Dance piece inspired by gang members' art

Inspiration for a new dance piece called "Lost" came from the art of four gang members, according to Charlotte Boye-Christensen, associate artistic director for the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company.

"A friend of mine, who is a former gang member and gang prevention specialist at the Boys and Girls Club, worked with these kids at the club," Boye-Christensen said during an interview just before rehearsals. "They created art and poetry, and I think that's what caught my attention.

"The art and poetry had an immediacy to it. There was a lot of anger, but it wasn't only about anger. There was a truthfulness that was void of any kind of pretense in the images and words. There was also a sense of desperation and a yearning to be noticed. I think everybody has an inherent desire to be noticed."

The kids, said Boye-Christensen, were immigrants from Mexico. "A couple are here illegally, and they have families still in Mexico. And the art reflects the lack of structure in their lives. That's one of the reasons they got into gangs. They have no family or belong to dysfunctional families here, and the gangs give them a family structure. It was a way for them to cope with their situation. And the art also served that purpose as well.

"I had wanted to work more closely with these kids, but it was difficult," she said. "They all have different lives. For example, one has been deported, and I was only able to talk to another on the phone before he was incarcerated."

The choreography that came from Boye-Christensen's exposure to the art is a departure from her usual style. "My works have always been extremely physical," she said. "But the physicality with the new piece comes from a different angle. I've never tapped into the aggression that I have been working with.

"To tell you the truth, I have enjoyed it. It is new to me."

"Lost" is only one of the six works that will be performed during the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company's winter performance, "Alchemy."

RWDC's co-artistic director Joan Woodbury said she has watched Boye-Christensen create the new work and said it has been a good, enlightening journey. "Charlotte struggled at first," Woodbury said. "And the struggle has been good for her. She has gone through it and emerged a better choreographer."