Dance as part of the artistic training towards freedoms
I believe that as a path of artistic professionalization, it is essential that the artist deepens his/her/x commitment to art as an integral being, in other words, how he structurally trains the being with his mind, emotion, body and spirit for his quality of life at the service of his art. For example, in the field of the mind, the artist can train his intellect by sharing philosophical conversations, reading books, watching movies, writing, working with psychoanalysis therapy, etc. In the field of emotion, having psychological, organizational, social and physical tools to recognize and transform anxieties, stress, breakups, mournings, to have emotional intelligence to deal with difficult conversations, etc. In the field of the body, the artist can have a designed physical trainning to strengthen the muscles towards his artistic execution and avoid injuries, lifting weights in a gym, doing crossfit, strengthening muscles with kinesiological exercises, having a good work posture, having quality of sleep, a healthy nutrition, etc. In the spiritual field, he can train consciousness by practicing Zen meditation, Ashtanga yoga, connecting with nature, spaces of solitude to contemplate life without technology, doing spiritual rituals or ceremonies, etc.
That whole health structure that strengthens the capacity and disposition for quality of life at the service of art, which also forms an ontological rhizome where the fields nourish each other, I call it "artistic training".
From that training perspective, dance is a great tool for commitment to the field of the body, which releases expression and creativity of the being to absorb that experience and make it art, as the case of this artwork "Before Judgement" where dancing became the central symbol of liberation, from the exploration of dancing in my body.
Why is dancing a good workout? What type of freedom does it provide and why is it important to exercise it?
I think that dance is more liberating when it is a creative flow of infinite improvisation. I'm talking about the type of dance that I show in the video below, which is a freedom that has no place in choreography, there is no movement that is the same as the other. Dance gives freedom when there is a spiritual commitment to that continuous playful creativity. It is a commitment to sincerity due to the connection between the internal excitement and pleasure that music provokes in me, and the pleasure that circulates through the expressions of my body. It is a dance that celebrates existence with the body connected to the unrepeatable dynamism that is life itself.
On the other hand, and beyond pleasure, dancing in dark phases is an emotional regulator, it helps me not to drown in difficulties and also to celebrate pains. Regarding "emotional regulation", I think that its benefit is evident for anyone who has danced to have fun, and you can search for details of the chemicals that are secreted and see more scientific data elsewhere, because I am more interested in share ideas about "celebrate pains", it could be a different point of view.
I think that as a culture we should be able to celebrate certain sufferings and tears. We are in a culture that rewards success, and that successism enclose celebrations only for positive emotions and achievements, and I see many more possibilities for celebration than those, for example, in celebrating the courage required to be vulnerable after resisting with narcissistic walls to recognize a truth about oneself, celebrating the victory of the cathartic cries that come from recognizing how wrong one was or how envious or alone one is as a result of one's behavior or from perspectives that one have about oneself and others, all the bravery it takes to change oneself and celebrate every step that one take towards it, between fear and uncertainty. All of these transitions could be similar to the feeling of a mourning, and that pain needs to be celebrated as a liberation that could disarticulate patterns and egos of oneself defended with violence, control and manipulation, and it could finish in humble and expansive processes of self-esteem. That beautiful broken spaces, are liberations that are impossible to achieve from joy or success.
Pain can also be celebrated through dancing, honoring our being and body that endures the pain of liberation and transformation. Dance is not only for joy, it is for valuing spiritual growth, in all its dimensions and all its steps forward, no matter how minimal they may be, and that has to include pains of revelations. The painful steps of change are the ones that require the greatest courage, sometimes they are the most difficult things to do, because a centimeter in another direction could open the possibility of a new way of see what one is, what is life or could open another universe of possibilities and relationships, these minimal progresses have enormous value for me. That's why in every step there is a possible celebration, one can move forward a millimeter through that discomfort and celebrate one's entire life. Celebrating honors and empowers what is celebrated, and to change, I believe that is fundamental to learn to celebrate, especially for liberating pains.
That is why I think that non-duality needs to be practiced in dance, to expand the range of what is celebratory, and on the other hand, to understand that there are neither good nor bad movements while dancing. Perfection and talent in dance is a creation of academies, canons of beauty and stereotypes that live in us, but beyond that, dance is a flow of appreciation to connect with oneself, and we judge it from that supposed perfection (also from the typical contempt for what is different such as "crazy" or "sick") to the point of inhibiting it.
For example, this inhibition of dancing can be very noticeable when we want to dance in spaces that are not socially permitted to do so, such as when I listen to music at a bus stop and I have the desire to dance, but I resist doing it, because I have to go through layers of my own and other people's judgement ("bad dancer", "crazy", "strange", "in need of attention", "stupid", etc.), and the discomfort of going through it takes more place than my freedom, and I end up repressing the dance. My pleasure and the expression of my being are not in my present, so I can be myself just when I am alone in my room or at a party where everyone is dancing and I can feel accepted with less resistance.
That relationship between dance and judgement, is very important for the artistic training that opens creativity, and for the freedom of being (and also, this is a symbol that can be extrapolated to many other situations that are repressed). Just as you can find empowerment in expressions like "I speak my truth regardless of what others say", there is that power of revitalizing independence from the body too, because by dancing you expose yourself as "I am this", when you dare to dance when you desire to dance is also self-esteem, because deep down, it is about value to live what you want to live in your own way, and decide to move beyond the acceptance or rejection of others.
That is why I believe that dance is a very good tool, it explores pleasure by challenging judgement. It is a freedom that rubs with the other, and it is a friction that brings interesting self and social knowledge to express it in art. Frictions that serve to exercise "being oneself", that is why this artwork is called "Before Judgement", because before judging ourselves and being judged, we desire to be free to be oneself and to release one's pleasure expressions, and because of the fear of being judged, we live being what (we think) the other wants us to be, we lose our being and deprive ourselves of a true life. But before judgement, there is that jump of dancing that I represented in the piece, a jump of freedom, which in many situations, we should learn to jump until we achieve it and enjoy our empowerment of being.
There will always be other people's judgement, but the artist as a sensitive life pulse of sincerity, he/she/x can take his exposure to judgement as part of his professionalism, because it serves him to live his truth from authentic experiences, as well as to express vulnerably what he discovers from those experiences and represent them in his work. With that, he can open reflections and make us contemplate the repressions that we have, he can say what is not being said by society, and crossing walls of fear where he has managed to be himself, that also can make a way for others to be themselves and live their truth.
