Inside the Stuido…Reflections from Moderator Rachel Watts

Director of Education & Outreach Rachel Watts is serving as Moderator for our discussion panels. Here is what she noted from yesterday’s panel:

Yesterday I went home energized and refreshed because of the conversation I helped to facilitate among the Instituto choreographers and a panel of ‘critical friends’. Using the Liz Lerman protocol for critical response, Maray and Judith were daring and open enough to share what they have been working on so far with the dancers. The ‘critical friends’ were Ballet Hispanico Artistic Director Eduardo Vilaro along with Martin Wechsler, the Director of Programming at The Joyce Theater, and Richard Chen See, a former Paul Taylor dancer. Their thoughtful questions and responses made us all reflect on what we had seen and gave us insight into their choreographic processes.

Both choreographers are challenging the dancers to explore new ways of initiating movement in their bodies. The result for me was mix of visceral reactions that caused me to excitedly hold and release my breath at different moments. I am really looking forward to facilitating the follow-up conversation next Thursday and seeing how the work has progressed.

Join our public panel discussion on Thursday, September 23rd from 4:30PM-6PM in Studio 10. RSVP to Michel Moisant at 212.362.6710 x 44 or mmoisant@ballethispanico.org

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