Dancing in the Black Box

From the opening with an intriguing contemporary duet that made statements about the effects of abusive relationships, to a fiery, fast-paced modern solo with a level of preciseness that was breath-taking, to an ensemble finale that blended elements of classical and contemporary ballet, Dancing in the Black Box showcased the best of Elon University’s dance department.  Above and beyond any dance performance I have seen at Elon University, Dancing in the Black Box was a captivating evening of work by faculty, students, and guest artists that included a broad assortment of dance styles, music, and presentational elements.  The show was thought provoking, technically impressive, stylistically diverse, and extremely enjoyable to attend with, or without a dance background.

Although the majority of the show was based in a very contemporary style of dance, each piece was unique in its form and presentation.  The opening piece, “Tink” was made up of very abstract movement with many drastic rhythmic changes requiring the dancers to be closely connected through the sound of their breaths.  The two females in the piece were very stoic in their expressions and their entire beings evoked a sense of overbearing pain and sorrow, adding to the idea of the effects of abusive relationships.  In this way, their interaction throughout the piece was almost disturbing in a sense, with very ominous gestures and development of intensifying movement.  In comparison, pieces like “Letting Go” and “A Transitional Season” had a more light-hearted contemporary feel.  They seemed to tell a story in a more concrete structure.  Movements in “Letting Go” were fluid and almost lyrical, while the choreography in “A Transitional Season” was very staccato and playful.  “Letting Go” actually used language, which was a very unique element to the piece, seeing as dance is normally a language that remains unspoken.  It was captivating to see the blending of spoken dialogue, which evoked great levels of emotion and understanding, with the intention behind the more lyrical movement, which seemed almost spontaneous and free at times.  In student Katie Baker’s piece, Fiona Koch brought the show to a climax with the fast-paced intensity of her contemporary solo.  The piece was very grounded, yet Fiona had to be on top of herself in order to quickly move from one almost robotic movement to another.  Due to the focus and rhythmic nature of this piece, the music and lighting were two very pertinent aspects to the material and the message of a broken record. 

Overall there was a great fluidity throughout this show.  The movement was connected and emotional with excellent musicality.  Technique was at a very high level, especially as seen in the last piece “Edge”, choreographed by ballet instructor, Jenn Guy Metcalf.  Although extremely fast paced, this was another example of that sense of contemporary freedom and fluidity reigned in by a classical structure that seemed to be a theme throughout the show.  Except for one section of the first piece that was out of sink because one of the dancers lost her balance, the preciseness and level of technical excellence of this show was breathtaking.  The dancers were connected and moving together as a unit, especially in the piece “The Magical Cusp”.  Breaths were taken together and even the musicality of the dancers was matched down to the details.  With regards to the more emotional or thematic elements of the show, I felt very strongly about the effectiveness of the dances in sending a message.  Because the movement was so abstract in some pieces, I did have trouble determining the specificities of the overall message of each piece; however, the mood of each piece was very clear, as mentioned above.  Themes included abusive relationships, leaving home, love, community, and geometric shapes. 

Overall I was impressed with this performance.  High levels of technique, musicality, commitment, and freedom of movement were represented throughout this show.  The messages were captivating, and even non-dancers found the movement patterns intriguing and impressive, as well as the emotional qualities inviting.  After seeing many other Elon dance productions, this show is in my opinion, the most well-rounded, highly technical, and emotionally provoking performance that Elon University’s dance department has presented.  It was impressive across the board, and it is a show worth the ticket price, undoubtedly.

The International Festival of Raleigh (a while back)

This past Sunday I joined my classmate on a trip to the annual International Festival of Raleigh. I was lucky enough to be able to attend this event last year, and was just as pleased with it this year. My friend, who I met through Spanish class, and I both had fun making our way there listening to her Spanish speaking GPS who she calls Raul. The Festival takes place inside a spacious convention center and has a stage for the incredible variety of dancers and performers who are present there throughout the event. There is a veritable ocean of kiosks, each with individuals from different nations selling international goods or presenting information on their country. A wall of food stands also loops around the back which has never failed to impress me with some type of delicious exotic cuisine or another. Hundreds of people mill about through the labyrinth of mini-culture shocks in a true spectacle of diversity, hidden among the plain buildings of Raleigh.

