One Good Quote: Heartland + Dance Party, with Molly Heller (February 10, 2019)

Molly Heller. Photo by Tori Duhaime.

In Fall 2017, Life as a Modern Dancer launched a new concept for post-performance discussion and writing. The goals are multi-fold:

What are new ways to invite post-performance writing (since so few publications now print dance reviews, and there are fewer and fewer dance critics in the United States)?
How can choreographers hear and read more from audience members about their impressions and experiences of dance events?
Can we offer new mechanisms for choreographers to gather language about their work, to further their work and to promote their work?

The premise is simple. If you attended Molly Heller's Heartland + Dance Party at the Beehive Concert Venue in Salt Lake City on February 10, 2019, please take a few minutes here to leave a comment. Write down images, impressions, appreciations, and questions from the performance. These can be words, phrases, or a few sentences.

We thank you for your time, support, and thoughtfulness. Here's to more dialogue, more reflection, and more writing on the dance performance experience. As choreographer Mariah Steele noted, we are "democratizing dance criticism."

Photo by Tori Duhaime.

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4 responses to “One Good Quote: Heartland + Dance Party, with Molly Heller (February 10, 2019)”

Mar Undag

Feb 15, 2019 at 10:18 am

Cleverly constructed. Removed the audience versus performer hierarchy and made it feel more accessible to general audience!

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Dat Nguyen

Feb 15, 2019 at 1:40 pm

Going from performance mode right into party mode is something new for me but it was definitely successful and well curated! The space felt less formal and more intimate and friendly!
I also posted a visual journal (basically just lots of photos of the event accompanied by some words) on my website:
https://motionvivid.com/journals/heartland-dance-party

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E’lise Jumes

Feb 18, 2019 at 9:12 am

This event was thoughtfully curated, intentionally felt and very unique to the SLC community. It provided people with the opportunity to have a 360-degree perspective on the experience of dance and movement with the practice of seeing and being seen. The opening performers, at the beginning of the evening, exuded electricity that helped set the pulse for the rest of the night. It reminded me of wedding receptions I have attended, there is always that awkward moment where no one wants to be the first on the dance floor…but eventually, someone ends up there, and slowly everyone starts to see that things are going to be okay. Well after watching Molly, Marissa and Brian perform in the beginning and experience themselves..you could NOT help but WANT TO MOVE. It was a reminder in the physical form that moving, expressing and exploring yourself is OKAY.
What I appreciated most about this special event was how inclusive it ALL felt. The pulse and energy of the gathering was ego-less, kind, generous and vibrant.
The event allowed for people who are dance practitioners and people who just love to move to exist, and share the space together without feeling as though you had any obligations. It allowed for people to connect to the primitive desire to express themselves through movement without any expectations. This is what we need more of…this is “the stuff.”
I wonder how these events can help inform and grow a larger audience for dance, perhaps this will cultivate a larger appreciation for dance and movement within the community. To appreciate by doing and experiencing rather than trying to connect to something that many people don’t often get the chance to explore; making dance more accessible to all 🙂
BRAVA!!!
xxx

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Jill Randall

Feb 25, 2019 at 7:28 pm

I loved this! I entered the space a few minutes late, and the performance had begun. I loved coming into the scene where everyone, audience and performers alike, were focused. There’s something about the nature of Molly’s choreography that draws me in in a very genuine way. She, Brian and Marissa all seemed inside of personal explorations that felt so intriguing to watch, and I loved being close to them as they mingled in the same space as the audience.
I think there was something particularly special about the honesty of the dancing and the lack of pretension in their performance that lent to the openness and welcoming nature of the dance party that followed. I didn’t feel like I would be compared to the awesomeness which had just occurred. It just felt like I could be myself, even in a room with so many people that I knew, from professors to students and acquaintances from the greater community. It really was so lovely and unique, and FUN, and I look forward to the next iteration, whenever that comes!
-Nichele Van Portfleet

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