DIRECTOR'S NOTE

Making Room has been in-process since October 2019, when we held our very first rehearsal for RDC. Those who attended our Inaugural Holiday Fundraiser may remember that we showed three pieces: one a glimpse of my past choreography, one a unique creation for that event only, and one a sneak peek of our upcoming performance, Making Room, originally scheduled for April 17th, 2020.  I don’t need to explain what happened next, but even fewer might remember that our first dance film, There Are No Rules, dropped on that date instead.

So it’s no joke to say that this dance is literally as old as the company itself. Being in and out of process for that long, a result of circumstance, not intention, has left indelible marks on this dance. We’re different people, both as dancers and makers. We relate to each other differently after fourteen months in a pandemic. The weight of our experiences, the ache of our simplest desires, poured into this work as we brought it back into our bodies in February.  

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The beauty of the work emerged as we reclaimed intention in our process. We chose to allow that rush of complexity, nuance, and sometimes discomfort to begin to infiltrate the choreography. We cut sections that no longer resonated, built and rebuilt our partnering relationships, and digested old movement to embody updated intentions. We were constantly trying to invite in tenderness, a process helped along by our phenomenal guest choreographer, Victoria Awkward. As always, we wanted this work to be unapologetically human.

As you watch tonight, allow yourself to engage with the many vignettes, relationships, and quiet moments that present themselves. Get sucked in, lose yourself - there are no wrong answers in this piece.  My only hope is that as you watch our artists care for themselves and each other throughout the dance, that you can feel cared for as an audience member by the dance itself.

-Emily Haussler

Artistic and Executive Director