site-Specific Dance Festival come to you? Is it difficult organizing all of these companies?

I had just finished a big project in Lima, working as the artistic director for a nonprofit dance organization that empowers youth through dance. I was in Lima for almost 2.5 years, and when I came back to NYC, in particular my home in Queens, I experienced a very changed and transient neighborhood. I felt the urge to do something meaningful for our community that brings people together through the arts. I saw social injustice happening right in front of my eyes, with very developed and high profile segments of our neighborhood, adjacent to North America’s largest public housing community. I wanted to use dance as a tool to bridge these communities, spark dialogue, encourage people to see eye to eye and see our similarities rather than our differences. Apart from that I wanted to create a supportive platform for artists to create and present work.Yes, it is difficult, but it is a labor of love. And I really believe in the mission and the vision to use dance to make a meaningful impact in our community/society/world, so all the sweat, tears [and] challenges are all worth it!

Have you loved dance since you were a child?

Yes! I have always loved dance! I started dancing at the age of 5, and it has weaved itself into my life from then on. From an early age on I have been fascinated by the ability to express ideas/emotions/thoughts through the body and through movement. I love exploring and discovering with and through movement because the body holds a unique ability to connect to oneself and to others on a deep level. Life is movement, so dance for me is a celebration of life.

It must be challenging splitting your time between New York City and Lima, Peru, no?

YES! I am not only between NYC and Lima, but also between Germany, where I am originally from, and where all my family lives. I moved to NYC when I was 21 years old and moved to Peru when I was 31 years old. I often feel torn between the three places, and my goal is to be able to have a personal and artistic base in all three places. This often means leaving a place for months and then coming back there to start from where I left of. It is not always easy, but worth the effort, because I enjoy to be able to live and work in different ‘worlds’ and experience life and art through the lens of a different culture and perspective.

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

INSITU Site-Specific Dance Festival runs July 8-9 at four waterfront parks in Long Island City, Queens, New York. The performances are free and open to the public. Click here for more information.