The most momentous event that occurred for me during my time there happened at one of the smaller, unassuming stands. This one advertised to write your name in Chinese calligraphy. There was an elderly woman there who could only speak Chinese, and her daughter, who would translate for her. I tried out (in an accent probably too American to understand) my very basic Chinese. I attempted to tell them what my Chinese name was that I already had. I asked for a piece of paper because I knew that my too-American pronunciation was probably not getting the full message across. The younger girl tried to hand me a pen, but the older woman offered me her paintbrush. Hoping to show them some of what I had learned, and communicate a little more effectively, I began to write a simple sentence that I knew- "I am American," which takes about 5 characters. Both of their jaws dropped as they craned forward to see what this random Southerner would ever have to write in Chinese. They followed along closely and excitedly mouthed the meaning of each character as soon as they recognized it. As they finally got the full sentence, I added a little smiley face to the end. The older woman laughed and added her own, admittedly more Asian-looking, smile drawing to the paper as well. The woman also took the time to draw me my name in Chinese, after I had written what is was down in pen. (Because trying to tell it to them out loud did not really work there either.) Her calligraphy version was much prettier than my utilitarian one and I thanked her in Chinese, "xie xie" being one of the only phrases I have ever picked up from childhood from being half-Chinese. Her eyes lit up and she thanked us in unsure English as we walked away.

Two things happened here that I found important. The first was, I realized how absolutely perfect the brush and ink system is for writing characters. For the amount of times I had imitated them in the workbook in pencil, I never realized why they were shaped exactly the way they were. After writing in Chinese with the brush for the first time, I understand a little more why they are constructed as they are- it is much, much more natural to write characters with a brush! The second that occurred was the breaking of a language barrier. In my experience with Spanish, sometimes even knowing a few words can strengthen the connection between people. Here, even a few basic but correct characters were powerful enough to create a sudden understanding between two vastly different cultures. As a linguist it is easy to spend all day memorizing word after word and forget what they are there for. In my experience it is not until the words you have so carefully memorized actually smash down a social barrier do you realize their true importance.

Ragtime

When I saw Ragtime this past weekend, I was moved by both the elaborate and painstaking choreography and the emotional weight of the play. The play covered themes such as social class, immigration and nationality, racial prejudice, growing as a person, and doing the right thing. It centered around the lives of three seemingly different, but also very similar families all doing their best around the turn of the 20th century. One was a rich upper class white family, one a lower class black family, and and immigrant man and his daughter from Latvia. Each family's story becomes forever entwined, and I was moved by how tragic the play turned at times. I was quite choked up at times, and other times enraged. Although eventually the play had a happy ending, it was chock full of hardship and catastrophe.

However, I see the importance of this type of emotional experience for society in general. I recognized that one of this play's main purposes was to force people to feel through its exaggerated and theatrical nature. In this case what the playwrights probably wanted the audience to feel was a profound abhorrence for the injustice of racism. I felt as though this play, while being a quality source of entertainment, also served as a healthy societal reminder of the sheer amount of progress and change in America over just the last century, and also as a warning against injustice. Being reminded of history is especially important in a modern, forward-thinking college environment where students will lead their lives into the future.

I liked how through the medium of a musical each person's perspective and history could be shown. In one particular musical number, the audience could see both an American citizen about to leaving on a ship and an immigrant about to arrive in America. They sing songs about their thoughts as they see each other and wave from a very far distance, but only the audience gets to hear both of their perspectives. I thought this was a creative and interesting way to see things and something that would have been very difficult to pull off in a movie. Overall, I would say this play was very well done.

