A piece about declaring love and respect for myself and this body, right here and now. Let it be known and repeated over and over:
Performance from @wisefruitnyc 9.0!
THANK YOU:
@brindaguha for the opportunity to make a difference doing what I love!
@elodiedufroux& @michaela_catherine for bringing my moves to life!
to all my friends and Cal Bears in the audience! I felt so supported and loved!!
What a D R E A M it was to work on this music video. I pride myself in being a very optimistic person, but even during rehearsals and everything, I was convinced that this wasn’t going to work out, or that all the dancing was going to be cut last minute…. but alas! It ACTUALLY happened. And to top it all off, my hair style made me the featured unicorn woman for the whole day we filmed! hahaha
Jon had introduced me to Coheed years ago, and I started listening to their music. Since working with Jon, we have worked on countless project and dance pieces to their music… with the DREAM of someday being able to be involved in a music video or a show with Coheed.
Then BOOM. This happened.
We asked the Universe for it, then we worked our butts off, and then it happened.
I am learning that hard work ( in this highly superficial & unreasonable dance world ) generally won’t get you your dream job because of dumb reasons you can’t control, but it will get you pretty darn close to something JUST as awesome. This was NOT one of those gigs. Instead, this was one of those once in a lifetimes miracles where we put the work in for a gig so specific, and it actually pays off and comes back to you. And for that, I am so in awe and THANKFUL for this experience. So rare. So unique. I am so lucky.
To Jon- you are the GRIT and FORCE that made it happen... Thank you.
This video is a HUGE victory for The Grit… and for all of those who push their limits late nights and ealy mornings to chase their dreams.
Here’s to making what seems unbelievable achievable.
Coheed and Cambria's official video for their track 'Old Flames' off of their new album The Unheavenly Creatures.
Photography by Emily Dubin
I had a strange and scary reoccuring dream while I was undergoing chemotherapy:
I was on a baseball field by myself, and I was up at bat with one of those pitching machines. The first ball came, and I hit it successfully. The second ball came, and I hit it, but this time not as far. The third ball came, and I missed it completely... The fourth ball came right away, and I missed that one, too. Then the fifth and six came as curve balls, one zoomed past my shoulder, the other other knocked me in the chest. I stumbled to get back on my feet, but the next round of baseballs were flying at me fast. They were picking up more speed, slamming me at all directions. I was on the ground, yelling for help, getting bruised and beaten by these baseballs, but no one was around to hear me.... At this point in the dream I usually woke up.
This is what chemotherapy felt like to me. Helpless. Painful. Alone. Defeated.
I couldn't keep up. With each round, my whole body took a blow, and I didn't have enough time to recover before the next round hit me back down again. It was this constant feeling of growing weaker and weaker, sicker and sicker, and not being able to do anything about it but take the beating and hope your body can make it out alive.
When I heard "I Can't Keep Up" by Tourist, I knew I needed to create movement to it, and I knew that it needed to be inspired by this dream I had....
What do you do when you can't keep up? How do you keep going? Where do you find strength and hope when you have none?
I decided to take on theses answer through my movement.
This year, I had the honor of being an Alumni Choreographer for the the Professional Semester Program at Broadway Dance Center, and I chose to give them the challenge. They worked so hard at every rehearsal... and we only had 6 rehearsals to put it all together! Watching their final semester showcase at Alvin Ailey's theater gave me chills and tears of joy.
They truly brought my vision to life. It powerful and magical to watch. The chills down my spine type of good.
The video is coming soon, but here are come beautiful moments for now, captured by Jayna Photography!
I want to thank the morning news briefings for inspiring me to create this piece. Instead of feeling helpless during this time of chaos and upset, I chose to dance. More specifically, I chose to create movement to this beautiful song by Alicia Keys. I am also thankful that Emily asked me to sub her class at Peridance so that I actually had the opportunity to teach this somewhere!
I am not a politician or an expert on foreign affairs, but I am a young artist on a mission to inspire others and bring peace and happiness to the world. We have more power to alter the world than we think.
I hope you watch and feel inspired to make a positive difference in the world doing what you love.
