Distant Pulse Here
Moving at the speed of trust,
we explore: How do we embody
anti-racism practice in our art
process?
How does nature mediate our sense
of belonging?
How did we arrive here?
What do we create?
”Distant Pulse Here”
a free dance performance in Westpark, München
On Sept. 29, Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, 2022 at 18:30
Producer, Artistic Director, Choreographer: Callie Arnold
Dancers & Co-creators: Stephanie Felber, Suzette Sagisi
Choreographic Mentor: Cherie Hill
Dramaturg: Amelia Uzategui Bonilla
POC ”Critical Whiteness” Mentor: Sandra Chatterjee
White “Critical Whiteness” Mentor: Juli Rees
Original music compositions: Uygur Vural
Sound Technician: Florian Lorenz
Photography: Severin Vogl
For updates on the performance depending on weather, as well as for more information on the performance and post-performance events, please check Callie’s website or email her:
www.callie-arnold.squarespace.com
calitaha@gmail.com
The performance takes place in the large field in front of the “Bayerwaldhaus,” a traditional Bavarian house in Westpark. The map below shows you where the field is in relationship to the Westpark U-Bahn station.
This production is supported by Tanztendenz München e.V. and is supported by the NATIONAL PERFORMANCE NETWORK - STEPPING OUT, funded by the Minister of State for Culture and Media within the framework of the initiative NEUSTART KULTUR. Assistance Program for Dance.
Our lives and communities are intimately connected with nature. And with racism. Racism is upheld by white supremacy culture, and is in the cultural waters in which we swim.
Through the process of creating this performance, our artistic team tried to interrogate white supremacy culture (practices that center white culture and harm Black, Indigenous and People of Color). We took time and space to notice and acknowledge white privilege, and to imagine and live new ways of being in relationship with each other and our world. We asked ourselves two questions: How does nature mediate our sense of belonging?
How can we embody anti-racism practice in our art process, in order to support ourselves to show up more fully in our art-making?
One of the ways we practice anti-racism is to name the perspectives from which we speak. As a white person I acknowledge my privilege in leading this performance. In this project I collaborated with colleagues of color as we experimented with ways to shift away from centering white perspectives. I acknowledge that the performance is still strongly shaped from my perspective as a white person leading the project, and my learning from this project continues. Much thanks to my colleagues. Now, we offer you a performance that invites you to play with shifting perspectives, as you listen, watch and move through a field in Westpark: a space full of life, human and beyond human. A space that holds many possibilities for belonging, that may not have yet been realized. This performance is a place to sense-in with your body, opening space for new perceptions, questions and possibilities around belonging.
Everyone is welcome.
I invite you to consider, with which intention are you attending the performance. Are you, for example, coming to allow yourself to sense something new or to let yourself be surprised? Are you coming for hope?
Is there an intention or question that you're holding regarding your relationship to nature, anti-racism or belonging, that you bring with you to this performance? Of course, this invitation is entirely optional! The team and I look forward to sharing this performance with you.
-Callie Arnold (she/her)
Producer, Artistic Director, Choreographer