the entire list of people im following on tumblr + roman emperors forenames + fruit

Aalcoar Aaree Aarnalef Acess Achecke Achit Ackblear Ackomes Actonbers Agingprin Agrat Alamback Aldeprion Aleariamai Alincasum Allygo Amards Amdeashiia Ameba Ameber Ameberry Amelog Amwhit Anary Annia Antake Appys Arthelog Askmege Askmeger Astonsphes Asumptys Asurlr Atictomar Atinyo Atiston Avatipe Avatlyfee Badore Badyno Bandy Bapeago Bapplum Begrava Berry Bigid Biguy Blackupday Blakes Blasurpgin Bleste Blour Bloverry Blowas Blychebs Blyrazie Braoid Breege Bress Buted Cabat Cabaterry Cadario Caken Cakets Cakeydnd Canut Cateprow Cation Catipe Catis Cavatom Chellyboi Chelp Chers Chplout Clefer Clemang Clemdrpgis Clesim Clogprog Cloquava Coats Cobleum Cofths Colixen Coneybth Congideo Coniang Craom Crostay Crowas Cruil Cruit Cucan Cucarsideo Cuckwat Cucum Cumbera Cunneare Cutterfru Dadai Dadfiderna Dartred Datinge Datlam Dayspber Dearfru Dmdest Dmdra Dmulaches Dmulberit Dmulberry Dmusa Dndar Draars Dranda Dress Dylima Eadnd Ekenia Eketema Elpirts Emanas Empts Everbeguan Exples Faclebrew Feeping Ficto Fictumpt Fidepy Fiders Fieamwhate Filifru Firazywore Firewriyur Florry Folackypts Folit Follordpro Foriney Forlra Fujife Fujifruids Fujim Funnehis Garens Garybotikk Ghtok Ghtollef Ghtords Ghtorlr Gisaisoll Glybooser Goste Granst Grapaya Grapple Gravatsmas Grawslypt Grawwi Hannie Hecabadcop Hecakessit Hecana Heclemege Hecrang Hompt Honlake Honpapeope Honutee Hordra Hoseberry Hostrplee Housaily Hucklebot Hucum Hucungost Idesth Imapplum Imaroi Imbiterry Imblater Immonix Imspbee Inyoughost Ister Jimartuds Jimellow Junge Junip Junkygo Junnand Junowix Kaehit Kaerry Kaexakes Kanas Kandinas Kaperry Kappy Keberrymeg Kenock Keyly Kingon Kings Kiwing Kiwix Kofcraterz Kofferry Komebegraw Kwatsma Lackcher Lambacc Laromptys Lasuringe Lebere Lifee Limsber Linge Lisour Loggarsa Loggin Loggiveman Logpro Loodrewle Loquang Loquit Loriyuk Loush Lowas Lyferre Lyntrese Lypto Mager Mange Mangerago Mapashers Mapefe Mapeople Maperry Mapplum Marincess Maskberets Mathatin Mbackotoke Mbando Mbegres Mcnocoartd Mcnonlasum Mcnow Mcnowbee Milly Mingue Mirearia Monfild Monfina Monfinut Mongartic Monge Moniea Moning Monne Monpaw Morldbuit Mrhedated Mrhes Mulberio Mulgi Mymelowsle Ninge Nipsteens Ockberbee Ofcromon Offera Offerry Offig Ofthapeart Ofths Oproblon Opromelp Ordsman Orenix Orldrers Oupdarinar Ourwolly Ourwomappy Pacleart Panart Pandar Papanber Papeady Papeari Papland Pastnuto Pasum Pawinstut Pawit Pawpack Peart Peastraws Pefeepaw Pefro Peope Perall Perasy Pereasy Pingue Pinyow Pipeariyuk Pirld Plackupdar Plumpts Polacand Polacang Pomateve Pomptys Poseast Possourl Prear Proberry Problanat Proprinie Prowat Pumas Pumbithen Quily Radayapes Rafanger Raficom Ragera Ralla Ranate Rangerrys Rangi Ransto Raominyow Raroblee Rashaplant Ratep Ratevoi Ravation Reaspber Reducut Reepy Renchit Rentaffers Rewre Robee Rogsber Romegue Rowas Rowinkygon Sailderry Saishit Seaces Seaddrew Seydnut Seylis Shanthro Sheevemang Shelogs Shere Sherry Shersango Shigyo Shigyour Shiperry Shthatom Shtor Sibuse Simmon Singe Siong Slavikey Snejkhan Snoni Souradada Squalate Squilyra Staya Sterry Sters Stnutmege Stnutons Stroblow Stuto Sumar Surictords Suruit Tafistla Targary Tarttob Terence Termerrys Terntonut Teveished Tevelp Thaterry Therry Thers Throggarth Thsom Tobblog Todra Tolanberry Tonejkhape Treambit Tuallog Tuavats Tudid Turary Twolix Tworiter Ursit Ustnut Virace Virlder Wberretep Whatewri Whiters Whitte Wifruitest Womelimart Womelypt Worabables Worazie Woreas Worent Worit Worldep Worlr Wrefruit Writerry Writh Yearnatip Yelog Yelose Yelour Yerewlexie Yoodrager Youds Yowsion

