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July 1, 2005
Telling a story through dance
Israeli-Canadian choreographer brings her creation to Vancouver
stage.
KATHARINE HAMER EDITOR
Dancing is one of the first things that Maya Lewandowsky remembers.
The Israeli-born artistic director of Calgary-based La Caravan Dance
Theatre began her craft at an early age.
Lewandowsky – who performs at the Dancing on the Edge festival
in Vancouver July 15 and 16 – spent most of her youth at the
Bat-Dor dance school in Tel-Aviv. She continued her dance studies
during her army service and later joined Bat-Dor Dance Company,
where she eventually became a soloist. Trained in classical ballet,
Lewandowsky expanded her skills to incorporate modern and jazz dance.
After working with the Inbal Pinto Dance Company in Israel, she
moved to Canada three years ago and established her own company.
"Israel is a very charged place," said Lewandowsky. "I
wanted to move to a place that will be more neutral and will enable
me to explore and understand my style and interests in these dance
creations. Canada, for me, was and is the best choice for this.
There is space – so much space, virgin lands, interesting people
to work with and above all, fertile grounds for this dream to become
true."
Among the dance creators who've influenced her: Germany's Pina Bausch
and William Forsythe; Martha Graham and Edouard Lock of La La La
Human Steps. "For me, they are landmarks in dance, since their
originality changed the face of dance," said Lewandowsky. "They
made a difference and thus inspired me much."
Now, Lewandowsky choreographs works both for her company and for
young dancers at the Alberta Ballet School and the University of
Calgary.
"As a soloist in [Bat-Dor]," she recalled, "I had
the privilege to work with various choreographers. Choreography
was always very attractive to me. Being a dancer, I was an instrument
and as such, explored the art of bringing forth an abstract idea
or a thought into the language of movements and dance. This ability
was a great mystery for me. I knew, back then, that one day I would
explore this domain ... telling a story through dance."
At Dancing on the Edge (a forum for experimental dance that's now
in its 17th year), La Caravan will perform in a program alongside
Vancouver's Barbara Bourget, Christopher Duban and Jennifer McLeish-Lewis.
La Caravan's entry is titled "The Corridor." The piece
was described by one Calgary reviewer as "ballet met rave met
faux fashion show grit."
"The corridor is the stage of in between," Lewandowsky
explained. "In the silence between the tones is where music
is created. In the freeze between the movements is where dance happens
and between the entries and the exits of the performers is where
'The Corridor' show happens."
This is the company's first full-length piece, of which only an
excerpt will be performed at Dancing on the Edge. Lewandowsky has
been working on it for more than a year, with four other dancers.
She hopes to also bring the entire show to the Chutzpah! festival.
For more information about Dancing on the Edge, go to www.dancingontheedge.org.
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