Dance: the Counter Revolution.

• “I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. “So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” Lord of the Rings.

What to do?

My daughter phoned me the other day, asking the question that is troubling many of us, “What can I do of consequence with my life to counter this rising tide of madness around us?” Her chosen craft of musical theatre seems socially irrelevant.

In such times of political and social upheaval and disintegration, it is more important than ever to commit ourselves to creative pursuits, whether music or drama or dancing or painting. The arts sustain and nurture what is most integral to the human spirit: the love of beauty, camaraderie, civility and hope. 

I believe the task for us as dancers in such times is to value and commit to the gift that our dancing brings to the world.

We need to dance.

It may seem absurd to include a discussion of dance in the context of world conflict, but consider this: What if we only voted for leaders who could dance? Or for those who invested part of their week in soul practice of some sort, e.g., yoga or tai chi or prayer and meditation? Or took time for walks in nature, sat alone in silence and listened to their inner rhythm? Or knew how to relate to others respectfully and graciously, and listened with non-judgemental curiosity? Or who had a sense of what it means to respect personal space or hold someone gently?

There is something intrinsic in the practice of dance that binds us to each other within creative and life-sustaining energies. When one listens to one’s inner self, befriends the body’s wisdom and becomes attuned to and supportive of another’s movements and creative expression, one loses the desire to dominate. In its stead, we approach the opportunity to inhabit our personal power to create beauty and generate life and love. 

Making Peace

Peace is not just the absence of conflict. It is a focused practice. It requires commitment and discipline of mind, body and spirit. Peace is not a static state of conformity or uniformity.  Differences are not compromised or homogenized but respected and acknowledged.  What germinates from the complex and difficult process of negotiating a resolution is something entirely new, a vision beyond what is to what could be, surrendering to a greater good.*

The skills required in Tango parallel those required in peace-making. Tango is doubling down on respect. It is the practice and discipline of attending to our partner’s energy, rhythm, balance, strengths and weaknesses and complementing and meshing these with one’s own skills and limitations.

Tango is a dance of vulnerability, inter-dependence, and attunement. Each one holds the other in a close embrace, just snug enough to give comfort and support, relaxed enough to create space for individual creativity.

In Tango: Lead/ follow roles and gender differences are not homogenized but rather accentuated. This is not an opportunity for an enforced embrace or autocratic lead (as sometimes misinterpreted), but begins with curiosity and then delight in a dialogue of differences. The contraposition, the non-choreographed steps, and the intermittent pauses intensify this creativity. 

So yes, we are sculpting a dance for peace. Just dancing, but at the same time adding to the global consciousness gentleness, affection, and respect.

And whatever is done by anyone, anytime, anywhere, blesses everyone.

*For A clear and beautiful expression of this collaborative dynamic of surrendering, read https://www.danceinconversation.co.uk/on-surrendering/ by Jesus Sergio Acosta.