Everything Happens For A Reason

I'm really excited for your project!!

On February 8th at 8:00pm my friends and I went to see the movie Moonlight in the Hoff Theater at stamp. Moonlight had been on my list of movies to see since the trailer for it was released. Very rarely do we see coming of age stories about black youth, especially when the main character is a black man who questions his sexuality. Black boys are usually depicted as men, thugs, always “on”, rough, and other negative stereotypes, but Moonlight shows the may layers of the black boy/man. The movie is split up into three stages of, Chiron, the main character’s life based on the names that he goes by in certain stages his life; Little, Chiron, and Black. There are four main supporting characters who have a great impact on Chiron’s life, regardless of how many stages of his life they were apart of one, two, or all three. I would see this movie again in a heartbeat, not just because of the story being told but because of the way it was it told. The director made very specific choices regarding the cinematography that make the film visually stunning. 

The theme for the entire showing was love and the film was a silent film about a couple that broke up. It follows the guy, in a heterosexual relationship, and shows his perspective of the break up. It was cool because the way in which it was filmed made it so much more emotional. In different parts of his apartment, there would be flashbacks to when he was dating his ex-girlfriend. With the film being silent, the audience had to pay more attention to the actor’s body language and facial expressions. As a dancer all I do is read body language so I caught onto what was happened in the first few minutes.

I went to see the Gamer Symphony Orchestra on November 19th. CPSA’s very own Alexia Owusu-Sakyi was a main violinist and I went to support her, but ended up finding enjoyment through the music. I have only heard the orchestra when go to ballet performances or broadway shows, but I had never seen them above ground till this concert. Therefore, this concert was the first time I had been to an actual orchestra performance where the musicians were the sole focus of show. I did not realize how many members of an orchestra there actually are. You hear this music and you know that there are all of these different sounds going on, but it is a whole other thing to actually see all of them onstage and to then hearing a sound a trying to seek out  the specific  instrument/person it came from adds another layer to the experience. The times when I was letting the music take me away, I went the places where I would envision these songs. Even as my eyes would close, it wasn’t because I was tired, but because I could better imagine the setting for these songs. I do not think that I would see other GSO performance unless my best friend stays in the group, but I’m happy that I got to experience it because there was a huge turnout and I could tell that the performance meant a lot to orchestral music lovers well as video game fans.

I love theater and I’ve grown up watching shows, so going to see The Call  was enjoyable. The show was about a young white couple who decided  to adopt a child from Africa. They are really good friends with a black lesbian couple. The white couple struggles with deciding if they really want to about and if it should really be a black child and the black couple help them with their decision and what it would mean to raise a black child. I really liked this show because it talked about race, nationality, Aids, and culture. This play did a great job of navigating through these topics, which allows for the audience to continue conversations after the show ends.

I along with two other of my friends went to see the Herman Maril exhibit in the Art-Sociology building. I do not have a huge knowledge of painters and other fine artist, but I actually enjoyed the exhibit. Maril is from Baltimore and at one point in his career he was an art professor here at UMD. One of my favorite pieces that I saw in the exhibit was, Flower Pot By Window (pictured above). It was painted in 1960 and made by using, “ink wash with ball point pen and  paper. It’s a really simple piece, and the title is exactly what is on the paper, a flower pot by a window. At first the painting looks like it was a rough draft and not the final piece. It’s really simple yet, but I found joys in the simplicity.

In the first or second week of the semester I two dance classes with Mamela Nyamza. She did a three week guest artist residency in the Dance department (my second major). I took a technique class with her and she also came into my creative process class. I learned about her and her work in so many different forums so when I saw her performance, Hatched, at the Clarice on September 10th, I felt as if I saw deeper meaning to the piece, than the average audience member. Hatched was a one woman solo, with the color red at the center; Literally. She had a red piece of fabric that covered the entire stage and for 5 minutes of the piece she wrapped herself into it. She wasn’t afraid to take her time with everything, which saw hard to watch sometimes, but at other moments I wanted her to keep going. Not only is she and her dancing beautiful, but it was very honest.

On April 23rd at 9pm, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter premiered her visual album/film called Lemonade on HBO. Hundreds and thousands of people tuned in to watch what she had been working on but, kept secretive about. My friends and I went into the Bel Air Study lounge that night to watch this event. Beyonce released a visual album in 2013, with no publicity and it took the world by storm, so we had our expectations set very high and she and her team met everyone of them. Her film contained new music and visuals for every song, poetry, dance, and fashion. Themes that came up within the entire thing, were her marriage and infidelity and the stages that one goes through when dealing with adultery, her childhood, the importance and black women, and so many other things. I know that this I did not go and see this in person, I did sit and watch it twice in a row and then a third time a week later, trying to take in every aspect that was incorporated into 1 hour.  

Les Ballets Jazz De Montréal who performed at the Clarice Smith Center for Performing Arts this past Thursday on May 5th. I was, and still am, obsessed with every aspect of what I was given the privilege to witness and absorb. There have been very few dance performances that I have seen, where I have felt all of the highs of performing without being in the performance, and Les Ballets Jazz De Montréal is now one of them. After seeing the performance, I came back to my dorm and ranted to my two friends for 20 minutes, trying to explain to them what I had just witnessed and how it made me feel. I even called my mother and told her the same thing.  Not only were they talented dancers but, the entire composition from the lighting to the music, transported me to a world where dance was the only form of communication. As I was watching the show I whispered to myself, “I have to do this.” I have no idea what I mean by that, but just seeing them dance at the level they were, made me wish I had a fraction of the talent/passion they did. This show inspired me to want to become a better dancer and performer. I want to make people feel the same way I did when I was watching them. From what I can see the only way they got to that level of performance quality is through years and years of technique and pushing through the pain, self-doubt, and anything other obstacle that got in their way. It was truly an honor to see them and I hope to remember this performance for as long as I can.