Hometown: Chicago

Current city: San Francsico

Age: 49

College and degree: BA, Swarthmore College

Graduate school and degree: MA, Graduate Theological Union

Website: www.bandaloop.org

How you pay the bills: Artistic Director,
Bandaloop

All of the dance hats you wear: Artistic Director, Choreographer, Dancer,
Teacher

Teens: Studied with Hubbard Street Dance Company in Chicago
beginning in 8^th grade. Was an apprentice with the company from
18-22 years old.

20s: Studied dance at Swarthmore College and with guest
artists  from New York.  Studied contact improvisation seriously
and began to choreograph. Founded Project Bandaloop at 28.

30s: Built the company (Bandaloop) in my thirties.  Created and performed in dances on
buildings including the Space Needle, the NYSE and skyscrapers in Houston to
cliffs in Yosemite,  and theaters
including Artaud (now Z Space) many times, the Kennedy Center, and the Grand
Auditorium in Macau. During this time I developed technique, safety protocol
and choreographic lexicon with the dancers and riggers that is the basis from
which the work is now continuing to grow. In 1997, we performed "Peregrine
Dreams," that was a six day five night ascent of El Capitan in Yosemite to the
dance. In 2001, we realized “Crossing," an 18 day performance across the Sierra
from East to West.

40s: I continued to build on the momentum of the previous
decade with Bandaloop touring internationally more often. Highlights included
mountain pieces as part of the European Capital of Culture in Stavanger, Norway
in the mountains and performances in the Italian Dolomites as well as 14^th
century towers and castles in Italy.

What’s on the calendar for 2013 and 2014?

Performances in Macau, China, Salt Lake City, Home Season at
Fort Mason of all new work, St. Louis and Rochester as well a many
workshops including our annual Eastern Sierra Workshop.

What’s the key to being a dancer and balancing all of the
hats you wear – as dancer, teacher, choreographer, artistic director, and
lifelong student? (And balancing being a wife and mother…)

I meditate and breathe deeply whenever I remember to, including at red lights. I try to focus on one thing at a time and do not
really believe that multi-tasking is good for efficiency or the soul.

I take class regularly and cross train surfing, practicing
yoga and hiking. I try to tick off the two things I don’t want to do first in
a day's work before getting to the other things I have to do.

What do you look for in a dancer?

Fluidity, an original  movement voice, strength, emotional intelligence and the
ability to work well in a group.

What are 3 pieces of advice you want to give to aspiring
choreographers?

Know you are special and have a voice but don’t be precious.
Have a sense of humor and dispassion so you can self-critique without it
hurting too much. Be brave and fail.

Know that talent is persistence as much as anything.

How did you learn the ropes to run your dance company?

Trial and error.

What suggestions do you give young choreographers about arts
administration?

Know what you are not good at and find help in those areas.
Don’t try to do everything. Many brains are better than one in all things but
know that you are responsible for the final decisions and know how to express
your true strength.

On training and care of the body…..

See above, but add massage, hot tubs, a glass of wine a day,
no smoking and highly nutritious food.

Can you talk about the recent Trisha Brown dance you
performed? How did you get connected with the project? Did Trisha’s
off-the-ground work inspire your work over the years?

The Trisha Brown experience was one of the most meaningful
dance community experiences I have had. UCLA connected us for their
retrospective. Working with Diane Madden, acting Artistic Director, was
wonderful. Sensing Trisha’s vision through her was an honor and an education.

Talk a little about aerial dance. How has this dance style
grown and changed since you began exploring it?

This is such a huge question….

One sentence would be: I see my work as other than what is
called aerial dance these days because that is most often bounded by circus
influence and what I do is make dances site-reactively using the ground, the
air and the architecture.

My advise to those working off the ground is to not get
seduced by the act of being off the ground and deeply investigate the movement
and intention of movement.

Current inspiration and curiosities:

My friends, Trisha Brown, composers Dana Leong, Mark Orton
and Gideon Freudmann, my dancers, Pema Chodren, the ocean, its waves and the
animals in it, the mountains, my son Ry and the family we are now.

Advice to young dancers in general:

Find your own voice as a dancer. Expand your ability by
moving in multiple styles and techniques, you may not have found your most
natural one yet. Eat healthfully and don’t believe the hype on body typing in
dance. Dance in a way that you could continue to do for decades. Seek
inspiration in people, art, ideas and nature.