(Republished with permission from the College of Arts and Sciences)
The movements in Anna Sokolow’s choreographed Rooms carry the same emotional weight almost 65 years after she created the work in 1955. Desire, isolation, anxiety, longing and inner turmoil all make appearances through the dancers’ bodies, which are shaped and moved in ways designed to intrinsically emote experiences of urban isolation.
“What we always find out in history is that sometimes it repeats itself,” said Valarie Williams, professor of dance. “These works become relevant again over time.”
Williams is helping direct Rooms and George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments as part of the #DaNCE2U #mentalhealth Performance and Panel Tour, a collaboration among the Department of Dance, BalletMet 2 and University Libraries. The show’s name breaks down into “Da” for dance, “N” for notation and “C” for community, Williams said. The “2U” represents both BalletMet 2 and the show’s message “to you.”
This year, the central focus is utilizing the pair of choreographed pieces to facilitate discussions about mental health.
