Pilobolus x Posner Workshop

Much of popular theatre is built on the assumption that storytelling necessitates verbal language...but what can performance look like when we transcend these bounds? Pilobolus, the famed collaborative dance company, seeks to address this unanswerable question.

​This month, I took part in an intensive workshop led by Matt Kent and Renee Jaworski of Pilobolus in conjunction with AU professor Aaron Posner. Utilizing texts from Shakespeare's The Tempest and A Midsummer Night's Dream, we spent the weekend unearthing that way famous stories resonate in our bodies and imaginations. There was no final performance in mind—guided by the text, we explored physical theatre concepts like weight sharing, flocking, and improvisation.​

Photographed by Elena Zimmerman

I am so grateful for this opportunity to play and explore with my classmates in a process-over-product setting! I discovered a passion for physical theatre during my time studying abroad, and was thrilled to be able to revisit it on my own campus.  Discovery and collaboration are at the heart of Pilobolus's mission, and I can't wait to bring what I learned into my future projects. The workshop was an excellent reminder that every member of a company has something unique to contribute to the stories we tell onstage. ​

Major thanks to Aaron, Matt, and Renee for this experience!