Art In 3D

Dance Majors Produce AEL Dance Project

May 18, 2012 at 2:46 pm Idyllwild Arts Leave a comment

Idyllwild Arts Seniors, Delaney Larimore and Natalia Correal, challenged themselves with the opportunity to produce and choreograph, HUMAN: Anatomia & Espiritu.

Delaney and Natalia’s project was supported through a grant from the Arts Enterprise Laboratory (AEL). Arts Enterprise Laboratory is a new program at Idyllwild Arts that (among others) provides student grants for emerging young artists to create new works of art. The production was staged in Fisher Dance Studio this past week on Wednesday, May 16 and Thursday, May 17.

Delaney created the pieces surrounding Anatomia. When asked how she conceived her portion of the project she stated, “I have often struggled with accurately showing what I am thinking/feeling internally to other people. So this work was about our natural struggle to genuinely express ourselves. I like to observe human connections and interactions. For me, this project was about our physical body in relation to our feelings.”

Espirituby Natalia, is a “performance where I can share my feelings about personal growth and encourage the audience to achieve each a personal state of mind at the fullest. The idea of using dance to communicate and learn about psychological growth, is a never before seen concept at Idyllwild Arts.”

“From my initial idea, this show took about a year to fully create. Even as I was in the process of applying for the AEL grant, I was researching music and really worked to fully conceptualize my show. I started rehearsals about six months before my show and worked to refine and enhance my ideas. The days leading up to the final show were exciting and seeing the final product has been overwhelming. I look back to the beginning when my idea first originated. Seeing how my show has evolved is absolutely amazing”, said Delaney.

Taking on an AEL Project requires a lot of extra work and commitment for these students. Somehow, they manage to produce the work while finishing academic course work and continuing to train in the Dance Department. Delaney said that for herself “choreography is bliss. However, there were many times when I was stressed and down on myself but those times contributed to the artistic and intellectual process. The AEL process has been incredibly important to my own growth as an artist. “

Both Delaney and Natalia talked about what they learned from receiving an AEL grant. In particular, Delaney said, “without my AEL project, I wouldn’t have been able to explore who I am as an artist. This was my first defining show. I learned to be more organized and forced myself to clarify my scattered ideas. This project was incredibly important for me to present to the Idyllwild Arts community. I am a very lucky student to have the opportunity to create art through AEL funding.”  For Natalia, “taking on an AEL dance concert was a really big responsibility. It made me grow as a choreographer. After months of working on it, at a certain point, it becomes collaboration. With the help of many, I managed to create a concert that helped me realize where there was room for improvement; as well as overcoming obstacles that honestly helped me grow as a choreographer and producer. This opportunity was a great experience and I’m glad to have been able to leave my mark before I graduate this year.

Entry filed under: Ballet, Dance, News, special events. Tags: AEL Grant, art school, Arts Enterprise Laboratory, Contemporary Dance, Dance Academy, idyllwild arts, Idyllwild Arts Academy.