I Heart Gibney Interview with Leal Zielińska
A Celebration of all things Gibney, I <3 Gibney is our annual performance showcase, presenting works by Gibney’s vibrant community of staff, renters, teachers, colleagues, and supporters.
Senior Curatorial Director Eva Yaa Asantewaa sat down with the presenting artists and hosts to hear more about how dance is a form of love. Below is her interview with Gibney Company Artistic Associate, Leal Zielińska.
Get your tickets for I <3 Gibney on February 11, 2020 at The Theater at Gibney 280 Broadway.
Eva Yaa Asantewaa: Who is your most loved dance ancestor?
Leal Zielińska: Whenever I steer away from the reason to dance, I rewatch Cave of Forgotten Dreams, Werner Herzog’s incredible documentary film. It follows explorers, as they access the never-before researched Chauvet Cave in southern France, discovering ancient visual art dating over 30,000 years. The thought of our early ancestors having the need to create, express themselves, to tell stories and share their identities, moves me to think of what dance must have meant to them! It never fails to inspire me to see the inevitability of humans being artists.
EYA: What do you love most about dance?
LZ: Coming from a strong practice in improvisation, I have been curious about why I feel so drawn to this form of moving. I often have urges to move in order to process or express feelings, or make sense of something for myself, and this is the best way I know to seek this relief. Thinking of improvisation as a physical dream has been the best way I’ve been able to verbalize what one can experience during a period of research. Allowing snippets of thoughts, anxieties, memories, hopes—and anything else we try to let go of before falling asleep–to form our dreams can have a metaphorical expression in the physical body, when we allow it to make sense of its vast experience through movement.
EYA: How is dance a form of love?
LZ: Communication with others, self love, and endorphins!
EYA: What do you think could help more people love dance?
LZ: Many people, upon learning that I’m a dancer, immediately follow up with a disclaimer of how terrible a dancer they personally are. First of all, it’s not up to the dancer to judge their skills! Second, this does not have to be a competitive activity! If more people felt free to just enjoy movement, more people might allow themselves to seek pleasure and fall in love with dance!
EYA: What do you love about Gibney?
LZ: The incredible community that Gibney holds is transcendent!
Photo of Leal Zielińska by Nir Arieli.