Dance as Mutual Understanding

by: Sarah Horne, DMUSA Project Director

It’s difficult to reflect back on my time with DanceMotion USA℠ because I’m still processing that the program is really coming to a close. When I was first introduced to the concept of cultural diplomacy in 2014, it seemed a vehicle for political gain. When I actually experienced cultural diplomacy as the tour manager of the Mark Morris Dance Group’s DanceMotion USA℠ residency in Cambodia, Timor Leste, Taiwan, and China, I understood that it was a vehicle for change; a tool to be used to connect individuals through something as simple yet powerful as dance. I can honestly say that partaking in that residency changed my life.

Small town Massachusetts girl, never in my wildest dreams could I have foreseen travel to destinations like Cambodia; and Timor Leste, I had never even heard of it. Yet, the people I met in these destinations became my family for the 5 weeks we were abroad. We moved together, ate, laughed, shared highs and lows, connected on intimate and personal levels, and all expressed the same desire to live a happy, healthy life; to provide for our families; to take pride in our work. The world really is small and humans all need and want the same basic necessities. Whether we’re in South East Asia or America, we’re inevitably the same, this program allowed me to fully understand that.

Mark Morris and Sarah Horne at the closing ceremony of the Special Olympics in Timor Leste with a young participant

Almost a year after that residency experience, I had the opportunity to become a part of the DanceMotion USA℠ team; working to bring to fruition these residencies for other American dancers and dance companies. With the program having had such an impact on me personally, I wanted to work toward building experiences for others that would allow them the same opportunities I had. As the Project Manager for DanceMotion USA℠, I worked with embassies and cultural partners in Africa, Asia, South America, and Eurasia to build residency tours that connected American dancers with individuals who may never have met an American, or who may never have been given the opportunity to dance and move due to physical limitations and/or access to dance and dance education. Some of the vulnerable populations we worked with had caretakers who didn’t believe those in their care could dance perhaps because they were wheelchair bound or had other physical limitations. Yet, when the American residency companies were on the ground, the palpable energy of joy in the room radiated because dance really is for everyone. Those caretakers not only saw those in their care dance but they saw them light up with a happiness that comes from inclusion and the belief that we can achieve anything our hearts set out to do.

Sarah Horne being interviewed in Taiwan following a residency activity

I had the privilege to travel to Vientiane, Laos with Dance Heginbotham in 2016 and watching this company teach and exchange with individuals on the ground brought joy to my heart and tears of happiness to my eyes. I saw them experience the same transformation I had during my Mark Morris residency and I knew then that this program was more than about achieving foreign policy goals, it was about individual, person-to-person exchange; it was about the universal language of dance; it was about empowerment and joy.

John Heginbotham with Sarah Horne in Luang Prabang, Laos

In 2017, as the Project Director for the program, I traveled to Mongolia, Korea and Russia to meet with Embassy staff and cultural partners in advance of the seventh and final season of programming. Explaining the program and discussing how dance can be used as a way to connect is often harder than one would think. More often than not, those we work with expect us to want to work with professional dancers, dance students, companies, etc. and to put on performances. Yet, the power of what we do lies in the exact opposite; connecting individually with those new to dance and/or exchanging with local, traditional groups in an effort to absorb and appreciate the culture, history, and heritage of the countries we travel to.

