INTERVIEW WITH CHOREOGRAPHER DARLA JOHNSON

 

Darla Johnson, ACC dance faculty and choreographer, grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She moved to Austin at 19, then went to New York to pursue her dance career from the time she was 22-24, after that she moved back to Austin where she resides now. A few artists that have inspired Darla most are Nina Martin, Twyla Tharp, Bill T. Jones, Pina Bausch. When asked about the process of creating and teaching a new dance piece for her Fall 2021 Performance Dance Course students she says, “There is always a level of acceptance for myself and the mystery of the process because I never know what will happen.” She then spoke about the process of the students learning the dance and their interpretation and how that can change the meaning of her original idea for the piece. After asking Darla if there were any challenges with the piece she mentioned the use of props in the dance. She had an idea on how to incorporate a certain prop that didn’t end up being achievable; the dancers and Darla then had to work around this obstacle and find a different way to use the prop while still using the original meaning behind it. The meaning and theme of this piece are related to climate change. She has been reading a book called A Wild Love for the World, and that's what she is titling the dance. She hopes the audience will gain a love for humanity, a love for the people on stage, a love for the natural world, and a connection to all.

Interview by Madison Rygaard