8/24/14
This will be the final post for my summer apprenticeship with Denita and Desueño this summer, and I am ending on an exciting note. Denita has decided that Mi Bongo, the piece we’ve been working on, will be a duet. It didn’t feel like a great time to push all this new choreography onto the ladies, especially since everyone has been working hard to learn the bachata. Denita saw this as a great opportunity to create a duet, which is typical to include in a dance company’s repertoire. This is exciting for me because I’ll get to continue to work on it when I get back to Chicago this fall and maybe even perform it with Denita!! She’s thinking we’ll channel “cat burglars” for this dance, which means we can get creative and fun and sneaky with the costuming. It was fun and challenging for me learning the intro that Denita had crafted for Mi Bongo, because there’s a lot more modern than I’m used to in the choreography, but I love integrating other types of dance into salsa – it was what attracted me to Denita’s choreography style in the first place. Working with these different kinds of movements gives you a lot more room to assert your musicality. The percussion and instrumental hits in the beginning are so exciting, and I’m glad that Denita was able to capture them in a way that fits the song and theme so well. Needless to say, I am eager to continue working on this dance during the school year and hope to be able to perform it when it’s finished!
I am so grateful to Denita for making this opportunity possible for me this summer. From the practices, the conversations, the opportunity to help choreograph, and shadowing Denita during an out-of-town gig, I have learned a lot about how she makes a career in dance work, and particularly in the Latin dance scene. I like that she has been able to find a sustainable balance, and carved a niche for herself in Chicago’s Latin dance scene, but also that she is still seeking ways to grow her career, artistically and personally. I have also learned a surprising amount just writing this blog. I suppose writing forces you to reflect on the progress you’ve made and how that might be relevant to yourself and to others. If you’re reading this, I hope you’ve gotten something out of this, and I hope to see you on the dance floor!
