a provocation by Mark Coniglio
for choreographers Kerry Francksen and Dawn Stoppiello
I have known both Dawn and Kerry for a long time. Both are talented and mature choreographers who have been making dances for a long time. During totally independent conversations with both, each said these words: “what does dance mean to me now?”
In response to this serendipity, I proposed an exchange where they would reflect on this question for themselves, and for the other, over a two month period. The instructions and result follow below.
Mark Coniglio
Berlin, 2015
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Proposal for Two – Instructions
Part I: Twice during January 2015, each of you will prepare a single sentence, consisting of 25 words or less, that expresses one reason why dance is crucial to your own existence. At the end of this part, each of you will reflect on what the other has said so far.
Part II: Twice during February 2015, you will each prepare a single sentence, consisting of 25 words or less, that expresses one reason why dance is crucial to your partner’s existence.
Part III: On March 16th, 2015, the piece will be complete, and we will all publish the eight sentences to our various social media feeds and web sites, etc. The act of publishing your exchange will complete this dance.
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K: “When I dance, I am forever moving towards something that I don’t know, and that is both compelling and invigorating; it allows me to breathe.”
D: “Discovering dance saved my life during a lost, troubled adolescence; showing me passion, focus, expression and discipline, I found who I was meant to be.”
K: “Because when words fail, which they so often do, the honesty and morality of bodies enthralled in movement, brings serenity to my otherwise crazy world!”
D: “Dance shows me things about myself, the way I translate the world, that I can’t access in any other way. It’s like a familiar mystery.”
K: “Your remarkable skills not only inspire a deeper knowledge of the world, your expressive power nourishes those you touch by asking them to think differently.”
D: “Dance is a river, both turbulent and serene, that carries you forward into unknown territories. Navigating this river bodily is how you communicate and educate.”
K: “Dance is part of who you are and runs deep into your being, it empowers you to translate and continually rediscover yourself, which is magical!”
D: “Dance pays your bills sometimes. Dance costs you sometimes. Dance pisses you off sometimes. Dance fills you with wonder sometimes. Your very own enigmatic utility!”