LN: Where do you get inspiration? Does “Bruit” have any special meanings for you?
SM: I source inspiration from a variety of things, but mostly from considering events in my life, my curiosities about people, who we are and how we relate. This is pretty consistent for me.
LN: What is this new work about?
Bruit is essentially a French term for sound. More specifically, bruit is a term for the sound that blood makes when it rushes past an obstruction in an artery. In order to hear bruit, you must listen to the inside of the body.
Metaphorically, this speaks to the nature of this concert and my on-going interest as an artist. It is in friction that noise is created—like a spark. My work tends to always deal with relationship and the ways we “rub up against” others. For me this is the most critical part of the human experience. I hope this evening’s tango class provides participants the opportunity to both try something new and to relate with someone new, even if for just a moment. A unique little spark “sounds” and dissipates.
This concert is the result of a creative process, and has encouraged each cast member to step into the unknown—to be as playful and awkward as brilliant and capable. “Bruit” is spontaneous and comical, as well as contemplative and weighty. I have learned so much and am so thankful to be surrounded by such beauty. Thank you so much to the School of Music and Dance, to the Dance Department Head, Jenifer Craig, to the brilliant cast, and all those involved for making this concert possible.
LN: What will your next project look like?
SM: Oh geez, not quite sure yet. I want to move more than think. Integrating these elements into a cohesive vision has been a bit of a cerebral process for me. I want to go back to movement, pure and simple. I will start working on a solo and restaging a work for our Faculty concert in February.
The show will be on Friday, Nov 9, 2012 from 8-10 p.m. and Saturday, Nov 10, 2012 from 8-10 p.m. in Dougherty Dance Theatre, Gerlinger Annex. Tickets are now available at Ticket Office or 541-346-4363.
