Cuatro Vientos Performance Lab

Cuatro Vientos Interedisciplinary Performance Lab with visiting choreographer Liz Duran Boubion and members of the Piñata Dance Collective (SF/LA).

Welcome to this community building ritual performance for women, non-binary and femme presenting dancers dedicated to healing and building solidarity for victims of gender-based violence and femicide worldwide.

Location: HIGHWAYS PERFORMANCE SPACE (on unceded Tongva and Chumash land)

When: June 14-17, 2023. Includes Open Contemporary Classes, movement lab and an opportunity to perform.

Description: Each day opens with a contemporary dance class for tuning the body followed by an experimental performance lab rooted in eco-somatic wisdom culminating in two public ritual performance installations during Cuatro Vientos: Middle of Nowhere.

Within an environment of care and connection, participants will be learning choreographic phrases, vocal expression and improvisational movement scores that will lead to performing in part of the Piñata Dance Collective’s LA debut in Cuatro Vientos: Middle of Nowhere. Cuatro Vientos (Four Winds: Medio de la nada) is a multimedia dance-theater production that confronts fears and strategies of walking alone and a socio-political response to the voices of missing and murdered women and girls. In solo, duet and group scores, Cuatro Vientos invites the concept of connection as a pathway to safety in relation to others and the natural world.

The workshop is built on ideas of building a symbolic Solidarity Search Brigade:

*Exploring body mythology while moving with 4 levels of awareness (physical, emotional, mental, spiritual)

*Facing the 4 directions to develop an internal compass to search for lost parts of self, others or victims of organized crime or femicide.

*Moving with the sounds and imagery of the wind and the anthropomorphizing of birds.

*Collectively sharing practical and spiritual strategies of protection or avoidance while walking alone

Liz Boubion draws from Nature Archetypes, Modern Release Technique, Contact Improvisation, Somatic Awareness Practices and the psycho-kinetic imagery method (movement, drawing and writing) based on the Tamalpa Life-Art®️ process. The work is grounded in research and collaboration with women in Mexico who have lost family members or are still searching for their loved ones. Over 100,000 are still missing.  In the U.S. 77% of incarcerated women are in prison for crimes in self defense.  Women and girls are most likely to be killed by those closest to them.  In 2021, around 45,000 women and girls worldwide were killed by their intimate partners or other family members (including fathers, mothers, uncles and brothers). This means that, on average, more than five women or girls are killed every hour by someone in their own family. Current and former intimate partners are by far the most likely perpetrators of femicide, accounting for an average of 65 per cent of all intimate partner and family related killings.

We dance first for ourselves in a supportive space as an act of healing and positive change.

*Boubion will be joined by local collaborative artists: Lindsey Red-Tail and Jen Hong  -helping lead the ceremony and community workshop based in plant medicine and other earth based and somatic healing practices.

*Bring water, a journal, wear clothes you can move in and bring snacks/lunch for the breaks.

Cuatro Vientos Performance Lab Schedule (Includes Part 1 + 2)

Part 1: Cuatro Vientos Open Classes! Contemporary Practices (Int-Adv). *Drop-in $18/class (venmo, paypal, apple pay only)

Wed + Thursday 6/14+ 6/15 (12 pm-1:30 pm) Open classes

Friday + Saturday 6/16 + 6/17 pre-show company class (6 pm-7:30pm) Open classes

Part 2: Performance Lab (All Levels, Pre-Registration Required) *Must attend all 4 days and open classes in Part 1 are included. $240

Wed 6/14 (2pm-7pm) + Thurs 6/15 (2pm-6pm)

Prep + Shows Fri-Sat (6 pm-10pm) (ALL: 6-7:30 company class + 7:30-8:30 dress and prep for show 8:30-10pm).

Registration Includes Part 1 and 2 = $240 (part 1 contemporary technique is optional but encouraged and there will be a break during part 2) *No drop-ins for the lab- must attend all 4 days.

*limited scholarships available please contact: admin@flaccdanza.org