One Billion Rising Dance Concert
On Sunday, Apr. 2, the Winter Exeter Dance Company performed two powerful pieces at the One Billion Rising Gala—a campaign that seeks to raise awareness about the exploitation of women—at the Music Hall in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The dances were choreographed by dance instructors Allison Duke and Amberlee Darling. Focused on expressing the power of women through movement, the gala served as an opportunity for the dance company to get off campus and meet other local dance groups. The gala was originally scheduled for Feb. 12, but was postponed to this past weekend, due to a blizzard.
The concert was part of an international movement dedicated to combatting gender inequality and eliminating violence against women and girls. One Billion Rising’s goal for 2017 is to foster solidarity against the exploitation of women. In honor of this theme, Darling choreographed a piece inspired by the American suffragette movement while Duke created a dance that explored the different aspects of a relationship. Duke’s dance was inspired by the song “On the Nature of Daylight” by Max Richter. Duke fell in love with the tensions and contradictions in the song, which she sought to emulate in her choreography. She explained, “Out of that grew this piece that juxtaposed what a relationship looks like to everyone else—friends, family and colleagues—and what it feels like for the person in the relationship who lacks a voice, control or power.”
“I feel incredible appreciation for the opportunity to perform in an off-campus show that allowed us to leave the ‘Exeter bubble’ and interact with dancers in the local area.”
Upper Carolyn Girard felt that both pieces successfully used movement to celebrate the strength of women. Describing the process of learning Darling’s choreography, she said, “We focused a lot on the power that women can have by themselves but also on when they come together to support each other.” Girard also appreciated the solidarity among the groups performing how each dance group participating used their unique, individual performances to promote a common goal of female empowerment.
The dancers decided to participate in the One Billion Rising campaign because former dance instructor Sarah Duclos produced and directed the second annual gala at the Music Hall in Portsmouth. The dancers enjoyed getting the chance to perform in an unfamiliar setting. Upper Elly Lee, one of the dancers, said, “I feel incredible appreciation for the opportunity to perform in an off-campus show that allowed us to leave the ‘Exeter bubble’ and interact with dancers in the local area.” Lower Sarah Liberatore was proud to dance in the One Billion Rising gala because it was for a good cause. The gala raised money for a local organization called Haven, which supports victims of sexual and domestic violence. Liberatore described the sense of fulfillment she received from the performance: “We helped raise a lot of money, we got to meet some amazing people and amazing dancers and it was really special to be able to perform at the Portsmouth Music Hall.”
This past winter, dancers attended rehearsals for One Billion Rising twice a week, on top of their rehearsals for the Winter Dance Concert. Aside from the sheer amount of rehearsals, the addition of the One Billion Rising gala to the dance schedule did not have any drastic effects. Liberatore noted the lack of breaks during rehearsals but said the rehearsals were “pretty comparable to normal dance company rehearsals but with a little bit more time commitment.” According to Girard, it was important to hold frequent rehearsals at the beginning of winter term so that the movements would commit to muscle memory. Having these rehearsals at the beginning of the term also allowed the dancers to focus more on learning the choreography and executing it well. Liberatore said, “For me, it was actually better to have it at the beginning of this term instead of at the end of winter term when I was more stressed about school work and lots of other things.”
During the rehearsals and performance, Duke admired the dancers’ enthusiasm and ability to connect with dancers from outside the Exeter community. She believes in the power of art as “an agent for social activism.” The dancers—a combination of those from Exeter’s Winter Dance Company and those who stepped in from Exeter’s Spring Dance Company—executed a moving performance, leaving their impact on the social issue of gender inequality. Duke, bursting with pride, said, “Dance is a lot more than technique and steps, and it can be a powerful and expressive medium to affect change in society.”