ABSTRACT
I believe in the accessibility of dance for everyone, everywhere. For decades, I danced in venues ranging from informal spaces such as a school gymnasium in rural Valley, Nebraska, where pivotal irrigation systems are manufactured, to quaint performance spaces such as a Paris attic atelier in the eighteenth arrondissement, where mint tea is popular and outdoor markets abound. Throughout those experiences, I have been guided by the writings of Barry Commoner, a renowned physicist and ecologist, who, in his 1971 work The closing circle: Nature, man and technology, proposed a theory of four “Laws of Ecology,” in which he discussed the increasing rise of industry and technology and their persistent negative effect on all forms of life. Commoner proposed that the following laws of ecology can inform and sensitize us regarding our connection to the natural world: (1) Everything is Connected to Everything Else; (2) Everything Must Go Somewhere; (3) There Is No Such Thing as a Free Lunch; and (4) Nature Knows Best. I have interpreted them as guidelines for daily living and for my creative pursuits as they provide a deeper understanding of where my niche is as a member of an ecosystem.
