Eleanor Polak photo
CONTRA-TIEMPO's Ruby Morales: "We’re gonna practice ancestral technologies.”
Bennie Morris was not having a good day. Somebody had hacked his bank account, and he was on the way back from the bank to cancel any outgoing checks. Not to mention, it was 88 — and felt like 92 — degrees out, and he had to walk through the New Haven Green under the burning sun, wearing a full suit.
But then Morris passed the Arts and Ideas tent where CONTRA-TIEMPO, an activist dance theater, was holding a dance workshop in anticipation of its show, ¡AZUCAR!, this weekend. As he was about to walk right on by, somebody waved him over and invited him to join. Suddenly, Morris’s day changed drastically for the better.
CONTRA-TIEMPO’s goal was to bring dance to the members of the New Haven community, and provide them with a safe space to express themselves without shame or self-consciousness. “With this [event] in specific, I think it’s cool that CONTRA-TIEMPO, which is international, can bring so much culture and art to the community,” said Dara Willmerth, a stage manager for Arts and Ideas.
“All our movement comes from the Afro-Latina diaspora, and all our work is highly focussed on social activism,” said Ruby Morales, resource director for CONTRA-TIEMPO and one of seven members who came together to lead the workshop. The other members were Jose Jose Arrieta, Edgar Aguirre, Maritxell Carrero (production and tour manager), Alék Gabríela Lopéz, Maria Garcia (communications and social media assistant), and Holly Johnston (human systems ecologist).
Morales encouraged members of the workshop to introduce themselves and share their favorite dance moves. The answers ranged from complex jumps and spins to the more simple.
“I like to walk,” joked one attendee.
“We’re gonna practice ancestral technologies,” said Morales. She referred to the idea that we inherit ways of movement from our ancestry, which have formed through hardships, and stressed the importance of call and response.
Edgar Aguirre leads a call and response.
Aguirre led the first call and response. He chanted the names of various body parts — “rodillo,” “pecho,” “hombros” — while demonstrating a movement for each part.
Alék Gabríela Lopéz leads a call and response.
Then Gabríela Lopéz took over. They recited a chant that went “these feet are not your feet, cause these are my feet.” Carrero and Johnston joined them, each replacing “feet” with a new body part, before opening it up to the attendees.
Morris made his way into the center of the circle. “It’s not the universe, it’s you. I want to try my best, can you help me?” he chanted to the same rhythm. The staff and attendees applauded.
Gabríela Lopéz ended the chant with the words, “this moment is our moment. It’s your moment…This life is our life, this love is for all of us.”
Next, Morales introduced the concept of the clave: “A rhythm that is inside and it’s rooted in the tradition of Africa.” The group experimented with different ways to sing, clap, and stomp to the beat. Then Garcia said, “We’ve embraced the clave, we’ve sung the clave, we’ve tapped the clave, now we’re gonna dance to the clave.”
Maria Garcia leads the dance.
Jose Jose Arrieta leads the dance.
Bennie Morris and Edgar Aguirre dance in a soul train.
Salsa music played, and the group imitated Garcia’s movements as she danced. Then they transitioned into “Wobble” by V.I.C., and danced a line dance. After that, a different CONTRO-TIEMPO dancer stood at each side of the square tent and the audience moved between them, mimicking their movements. Eventually, everyone joined a long line of dancing bodies that wove into a circle, and became a soul train to “Lose Control” by Missy Elliott, featuring Ciara and Fat Man Scoop.
Holly Johnston leads a breathing exercise.
All of that dancing in the extreme heat necessitated multiple water breaks, and as the hour drew to an end, Johnston decided to lead the group in a cool-down and calm-down exercise. She taught them a variety of stretches and breathing exercises designed to ground and settle their heartbeats.
“Place your hands on your head, and breathe your head into your hands,” Johnston said. “Place your hands on your heart, and breathe your heart into your hands … Place your hands on your back, and breathe your back into your hands. This is your community at your back, holding you.”
The members of the workshop lauded CONTRA-TIEMPO for creating a fun, shame-free environment. Heidi Thorsen, a pastor at Trinity Church, had stopped by to enjoy the “unself-conscious dancing.” She appreciated the chance “to be out in public and not worry about messing up, just having fun.”
Betsy Sledge, a board member for Arts and Ideas, praised both the dancers and the Arts and Ideas organization for putting together the event. “The spontaneity of it, the energy of it, was really fun,” she said. “I love how much of the community comes out for it.”
As for Bennie Morris, he ended up finding the workshop to be “carefree” and “innovative.” “The energy was unbelievable,” he said. “It taught me about another dimension of the human spirit.”
Morris not only received a bit of stress relief, but made some new friends. One fellow attendee, Shy, even gave him money for gas. “Whatever spirit made me stop, blessed me,” Morris said. “I want to thank God for making me stop.”
CONTRA-TIEMPO will be performing their show ¡AZÚCAR! Friday at 8 p.m. and Saturday at 3 p.m. at the University Theatre. Visit the A&I website for details.