Dichotomy of a Dance Artist: Classics Meet Collaboration

I’ve recently learned that we have a number of readers from outside the dance community, meaning they are not practitioners themselves. However, they are patrons and supporters. And they often engage me in conversation about past posts in an effort to understand what we do, why we do it, how we get it done.  I’ve found, through these discussions, that the “who” often informs their perceptions of the “what”, “why”, and “how”. 

Theresa Bautista, Director of Moving Collective and Louisville dance educator, graciously offered to be this blog’s first local artist profile subject.  Between teaching obligations and rehearsals, Theresa found time to answer my questions. Let this be our intro into who is making dance in Louisville.

Most artists find a connection to their chosen medium early on. I asked Theresa, “What is your first dance memory?”

Well, my first personal memory is always being in the basement with my family and dancing to music playing on the stereo. We listened to all kinds of music and loved to dance. I remember being very young and my sister could twirl on one leg and I wasn’t coordinated enough yet to do it. It was very frustrating! As for organized dancing, my mom was a big fan of musicals and we would always watch tons of them, Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse...I loved them.

“What was one of the most important moments of your early dance career?”

I remember becoming really cocky in my early teen years. I was already one of the top students at my dance studio and learning new steps and choreography was very easy for me. My dance teacher at the time was teaching us new choreography which I picked up quickly though others were struggling. I coped an attitude like, “Is that it? What next?” and she quickly put me in my place in front of everyone. I immediately realized what I did was extremely rude and disrespectful.  It was an important lesson learned, that no matter how frustrating a choreographer or teacher can be, you have to behave professionally. The dance world is small, and if you want to work in it, you " have be someone that people want to work with or work for.

So what kind of artist did Theresa become? What marks her choreographic style? Theresa avoids labels and remains open to growth.

I don’t really know how to describe my choreographic style. That might be better  answer by people who have danced for me or have seen several of my works. Since I didn’t major in dance in college, I didn’t take composition classes and I never took a modern dance class until the last semester of my senior year! I never saw myself becoming a choreographer for concert dance and found the process very intimidating. I am a quick study and always analyzing people’s process so have learned a lot of choreographic techniques from working with different choreographers. My nature is to constantly challenge myself, so I am always trying different things. Right now I’m in a phase where I want to tell stories or make people think about things, so my choreography has a more narrative point of view. But I think I always try to make the actual steps very physical for the dancers. I think that’s because I still consider myself a dancer first and I always wanted to be challenged both physically and mentally.

Her work, although not a reflection a specific codified technique, is inspired by Paul Taylor for his ability to find compositional motivation in “everyday common things”.  But Taylor’s willingness to make risky decisions when crafting his dances perhaps also encouraged Theresa to make a life in dance within a community where modern dance was in short supply.

When asked, “Why Louisville?” Theresa responded,

Honestly, I never saw myself returning to the Louisville area. I thought I was going to make my mark in NYC like every other dancer. But after graduating from college, I found myself back in Louisville with a very good teaching job. I was always torn between my love for teaching dance and my love for performing. I struggled for a long time with that. Eventually I found a little bit of a balance by dancing with the modern dance company, Art! Art! Barking Dog before it folded in 2006. Around that time, it seem that a lot of dancers were returning to the area. I thought, why not put together a concert to showcase the wealth of modern dance Louisville has right now. It was only suppose to be one concert, but I go so much great feedback and encouragement to do another one that Moving Collective is in its 5th season. Some people say I’m “modern dance” in Louisville, which I think is crazy. But I like to connect dancers with each other and Iʼm am glad that there is an outlet for me and others to dance and choreograph in the city. Although Louisville loves its sports, I think it also loves the arts. I would love to see a strong, vibrant modern company exist in here at the same level as the ballet company, orchestra, opera and theater. That company doesn’t have to be Moving Collective, but maybe we’ll be a stepping stone to make that happen.

While Theresa is promoting modern dance in Louisville, teaching both youth and adult dance classes, choreographing for the next concert, or organizing the growing list of participating dance artists, she is keeping her eye (and ear) open for ideas. A recent collaboration with Bourbon Baroque demonstrates her assertion that partnerships are valuable.  In fact, this spirit of community defines the atmosphere that Theresa helped created in the Louisville dance scene.

What’s next for her? “I’m always open for ideas.”