that’s kind of the point…

my doctor today: “my brother went to a dance school. contemporary dance... I never understood it.”

me: “that’s kind of the point...”

contemporary dance work permeates beyond what you see.

it permeates beyond the dancing.

it permeates beyond the performance.

it permeates beyond the words you have to describe it.

what you “don’t understand”

perhaps can’t be understood

it is 

visceral

intangible 

ineffable

yet it can be appreciated and respected without being ‘understood’

take notice of 

how you feel

what you think about

how it changes or solidifies your perspectives of yourself and the world.

notice the feeling of not understanding and sit in it.

don’t resist it

don’t try and find answers

perhaps don’t try and understand

just be

for even a moment

often that’s the point...

to transport

to guide presence and mindfulness

to open space

to challenge

to make change

to sit with and in the unknown and unknowable

to start or deepen important conversations

to expose and invite voices that haven’t been heard.

just because you can’t put how you feel or what you take away into words

doesn’t mean what you are taking away doesn’t matter...

when you come away saying 

“I don’t get it”

perhaps, that’s not a reflection of the work... 

perhaps, it’s a reflection of yourself and the way society has privileged ‘understanding’.

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july