One of our recipients, the Brooklyn Botanical Garden hosted a couple performances of “Wilderness: Paradis” using a piano they found through Materials for the Arts. Presented by Dance Theatre Workshop and inspired by the final section of Jean-Luc Godard’s 2004 film, Notre Musique, the performance by choreographer Yarnia Castro investigates the conversation between the performer and audience. The audience’s movement was tracked to generate sound, light, and movement. Yarnia says “For Wilderness, [the performers and I] talked a lot about how to look at the audience and what that gaze was. We also talked a lot about the dancer gaze. When you’re in an environment that’s submersive and the audience is right next you, the dancer gaze is looking past the audience.”

Peggy Cheng & Darrin Wright in "Paradis". Photo: Kevin Kwan

Vail, Darrin Wright, Luke Miller, and Kimberly Young dance on black turf in "Wilderness". Photo: Yi-Chun Wu

Audience members carry performer Pamela Vail in "Wilderness". Photo: Yi-Chun Wu
Read the rest of the conversation with Yarnia and her dancer, Peggy Cheng here, and more about her performances on the BBG website, Brooklyn Daily Eagle and FlavorPill.
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