Embodying earth: dance culture, ecology, and the entanglement of wellbeing

Abstract

The Anthropocene geological epoch, where lasting impacts made by humans on the environment negatively affect the health and survival of all species, prompts artists, scientists, and educators to address the most complex problems facing Earth. Global spread of the COVID-19 virus, officially declared a pandemic in 2020, further reaffirms the delicate balance among life forms on the planet. From my dance perspective, the primacy of motion to unite the human body with its terrestrial home is key to coexistence. These ideas motivated research in which I investigated human-nonhuman experience through the lens of dance culture. By understanding the anthropological concept of culture as a social phenomenon, this study explored how dancers socially relate with nonhuman ways of being and what that experience looks like. To unpack those questions, I conducted case studies involving in-depth interviews with twelve contemporary movement-based artists recognized by the dance community for their work relating to the natural world. Analyses of pedagogical, performative, and creative processes revealed the capacity of movement to open possibilities for encountering different points of view in which nonhierarchical alliances could form, potentially disrupting anthropocentric discourse. Data also demonstrated the function of dance culture as a relational strategy to practice navigating precariousness. My inquiry contributes to interdisciplinary scholarship that strengthens the anthropology of dance. It also advances phenomenological ecochoreology—a uniquely envisioned methodology focused on researching human-nonhuman experience innate to dance culture, which may inspire environmental awareness initiatives as well as models for wellbeing that support a more sustainable future