KORA RADELLA is the choreographer and a co-artistic director of BOOMERANG. BOOMERANG’s work has been presented in NYC at venues including Danspace Project, Judson Church, Center for Performance Research, Dixon Place, Roulette, Triskelion Arts, the Irondale Center, and at the United Nations, as well as in Chicago, Cleveland, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Pittsburgh. BOOMERANG was shortlisted as 1 of 20 juried finalists for the Grand Jury Prize at ArtPrize7, having been selected as among the top 5 time based artists by Sundance Festival's senior programmer, Shari Frilot. In March 2016, Radella will premiere a commissioned evening-length at Dixon Place with BOOMERANG, in collaboration with drummer Greg Saunier of the band Deerhoof. Radella had a 2-month residency at Lake Studios Berlin summer 2015 and has a residency with BOOMERANG at Robert Wilson's The Watermill Center in January 2016. Radella is also the choreographer and artistic director of Double-Edge Dance, whose work has been performed in cities including Aberdeen, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Brussels, Basel, Cleveland, London, and NYC. Noted for her use of "awkward grace," she researches being on the edge of control, pushing both physical and psychological balances. Radella is an Assistant Professor of Dance at Kenyon Collge. Her primary teaching interests include contemporary dance technique with dynamic release principles, improvisation, choreography, and movement for actors. She is also a certified yoga teacher (500RYT). Radella's work with Kenyon students went to the ACDA National Festival in 2012. Radella was a 2014 Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Awardee. Learn more at www.boomerangdance.com.

Inside the Choreographic Process of Kora Radella

Share with us your choreographic process?

Generally, I create movement in the studio with the performers. The movement invention usually comes from my body and the performers with whom I am working. I build, edit, and structure based on the movement. I view my choreographic process as active research. I often have loose themes but I create work that does not adhere to one narrative. I do not work with music initially nor with counts, though I am able to do both, as well as choreograph in my head, with ease. I purposely 'trip myself up' so that I do not operate on default systems of only craft and habit. I rely on my ability to apply compositional tools within the work but I try to go into some unknown territory so that I am definitely not in a 5, 6, 7, 8 rut. 

Is your choreographic process influenced by being a UADC guest choreographer? 

For this work at UA, I came in with most of the movement already. Thus, much more of the movement invention for this piece is from my own body. This is partially due to efficiency and because I wanted to teach a different movement approach and vocabulary to the dancers. I work with what I call ‘physical necessity’, in regards to throwing the body in space and having to respond in order to regain balance or to fall with finesse. I combine charged and athletic movement with intricate details of gesture and partnering.

How does your choreographic process contribute to the UA dance program? 

The cast found new ways of moving and performing. I work with the premise that the movement is the drama vs thinking of performance as a presentation of drama. There are high physical demands that the dancers learned. Though there is a more released and much less codified style of dancing vs. ballet, there is still a strictness in fully performing the movement to make it and the performer reach the potential within the choreography. 

Dance senior, Aaron Knowles, falls in love with dance all over again

Performing in UADC is no easy task yet the work is worth it all. Just ask senior dance student, Aaron Knowles. To achieve excellence on stage, Aaron first had to re-discover in himself why he loves the work so much. “This year’s UADC is so different than past years, and the challenge of working with two gifted choreographers has truly helped me fall in love with dance all over again.” He goes on to share his experience working with UADC guest choreographer, Kora Radella, and UA faculty choreographer, Kara Stewart. “Each work,” Aaron smiles, “is a polar opposite of the other… Kora’s Constalations We Make feels post modern to me, while Kara’s Corelli Coterie emphasizes classical ballet and pas de deux [ballet partnering]; both pieces are a challenge and reward in their own way.”

Jumping from one rehearsal to the next, Aaron had to learn all new choreography for each piece with contrasting styles. Aaron’s rehearsals with Kora required him to dig deep and contribute his own ethos and movement to the choreography. “I love working with Kora, I get to move freely, and I don’t have to tone down my work. However, after dancing for eleven minutes, I have to sing. That’s… a… challenge!”

Alternatively, Aaron explains, “I have gained so much working with Kara. She personally inspires me to just go for it and achieve my own best, while the work itself [partnering in dance] is about making your partner look great.”

To the heart of the matter, Aaron passionately shares, “dance is made for everyone… and just being involved in UADC this year allowed me to overcome some personal obstacles and fall in love with dance all over again.”

Guest Choreographers are essential to the growth and development of students pursuing an education in dance.

First year student Jessica Doughty, dancer in Constellations We Make, choreographed by guest artist Kora Radella, commented on her experience working with a guest choreographer:

What has been your experience with guest choreographer Kora Radella been like?

“It is my first year, but I think working with a guest choreographer is awesome because it is someone that we usually wouldn’t get to learn under. It enhances our learning by broadening our experiences and the types of people that we get to work with. If there is ever a chance to work with guest choreographers you should absolutely take it.”

How has working with Kora been different than your past experiences?

“Her process is definitely different. She is just so easy to work with. She isn’t about having to look perfect; she is more concerned about the dancers themselves, their expression of the movement, and their existence in the piece.”

What have you learned about yourself and the creative process by working with guest artists?

“I think that working with different guest choreographers and artists has helped me learn that I am a versatile dancer.”

Jessica went on to explain that being in multiple pieces for UADC has been eye-opening in the fact that focus and attention to detail is needed to go from one style of dance to the next. Through the work she has done with Kora Radella and Nick Carlisle, choreographer of Trendencies, Jessica feels that she indeed has the ability to adapt to various kinds of work and creative processes.

Kora Radella has been an asset to this year’s UADC Spring Concert. Her style of choreography has enhanced student learning by exposing dancers to new and alternative perspectives on what concert dance can be. Her contributions have given merit to the choice of bringing guest choreographers into the Dance Program here at The University of Akron.