Groups

Group sections are the heart and pulse of the choreography I've made so far. But groups are really hard.....hard to work in and hard to work with.

When I was 17 and dancing in the corps, a senior dancer I admired took me aside and told me I was ruining the Kingdom of the Shades by focusing only on my own dancing while ignoring lines, spacing, etc. Suitably shamed, I trained myself to be a better team member, but it wasn't my favorite kind of dancing. It can be fun to be part of a big picture onstage, but group rehearsals are tedious and draining. All those conflicting energies and egos in the room---I looked at the clock every 30 seconds.

Now it's my turn to face a studio full of dancers patiently or not-so patiently-awaiting direction. Knowing I have to start a group dance is like knowing I have to slip into a vat of ice water naked. It feels so cozy and soothing having only a few people in the studio---solos, duets, trios are the calmest parts of a process. Any number over five, and the tension starts mo