Dancers begin collaboration with writers in Dance West Network’s Re-centering/Margins Creative Residency
Creative processes of Ana Sosa, Sidney Chuckas, and Mohammed Rashead will be explored in an essay booklet
Sidney Chuckas. Photo by Brendan Meadows
Ana Sosa. Photo by Daniel J. Collins
Dance West Networks Re-centering/Margins Creative Residency, now in its fourth year, asked the three participants—all emerging dance artists of colour—to invite emerging writers of colour to accompany their choreographic processes. Here, two of the dancers and the collaborating writers speak about what they learned from their collaboration.
Dance Artist Ana Sosa and the writer she chose to accompany her process, Brenda Kent Colina, aka “Bee”, found that they connected over their similar childhood experiences of moving to Canada from Mexico and the exploration of this shared identity.
“Meeting Bee was like meeting an old lost friend. I felt like I was learning about myself through her and vice versa. It was so lovely to get to know her, her work, and her philosophy of life,” says Sosa.
Colina says: “It is an unexpected gift when you are able to see yourself mirrored in another human, especially through their artistry. While our individual trajectories have undeniably been unique, the emotions that underline them often overlap. Being an immigrant is a frequently lonely experience. Getting to reflect on this life transition with a fellow Mexican creative is healing.”
Writer Brenda “Bee” Kent Colina. Photo courtesty of artist.
Dance artist Sidney Chuckas, who created a work titled Manzanar, and Calgary-based writer Misha Maseka found connection through their common experiences of negotiating identity as they were growing up and in solidifying their artistic expressions and practices:
“Creating this piece was more than choreographing a dance, it was also creating a life for Manzanar. It demanded a great deal of empathy and the willingness to practice ego-less collaboration. Working alongside Misha, whose clear vision is so profoundly connected to her community's stories and legacies, served as a reminder that my own purpose in creation goes beyond myself, encompassing all those who have walked before me and all who will come after,” says Chuckas.
Maseka notes: “Working with Sidney has been an effortless and inspiring process. The final nuances birthed from both of our connections to storytelling went beyond our main mediums of dance and writing. Watching Sid create inspired me to go further outside my source of inspiration to bring forth new and more profound nuances in my work.”
The project also includes dancer Mohammed Rashead who works with writer Aryo Khakpour. Project editor is Sarah Wong.
Dance West Network booklets featuring Dance Artists and Wordsmiths are available as free PDFs or print-on-demand; click HERE for more info.
Writer Misha Maseka. Photo by Yanni Laloudakis