Contemporary dance provides a way to engage with the world – with yourself, with society, with life itself.
It can be beautiful, moving, funny, silly, uncomfortable, scary, boring, impressive, ugly, confusing, heartfelt, abstract, innovative, repetitive, bold, empowering, alienating.
It stirs up conversations, it creates a framework for thinking, it entertains, it connects.
It is different to other artforms because it relies on bodies – human bodies moving in a space – which holds its own innate power.
I want more people to experience contemporary dance. I want theatres to be full, and I want contemporary dance to appear more on the street, at festivals, in film, online. I want people to take a chance on an experimental show, to have conversations about it on the bus home, to read about it the next morning. Most of all I want all people of all backgrounds to feel that dance is for them: that they can understand it, they can watch it, they can do it.
COMMOTION is a membrane between artists and audiences.
It exists to help its readers to understand dance, to be educated about it, and feel empowered to attend dance events.
It exists to help artists make their work visible and approachable, through profiles, interviews, articles, and the Choreographers’ Scrapbook.
COMMOTION is a community of writers and readers, connecting through dance.
Image: Alan Mason
Pagan is a freelance dance artist from Shropshire, now based in Gateshead, whose practice includes performing, choreographing, writing, and facilitation. She has worked across the UK and abroad with a variety of companies including EQ Dance Co, Desi Nach, Fertile Ground Dance, Meta4 Dance, Northern Dance, and is a current performer with Spark!, an international street theatre show. Pagan is also Co-Director of Pelican Theatre, making physical theatre work and delivering a variety of engagement projects for people of all ages and abilities.
Pagan’s passion lies in creating meaningful opportunities for people of all backgrounds to experience dance.