End of Siamese Twins

I begin to think that my reluctance for our new duet has to do with themes. Maybe creating a dance about marriage, my marriage, is just too personal, even though it will be abstract. I have started to look for other themes of people unable to get free of each other. I’m not saying conjoined twins is the final idea, just a notion to play with. Alex and Amanda are tied to each other and it restricts their movements. Siamese twins could be a more fun, campy idea to play with than marriage. It may, more likely, serve as a transitional idea to one that forms later.

We rehearsed Icarus Thursday night. It feels like the start of something good. The physical challenge of keeping Amanda off the ground is clear for each of us, including Amanda. Everyone has been a good sport so far, however. The creation of new work is the most exciting time and the most tedious time. It’s exciting to watch the movement gradually take shape; it’s tedious to practice minor variations on the same movements over and over again. It’s also physically arduous. By the performance, all of these hefty lifts will be easier because our bodies will have become trained to do them. For now, however, it’s a slog!

I think Icarus will last from 10-15 minutes. It’s a rather short story: boy gets wings, boy gets too excited, boy falls. To me, it represents sensuality, touching, the sheer delight of experiencing your body, which does not, however, save us from death. Our Icarus is a woman, which raises a range of paradoxes about women in American culture. Women’s bodies are worshipped in the media, but women are not encouraged to express ownership of their bodies. On TV, women are more often portrayed as reflections of men than as individuals. Our dance attempts to show a woman reveling in her sensations. The sun represents the fiery glow of censorship.

We have two shows in Washington DC in 2011: March 23 at the Millenium Stage at the Kennedy Center, 6pm, free. Saturday July 9 at 8pm and Sunday July 10 at 7pm at Dance Place. At Dance Place, we will share the bill with Philadelphia veteran performer Anne-Marie Mulgrew and her dancers, finishing the Washington DC/Philadelphia Exchange that we began at the Painted Bride in Philly in May 2010.

Photo by Bill Hebert.