These advance trips held an extra special meaning for me, not only did I know they would establish the residencies for the last season of DanceMotion USA℠ programming, but I was near the end of my first trimester of pregnancy, carrying with me my daughter. In her, I hope to instill not only an appreciation and love for travel but also the respect and admiration for other cultures and societies that has grown within me since my involvement with DanceMotion USA℠ began. As the world continues to grow, preserving and respecting culture and traditions is all the more important. Cultural exchange programs do that, not only by sending Americans abroad, but by bringing international artists and curators to the United States. The connections fostered through these exchanges help create space for dialogue and discussion, demonstrate shared values, and increase cross-cultural understanding.

Sarah Horne in Moscow, Russia during an advance trip

Now as the program end looms in site, I have the weight and responsibility of keeping the legacy of these residency exchanges alive for years to come so that others may understand the powerful impact of cultural diplomacy.  In bidding goodbye to this chapter of dance diplomacy, I reflect back on how dance diplomacy began during the Cold War. It was President Dwight D. Eisenhower who created the means for the State Department to facilitate cultural exchange as a way to “stimulate the presentation abroad by private firms and groups of the best American industrial and cultural achievements, in order to demonstrate the dedication of the United States to peace and human well-being [and] to offset worldwide Communist propaganda charges that the United States has no culture.” Since then, dance diplomacy has ebbed and flowed as foreign policy goals and objectives have changed. Today, dance is used as a means to foster cultural exchange and mutual understanding and to establish relationships between individuals. As we look at the next chapter of cultural diplomacy, I hope the State Department maintains these goals which I hold near and dear to my heart and continues to encourage individuals to connect through the arts because they represent a universal language equal to none. It has been a privilege and an honor to be both a participant and administrator of this program; for what it has taught me and instilled within me, I am eternally changed and grateful.

USA! Tokio Hotel brings the Dream Machine in 2018!!!!! get your tickets NOW on TokioHotel.com! VIP coming soon!

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I come alive in the wintertime. #mydayinla #mthollywood #griffithpark #losangeles #wintersolstice #december #ilovela #capricorn #blackisbeautiful #depechemode #dmusa (at Mount Hollywood) https://www.instagram.com/p/B6Wk_lhlDmw/?igshid=qoufm9qdzyfi

An Interview With Drug Money USA

By Adam Roye Artwork by Matthew Bellosi Photos by AR and DMUSA

*from scumrag #1 (nov. 2016)

Drug (ar)

NAME / AGE / ORIGIN ? If you see me in Atlanta, you're going to hear choruses of people calling me "Drug," but my God given name is Charlie. I'm in my late twenties and I'm from Texas. I miss it there.

WHERE ARE YOU BASED NOW ? I live in St. Louis (for ascetic reasons). I make the Atlanta trip a couple times a month, but I've lived there for longer durations too, like 6 months at a time. For a while, I lived down there in this huge house with Yakki (formerly Yakki Divioshi), who is one of my favorite rappers of all time. Lil Silk was in the building of course too. Lotto Savage. Shout out to Guccio & Yayo Gang in St. Louis. Free Twank Banks. Geek Monster Gang. Keep your eyes peeled for the Mansion documentary shot by me and edited by Silk himself. A very piped up inside look into the life. I was always, always filming, whatever we were doing.

Yakki (dmusa)

HOW’S YOUR DAY GOING ? Man, honestly, it was a stressed out, kinda shitty day. A lot of them are like that it seems, but I'm so, so proud of what I'm doing that I can't help but think it's worth it. I feel like I'm helping ensure that some very singular, important art comes to fruition. And at the end of the day, I couldn't live with myself not doing this. It's really taken over a lot of my life, but I think that this is the role I was supposed to fill.

*note: I'm having a better day as I'm coming back to finish these questions. They aren't all bad. I have to remind myself sometimes.

