Usually Beauty Fails
When and
why did you first become interested in dance?
I
always danced because my mother is a dance teacher. But I got interested when I
saw contemporary dance for the first time. I was amazed to think that I could
do that, that I could spend my time trying to find ways to move and to make a
show with it.
Are
they the same reasons that you continue to be involved today?
It was actually quite a naive way to think about doing dance, so
yes, it evolved a lot. I'm now more interested in what's at stakes when you're
making a performance work. What are the choices that you make, what does it
reflexes on how you're a socially constructed individual, who makes choices but
is still reproducing a lot of what is already existing and who is consciously
or not struggling with a political situation, political cause power issues are
everywhere: patriarchy, reign of the privileged ones, agism, sexism....
What
are the challenges of the vocation?
The challenge is also to not lose your focus on what is relevant
for you, and what is relevant for this era. Doing a lot of shows, and working
in the contemporary art world for a while is dangerous, because it can make you
good at doing this, like, being a contemporary artist... But it's not because
you're getting good at it that it automatically makes your work to be relevant.
It's a forever going on process.
What are
the rewards?
I think the reward is to be surrounded by inspiring individuals,
the artists I work with. They won't do it if it's not relevant for them, and
this is really precious. I'm surrounded by talented artists who are also my
close friends.
Is your
creative process more 'inspirational' or 'perspirational'?
Maybe perspirational, in the sense that with the crew we create
a climate, something we feel that is right, and we try to keep up with it.
How has
your work evolved over the years?
I'm less stupid. But I don't think I'm doing more intelligent
work. I just see it faster when it doesn't work... I think I'm getting better
in working with different art forms. Music is more integrated in the pieces I'm
creating, and texts are also making their ways. You won't see it in Usually
beauty fails, but I've created a show since that with a writer, we worked on
integrating texts with movements.
What
inspired Usually Beauty Fails?
My own questioning about how constructed is my vision of beauty.
How political and marketing oriented it is.
What
can audiences expect to experience?
A show that is quite alive, with a lot of improvisation, but we
don't always know when it is improvised. This show is the most musical we did.
So, there are a lot of songs. I'm trying to charm the audience but make them
know what I'm trying to do, at the same time that I'm questioning beauty but
still trying to create some. So, the audience can expect a failure in every of
these ways, because we can't do it all. But the attempt is interesting, and
maybe beautiful.
What
has the response been like so far to the production?
This show is doing very well - it's the most successful
production of the group yet. I think this is a show that is easy to get, but if
you are a little geeky about dance, you'll see a lot of things that are behind
the easy listening playlist.
What
are your thoughts on the current state of dance?
This is a big one. I would like dance to not be protected or put
aside as an art that is still struggling to exist on its own. Dance is rich and
can be compared with any art form. So I would like it if we were mixing it with
all the art forms, always, just forget about boundaries and find ways to mix
things and learn about performance, theater, film, visual arts.
What
can we be doing better?
Along with what I just wrote, I guess it also has to do with how
well we sell dance. We have to convince other presenters to showcase dance.
What's
next on your creative agenda?
I would like to record all the music we did. But I'm already
creating a duet, and a solo, and a group work. We'll see what will arrive
first. I wish I'll be doing other shows with music. I'm preparing a cabaret for
the end of February, and there will be a live band, maybe two.
Usually Beauty Fails
December
4-6. 8pm