Hunger and Homelessness Panel

It is currently Hunger and Homelessness Awareness, and as usual, Campus Kitchen at Elon University has many informative events planned, from the annual Turkey Trot to documentary screenings.  I attended one event last year that was especially powerful and inspiring, so I made a special effort go this year as well.  This event was the Faces of Homelessness Panel, where three homeless people are brought in to discuss their experiences with homelessness and to dispel any preconceived notions that we may have about the issue.

Michael Stoops, the community organizer for the National Coalition for the Homeless, kicked off this event by giving startling facts about homelessness.  After this brief introduction, he passed off the microphone to the first of the panelists, and the best part of the presentation began.

First, John Harrison Jr. spoke.  He recounted his experiences without any reservations, engaging us with questions about stereotypes of homeless people and even making jokes about it.  He talked about how he was in denial that he needed help, keeping to himself without looking to anyone else.  He emphasized the power of a kind word, a friendly smile, and a helping hand.  To someone who has nothing, these things mean everything.

Next, Deja told her story.  She is only seventeen years old, and spoke about how she became homeless when she was thirteen.  Her perspective was different, as she had been homeless throughout her crazy teenage years and had to balance that with school, friends, and growing up.  She highlighted the importance that teachers had in her life – even though they did not know her whole story, the fact that they were there for her when it came to schoolwork and reassurance meant the world to her.  She told us that she had applied to Elon, so everyone in the audience was rooting for her to get in and attend Elon next year.

Finally, Resurrection talked to us about her experiences.  She is a single mother who has a degree in massage therapy and even started her own massage center.  It was very successful, but instead of living paycheck to paycheck, she was living client to client.  When times got hard, she had no way of getting extra cash and she had to close her hard-earned business.  She openly talked about how she was sexually abused when she was younger, and how that is often the case with single, homeless mothers.  She has started her own organization that helps people overcome child sexual abuse, homelessness, and poverty.  Just from the way that she spoke, it was obvious that she had such a good-natured and optimistic personality, and it warmed the room.  It was incredible to see that she has stayed so positive despite her life’s tremendous obstacles.

After each of the panelists spoke, the floor was opened up to questions from the audience.  One question that I found particularly intriguing was concerning the role that religion and spirituality played in their lives throughout the time that they were homeless.  John said that his faith was made stronger by others whose faith had drawn them toward helping him overcome his rough times.  The tests along the way, in turn, served to strengthen his faith.  Deja said that homelessness now seems like it was a blessing because of the lessons that it taught her, and she stressed the fact that she never really felt alone.  Resurrection never questioned God’s plan for her, and never wavered in her faith.  Her faith has now drawn her to help others.  Faith plays such a big role in homelessness and how people overcome it, and it was interesting to hear the different perspectives on this topic.

At the very end of the panel discussion, there was a plot twist that no one in the audience were expecting – Deja was Resurrection’s daughter.  After hearing their stories separately, it was interesting to then think back to them and to see how they intertwined.  To see how far they have come was incredibly inspiring.  The three panelists were very courageous to share what they did, and hearing them speak gave me a new perspective on this.  I’m grateful that they were so open and matter-of-fact about this issue that plagues our world.  It reminded me can’t just think about the homeless around the holidays – we need to stay informed about the topic and help year-round.  

Music and the Holocaust

This past Thursday, I attended a lecture that marked the 75^th Anniversary of Kristallnacht in the Numen Lumen Pavilion. Brian Nedvin, tenor, a voice professor and scholar of Holocaust-era music at Old Dominion University, presented “Music and the Holocaust” through the use of music, personal stories and visuals. Nedvin was able to use different languages such as Yiddish, Hebrew, English and German in order to create a more complete picture of the terrible events of the Holocaust.

Going into this lecture, I was unsure how the lecturer would incorporate the music element into the delivery of the message. Nedvin’s idea was to show the audience another side of the event, a more personal, real side of the Holocaust since the majority of the talk surrounding the event is impersonal and removed. The two main elements that helped achieve this goal was the use of specific stories of people in the Holocaust and the music written by those affected by the event.

