Dance engages most directly with who we are, critic says

Dance deals with human experience more directly than other art forms, dance critic Ilo Tuule Rajand writes in an article published by ERR. Her contribution is part of the series “Why dance?”, which explores why dance speaks to artists, critics and audiences and deserves greater attention.

Rajand’s reflections were prompted in part by an anonymous commenter who responded to one of her reviews by asking why the Estonian state supported “such rubbish” and saying it was strange that someone could earn a doctoral degree for dancing. The commenter compared this with knitting, saying their mother was an excellent knitter and crocheter.

Rajand writes that anonymous comments are not worth dwelling on, but adds that a doctoral degree can technically also be earned through research into textiles or knitting techniques in design. Such a degree requires considerable dedication, she says, asking whether it is not positive when someone devotes their life to dance and helps create a path for others to begin dancing themselves.

People tend to prefer what is familiar, Rajand writes, and buying a ticket to a contemporary dance performance can initially feel like jumping headfirst into unknown waters. This lack of familiarity can create fear and alienation. Some people may expect to be shocked or bored, while others fear that if their thoughts begin to wander, they are watching the performance incorrectly or failing to understand it.

Rajand argues that the opposite is true. As with any interpretation, dance leaves room for viewers to fill with their own meanings. She describes dance as an open space in which something is activated within the viewer, making those interpretations real.

A choreographer’s movement can sometimes give shape to a feeling that sounds wooden when put into words or whose description contains gaps, she writes. If something remains unclear, viewers have the right to disagree, ask additional questions, stay for a discussion and reinterpret their experience from a new perspective.

For Rajand, art broadly describes human experience through different media, while dance deals most directly with people themselves. The question is therefore not whether dance can appeal to people, but how to reach those who might enjoy dance art but are afraid or do not know how to cross the threshold into its world.

Although dance can be beautiful and connect people with earlier dance traditions, Rajand says her key realisation came when she understood that, on a broader level, dance is simply movement. Even when still, the human body continues to move, store information and react. Movement can also influence a person’s state of mind.

Researching experience and the world through dance is becoming increasingly common, Rajand writes. Subjects can range from the ritual origins of dance to the cyberhuman shaped by new technologies. Diversity enriches understanding, while dance can help develop the soft skills needed to generate innovative ideas. The dance artist, she says, is like a researcher who imitates, breaks down, reassembles and reinterprets.