Historical Reckoning: Two Japanese Canadians who are dancing their heritage

An article by our alumna resident Debra Spark about her fellow artists-in-residence from our multidisciplinary program, Kunji Ikeda and Mayumi Lashbrook, and their dance performance as a reflection on their ancestors' painful  immigrant past.

"When Lashbrook presented a work-in-progress version of the solo in Paris, she performed barefoot in a black cotton dress, dancing almost solipsistically, looking at her palms, rolling, stretching, bending her back and hugging herself while on the floor. Slowly her gestures became broader and more confident, though initially she reeled and stumbled as she engaged with more space. Toward the end, she approached the audience, touching palms with individuals and asking, “Do you trust me?” The music picked up and became increasingly celebratory, a whiff of the dance club in her movements. She took the hands of audience members and what had been a performance became a dance party."

Full article: danceinternational.org