HIJACK

HIJACK

HIJACK is the choreographic collaboration of Kristin Van Loon & Arwen Wilder and the confluence and clash of two independent compositional/kinesthetic impulses. Van Loon & Wilder both grew up in Chicago. They met at Colorado College and established their collaboration in Minneapolis in 1993. Specializing in the inappropriate, HIJACK is best known for “short-shorts”: pop song-length miniatures designed to deliver a sharp shock, and football field-scaled spectacles for 15-50 performers. The duo has taught and performed in Japan, Russia, Central America, Ottawa, Chicago, Colorado, New Orleans, Seattle, San Francisco, Philadelphia, New York, Austin and Maine.

“Our dances embrace juxtaposition. Believing work left in dialogue form opens itself to dialogue with the audience, we present two individuals’ point-of- view, yet unreconciled. We ask “how can two different or contradictory elements (people/values) exist together?” with our idealistic belief that they can. In this way we avoid didactic treatment of sociopolitical issues striving, instead, for subtlety and wit when addressing serious subjects. “

HIJACK actively questions where and for whom dance is performed by choosing unconventional venues and projects. Specializing in the inappropriate, they toy with audiences’ expectations through their interpretation of venue. They perform each HIJACK dance in both social and theatrical spaces. Pieces bear the imprints of the places they’ve been.

Their work has been commissioned by many including James Sewell Ballet, Walker Art Center, DTW/Tere O'Connor's "Nothing Festival", Bates Dance Festival, Links Hall, 3-Legged Race, Ballet Arts Minnesota, Purest Spiritual Pigs, Flaneur Productions, Barebones Puppet Collective, Carleton College, and the University of Minnesota. Most recently, they created and toured smithsoniansmith, a collaborative trio with Scott Heron (New Orleans/NYC).

Choreographic Fellows | January 14 – February 1, 2011

redundant, ready, reading, radish, Red Eye

While at MANCC, choreographers Kristin Van Loon and Arwen Wilder (HIJACK) began the development of a new work based on the investigation of verbal narratives. Their research included working in the studio with writers Jennifer Portman, Senior Writer for the Tallahassee Democrat, author Pam Ball and author and American Book Award Winner Bob Shacochis as well as FSU School of Dance students. As part of Kristin's focus on journalism HIJACK toured Florida's capital city newspaper The Tallahassee Democrat and discussed issues relating to the endangered status of the print newspaper, the public record and writing history with Democrat staff. Arwen was specifically interested in researching the area of language development and explored the linguistic rhythm of dance and creation of narrative when viewing dance during the residency.

During the process of development they addressed their approach to collaboration – as a duet they have a successful model for artistic union, but wanted to challenge their assumptions and reliable structures for co-creating. To this end, they looked at the mythology of HIJACK, the story of nearly 20 years of collaboration with photographer Bill Starr who has been following their work since 1991.

In addition, they participated in a panel discussion about their collaborative work process with choreographer and MANCC Visiting Artist Juliette Mapp and shared their early work-in-progress at a public Informal Showing.

Collaborators in Residence: Bill Starr [photographer, writer, archivist and dramaturg], Morgan Thorson, Jennifer Arave [performers]. Slideshow photos by Bill Starr.