Unbound Workshop Performance
July 12th - July 14th 2024
at the Dresher Ensemble Studio
Conceived and Directed by Claudine Naganuma
Choreography by Claudine Naganuma and dNaga Dance Co.
Musical Director and Composer: Joel Davel
Lighting and Technical Direction: Dale MacDonald
Video and Animation: Elmira Bagherzadeh and Solitaire Miguel
Dancers: Catalina Jackson-Uruena, Chaityn Isaacson-Brewster, Gabby Wei, Jhia Louise Jackson, Leila Massoudi, Lihong Chan, Raychel Hatch and Sebastian Le
Actor: Sharon Shao
Creative Consultant: Pamela Wu-Kochiyama
Costumes: Claudine Naganuma with additional T-shirts from the Kochiyama family
Publicist: Rebecca Johnson
Message from the Director of dNaga
This workshop performance has provided a container to inquire about how Anti-Asian violence has affected me and how intergenerational trauma informs my capacity and how I deal with that violence. Armed with art as a tool for healing, dance allows me the opportunity to delve into the complexities that come with the recent uptick in violence against Americans from the Asian diaspora. For me, this has included being hijacked by my own fear, anger, indignation, grief and apathy. I understand that these have been ways I’ve used to protect myself from fully diving in for fear of drowning from complex emotions. I wonder if breathing really can help me to metabolize and transform trauma. This inquiry leads me to explore ways of bringing in more spaciousness and care through gratitude, joy and community. What actions can we take to reduce hate, promote understanding, and make sure that everyone is resourced? Thank you for choosing to be here with us and for being part of the container that holds the space.
Breathing together with you,
Claudine Naganuma
Musical credits
Ancestral Waters, Ha Ha Ha Haaaa, Fences 2.0 and Freedom Waltz by Composer and Live Musician Joel Davel on Marimba Lumina and Thunder Pad
Soul of the Great Bell with permission from Composer Mark Izu
Yellow Woman with Permission from Composer Jon Jang and poet Genny Lim
Like Water with Permission from Composer Bun Ching Lam
Thank You’s
Many thanks to my two collaborators Dale MacDonald and Joel Davel who have been working with me for the past 30 years. I am deeply grateful for your help in bringing my vision to life. For the dancers who help to hold the space of sanctuary and love. Thank you to Sharon Shao and Pamela Wu-Kochiyama for bringing the world of theater into our world of dance. Thank you to the many interviewees I have talked with about what Freedom means to them and how it can be achieved. They have helped to create this complex tapestry of Unbound and I am deeply grateful for sharing their stories, words of wisdom and inspiration especially George and JoAnn Naganuma, Eddie Kochiyama, Pamela Wu-Kochiyama and Yuri Kochiyama, Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Hamida Yusufzai, and Genny Lim. Thank you Shaunnah Ray, Miriam Ching Yoon Louie and Yael Fletcher for your wise counsel and encouragement to stay true to what I am called forth to do. Special thanks to Paul Dresher and Dominique Pelletey of Musical Traditions for allowing dNaga to be in residence for two weeks to develop this work. Thank you to Beth Hoge and Danspace. Thank you to the wonderful dNaga dancers who are uniquely powerful and inspirational to me. Thank you for holding this space of sanctuary and love. Thank you to Wayne hazard and Dancers’ Group for being our fiscal sponsor and behind the scenes support system.
Unbound is part of dNaga's research process and is sponsored by the Anti-Asian Violence: Origins and Trajectories Research Initiative (AAVOT) led by Leti Volpp, Susette Min, Laura Kang, and Lee Ann Wang. This research initiative has been generously funded by the University of California Research Grants Program Office. The world premiere of the completed work will be premiered at the UC Davis Mondavi Center.
I would like to acknowledge all of the Asian American choreographers who have been creating work and delving into this subject for decades. I would especially like to thank Judith Kajiwara and Sachiko Nakamura, the original founders of the Asian American Dance Collective and I name this piece in the spirit of its resident dance co. Unbound Spirit. Thank you also to June Watanabe, who has been a great inspiration to me ever since I saw her piece E.O. 9066. To the generations who follow, may you have the courage and tenacity to follow your vision and make the work that you are called to make, in the way that you want to!
Supported in part by Musical Traditions
Upcoming Performances
Mondavi Center studio theater: Thursday October 17 7:30 (student Rush), Friday/Saturday, October 18-19 7:30pm, Sunday 2pm
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