A Coup for Dance: Rose Eichenbaum's "The Dancer Within" Travels the Nation
How do you build audiences for dance? The press has been awash with articles on a wide range of efforts being made by dancers, choreographers and companies. Choreographers use pop music that is familiar to many people. Dance companies throw singles beer parties. New York City's "Fall for Dance Festival" offers $10 tickets. Pre- and post-performance talks are frequent.
Reaching a broad public, Rose Eichenbaum's "The Dancer Within" photography exhibit will surely contribute to audience growth. This exhibit is the first show on dance that the nation's Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) has sponsored during its more than 50 years of sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside of Washington, DC.
The exhibit, which runs from 2008 to 2010, features both portraits and live action shots mostly taken during live performances by world-renowned dancers and choreographers. Included in the exhibit: ballet icons Mikhail Baryshnikov, Julio Bocca, Fernando Bujones, Jacques d’Amboise, Cynthia Gregory, Natalia Makarova; Broadway stars Ann Reinking, Chita Rivera, Russ Tamblyn, Tommy Tune, Ben Vereen; modern dance luminaries Eiko of Eiko and Koma, Bill T. Jones, Carmen de Lavallade, Lar Lubovitch, David Parsons, Desmond Richardson, Anna Sokolow, Glen Tetley, Yuriko; tapper Gregory Hines; African American-influenced choreographers Katherine Dunham, Cleo Parker Robinson, Ronald K. Brown; flamenco ambassador Jose Greco; hip-hopper Mr. Wiggles. The exhibit also features the voices of lesser known but highly insightful artists such as Michael Blake, Leonard Crofoot, Tiler Peck, Jonathan Porretta, Matthew Rushing, Robert Sund and Rasta Thomas.
Eichenbaum explains, "The SITES Exhibition is drawn from 25 years of shooting dance and dancers. But most of the images are from my three major works: Masters of Movement: Portraits of America’s Great Choreographers (Smithsonian Books 2004), The Dancer Within (Wesleyan University Press, 2008) and my current project, From The Wings, live dance performance photography of some of the world's greatest dance companies, from The Royal Ballet of London to Rennie Harris’ Puremovement.” Each of the exhibit photographs is captioned with the voice of the artist in the image speaking about his/her work, and a bio is added.
Julio Bocca
Photo: Rose Eichenbaum
With a Bachelor’s degree in Ethnic Arts/Dance and a Master’s in Dance Ethnology, both from UCLA, Eichenbaum went into teaching, dance research, photography and ultimately photojournalism. She has been a full-time dance teacher for the Beverly Hills Unified School District for more than 20 years and received prestigious recognition for her commitment to education. Eichenbaum's articles and photographs have appeared on the covers and pages of numerous dance publications and newspapers. She is also a wife and a mother of three children.
Working on the Smithsonian exhibition was unique. "I was asked to conceive and curate the show -- something I'd never done before. The name of the show – “The Dancer Within” -- came from SITES after my assigned exhibition director, Katherine Krile, and her colleagues saw the images from my second book. I was flown to Washington, DC, to meet with Krile, who through her gentile guidance helped me to understand that the show required a consistent theme and look that would flow from start to finish. I decided to create a virtual tour of the dancer’s life. What do they feel, think, experience? What inspires, drives and keeps them going? I wanted to answer all these questions and more. And having interviewed and photographed more than 200 dancers and choreographers for my books and articles over the past 10 years, I had plenty of material from which to draw."
Eichenbaum recalls, "Creating for an exhibition has its own dynamic, visual sense, flow and drama. I had to discover for myself what these were. I reviewed my files, made my selections and spread the photographs over two rectangular tables. For two months I studied the images, trying to match them up with quotes that would reveal little known clues about the art form. Then, I was faced with the arduous task of sequencing -- putting the words and images in order so that the viewer travels the exhibition, the same way that dancers journey through their careers."
She continues, "The exhibit is a virtual tour of the world of dance in its many dimensions. I draw upon my intimate conversations with some of the greatest dancers and choreographers of our generation. Exhibition visitors will recognize how dance enhances our culture, speaks to the issues of our times, reflects the deepest of human emotions and entertains us." The theme, she says, is “To dance is to be human.” The exhibit is composed of dance makers, performers and performances that tell compelling stories that others can resonate with and shows how dance transforms lives. What makes dancers unique is "their ability to survive in one of the most difficult of professions. To be a dancer requires courage, stamina, dedication and deeply felt passion. It's the dancers' ability to triumph over adversity that makes them extraordinary human beings."
Masters of Movement, a source for the exhibit, is a beautifully designed book that is as much about choreographers' creativity as photography. There are 59 portraits of choreographers in ballet, modern, jazz, tap, hip hop, film, music video, postmodern and Broadway. Eichenbaum asks perceptive questions and gets eye-opening answers. The creative process is unique to each choreographer whether living through rags-to-riches or comfort, alone or with others. Each portrait and interview reveals something distinct about the choreographer's personality, artistic lens and knowledge of dance.
Eichenbaum also tells the story of her meeting with each choreographer, from being embraced like a long-lost relative, to being rudely treated, to recording a dying choreographer's poignant last words about the art of dance. In recording the photo shoot as it begins, progresses with repartee between herself and each choreographer, and ends, Eichenbaum's quick wit, spunky boldness and empathy shine through.
The book took five years and an estimated $60,000 out-of-pocket to produce, including travel, photo gear and expenses, all before receiving a book contract. Obviously Eichenbaum is as daring a risk-taker as the creative people she profiles in her work. Her mission, she said, "is to preserve the legacy of the artists who serve the art form." She and the artists collaborated in the production of the photographs and text, so the shooting locations range from stages to studios and living rooms to city streets. Eichenbaum prepares for her subjects by extensively researching their lives and careers so when she meets face-to-face for the interview, she's prepared to ask about what she doesn't already know. "The interview is also a way for us to get acquainted and for me to gain their trust before I point my large intimidating lens at them. I hope to come away with an honest portrayal -- not merely a snapshot."
The Dancer Within continues Eichenbaum's visual and textual revelation of the dance world. This book is a collection of photographic portraits and short essays based on intimate confessional interviews with dancers and entertainers, many of them icons of stage and screen. The featured personalities speak with extraordinary candor about their inner lives and personal struggles that have remained hidden in the wings -- from the first dance class to the signature performances to reflections on what it means to be an artist. These dancers reveal how they have summoned the courage, stamina and determination to triumph over debilitating injuries and illnesses, insecurity and even aging -- travails that often sideline performers, but made these artists stronger.
Eichenbaum said choreographers opened their studios, homes and lives to her. "I gained their trust. The dancers were by nature more cautious and less trusting -- perhaps vanity or self-preservation is at the root of their behavior."
Eichenbaum's SITES exhibit and books capture of some of the world's most influential dancers' love and passion in pursuit of artistic excellence that dancers, aspiring dancers and dance lovers will cherish. The dancers portrayed are a metaphor for the human spirit and will surely attract new people to the dance. Of course, the press and arts critics will report and replay parts of Eichenbaum's work and further expand the impact.
By bringing exhibits directly to the places where people live, work and play, SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage. SITES circulates its exhibitions as widely as possible: museums, libraries, science centers, historical societies, community centers, botanical gardens, schools and even shopping malls.
Check out www.sites.si.edu/exhibitions/exhibits/dancer_within/main.htm for a site near you.