Xenia Chlistowa's story seems very complex for a dance work. How are you approaching the subject?
I assembled as many facts as possible from conversations with Xenia during her lifetime and with her son, John, after her funeral. From these disjointed pieces, I cobbled together a fact-based scenario that of necessity allows for artistic liberties. Since my art is dance, I began rehearsals by creating movement phrases that elicited the major moods or themes of the piece. All the storytelling devices and theatrical bits evolved throughout the creative process, but it all started with a consideration of the brutal naturalism of war as contrasted with the artifice of ballet.
I'd like the audience to discover that dance can be a lot of different things—not just swans, not just tricks. If people get a feeling as to what it must have been like to survive such darkness, that would be fine, too.
There are other works on the program. Are they all in the same somber tone?
The concert is certainly not all grim. No one could survive that!
Las Vegas is not known as a hotbed of contemporary dance activity. What brought you here? What intrigued you about working in an academic environment?
The short answer is food. My family likes to eat; work helps us in that regard. And the opportunity to build a dance program from scratch at the college was intriguing. My wife, Leslie, and I were initially invited to design "the dance program of our dreams," and we have created an environment where the line dividing academic and artistic responsibilities becomes very thin. The result is a lively learning opportunity for the students.
Dance has always been the poor stepchild of the arts. Dancers and choreographers have historically relied on the kindness of strangers and institutions. Lately, it seems like there's nothing stranger than a kind institution, so academia is the natural refuge of the artist in America. CCSN has been very supportive of the dance program. For nine years, it has been home to the Dance in the Desert Festival, which is now attracting national attention as a venue for the premiere of innovative work. In the near future, we are looking forward to offering an AA degree in Fine Arts with a dance emphasis.
Some modern companies have developed holiday works as a respite from the Nutcracker frenzy. Have you thought about doing some type of annual presentation?
We do a Princess Diana-Mother Teresa-Heaven's Gate cult piece every five years—does that count?