Paige Fortier

October 23, 2015

Choreographic Memoirs – An Exploration of the Autobiographical Choreography Process

Creating dances is not always easy. Where do you start? How do you find inspiration? How do you generate movement material? Making dances can be a very personal process; one that requires us to put ourselves and our work out for the public to view. If this is vulnerable, how do we deal with making a piece of choreography that is autobiographical? How do we choose what to share of ourselves with the world and what to keep veiled? We are suddenly back at square one… Where do you start? Through research, observation, movement, and conversation with choreographers in New England, some light has been shed on this process for me. This presentation will share some helpful and novel ideas in autobiographical dance exhibited by these choreographers, as well as analyze how the study of other choreographers and their practices can and will inform the process and direction of my own autobiographical work.