Body Politic: Converge embodies cultural structures through dance collaboration
Tristian Griffin Dance Co. and Regina Klenjoski Dance Co. combine forces to tackle complicated ideas and make high-art manifest in the Midwest.
Converge dancers in their first show at Newman University in Wichita, KS // Courtesy Ryan Bruce
The Kemper Museum of Contemporary Arts and Lawrence Arts Center host the combined dance performance of Converge. Co-directed by individual dance company owners Tristian Griffin and Regina Klenjoski, Converge includes a meshed performance of five stand-alone pieces on togetherness. They say most dance companies operate independently, but the two unite their connections to maximize the show’s quality.
“It’s about coming together and not being afraid of competition,” says Klenjoski. “It’s being generous with our contacts and opening up the possibilities for dance in Kansas City.”
With limited dance opportunities in the midwest, Converge meshes efforts to provide an artistic performance with “big city” quality. The show features pieces by the two directors and university dance instructors Gary Abbott, Sabrina Vasquez, and Chad Michael Hall. By highlighting the diverse dance backgrounds choreographers bring, they are raising the expectations of the Kansas City stage.
“We heard comments like, ‘that was exhilarating,’” says Klenjoski. “‘I don’t have to go to New York because that’s here now.’”
The Kemper Museum asked the co-directors to host snippets of Converge dance pieces. Following each piece, choreographers hold discussions about how their dance relates to Juneteenth. The Kemper lobby presents the collection of dances in a sold-out viewing.
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“You see the pieces as a story and flip the page for the next chapter. It has this continuous thread but also stands on its own,” says Griffin.
Choreographers want audience members to understand the conceptual aspects of their dances. Griffin’s piece releases the weight of ancestral baggage and searches for community. Klenjoski’s piece explores the difference between the hierarchy of angels and how hierarchies on Earth don’t have the same connotation.
“We’re pulling from the different things that are in each work in correlation to the themes of Juneteenth, like freedom, celebration, diversity, identity,” says Griffin. “We’re giving a moment to discuss those points so it’s very clear for the audience to understand how Pale Blue Dot relates to identity or The Art of Letting Go is about forgiveness and moving forward.”
Some dancers and choreographers received training from Nebraska, Ohio, and other locations that aren’t heavily known as dance-centered areas. Some others include experience in larger cities like Los Angeles and Chicago. Rather than two Kansas City companies competing, Griffin and Klenjoski prove how sharing connections and ideas benefit dance performances.
“As a small, contemporary company, we have to have a limited capacity to what we can do with venue selections and who we hire in,” says Griffin. “With us coming together to share our resources, it’s starting to become possible.”
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At the Lawrence Arts Center, Converge presents a continuous show and choreographer talkbacks at the end of the performance. The five pieces in each show include Klenjoski’s Rank of Angels, Griffin’s The Art of Letting Go, Vasquez’s Pale Blue Dot, Abbott’s Tarantism, and Michael Hall’s Uncanny Valley.
The directors already plan to host another Converge performance next year.
“Dance is underrepresented in this area, especially in the middle of the country. And if there’s anything I can offer to your audience, it’s that you will not be disappointed,” says Klenjoski.
Watch the dance companies, choreographers, and dancers combine their talent in Converge at Lawrence Arts Center on June 30. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are available here.
Dancers include Josue Villeda, Kaitlyn Gardner, Simone Davis, Sarah McGuyer, Timothy Portwood, Rile Reavis, Aviance Battles, Rhiannon Vieyra, and Elleigh McClelland. Don’t wait to reserve a seat for midwest entertainment with prestigious New York quality.
