Blueprint Call To Action

“Dance is a field with more guerrillas than institutions” –John Munger, Director of research and information at Dance/USA

Dance/NYC’s mission is to strengthen the professional dance field in New York City.  They help to foster a society that appreciates the art of dance and supports the creative process.  In 2007, former Dance/NYC Executive Director Michelle Burkhart created the Junior Committee (JComm) to advocate specifically for young professionals in dance and to serve as a liaison between the organization and its younger constituents.  JComm is a diverse sample of the field’s guerillas and our partnership with Dance/NYC brings us in from the fringes and allows us to effect an institution.  Our relationship is mutually beneficial and we work together to serve the dance community.

Showings on Facebook

I recently got invited to an inspiring new group on Facebook called “Showings on Facebook”.  It is an online forum for showing choreography and getting objective feedback.  This group has discussion at its core, without obligation to how much or little members participate.  It is basically an online, volunteer audience, awaiting for a new video posts to voice their opinion and share ideas.

Showings on Facebook was started by Christiana Barnett-Murphy, a dancer, choreographer, and former ADF (American Dance Festival) student.  Christiana was inspired to create the group after gathering knowledge over the years from ADF’s feedback forum “Open Showings” and from its former coordinator Jen McGinn.

All sorts of artists from across the country have joined the group and actively give feedback to their colleges on Showings on Facebook.  It is a great way to bounce ideas off people that are outside of your daily sphere and may be unfamiliar with your work.  If you are a choreographer out there interested in getting feedback from a new audience, I highly recommend joining this group!  Dancers and supporters interested in aiding the creative process will dig in too.  Here is a direct link to the Facebook page:  (You will find the group closed, but all requests will be granted)

 http://www.facebook.com/groups/322345811125974/

Here is an overview of Christiana’s guidelines for interactions in the forum.  I think it outlines the group’s goals and dynamics very well.

Hi Everyone, Welcome to the Showings forum on Facebook. This group is meant to give choreographers a chance to show their work to an audience outside of their immediate dance community, with the intent of receiving helpful feedback from the other members. While there may be some limitations by not seeing the work live, I believe there is still good information that can be shared through video. Here are a few guidelines to help us all experience the benefits of this group…

 For those showing work:

• Feel free to share your work at whatever place you are in your process…

• We ask that if you do show a video of your work, please refrain from sharing too much information. While it can sometimes be tempting to give us the history of your piece, it can often be more helpful to you, if you allow us to just respond to what we see…

• Please don’t ask us to imagine anything (such as lighting and costume ideas)…

 • Use this opportunity to get what you need. If there is a pressing question you feel needs to be answered, ask it…

 For those giving feedback:

• Please refrain from using the terms “I liked” and “I didn’t like”. Try to maintain the idea that the feedback you’re giving is meant to help the choreographer achieve what THEY are desiring.

• Also, please try not to use the term “interesting”, … Try to expand your vocabulary and express what the work made you think of, or how it made you feel.

• Overall, in any of the feedback you give, try to make it as helpful to the other person as possible.

So… join me on Showings on Facebook and let’s get the discussion and inspiration going!  Thanks Christiana and Jen for bringing us all a new stage.

[MEMBER BLOG] Hollis: Letters from the Artists

My dear X,

As a recent college graduate, these past eight months have been a period of learning, creative problem solving, and sacrifice to be able to sustain a life in the arts.  The challenges come and go, and your commitment to this field is tested.  But we are not alone, we are surrounded by a community of dancers.

A few weeks ago Benn Rasmussen posted ‘Dancers who dance, and define themselves by doing so’.   He posed this question: “What can be used as a compass to find a fulfilling route through it [the New York dance nexus], not only satisfying a creative need, but also sustaining a lifestyle and a personal economy of time, money and energy?”

I was intrigued by part of his response to this question: “I think it starts by building a community and personal relationships.  To talk with others about their experiences and see how it has been and to gain knowledge from your own experiences and the experiences of others.”

I was also reading Christopher Hitchens’ Letters to a Young Contrarian at the same time.  When Hitchens was teaching at the New School, many of his students asked him for advice for living the life of a contrarian, a life that is self-determined.  His book is his version of Rainer Maria Filke’s Letters to a Young Poet and serves as a forum for Hitchens to discuss a variety of issues in society.

Letters from the Artists hopefully will continue the dialogue that Benn started and follow in the vein of Letters to a Young Poet and Letters to a Young Contrarian.  I invite peers throughout the field to enter into a conversation about what it is like to be a dancer, choreographer, artist, administrator, teacher etc. in this generation.

-Hollis

[MEMBER BLOG] Hollis: Mid-Season Symposium Update

Dance/NYC’s annual Mid-Season Symposium is February 26 at 3LD Art and Technology Center.  Full registration for artists is $50, subsidized by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.  Full registration includes:  VIP access to opening night reception, all main session panels, a networking lunch and sMARTbars (one-on-one consultations).  Breakout sessions and the opening night reception are FREE. (You can register HERE)

In addition to the great speakers Dance/NYC has invited, the Junior Committee’s Internal Affairs sub-committee has been planning an additional workshop geared towards emerging arts professionals. Our session is from 10-11am and will explore successful practices for cultural branding and how you can apply this to express your own professional identity. Workshop participants are encouraged to bring artist statements, business plans, press kits, marketing materials, grant applications etc. for feedback and we’ll help you advance your skills to better articulate and convey your brand.

Directly following the Junior Committee’s breakout session is Amy Fitterer (Dance/USA’s new executive director) speaking on “How To Be an Advocate” from 11:05 to noon.

We feel it is important for our demographic to interact with leaders in our field for continued growth and development, and strengthen the future of our community. Don’t be left out of the discussion, hope you can join us at 3LD on Feb 26.

For more info on the Symposium including the full schedule and list of speakers CLICK HERE

[MEDIA] Junior Committee Members, Julia and Justina Interviewed at 2010 Bessies

video courtesy of Skynova

JComm Members Julia Kelly and Justina Gaddy Bac…, posted with vodpod