Beryl

“Beryl” choreographed by Jamie Greco was part of Kindling: An Evening of Dance Works – presented by Little Fire Artist Collective on January 26 + 27 at the Fulton Street Collective in Chicago.

The piece that I am creating for Kindling is a solo dance work. From one person, a piece grows either up or down hierarchically: will the soloist eventually join the ranks of their peers, or will they rise above and stand apart as a symbolic counterpoint? A solo represents a respite for every other performer because they are allowed to hide "backstage," away from view. Meanwhile, the soloist experiences the weight of carrying attention. The inevitable attention of a solo interests me: how can a soloist surprise the audience when their every move is closely examined? The satisfaction that the audience shares with a soloist represents how intimacy is exchanged between dancer and observer. The audience must analyze their relationship with the soloist, rather than observing the relationship that exists between dancers in a piece of two or more.   

The inspiration for the movement in this piece came from an episode of The Crown, also entitled “Beryl.” The episode made me feel lonely, and I thought a lot about the difference between a person’s inner world compared to their outer world. I found the music used and composed for the episode, and edited excerpts together for my piece.

Rachel, the dancer, deserves to be seen. Her movement quality breathes life into my choreography. Interestingly, Rachel and I decided to work together because she was healing from an ankle injury and decided that she wanted to take herself out of other pieces in the show. The urge to dance and participate in a creative process led us to create this solo piece. Rachel felt comfortable communicating with me about any modifications to the movement that would make her feel safe and strong.