WhyNow?


by LinneaHagler Why?


Why anything is a question asked by human beings again and again, and asked by artists and creatives evenmore often than that.Why dowemake art?Why dowemake dance, specifical- ly? It’s amultifaceted and complicated question thatmanymore well-versed than I have tackled.But I’mnot going to askwhy we dance, as humanity, or evenwhywe dance as community.A topic that came acrossmy path in thewake of the past six months has been this:


Why amI dancing?


In the present tense, the question becomes less aboutwhy I began to dance, orwhy I care about dance on a fundamental, belief-led level. In the present tense, the questionwhy amI dancing starts tomean somethingmore immediate,more active. In the present tense, the question starts to take on quali- ties of the dance itself.


Something that is instrumental to dance as an art formis its dependency on themoment; howany dance that has ever been danced has never been danced the sameway twice. This is the true poetry ofmovement, the real viscera of performance.Dance is passing: it is there and it is gone, experienced in the past tense themoment one position becomes the next.And so, to carry your “why” for dancingwith you frombeginning to end of your dance experiencemakes it a contrast. If yourwhy does not change in relation to your dance, it is a static thing next to a liv- ing one.


I began to think about howmywhy for dance has changed. In the process of exploring this question formyself, I decided to reach out to some friends and colleagues and seewhat they had to say on thematter.Notwhy did you begin to dance.Notwhy do you love to dance.But in this current phase of your life and your journey,what causes you tomove?Here are a couple of their answers:


“I have dance inmy life right nowbecause it keepsme sane. There are often toomany things inmy brain to keep straight, and I can never find the rightway to speak about themanyway. Dance is a language that people understand. It givesme away to clearmymind, and to create art that is rawand real but that will not be lost on its viewer. The feeling of justmovingmy body using the emotions that I amexperiencing is therapeutic. It allowsme to putmy inside on the outside and just let it go.” –AlexaOchoa,member of theCollinDanceEnsemble


“Most days I engage in dance because I expect it ofmyself. I believe in the power of dance and themerits of inquiry, analysis, physicality, and education.On rare occasion,whenmy own fire wanes, I engage in dance because it is expected ofme.As a dance educator and arts advocate I amto be present, engaged, curious, inquisitive, rigorous, and physical. I amcompelled to deliver.


DANCE!NORTHTEXAS a publication of the dance council of north texas


Pictured: LinneaHagler


There aremany days that Iwake up and spendmy time danc- ing: teaching dance,making dance, talking about dance, and reading about dance because I couldn’t imagine spendingmy time doing anything else.” —MeghanCardwell-Wilson, Professor ofDance at


CollinCollege


“Teaching tap dance to the next generation of dancers is so ful- filling forme.Although I trained in all styles of dance, Iwas always themost passionate about tap and being able to seemy students love for it growis very exciting. I dance right now because taking class and continuingmy dance education helps me to be a better teacherwithmore knowledge to sharewith my students.” —KatlynCrawford, instructorwithRhythmic Souls


TapCompany,Dance Industry PerformingArtsCenter, and The DanceMovement.


I asked these people a very specific question and they gaveme their own unique, beautifully specific answers. Iwanted an insight intowhatmade other people use their bodies to express themselves, to communicate, and Iwanted an insight intowhat caused themtomove right now, in this climate, in this season, in this semester, this year, this time.


My own answer, I’ve come to realize, is that right nowI am dancing because Imust. Therewould be a little void inmy life where itwent if I didn’t dance any longer.Dance is ameans for figuring things out—fromplans and problems to emotions and interests, and if I did not use this tool I have atmy disposal, if I didn’t remindmyself every time I dance that it is alive and fleet- ing, Iwould forget about the poetry. I amdancing because there are things that dancing still has to teachme, and if I don’t learn them, I feel I’d be bereft of something.


So that’s the question, isn’t it?Why? Why are youdancing?


vol. 21 • no. 1 www.thedancecouncil.org February-April 2018 page 15


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