The choreographer will celebrate the 20th anniversary of his dance company with performances at the George Washington University Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre this Thursday and Friday, and on Sept. 21 to 22. A Korean-American, Burgess loves to tell the stories of how immigrants “have become part of the American tapestry.” What can audiences expect from the performances?
We will be performing four really important pieces. They are works which all deal with the question of “Where do I belong?” They deal with that question in multiple ways, whether it has to do with a love relationship, with one’s relationship to a community, relationship to family and race, even relationship to life. I’m really excited for it, because it represents two decades of working on a very unique aesthetic.
You blend contemporary dance, ballet lines and martial arts into your choreography. Where do you get your inspiration?
I’m very inspired by new Americans. We are a country made up predominantly of immigrants. America continues to shift in its look and its feel and its stories. In the show, one of the works, “Hyphen,” deals with concept of the confusion of the hyphenated American, when the hyphen connects you to a community, such as an Asian-American, Or at other times it disconnects. I’m interested in the in-between places.
How has the D.C. dance scene changed in 20 years?
I think that we have always had a lot of emerging companies. I think there has been a shift in dance because most dance companies don’t own their own facility, but now in Washington a lot of theater companies have their own facilities. The scene of dance is still very vibrant, but if a young choreographer is entering the field now, I think the staying power of building an organization now is difficult terrain because of the economy.
– Liz Essley