CARE TO BREIFLY DESCRIBE YOUR HISTORY / INVOLVEMENT WITH MUSIC, BANDS, SHOWS, ETC ? I've definitely been involved in music for a long time. I grew up in the hardcore scene in Houston. I'll always have love for that place and those people. All of my dogs in Austin too, of course. I released the Total Abuse demo on Drug Money Records and I've gone on tour with them almost every time they've ever toured. Rusty and I go way back. I collect records pretty hard, or I used to and now I mostly just enjoy what I have, because I'm so busy with everything else. I was always into rap, which isn't that special of a fact or anything, especially in Houston. My friend Masoud was an OG coach of mine back like way back on Houston rap. You could still buy the tapes from the old Screwed Up Records & Tapes location on Cullen then. I'll never forget that he advised me on picking up Dancin' Candy, P's n Q's, and maybe another one. I wonder where all those tapes went. He also tipped me off on K-Rino way back when. So because of Masoud, I was corresponding with K-Rino in high school. And I should mention too that there was a band from Houston called Eyeagainst and they touted Aquemini super hard. that was probably my first really serious dance with Atlanta rap. I was awed.

HOW DO YOU DEFINE DMUSA... ? ANY LABELS YOU WOULD PLACE ON IT, MAYBE TO DESCRIBE TO SOMEONE WHO IS COMPLETELY CLUELESS ? Good question. I would say that I'm involved with all levels of making rap music. The range of shit I have to do really has no limits. I release singles on my YouTube channel (and some on Soundcloud too), and now I'm releasing mixtapes. I connect the rapper and producer, arrange for the studio time to go down, and help conduct the goings on. I shoot videos and take photos of the process and life in Atlanta constantly. I set shows up in Atlanta and St. Louis when I can, and DJ, and make cassettes of my mixes (titles available from WTFTW and 6/27 Tapes). I get a lot of help from my friends. It's really refreshing to work with my dear friend Brodinski, because he has the same tireless drive to make this shit happen that I have, and really shares my vision more than anyone else I know. We are on the same page to a pretty wild degree. The projects I work on with him bring me great joy and make me feel like I'm not totally losing my mind. He's a true kindred spirit and I really value him. Total master of his craft, too. But yeah, bottom line, I would say Drug Money USA's central mission is making rap happen the right way.

HOW DID DRUG MONEY START, AND HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE EVOLUTION TO NOW (IF ANY) ? Really, I would say that it started off with a man named Stebo, who is a mover and shaker behind the scenes. I debuted a few of his tracks. I debuted a couple serious heaters from him at the beginning that really gave me some momentum. After that, I just started making more and more connections. Early on, I was getting joints from some guys I knew from their music and early affiliation with Young Thug, like Yung Zoo, YL Stunna (one of my favorite rappers of all time, also on Thug's ICFN2), and Justin Hunter (then Raymond Reedy). I'd do all this work for their own songs, so guys like Zoo would float me their songs with Thugger as exclusives too. Free Zoo. Joints from Papertrail 550, who is the fucking man, some of those featuring Casino and Bloody Jay and the Black Migo Gang. I was just connecting the dots between all the music I loved and making lasting friendships along the way. And these songs I was getting were (and remain) among some of my favorite rap music being made, so I was like, I guess I really have to do this, like, all the time. I had been working on this stuff for a couple of years before I started spending real deal time in Atlanta, and I didn't exactly know how it was going to translate when I showed up in person. But I went down there and had a place to lay my head, thanks to Guccio, living with some of the most vibrant talents in Atlanta in Yakki and Silk and company, and I got a call from Bloody Jay the night I arrived in town. We had a talk that brought a tear down my cheek within seconds, I kid you not. That is an incredible man. Free Bloody Jay. He's one of my favorite rappers ever. Of all time. And just an indomitable creative spirit. He's going to rule the world with words when he gets out. We need his voice right now, especially now. But anyway, Jay and I link up that night, which was surreal and a real dream for me (as well as a whole story unto itself), and around 5 AM, I get back to the house, where Yakki teases me for going to sleep because there was still something to be smoked. And that first night set the tone for my time in Atlanta that continues to this day. There's been hard times and losses and frenzied, really stressed out moments, but I've kept my head up the entire time, ever forging ahead. Now I have more songs to release and more work to contend with and more projects to work away on than I could have ever imagined. It really evolved into a scene unto itself. I'm working with all the people I want to work with. I'm helping make the music I would otherwise be clamoring for, so it's really a dream.

YOUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL HAS 40K+ SUBSCRIBERS, ARE YOU SUPER RICH NOW ? I'll go to bat for my people and zealously advocate for the artists I work with, but I'm not so business minded when it comes to my own stake. I never wanted to impede anyone from listening to these new artists or cheapen the experience, especially for the music I was personally presenting. And it just stuck that way. No advertisements. No YouTube monetization. I really like when my friends tell me that they spent a few interrupted hours listening to my uploads. I like that my channel doesn't promote anything but the music and the people behind it. I'm just too invested in that vision to break away from it right now.

WHAT WERE SOME OF THE EARLIER TRACKS YOU HELPED EXPOSE THAT INCREASED YOUR LEGITIMACY/VIEWERSHIP ? I started off with a bang, or a couple of bangs actually, courtesy of the very underrated Young Stebo, who I mentioned before. They were these songs with Young Thug ("Foreign Cash") and Ola Playa ("Started From the Bottom," also featuring YC). Really these very underrated songs that are almost like Killed by Death style Atlanta rap cuts. He has incredible songs by himself as well as as true classics with all of the then-burgeoning stars. Thug, Playa, Bloody Jay, Wicced, Yung Booke, Rich Homie Quan, everybody. His recent music has been incredible too, so stay on the lookout for more from Stebo.

Twice (dmusa)

FAVORITE PROJECT OR EVENT YOU’VE DONE ? My favorite project I've dropped so far has to be Twice's Zachary: Double It Up 2, which you did the artwork for. I put my everything into that project. Twice and I had already been working together for a while when he caught a case. After that, we really ramped it up and spent his last free days recording in his mom's basement while he was stuck sitting on an ankle monitor. Spaghetti J engineered over mostly Spaghetti J beats and we pumped out some unreal songs down there, with these pretty serious pitbulls looming behind us in the backyard. Big dogs like Tay Slime Ass and YL Stunna dropped by and recorded classics with Twice. Young upstarts Lil Patt and Slimelife Shawty came by and made some magic with Lil Double Up too. There's really no one like Twice, and I mean that. In South Atlanta, this mixtape is seriously a cherished classic. That's the correct school of thought, in my mind. It should be celebrated everywhere. It's really lyrical, thoughtful trap music straight from the heart of the jungle. He's got a real classic on there with Young Thug as well, called "No Wendy's", which you actually did the single artwork for too. Bless you for that. It's over the "Controlla" beat and it's one of my favorite songs of all time. He's not like other rappers his age. His favorite rappers are Drake, Jadakiss, and Fabolous, and he goes in over an Eve beat on "Runnin' Up", but his rap is still distinctly Atlantan. It's the perfect balance. He's an old soul with a serious voice, wise behind his years but prone to mistakes, just like anybody else. I pray for his release. Free Twice. I actually dropped his first songs (with YL Stunna) back in February of 2014, so Zachary was a long time coming for me. I listen to it everyday.I'm really, really excited about Young Slime Season, the upcoming 20 track mixtape featuring all the young Slimes, the young crew, that I'm dropping with Brodinski and Bromance Records a couple of days before Thanksgiving. We've been working on it for a long time. It's a really huge project. It really represents the voice of the youth of Cleveland Ave. The central players on the album are Babysnake, B Slime, Lil Clockk, Maja Got It, No Mask Nuk, Lil Patt, Lil Reek, Slimeball Kelly, Slimelife Shawty, Lil Tay, The Homie Cashyy, Twice, YL G Baby and Zack Slime Fr. But it features contributions from a couple of the big dogs too, like YSL Hitta, YL Zoe, MPA Bukk Bukk too, as well as a couple of tracks featuring Atlanta star B La B, who is an entity all his own. It's really a sprawling journey, running the gamut from these perfectly crafted melodic gems to these very rambunctious songs with like 6 rappers a pop. You can hear the urgency and vitality of the youth on every track. The production is really otherworldly too. I'm dropping YSS with Bromance Records, so the producers on it are either directly from that camp or close affiliates. Peerless music. I have actually been listening to Myd, who produced a few flawless tracks on the project, since 2009, when Air France put his track "Train to Bamako" on an online mix. And now I have tracks with my favorite young rappers today rapping to his music. It's unreal. So it's these very fresh, often unorthodox rappers with this production that also isn't like anything else in rap music either, or any music period. The production is indispensable, and the music just couldn't have come from anyone else, with regard to both the rapping and the production. The producers on there are Amine Edge & DANCE, Bobby Swan, Brodinski himself, Ikaz Boi, Mister Tweeks, Myd, Myth Syzer, and Ryan Hemsworth. It could not sound better. It's such a vital document. I'm like dying, I can't wait for it to drop. I'm so proud of what we made.I'm really proud of The Return of Cheat Code too. My friend Diaz and his big dog James really helmed all the mixing and mastering and a lot of the preparations for that one. Then Bame Cheat Code is his next project, which we will also be releasing. It'll be here in December and it might just happen to feature a certain big snake, if you know what I mean. Welcome home, Cheat. His influence can't be overstated. Just listen to yesteryear's "President Slide Show" with Kwony Cash and Young Thug.

