CLAIRE KENDALL CREATIVE PROJECTS
Presenting Denver would like to shine the spotlight on Claire Kendall and Claire Kendall Creative Projects!
Choreographer Name: Claire Kendall
Company Name: Claire Kendall Creative Projects
Hometown: Santa Fe, NM
Current city you live in: Louisville, CO
Education: BFA from SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance / UNCSA High School Program, Ballet Concentration
Website: https://clairekendall.art/
Presenting Denver: Tell us something about your experience choreographing for the Festival. What drove you to choreograph this piece?
Claire Kendall: Last year I had the remarkable opportunity to spend three months in Yellowstone National Park. While hiking in the northern part of the park, I happened upon four North American Wolves enjoying an early morning about 100 yards from the trail. It was a rare (and terrifying) sighting that wolf watchers often only dream of experiencing. This encounter sparked my fascination with wolves and the 1995 Wolf Reintroduction Project. I recently finished reading Nate Blakeslee’s American Wolf, the story of O-Six, a charismatic and iconic Alpha female living in Yellowstone’s Lamar Valley. Now that I’ve settled into my new life here in Colorado, I feel creatively compelled to continue my exploration of wolves through dance, using wolf pack social dynamics and physicality as inspiration for collaboration and creation. I’m thrilled to dive into this process and begin transcribing all of my research into movement.
PD: If you ever have free time, how do you spend it?
CK: Outside! I love the wilderness and the mountains, especially here in Colorado. There’s so much to explore! I grew up hiking and camping and snowboarding, but when I left my hometown of Santa Fe to train as a dancer, I left a lot of that behind to focus on my craft. Now that I’m back out west and living in such a beautiful state, I’m rediscovering the adventurous side of myself. My passion for environmental art absolutely stems from my love for nature and a call to the outdoors.
PD: What do you hope your audience takes away from this piece?
CK: I believe that dance builds personal, visceral connections to ideas and concepts that are sometimes unexplainable and yet very real. I’ve found that my goal as a choreographer is to try to achieve this connection with my audience. I’ll settle for awareness, but I’m always hopeful that at least one person leaves with a new perspective.
PD: What is the best piece of dance career advice you’ve ever been given, and by whom?
CK: Stop thinking about how to do it and just go for it. Make it happen, don’t wait for it to happen. –San Francisco based choreographer Maurya Kerr
PD: At this time in history, what do you feel is the purpose, meaning, or effect of dance for your audiences, students, dancers, the Festival, you or others?
CK: To be present, to be in our bodies. To get off our phones and laptops and remember what it means to physically express ourselves.
PD: Please list any upcoming events, programs, classes or shows that you would like Presenting Denver and our audiences to know about. Thank you!!
CK: Stay up to date with my upcoming events and projects at https://clairekendall.art/ or on Instagram at @clairekendall
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