{image1}Sarah Wilbur is the 29-year-old artistic director of Danceworks Performance Company, one of the city's most creative and explorative dance collectives whose performances routinely pack their studio at 1661 N. Water St.
Modern dance is a slippery term, and in this chapter of Milwaukee Talks, Wilbur helps to delightfully blur the definition even more. "(We've) incorporated frogs, bellhops, Stepford wives, court dances, polka and our larger works have been all over the map," she says.
A self-described "big mouth who doesn't mind making decisions," Wilbur's insights, wit and down-to-earthiness make Milwaukee's dance scene -- and the world of modern dance in general -- appear fascinating and accessible. Even to those of us with twin left feet.
OMC: What is your definition of modern dance and/or what "kind" of modern dance do you choreograph?
Sarah Wilbur: I have to smile when people ask me this because the answer is always changing. I'll borrow my answer from choreographer Twyla Tharp: "Modern dance is MORE! It's everything that has ever been done ... PLUS!" I like Twyla's answer because it emphasizes the limitless possibilities within the form.
At Danceworks, we call ourselves modern choreographers because we refuse to pin ourselves down to one style or form. Our dancers all have a strong technical foundation in ballet and modern dance technique, but I think our success as a dance company in this city has come from our differences. At Danceworks, no two dancers look or move exactly alike, but they are equally compelling and powerful. Each company member we hire brings specific skills to the group. I like to call them each "jewels in the crown." This draws a more diverse audience, coupled with the Danceworks' sense of invention and adventure.
I'll give an example: Our last concert "Lucky Seven" included movement inspired by famous dance entertainers -- think Carmen Miranda and Sammy Davis Jr. --and it also used music by classical composers like Dvorak and Frank Martin to balance things out. This kind of crossover or variety is quintessential Danceworks.
OMC: What is the "mission" of Danceworks?
SW: Danceworks is committed to improving access to the arts by making original work that enthuses a wide range of audiences. We take work out of the studio and theatre; we facilitate processes that create work that resonates with diverse groups of people; and we respond creatively to the challenges posed by collaborations with other artists and diverse communities. We contribute to the vitality of Milwaukee's cultural life by training artists and we build the audiences of the future by integrating arts activities and performances into the life of the community.
OMC: Did you grow up in Milwaukee? Why have you stayed here instead of moving to a larger city?
SW: I was born in Milwaukee, grew up in Wauwatosa and now own a house in Bay View with my husband, comedian/actor Eric Price. I graduated in '96 from UW-Milwaukee with a BFA in dance, and although I went as far as to pay a security deposit for an apartment in Brooklyn, I chose to stay in Milwaukee for several reasons.
The short answer is that I stayed because of the balance. The long answer is that my family is here, the man I love is here, Danceworks offered me a job choreographing and producing concerts here. So, I stayed. It became very clear to me that Milwaukee could be a place where I could make a livable wage dancing.
Directly after I graduated from college I began teaching in the dance program at UW-Milwaukee, and these two gigs -- Danceworks and UWM -- meant that I could quit my "day job" waiting tables, so I was working full-time in the field by the time I was 24. To be able to work exclusively as an artist in ANY city -- large, medium or small -- is a blessing.
OMC: Are you still in Studio 1661? Are all of your shows still sold out? Why not move to a larger space?
SP: Our studio is still located in the Northern Lights Business Center -- we occupy the entire first floor of 1661 N. Water St. It is true that we're bursting at the seams, both with our studio class offerings of over 50 classes a week and our company's performances in our studio theatre. Although our studio shows are at a premium, we also perform up to two other season events at off-site venues around town. This season we're performing at Alverno College and the Scottish Rite Masonic Center where we rent space. But it's true, no matter what the venue, everyone just packs the house for those shows in our smelly studio theatre! This trend led Danceworks to raise money last year to install a permanent lighting grid in our black box. This allows us to offer extended runs of our popular studio shows, give our students a space to get valuable stage time and offer the space to emerging and independent dance artists who want a critical mass in a low-risk venue for minimal rent.
Attention choreographers of the future: Do you hear me? There's room, room, room, for more, more, more! You need to read that in a dissonant sci-fi voice for full effect.
