The question of "who is dancing" relates intimately with the question "what is human?" What kinds of practices are entangled in our concept of the human and the non-human and how does dancing inform our answers? Is there another "human" we can embody? We bring current theoretical discussions into physical and spoken conversation about this topic. Our work flexes between experiential scales from the social to the somatic while bringing critical theory, phenomenology, feminist epistemologies and other philosophical orientations into physical play. We move with what new science offers to conversations of embodiment, the non-human, ecologies, relational networks, intimacy, multiplicity and difference. Our dance practice offers ways of thinking through these conversations. You are invited to join Nita’s and Kerstin’s on-going dialogue about attention, fascia, and contemporaneity; and to discuss specific questions arising in our solo explorations, duets and dance ensemble improvisations. Contact Improvisation skills are invited but not required nor is familiarity with theoretical ideas proposed by Karen Barad, Erin Manning, Donna Haraway, Timothy Morton among others. This practice based research project is a low-threshold introduction to dancers interested in how academic thinking is affecting your performance, choreographic, and pedagogic ideas.
How does our dancing change how we read theory? How does theory change dancing? This research project empowers dancers and body based practitioners by recognising their kinetic / physical research skills and by feeding in relevant contemporary philosophy.
Kerstin KussmaulNita Little
