Digital program book ‘Woven State’

Nicole on One Flat Thing, Reproduced:

“During the process of One Flat Thing, reproduced we’ve been working with counter points within the material and embodying specific mechanisms used to transmit impulses to one another in the space. With each day comes a new task to indulge, making One Flat Thing, reproduced a truly exciting and playful piece to be researching.

It’s been wonderful to have Ayman, Ander, Cyril, and Amancio who have brought us so much insight and creative energy into the work.”

Luca on Of Any If And:

“I cover up no lie when saying that Of Any If And ranks first place of the most demanding pieces I have had the privilege to dive into throughout my career so far. Be it the fact that this is the first time I am getting in close contact with William Forsythe’s language and approach, just a glimpse into his cosmos I dare to say and or the naked truth of this piece presenting an entire unknown sphere of its own.

Having started the process two months ago by watching a recording of the original cast, Dana Caspersen and Thomas McManus, had my heart skip multiple beats for many reasons. The infinite universe that’s being created by the artists on and off stage, the sheer vulnerability and artistic honesty ‘O-A-I-A’ sustains or simply put, the undeniable challenge that it births through every moment, called me instantly and as an adrenalin junkie myself, I could not wait to see where this beautiful beast was going to take us in the studio and ultimately on stage, too.

The language offered us space and room to evolve day in, day out. It has been the most rewarding gift to set my entire body and mind toward growing from within along with my partner Nicole Ishimaru, a force of nature I hold dear to me.

I look forward immensely to embarking this 23 minute long research Of Any If And on stage. It truly has been and will be one heck of a ride.
I quote Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, stated by Sherlock Holmes to sum up my thoughts: “Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.”

I am forever grateful for the metamorphic journey that Stefanie Arndt and Thomas McManus have taken us on.”

Chuck on N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.:

“This is my first time diving into the world of William Forsythe. I’ve been excited and eager to explore his movement vocabulary and modalities. The process of N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N.N. has been an unusual and unforgettable adventure. Originally this piece is performed by 4 dancers. In this version for NDT, Forsythe decided to have 12 dancers onstage. Due to this radical change we have had the opportunity to work with him in the studio and onstage via Zoom. His ideas about dance and how it relates to life are beautifully complex yet simple. This entire experience has been a highlight of my career with NDT.”

Nicole on Of Any If And:

“Working on Of Any if And has really challenged me in ways I have not yet experienced in my career. I have always admired William Forsythe’s work and being in a process as intimate as this one will definitely stay with me for years to come. Dancing this duet is deliciously intense, it transports me into a different state of existing between reality and the land of memory. There is a unique combination of abandonment, precision and risk required in the shaping and describing of the physical language, it demands a lot of agency and trust between Donnie and I, but it’s this attention to intention that keeps us suspended in the present.

It has been such an honour to work with Stefanie Arndt and Thomas McManus, they both have emboldened us to dive in deeper than we thought possible and to really become experts of the Of Any if And world.”

Charlie on One Flat Thing, reproduced:

“It begins!

An orchestrated field of action, dispersing or collecting it’s elements into organized synchrony or interplay. But never disorder. Inside this field of action is a deeply woven net of understanding; the bodies within it are forming and dis-forming as an internally dependent system.

To be a body inside holds a powerful and fleeting responsibility to the rest of the system.  Our action at every moment is aligning with or counterpointing someone else’s.

In other words, dancing in this work makes me feel an immense amount of worth. One Flat Thing, reproduced asks (and allows) us to move within in a system of trust, sensibility, and a larger consciousness.

Because of this, Forsythe’s work reveals an abstracted model that reflects our own systems in society.”