The Everyday Dance

Dance Intimate (I am one...)

Dance Communion (I am one with...)

Dance Community (I am one with all...)

Dance Infinite (I am one with all one...)

What it means to be in a large group and not forego your individual stance is at the heart of the dance in community. It can be real easy to merge and melt into the prevailing mood, the presently occurring vibe, or the most recent rhythm. Suddenly I am moving along like a lemming in a crowd that is being mesmerized by the prevailing outer world. This is dangerous. This is where I may lose out on stability. This is where I can float downstream, sleeping and lullaby land-ho.

To dance in community is to be a member of a village. The members of a village come from diverse backgrounds, have different skills, come in all shapes and sizes, carry individual preferences, beliefs, and attitudes, and yet they are all members and participants of the village. They all live in the same locale, share a bond that is given them by their association as a village member.  They share the same sidewalks and streets; they share the same natural environment, climate, and identity as village members.

Village members are individual statements and styles within a collective environment and common identity. In community dance I am asked to move my vision to “out there” away from the immediate environs and to see and feel and extend my range to a greater distance that I am normally asked to do.

I am invited to project outward to the corners of the room in incremental stages as I widen my circle of involvement to include more and more of the participants and more of the field that is all around.

I dance in community because there is a wealth of things I do not know and experiences that I have yet to discover.

I dance in community because of my innate curiosity to know what is it like to be in your shoes, to be stepping your steps.

- Vincent Martinez-Grieco