Dancing with Trees

Dancing with trees is a durational movement exploration in conversation with the mythical world of Elizabeth Chapin’s Treespell. Dancers will become part of this world, adding another layer to the conversation of the transformative power of the gaze and offering the body as a fully present, living archive.

Dancing with Trees is a BLiPSWiTCH work created in collaboration with dancers Hailley Lauren, Taryn Lavery, Alex Miller, Sarah Navarrete, and Aiden Rodgers. BLiPSWiTCH is an Austin, Texas project-based dance company established in 2015 as an inclusive platform to unite artists in creation, unbound by individual mediums, to share in the cultivation of a more multifaceted arts community. Founded and co-directed by Taryn Lavery and Alex Miller, BLiPSWiTCH offers the most financially accessible ongoing weekly open contemporary dance class in Austin, and with the help of countless collaborators, they have produced nine evening length works, an original collaborative series— “Offbeat”— currently upon its 11th installment, five long-form movement installations, ten short-form pieces, two short films, and set commissioned choreography for local performance companies, music festivals, films, and music videos.

ABOUT THE DANCERS

Hailley Lauren, originally from NYC, developed her training through various studios in NYC including Steps, Peridance, and Broadway Dance Center. She received her honors dance diploma from the High School of the Performing Arts in NYC and her BFA in Dance Performance from Towson University in Maryland. She has performed professionally for various choreographers in both NYC and Austin for over 10 years. She is a company member of Arcos Dance and an in house collaborator with BLiPSWiTCH. She also works in the music industry choreographing and performing in music videos and for live stage performances with various bands. She has performed at ACL Festival, Float Fest, Hot Summer Night at Stubbs Waller Creek Amphitheater, Saturnalia Festival and SXSW. Some of the bands she has worked with include: A Giant Dog, Golden Dawn Arkestra, Tomar and the FC’s, Sweet Spirit, The Bloop Pumps, and Tinnarose. Hailley is also a film/television/commercial actress starring in several commercials and independent films and is represented by TAG Talent in Austin.

Taryn Lavery, a Utah native, fuses her classical background with a desire to revitalize modern dance for broader audiences, extracting a new form of contemporary performance. She is a freelance dancer and cross-disciplinary design artist with a creative philosophy rooted in the belief that presentation is an extension of process, deserving equal care and holding equal weight. Together, through BLiPSWiTCH, Alex & Taryn’s deep collaborative history has refined their artistic styles and firmly rooted them in their focus on collaboration and site-specific performance works as an avenue to community expansion.

Alex Miller is a ULL alumni with a BFA in Performing Arts and holds an MFA in Dance from Hollins University. She is a Louisiana native who now calls Austin, TX home. Alex’s dance journey has taken her around the world which has deepened her artistic voice. She is a Pilates Instructor, dance educator, choreographer, and performer interested in the intersection of dance and collaboration of any and all mediums.

Sarah Annie Navarrete, originally from El Paso, is an Austin based artist working in a diverse area of mediums including performance, photography and film. Described as a “dancer and photographer, floating skillfully between these worlds” – Austin Chronicle, Sarah’s image based work explores kinetic narratives through an emotional tone as they relate to identity and the human body.

Aidan Rodgers is a movement artist and Pilates instructor located in Austin, Texas. While completing her BFA in Dance from Sam Houston State University, she had the opportunity to perform works by Crystal Pite, Sidra Bell, Joshua Manculich, and NobleMotion Dance. Passionate about the innate connection between the corporeal and the mind, Aidan finds creativity in the way we experience the world through our physical bodies and senses. Inspired by how we process these interactions, she has used this research to refine her choreographic voice while having her work presented internationally. In recent endeavors, Aidan has performed as a featured soloist for Anna Bauer and BLiPSWiTCH. Additionally, she has directed and choreographed several dance films that were selected for screening at virtual festivals across the nation.