Sisterly Dancing

Elizabeth Ann Bowie is a staff writer for The Liberator, the award winning newspaper for LASA, which is where I went to high school and where my sister Willa goes now. She interviewed me about making and performing Lean On Me with Willa, who originally had the idea to make a dance performance for charity. It was a nice opportunity for some reflection...

EB: How did you feel performing in general?

AB: The chance to perform as a dancer and choreographer is always thrilling. You have the audience's attention and you have to keep it, taking them into your world and telling them exactly what you want with a totally different type of specificity from words.

EB: And when working with your sister?

AB: This year Willa and I performed a duet together and that was pretty cool. It was a sort of "evil twins" dance and it was fun to play with the characters. The competitiveness and scheming were fun to play up as sisters, and afterwards I got a lot of comments about how similarly we dance, which is a total compliment for me because Willa has so much more ballet training. Choreographing with Willa can sometimes be difficult because of my personal need to impress my little sister. It can be weird telling your sibling what to do. At the same time I always want to work with her because she is an amazing dancer and I admire her so much.

EB: How did it feel to know you were going to donate the money to Doctors Without Borders, and help someone? And why do you think it is important for students to volunteer or participate in fundraisers?

AB: Giving is important. We need to feel that connection to the world, knowing that we can make a difference. It's a totally different experience putting on your own charity, and I think everyone should try their hand at it because it really is rewarding.