Patt, Slimelife Shawty, Twice (dmusa)

I'm going to present the Black Roses mixtape, the first offering from the YL camp as a unit together, featuring an all-star cast of some big Slimes. It features YL Stunna, YL Zoe, YSL Hitta, Taliban France, and Money Game Boo. I have tapes coming out individually from each of those artists, as well as tapes on the way from B La B, YSL Maybach, Zack Slime Fr, and Lil Patt.

I also have a tape coming out with the Atlanta production duo Spaghetti J that is centered around Cleveland Ave/Jonesboro Rd. Spaghetti J are incredible, and we have been working on music for a couple years now actually, really amassing a library of killer, homegrown music that we are always still adding to. Our first installment is on the horizon though, and it's going to be something serious. We also have single artist projects we'll be releasing together with some of the rappers I listed above. Remember the name Spaghetti J, for real.

I've always shot the documentary footage, but more recently, I've been shooting a lot of music videos that I'm really excited about. The first three I'm dropping are from Tay Slime Ass, Rari Rokket aka Ferrari Smash, and Solid Lil Chris. Free Chris. After that, it's the "Drug Money" anthem from YL Stunna, YL Zoe, and Twice. I filmed it a while back. It's a perfect storm. That one is going to be my opus, I think. Double LP vinyl edition of Ola Playa's Slime Season is almost ready. Years in the making. The interview I did with Playa on my blog, actually, is one of the labors I'm most proud of. I'm also working on a petition for Money Game Boo to sing the National Anthem. Talk about a singular talent. His tape is going to cause earthquakes.

Hitta, Patt (dmusa)

IN ONE SENTENCE, WHY DO YOU DO DMUSA ? Because there has never been anything like this music and I feel uncontrollably compelled to do my part in making it happen.

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LINKS • YOUTUBE • SOUNDCLOUD • TWITTER • TUMBLR • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

#Repost @dancemotionusa with @repostapp ・・・ |MEET REGGIE WILSON/FIST & HEEL PERFORMANCE GROUP| "I feel that my responsibility is to be a grateful guest and to be a truthful artist who represents my art form with integrity. I think dance can be a wonderful form of diplomacy because it encourages honest expression, teamwork, and problem solving without judgement." -Annie Wang of Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group More from @snapshotturtle at dancemotionusa.tumblr.com #DMUSA #ExchangeOurWorld

Comment: dancemotionusa said "#TBT when Ron Brown of @evidencedance met Youssou NDOUR in Dakar as a part of Season 1 of #DMUSA in 2010. Catch Youssou tomorrow and Saturday night @bam_brooklyn! #ExchangeOurWorld #DanceAfrica"  

View from the palace on our last morning in Cambodia! #dmusa #excursions2014 #mmdg

Cultivating the Radical Unknown

By Sarah Lass, Bebe Miller Company, Dancer

The conversation arose over dinner towards the end of the trip as a group of us reflected on the various meetings and exchanges we had experienced during our time in Colombia and Peru. It was one of those conversations that ambles along on many different legs, new ideas kicking themselves forward to lead, mobilizing previous questions and proclamations, but carrying them forward with fresh intention and curiosity. Attempts to relay such discussions prove slippery—they are as unwieldy in retrospect as they are thrilling in the moment. It is nearly impossible to trace the thread of one idea back to its origin, planted, as always, somewhere between the many separate voices that fertilize it.

