LOWER aka us

choreography –  Melanie Maar
creation and performance –  Mariangela Lopez and Melanie Maar
with Edith Greutmann
versions with sound –  Christian Conrad Schroeder
photo credits –  Miana Jun, Kiky Thomanek

premiered at Draftworks series/Danspace Project NYC 2008
2008AUNTS Populous, Brooklyn
2009 Austrian Cultural Forum NY, Feminism & Art
2013 moe Vienna – with Christian Schroeder
2015 Austrian Cultural Forum NY- award celebration

‘The dance began with a vision of birthing a stone egg on the altar steps of St.Marks Church.
It happened, as part of a trio of women. It was about using our voices as dancers. Vibrating the air, sexuality across ages and undressing to merge into a body of rhythmic meditation and spastic composition. What do we see that is not visible when looking at a female naked body or an aged woman?’

Later I extracted and expanded the rhythmic duet part and called it ‘us’.
We focused on seen and heard sound composition, contained ecstasy, energetic empathizing and energetic cycles that seemed present in the unison movements between Mariangela and I.

Several performative versions became a collaboration with sound artists Christian Schroeder. We joined two ideas we have each worked on. How to bend the sinus sound, which in it’s electronic manipulation becomes a very distinct yet subtle physical experience. How to bring awareness to the merged aspects of sound and movement perception?’

Mariangela Lopez, Edith Greutmann, Melanie Maar
photo by Miana Jun