OMC: Do you dance every day?
SW: Yes. How's that for a short answer? Wait ... I'm wrong. I rarely dance on Sundays, unless we have a concert or the Packers win a big game. Go Favre. Sigh.
OMC: How many full-time dancers are in Danceworks? It appears that they are all women -- why is that?
SW: We currently have seven company members, along with an occasional guest. We -- the resident choreographers and I -- have hired mostly women because, quite simply, there are more strong available female dancers in this city then male dancers.
OMC: How have you incorporated the other arts into your performances?
SW: In a city with a limited number of professional dance companies, it is essential to immerse yourself in other areas of the artistic community to gain new approaches to the creative process. Personally, I attend a good share of arts performances and I believe wholeheartedly in Milwaukee's arts scene. Our most valuable collaborators at Danceworks have been just good people who surround themselves with honest and talented peers and make great things happen, and quite often these people are artists in other arts disciplines.
Danceworks has collaborated with visual artists like Jeffery Johnson, Richard Taylor, poets Jen Benka and Stacey Syzmaczek, Composers/Musicians Geoffrey Gordon and Kevin Stalheim of Present Music with whom we've done three concerts, writer Anthony Wood and guest choreographers Janet Lilly, Ed Burgess, Li Chiao Ping from Madison, Brian Jeffery from Chicago, Reggie Wilson and Ben Munisteri from New York City. Usually our cross-disciplinary projects are better seen than described, but I'll try.
How do we do it? It depends on the demands of the discipline. A recent example is my current project: a choreographic collaboration on a new work for Danceworks with choreographer Ben Munisteri for our joint concert on March 6 at Alverno College. Ben is a choreographer from NYC who we've worked with before, and we're trying to do an "interstate collaboration" where we work for a one week intensive on a quartet made by editing each other's movement material in the hopes that a new "hybrid dance language" will emerge.
Who knows? It's all a process, with a major learning curve, but actually most of our concerts at Danceworks come about through collaboration. Our choreographers are comfortable enough with each other to share credit, so I'm just trying this idea on for size with a guest artist. His type of shared billing relies to some extent on the absence of the ego and a sense of humor. Ben is a dear friend and a wonderfully gifted dance-maker, so I'm excited. Collaboration is generally a careful mix of inspiration and compromise.
OMC: I read that you incorporated Physics into your performances. Explain this.
SW: Well, physics is an inherent part of dance, whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. "Thrown" was an evening length piece I made last season based on principles of Physics: Acceleration, Force, Balance, Momentum and Revolution. We threw ourselves into the wall of the studio, among other things. What else?
OMC: What else have you mixed with dance?
SW: Let's see ... when we do mixed repertory evenings -- many different dances not necessarily related -- anything is fair game. For instance, music visualizations which are the bulk of our work with Present Music. We've also incorporated frogs, bellhops, Stepford wives, court dances, polka and our larger works have been all over the map.
OMC: How did you land the job at Danceworks?
SW: I was invited to direct a performance company at Danceworks because, as I just said, I have a big mouth and don't mind making decisions. I did not want to join a pre-existing company because I wanted to make my own work. I also was incredibly inspired by my peers in college, and these nine other women (the founders of DPC) were also choreographers searching for their own voice through a shared aesthetic. This is the spirit of the DPC. It's a team sport. I just have the biggest mouth.
OMC: Is Milwaukee a good place for a dancer to live? Why or why not?
SW: This is a loaded question, and there is certainly more than one answer. It really depends on an individual dancer's definition of "good." If you're interested in choreography, I think there is room to make your own choreography in a place like Milwaukee. If you're trying to train to dance in a music video, there is a shortage of places to do that. For dancers who are training to dance for other people, I'd say Milwaukee lacks a range of strong professional training centers besides Danceworks, Milwaukee Ballet and the UW-M dance program.
OMC: Where else do you/have you choreographed?
SW: Recent choreographic commissions include the University of Wisconsin Whitewater, a dance for the closing credits for a TV pilot for the Sundance Film Channel produced by local filmmakers David Robbins and Sarah Price, Marquette University's Theatre Department and two shows for the Skylight Opera Theatre. I just wrapped up the "party scene" for Paula Suozzi's new '"Romeo and Juliet" at Skylight set to open January 30th. It is a very broadly defined piece that fuses Shakespeare's play with the opera and it was an honor to be a part of it. Future projects with the Skylight are on the horizon, as well as a multitude of exciting stuff with Danceworks. It's never the same day twice, really.
