Biography
Contemporary dancers Caitlin Cullen and Meaghan Novoa collaborated to produce a visceral dance film that invites viewers to travel the span of a well-worn home and the intimate lives of its mysterious inhabitants. The characters created by the dancers used movement to explore the shared experience of loss, chaos, and the uncertainty of salvaging and rehoming unrealized artistic ideas caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The movement rekindled the potential energy of these past artistic visions and tap into new knowledge within the figurative and literal bounds presented within the confines of Surel’s Place. The duo shared the recorded film through a live community event, which itself is a comment on the state of collaborative community art in a time of interpersonal distancing and domestic isolation. The residency also included a live online class sharing some of the piece’s choreographic material.
While both Novoa and Cullen are currently based in Boise, they come from varying backgrounds. Novoa performed and choreographed in Atlanta, GA and Portland, OR before becoming a member and choreographer with Idaho Dance Theatre. Cullen is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma and went on to study composition in New York City, and her choreography has been presented throughout the U.S., from New York to Oklahoma, and Salt Lake to Boise.
WORKSHOP
CONTEMPORARY DANCE CLASS WITH NOVOA & CULLEN
Friday, March 19th | 6:30 – 7:30pm
This online class shared some of the dance film’s choreographic material focusing on site specific contemporary choreography. After the workshop, participants were encouraged to stay online for the artist talk ending with a Q&A.
ARTIST TALK
NOVOA & CULLEN
Friday, March 19th | 7:30pm
This artist talk was presented via Facebook Live on the Surel’s Place page. The duo shared an excerpt from the footage recorded for the film, which will be shown in its entirety through a live community event at a later date. The evening concluded with a Q&A.
Gallery
