INTERVIEW: Amanda Selwyn pulls on some ‘Threads’ for new dance work
Photo: Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre presents Threads at New York Live Arts. Photo courtesy of Maria Baranova / Provided by Michelle Tabnick PR with permission.
Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre is set to premiere their latest work, Threads, from April 7-9 at New York Live Arts in New York City, according to press notes. The work is perfectly suited for these times of pandemic news and quarantining. As Selwyn notes, the piece centers on the “threads” that hold people together and also the threads that keep people in isolation.
The dance company has been going strong for some time, and their main focus is on how dance connects with thought, feeling and soul. Over its 22-year history, the company has performed 95 productions, according to their official biography, with choreographic creations around the the Big Apple and beyond. Selwyn serves as artistic director, and the company for Threads consists of performers Torrey Harada, Manon Hallay, Misaki Hayama, David Hochberg, Isaac Kerr, Minseon Kim, Ashley McQueen, Michael Miles, Oscar Antonio Rodriguez, Lauren Russo, John Trunfio and Evita Zacharioglou.
For those who are unable to make it to New York Live Arts in person, there are also livestream tickets available. Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Selwyn about Threads and the success of the company. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
What inspired the creation of Threads?
I had come up with the idea for Threads before the pandemic, but when the pandemic hit, it seemed to magnify the concept. The inspiration was cumulative — each of my works is in dialogue with those that came before. I create work focused on fundamental impulses that connect us as humans. Refuge explored our desire for belonging and grounding, Crossroads explored moments of uncertainty where we are forced to choose one path or another, and Hindsight lingered in memory and reflection.
As I forge into my third decade of dance-making, I am thinking less about each human impulse, but more of how these impulses connect us to each other. In my work, I play with the juxtaposition of unity and individual expression; this ongoing study has brought me to create Threads. I am intrigued by the different qualities of connectedness and the fragility of connection. The threads can be broken, torn, mended or created anew. People come and go in our lives by choice, by default and by design. Relationships shift. We share experiences with strangers. We stand in community to call out for change. This evening-length work unpacks these threads of connection through physical movement, touch, gesture, proximity, dynamics and shape as well as scenic and costume elements.
How difficult is the dance for the performers?
The piece is incredibly athletic and precise and progresses from solos to duets and trios to larger group sections. Throughout the 80 minutes, the energy mounts, then ebbs and flows. The dance is challenging to dance for certain, but we have been working on the material for 12 months, including several in process performances — last spring and summer outdoors as part of Open Culture, and in High Falls and East Hampton — and then this fall/winter an open rehearsal at Gibney and preview engagement at Arts on Site — so at this stage, the dancers are well prepared to execute the challenges.
How difficult was the pandemic for the dance company?
The pandemic has been difficult for us as it has been for all dance companies. We were lucky in some regard, however, because the shutdown came right off the heels of our 20th anniversary performance season, which was presented at Baruch Performing Arts Center March 5-7, 2020. As a result, we went into lockdown having accomplished this wonderful anniversary performance and were able to relish in that gratitude for a good beat. But then, as time ticked along and studios and theaters stayed closed, we had to pivot and find new ways to keep things moving forward.
We began the rehearsal process for Threads on Zoom in December 2020 and created material which we filmed outside and presented in a virtual performance in February 2021. Much of the core material from Threads came out of those three months of Zoom rehearsals. Once studios opened in April 2021, we began working in person, but working with masks, testing, and all the many adjustments continued to create obstacles. We persevered and persevered and stayed rooted in our commitment to one another and the company. We felt liberated last spring and summer when we brought the work to the public outdoors. Now being back in the theater sharing Threads, we are profoundly grateful and quite certain that we will continue to be resilient and grow.
Can the livestream performance garner the same level of satisfaction as being there in person?
The livestream is nothing like being in the theater, hearing the dancers breathe and experiencing the magic of live performance. Live streaming is, however, definitely more than just watching a video because our streaming viewers will be experiencing the piece with us in the moment, as we dance it live. We built a substantive virtual audience throughout 20-21, and we are eager to maintain connections with these dance enthusiasts beyond NYC through continuation of virtual offerings.
Did it take a long time to develop your dance style, aesthetic and vocabulary?
My dance style and vocabulary has evolved over my 22 years of making work with Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre. Through thoughtful collaboration with designers, the original movement lexicon in my choreography is artfully staged within a landscape of color, texture and sound. My creative process is distinctive from many other choreographers and makes each new project full of surprises.
In rehearsal, I pose physical and dramatic paradigms for my dancers, and ask them to work out these challenges through movement. My dancers then, through improvisation and spontaneous choreographic studies, unearth raw material. Movements are passed through the company to discover new variations, individual interpretation and nuance. The choreographic vocabulary erupts from the discourse of exchange between dancers. The movement speaks a language of community.
To achieve a fully developed work, I unravel the movement lexicon and weave it back into a larger structure that integrates motif, character and spatial relationships. I linger in repetition, variation, deconstruction, isolation and stillness to unpack each image and illuminate different ways of experiencing an idea. I like to work with themes rich in depth and nuance, yet possessing the grace to transmit simplicity and clarity. I search for moments of lightness. As my work develops, it traverses my original imaginings and takes on its own life, telling me who it is, what it wishes to say and where to go next.
I want to turn that which we accept every day on its head. The creative process is to me the very best of living. I love watching all the body is capable of. I seek out organic discoveries, raw and uninterrupted, to let movement flow from momentum and physical sensation. I enjoy mixing the recognizable and the unusual. I seek to find joy in the process and experience visceral truths in the movement. I thrive on bold choices and taking risks, and desire to beckon an audience response of thought, feeling and soul. I aspire to uplift, inspire, exhilarate and create a community of support. I believe I get back the energy that I put forward. I call the pauses in the process bookmarks — there is this interruption with more waiting to unfold.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre presents Threads April 7-9 at New York Live Arts in New York City. Click here for more information and tickets. Click here for more information on the livestream.
