Life has been moving so fast these days - I am barely having time to soak in all of the beauty. So I am committed to stop and enjoy the fruits of our labor... I am putting it out there for the world to hear/read so that it actually happens.We have an amazing month ahead of us! June is going to be a month of culminations (many of our classes and school based projects are ending) and beginnings (we are sharing our work for the first time on the EAST SIDE of LA - yeah!! and will be gearing up for a summer of touring and sharing our work for TONS of new people)! The IVY Substation (where we performed in May - our first show back in LA for almost TWO YEARS!) sold out both nights - we are looking forward to an AMAZING show on the 13th of June - if you missed the IVY - either because you couldn't get tickets or you just missed it - PLEASE COME TO OUR JUNE SHOW at the NEW LATC - AND if you came to our May show - STILL COME TO OUR JUNE SHOW - get your tickets HERE - we are doing a few new pieces and we will have two new company members - Batyah Freedman and Erica Bowen - who will be joining us for their CT debut! As you all know the work shifts and grows with each new voice/individual that joins the company... so come be a part of this shift!
We are also having a CUBA FUNDRAISER PARTY at IDA (our home studio) in Hollywood - get your tickets to this and come party with us on Saturday - it is going to be amazing!
I am so present to the incredible power live dance more and more everyday - we can talk about our work and share with people about what we do (in words) - watch videos, see snippets here and there - but there is nothing like the exchange that happens in the theater during one of our full evenings of work - when the lights go down and the performers open their bodies and hearts to a room full of people (many times who they have never met) - giving of themselves - not holding back a thing - vulnerable - and that vulnerability is enveloped and celebrated by this room of strangers. Through this experience, this room of people (who are sharing themselves by being present, listening, engaging) begin to feel understood, heard and celebrated - they begin to feel part of a conversation - like the performers are talking to THEM... this might not be the experience in every live dance performance - but I know it is what we strive to achieve at a
CONTRA-TIEMPO show... before we get on stage we set our intention - what do we want the people who come here tonight, to get out of this experience - what are we committed to have them walk away with... and that is what becomes our fire our fuel for the performance - that commitment to YOU - to THEM to US... this back and forth that is intentional yet always full of surprises - it is communication at its best... and it is the essence of SALSA.Recently I have been reflecting on all the contradictions of the form we primarily use (Salsa), our image to the public and the difficulty in reflecting to people what exactly we do in our work... I find myself describing our work as Salsa based - yet I know that people come to our shows and see/experience so much more than that... It doesn't do us justice to describe what we do as Salsa based - when I begin describing the elements of what goes into our performance work it sometimes sounds impossible that there could be that many forms - integrated together to create something comprehensive and powerful... the only answer I can ever find is - "you just have to see it for yourself". If you have a way to describe our work I am always interested to hear what folks who are looking in see... I am so engrossed in it that I find I sometimes don't have that perspective I need... What I DO know is I love it and I love to share it! I also know that slowing down and breathing will allow me space to really savor this time of sharing... making me love it even more and making it a richer experience for everyone involved...