We were discussing partnerships in dance making and performance, specifically the interpersonal dynamics and generative potential between two individuals who come together in the spirit of collaboration, experimentation, and creation. The question arose: what is our expectation or our desire for that meeting place? Is it a place of cohesion or harmony—the discovery of some previously shrouded synchronicity and similarity—that we seek when we meet one another? Is our “common ground,” in other words, a landscape of pleasantly rolling hills, and our discovery of such ground incumbent upon the elimination of any impediment or obstacle?

Harmony can be alluring and appealing, we agreed, but not always artistically interesting nor, to take it a step forward, is it necessarily conducive to illuminating interpersonal (or intercultural) exchanges. At its most insidious, an unexamined desire for harmony—for ease, for agreement—could result in the annihilation of the differences that distinguish one person (or one culture) from another.

I suppose there is something personally revealing in these assertions, a certain perspective on communication and coexistence. I am curious about what happens when parties do not abandon their differences in search of a middle ground, but instead maintain them, emphatically so. I am curious about what happens when they do this with an awareness of the other parties involved—and a curiosity and care for them—recognizing the involvement of each in an ecosystem larger than any one party.

I’ve heard people in the company talk about all this—it is the idea of perpendicularity. What arises in the intersection between perpendicular attentions, intentions, and priorities? What happens in the meeting place between entities that, even in their convergence, work to maintain their individuality and distinction, their singular (spectacular) specificity? In this kind of interaction, might there be an opportunity for exchange that is not contingent upon consensus, but instead maintains (strengthens, even) specificity and individuality while still illuminating something larger than any one part on its own?

When improvising in dance, especially with someone one knows very well, the pull to harmony can be strong, subconscious even. The shared history between dancing bodies asserts itself into the present moment and reaches into the future. There can be an unintentional element of collective predetermination to the unfolding movement and moment.

I asked company member Darrell Jones, an artist with a longstanding creative partnership with fellow company member Angie Hauser, if he feels he is able to overcome this potential for unintentional predetermination in his work with Angie and, if so, how. His answer addressed the role of artistic director and choreographer Bebe Miller and the role of the performers, pointing to the importance of encouraging, nurturing, and/or inserting confounding elements (physical or spatial directives, theoretical frameworks, or differing attentions, for example) into the relationship, much like throwing a bit of gravel into an otherwise well-oiled, smoothly functioning machine. Unable to rely (and rest) on predictability, individuals must show up to each moment of what is happening, rediscovering it and resolving it even as they come to know something deeper about it.

Perpendicularity can nudge us (or, sometimes, catapult us) into the unknown, out of habitual or unexamined ways of moving, thinking, and being and into a place of wonder and possibility where we can become intimately reacquainted with things we thought we knew or freshly acquainted with things we never knew. The more fully we abandon ourselves to the unknown the more radical that place can become—undetermined, undefined, full of vibrant, undirected potential. The radical unknown is a place where extreme change is possible.

Cultivating the radical unknown requires the seemingly impossible and contradictory act of fully showing up with specificity and certainty while also becoming immediately porous to that which one encounters, not to become one with it, but to enter into a relationship with it, a relationship that one has not yet discovered and defined, but that is being revealed, moment-by-moment. To cultivate the radical unknown is to actively, rigorously question what is happening and to embrace how very little we know about it and about what is possible.

I feel some sweeping conclusion beckoning me towards it, but I’m not going to indulge.

Sarah Lass with a workshop participant in Manizales, Colombia                    Photo: Lila Hurwitz

ICYMI: Tokio Hotel is touring the U.S! Dates and venues TBD! pack your bags! we’re boarding the Dream machine!

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Fort Lauderdale / Orlando / Atlanta / Baltimore / Philadelphia / New York / Cleveland / Chicago / Minneapolis / Milwaukee / Denver Englewood /Seattle / Berkeley / Anaheim / Los Angeles / Tempe / 

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Doc Marten . 14 hole . 1940 . by CWhatPhotos on Flickr.