A pair of dancers engages the Carbondale community to inspire its latest work
Glenwood Springs Post Independent
Chelsea Self / Post Independent |
Breathe. Notice. Self determine. Think. Act.
David Nosworthy and Marielis Garcia guided a group through those steps during two movement workshops this week. They encouraged those gathered at Carbondale’s The Launchpad to root themselves in the present moment.
It’s a lesson the pair of dancers tries to embrace each day.
“Marielis and I are interested in creating choreography that’s time specific and place specific,” Nosworthy said.
“We’re making real-time decisions. That’s really where this workshop comes in,” Garcia added. The workshops will culminate in a Saturday performance.
The duo was rehearsing for a show when a friend approached Garcia about guest teaching an arts appreciation course. She went to Nosworthy and began brainstorming what that could look like — she didn’t want to approach the class in a traditional manner. Both are classically trained, but interested in dance beyond the traditional form of making and then displaying the work.
The class didn’t work out, but Garcia and Nosworthy’s choreographic partnership did.
“How funny is it that everything we’re working on is dealing with the possibility of failing or changing directions and the very first thing we tried didn’t happen?” he said.
The pair spent months exchanging ideas, not just about dance steps but also about their shared philosophies on contemporary art and dance.
“To be contemporary artists is to be of this moment,” Nosworthy said. “We’re not interested in self generating the whole thing, but challenging ourselves to be in the moment.
That’s where Carbondale comes in.
This week’s workshops and Saturday’s studio performance are the first touring expression of that ideology.
The exercises were simple; the choreographers asked the group to begin by walking through the room. They then guided attention to breath, and then asked participants to notice things they may not have previously. That could be light, shadow, color, anything.
“This is about asking yourself what more there is to see,” Nosworthy said. “We do this as a way of contemplating the possibilities.”
After each of the workshop exercises, the dancers led discussion about what the participants experienced. Garcia and Nosworthy’s performance will reflect that, but just how that shows up is truly a work in progress. The pair established a working plan early in the week, which Nosworthy dubbed their “guiding light.”
“There’s a safety in a plan, but there’s also a beautiful safety in ‘anything goes,’” Garcia said.
The workshops offered them a chance to listen to the community in an intimate setting. That, coupled with their walks around the town, will be reflected in their choreography.
Their process includes a lot of discussion and journaling, in addition to the physical act of dance. They’ve also explored The Launchpad to discover what materials are available and how they might interact with the space.
In all those interactions, they ask “How do I respond naturally and openly without judgment of what’s happening?” Garcia said.
The pair will attempt to create a similar atmosphere when they perform Saturday. They want the audience to feel like they belong, although they won’t direct how they should think and feel about the performance.
“We want to tickle the emotional sensibility of people,” Nosworthy said.
Student musicians take the Wheeler stage for Aspen Rocks competition on Saturday
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