Each week following an artist's post, reflection questions and research ideas will get posted. These are aimed towards college level courses (senior seminar, composition, dance education, and more), but of course anyone can read the postscript and find thought-provoking questions and activities. 

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Discuss: A Sentence or Two

Peter's profile is filled with thought-provoking sentences and ideas. Highlight a sentence or section that really struck you. In a course, discuss these various passages, or do this as a "turn and talk" activity with a partner.

Research: Dance Exchange

If unfamiliar with the Dance Exchange (formerly known as the Liz Lerman Dance Exchange), spend ten minutes researching its website. Peter was an integral artist and administrator in this company for 15 years. 

Reflect: Bridges

This has value, this dance life. It is likely the majority of us will not make large sums of money – but lack of money should never be mistaken for lacking in value. I often feel it necessary – for whatever functional or dysfunctional motivations! – to return to the bridging role I felt necessary in my early lgbt and AIDS-related work. But this time the bridge is between audiences and potential audiences to dance and the work itself. Sometimes this is about translating my own work, but often it is about connecting people to the larger body of performance and connecting dots for them as to how and why it can have value in the poetic and practical aspects of their lives. The bridging is also among members of the dance community itself- asking what I ask of myself: where is the portal “in” for someone experiencing my dances? Am I opaque with my work as a protective measure for fear of really communicating something someone might “get?"

What does this paragraph mean to you, your work as a dancer, and your role as a modern dancer in the United States in 2014?

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