13/08/2022
Karen’s story...(choreographer)
Life in lockdown was very interesting to say the least. In many ways the experience of Lockdown has had an incredible effect on both my life and my dearest husband David’s life. Both in the creative world, our love for music grew and my passion for dance became frustrating as my mind and head was dreaming of dances with compositions to accompany, but to health reasons (previous double hip replacement, leg pins and at that time awaiting kidney transplant) my body would not allow me to bring these ideas to fruition. Then, the beautiful spark and energy from Rosy Nevard.... Let's do dance on zoom. So, ballet classes and choreography began.
What an amazing opportunity to share the passion and love for all art forms here with the able-bodied dancers. Celebrating the last 3 years when normality then was rudely interrupted with a deadly disease nobody knew anything about. The craziness of new freaky routines we picked up in panic... We as dancers met twice weekly or more to dance, and I had great pleasure in creating dance with these professional amazing gifted people as dancers.
From the very start of the lockdown, dance was our coping mechanism. Joining together via Zoom, keeping close to one another although isolated, sharing a joint purpose, we started documenting the experience in choreography. In December 2020, we presented our project "Lockdown Live" to a virtual audience. Finally, in 2022, I am delighted to re-imagine and fulfil the project on stage.
The second act of the performance is titled Metamorphosis and actually came about in November 2021 when I was in a hospital critical care unit for 3 weeks, having being transformed by a lifesaving kidney transplant. As I woke up, my body was the same, but transforming back to a body in working order. Although, not the same, but the foundation of the body and life the same. This felt parallel with lockdown and the emerging of lockdown to a world that was different but the same. Dance is my lifeblood and it holds so much power to speak and to heal.
I believe that if you have passion, ignite it and never stop learning, giving and receiving to grow continuously. Learning from others is a wonderful gift. It lets creativity in all art forms develop and become new and phenomenal. Art speaks without words; it communicates beyond language. Interpret and take what you will from this creativity. Always find positive encouragement. It is the joy of creating together which makes it perfect.