OMC: What, approximately, does a Danceworks dancer earn?
SW: We're proud to say that after six years we finally have put the dancers on part-time salary, paying them for rehearsal and performance. This is almost as good as it gets in the dance world, and they're worth a zillion dollars more, easy. But they certainly appreciate the chance to do what they love every week, and get paid. You can't put a price on that.
OMC: How many hours a week do you dance? How many hours - approximately -- do other Danceworks dancers dance?
SW: Including teaching, I'd say I dance between 20-25 hours a week when we're not in performance. Most of our dancers are in the same boat; many teach dance and all of them take technique during the week.
OMC: Is weight a major issue with modern dancers like, say, ballet dancers?
SW: If you move for a living, your body stays fit in comparison to '"the everyman/woman." Modern dance is more lenient in that it honors a range of physical body types. In ballet, the general demands of the form limit certain dancers from achieving professional success. In the modern dance world, professional achievement is gained by dancers of all sizes, but perseverance and commitment to the discipline of the form are mandatory.
OMC: What would you like to do next or down the road?
SW: I'd like to see the next dance artist or dance company/collective emerge in the city. When DPC was founded, we were the first dance company to emerge in the city in a decade, and it's already been seven years for us. I'd like to see more young artists stay and take a chance on Milwaukee.
OMC: What are you working on right now?
SW: Well, my half of the "Beautiful Things" piece with Ben Munisteri is about finished - it premieres March 6, so now I'm listening to music given to me by Kevin Stalheim of Present Music and we're negotiating the program for "'Til Death do us Part," our fourth collaborative concert which takes place May 7 - 8 at the Scottish Rite Masonic Center. I am just about wrapped with Skylight's "Romeo & Juliet," so I'm basically teaching and operating in "artistic director mode," creating next season's offerings and booking our black box for the summer and beyond.
OMC: How old are you? You mentioned you're married. Do you have children? Any other hobbies?
SW: I'm 29 . On the back nine of "the best year of my life" or so someone said recently. I turn 30 in August. Children: we want some, soon. It's a delicate balance when "mom and dad" have chosen careers in the arts. We own our house along with many other artists in the supportive and hip neighborhood in Bay View. Hobbies? I pretty much pass out once I enter my house. This is a combination of the daily double-digit workdays, physical demands and the fact that I have a really comfortable couch.
OMC: Who are your role models?
SW: My mom, dad, husband, brother and the six beauties I'm lucky to share the stage with each concert at Danceworks. Period.
OMC: What would you do if you weren't a dancer?
SW: If I'm being selfless I'd say I would work as my husband's manager because he's simply the funniest man I've ever met or seen, but in "real life" it's hard to say. I know you didn't ask, but I know what I wouldn't do. I could never be a consultant of any kind. There is just very little accountability associated with that title, in my humble, low-earning-artistic-director-opinion.
OMC: When did you start dancing? Where? Why?
SW: At age five, the Wauwatosa recreation department had 45-minute ballet/tap/jazz/tumbling classes at my elementary school every Friday and I went until the 6th grade. I quit dancing for sports in middle school and first half of high school and was re-introduced to dance through the choreographer for our high school musical in 11th grade, Margo Kuehn, who was an instructor for the Milwaukee Ballet. Margo convinced me to start training again and to, ultimately, major in dance in college.
OMC: What are your favorite shows that you've choreographed or danced in?
SW: There's no one favorite, I'm afraid. They've each marked a very important turning point for Danceworks. I love them all, in their own way. Having concerts is a little like having kids, but without the fighting.
OMC: How is Danceworks different from other modern dance groups I the city? What makes you unique?
SW: I think that the concept of four resident choreographers creating original work under a shared work ethic/aesthetic is unique. I also think that this mix of originating artists coupled with the dancers' willingness to do "anything anyone asks them to do" has resulted in some wild shows that appeal to a lot of people from all walks of life.
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.