Photographs that helped the audience match the name to a face that actually went through the experience accompanied these personal stories. When talking about each of the individuals, Nedvin was able to make each of the individuals stand out from each other and pull at the heartstrings of the audience. The stories helped make us as the audience connect to the issue at a more personal level and feel compelled to change our perspective of the event as a whole.

The musical element is what struck a chord with me as a member of the audience (too punny). The speaker had a strong tone to his voice and he was able to make the songs come alive. Listening to the music, the audience was transported back in time and felt as though they were experiencing the music as though it was the Holocaust. The music that was performed had strong emotional messages that came across so due to the diction, strong imagery and sentence structure. Since the music was written to reflect feelings and experiences of the tragedy, each song exuded raw emotion felt by those involved.

Ragtime

Last Thursday, I attended the a showing of Ragtime.  Ragtime dealt with some heavy topics, particularly pertaining to race, equality, freedom, wealth and poverty, and the American Dream.  It followed the lives of three very different families living at the turn of the century whose lives become intertwined through a series of events.  There is a white upper class family who finds the baby of an African American woman in her garden.  When the mother of the baby is found, the upper class family takes her in, and the father of her baby ends up finding her.  Meanwhile, the play also follows the story of an immigrant and his daughter who are poor and hoping to create a better life for themselves.

Needless to say, it was phenomenal.  From the very first song, I was enthralled.  The talented performers had me laughing, gasping, and crying in all of the right ways.  The play was very well casted, and every actor and actress seamlessly assumed his or her role and transported the audience back to the America of the turn of the twentieth century.  The dynamics of the characters was fantastic, and they all played off of each other extremely well.  The costumes were also incredibly done.  Each of these elements worked together to display the changes that occurred in each of the characters’ lives throughout the course of the play

The message of the play was the most powerful part.  I particularly like how relevant the play is to current-day America, as many of the issues that the play addresses still need to be fixed.  Although many Americans seem to believe that issues of race, economic status, and freedom are not relevant any more, these problems are still confronted by people every day.  This play brought them to the forefront of their minds once again and showed the audience the good that can come from tackling those issues.  The message, and the portrayal of this message, made the play absolutely incredible and touching in all of the right ways.  Props to the Elon University musical theater department – Ragtime absolutely blew my mind.

Kenji Yoshino Lecture

           Kenji Yoshino presented a compelling and fascinating lecture on Monday, November 4^th.  Yoshino made the vital distinction between assimilation and inclusion.  He asserted that assimilation is be the effect of discrimination, not a symptom of its elimination from society.  He eloquently argued against the discriminatory culture that America still has today.

            Yoshino sees the American culture as divided between two groups.  First, there is the white majority and those who assimilate.  Second, there are the minorities and those who do not assimilate.  He argued that inclusion is “conditioned upon assimilation to the mainstream”, continuing that “the line [of discrimination] has not been erased, it has been moved”.  Discrimination today is much more subtle than it was during the days of legal segregation and slavery, however it still is unfortunately prevalent in our world.

            He emphasized the idea of “covering”. Yoshino believes that all people “cover” in some area of life.  Individuals put on facades of half-truths and identities that we project to the world, all the while hiding some “secret self” from those around us.  Covering is motivated by “covering demands”.  Family, friends, and communities and place these “covering demands” upon individuals.  Society expects a certain type of behavior from different classes or categories of people, which causes people to cover some aspects of their identities, and to magnify other aspects.

            Yoshino differentiated between “Good” and “bad” assimilation.  He argued that if an individual is impacted negatively by a demand to cover, then one should seek the source of the covering demand.  Oftentimes, an individual can be the source of his/her own covering demand, as people are highly self-critical. 

            In conclusion, Yoshino said that, “we hold many identities precious in our society, and the law will never protect them all.”  However, it is our job, as perpetuators of society to eliminate covering demands, to the best of our abilities, and to protect any identity that another individual may hold precious.