Dance Exchange at Facility for Rare Isotope Beams Opening
Pictured clockwise from top left are Project Stage Manager Dante Fields; WaMPS Representatives Huey-Wen Lin and Jessie Micallef; Dance Exchange Artists Keith Thompson and Ami Dowden-Fant; Wharton Center for Performing Arts Institute for Arts and Creativity Intern Katie McArthur; and Happendance artists Missy Lilje and Chloe Gonzales.
What was Dance Exchange doing at the public preview of a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science laboratory that studies rare isotopes?
The answer lies in one of Dance Exchange’s current projects at the intersection of art and science, Of Equal Place: Isotopes in Motion. A multimedia performance and engagement, the project expands who gets to dance and who gets to be a scientist by centering youth, women, and people of color in its explorations of nuclear physics and dance.
On Saturday, March 23, the project’s Creative Director, Keith Thompson, and and Director of Creative Engagement, Ami Dowden-Fant, joined scientists at Michigan State University to count down the opening of the Facility for Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB). They were joined by partners from Happendance, Missy Lilje and Chloe Gonzales and student representatives from Women and Minorities in the Physical Sciences (WaMPS).
Together, the team shared 45-minute teaser of Of Equal Place: Isotopes in Motion which engaged event attendees in exploring nuclear physics and the research at FRIB through dance. The full work will premiere in early November 2022, with opportunities for local audiences, including middle school students and teachers from Lansing Public Schools in Michigan, to experience live performances and related Physics On Your Feet workshops.
“It was particularly meaningful hearing from both general and science audience viewers how our process of mixing physics concepts with movement concepts resonated with their experience. This helps us understand that our work is on track including the right ingredients for the stage version and Physics on your feet workshops.”
To learn about opportunities to partner with or support Of Equal Place: Isotopes in Motion, please contact Dance Exchange Creative Producer Stephen Clapp at stephenc@danceexchange.org.